Washington Trust Provides Financial Literacy Program in Schools for Fourth Year

Washington Trust today announced that it is sponsoring free financial education classroom materials and training for 29 public middle and high schools throughout Rhode Island for the fourth consecutive year.

Teachers can access free digital courses, articles, financial calculators, interactive coaching sessions and more through Washington Trust’s partnership with Banzai, an online financial education program that teaches students to how to manage a budget, save for a goal, and understand credit.

Banzai’s education program aligns with Rhode Island’s K-12 academic standards, making the program a fun way for students to gain vital skills that help them meet the new financial literacy graduation requirements.  Banzai is offered in 12 different languages: English, Spanish, French, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt), Haitian Creole (Kreyòl Ayisyen), Portuguese (Brasil), Arabic, Hmoob (Hmong), and Korean. 

Washington Trust employees are also lending their time and talent providing interactive classroom lessons on financial literacy topics such as basic budgeting, savings and emergency funds, establishing and managing credit, and introduction to investing.  Representatives from banking, wealth management, mortgage and other areas of the company are part of the cadre of volunteer educators.

For the 2025-2026 school year, Washington Trust’s partner schools include 

• Achievement First High School (Providence)
• Calcutt Middle School (Central Falls)
• Central Falls Senior High School (Central Falls)
• Central High School (Providence)
• Charles Shea High School (Pawtucket)
• Classical High School (Providence)
• Coventry High School (Coventry)
• Cranston High School East (Cranston)
• Cranston High School West (Cranston)
• Cumberland High School (Cumberland)
• Delsesto Middle School (Providence)
• East Greenwich High School (East Greenwich)
• East Providence High School (East Providence)
• Hugh B Bain Middle School (Cranston)
• Johnston Senior High School (Johnston)
• Lyman B Goff Junior High School (Pawtucket)
• Mount Pleasant High School (Providence)
• Narragansett High School (Narragansett)
• North Kingstown Senior High School (North Kingstown)
• North Providence High School (North Providence)
• Pilgrim High School (Warwick)
• Samuel Slater Junior High School (Pawtucket)
• San Miguel School (Providence)
• Segue Institute of Learning (Central Falls)
• Sheila Skip Nowell Leadership Academy (Providence)
• The Learning Community Charter School (Centra Falls)
• Toll Gate High School (Warwick)
• William E. Tolman High School (Pawtucket)
• Woonsocket High School (Woonsocket)

In addition to the curriculum materials and classroom training, Washington Trust has an online Financial Wellness Center  that contains articles, calculators, security and money management tips, as well as web-based learning tools and other resources. The site provides information on key topics such as household budgeting, managing debt, and buying a home. 

For more information about partnering with Washington Trust to offer financial literacy tools and resources to your students, contact Jillian Balzano, assistant vice president, community relations at jrbalzano@washtrust.com.