Milgard Center for Financial Wellness

Many college students and young adults are facing serious financial burdens and lack an understanding of their personal finances because it is often not taught at any educational level. The Center for Financial Wellness (CFW) at the University of Washington Tacoma’s Milgard School of Business is working to change how we talk about money. The CFW has two distinct directives: Financial Literacy led by Director Hui Suk So and Financial Wealth Creation led by Director Dr. Fei Leng.

With a generous donation from Sound Credit Union, the CFW offers accessible financial literacy workshops, discussing economic justice, mobility, and wealth creation. The center was also able to award up to $15,000 in Financial Wellness Scholarships to ten deserving UW Tacoma students this academic year.

Financial Wellness events are open to all students and to the public. A variety of topics are discussed such as: How to create and balance a budget, understand credit score and manage credit, car buying 101, how to manage money during uncertain times, investing, banking tools, wealth management, and first-time home buying to name a few.

With so many students managing to take college courses, work part-time, and prepare to pay off student debt, it’s critical to give them the confidence to make educated financial decisions for themselves and their families.

The Wealth Creation initiative includes the new Financial Wellness & Markets Lab - the first of its kind within the University of Washington system. The lab is equipped with a stock ticker showing real-time financial data, a world clock, and Bloomberg Terminal stations. Bloomberg is the world’s leading platform for global business and finance news, data, analytical tools, and research.

Students can gain hands-on experience in being able to monitor and manage real-time financial data, earn a future Bloomberg Terminal Certification, perform market, industry, and company analyses of large US companies, perform and build financial modeling, and learn to analyze, build, and manage investments/portfolios responsibly in a safe setting. The Bloomberg research tools can be integrated into many business disciplines and are expected to bolster student resumes and performance in internships. An official lab ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for the afternoon of Oct. 3rd, 2023. *See upcoming Financial Wellness Events Here

Events are open to the public. Advanced registration is encouraged.