Rent- A- Center gives Junior Achievement $4,400
Contributed by Junior Achievement of Central South Carolina

Chris Presler, manager of the Rent- A- Center store on Decker Boulevard, presented a check to JA Board Chairman Jack Goettee, executive vice president of Metropolitan Markets for SCBT, at the April meeting of the JA board.

Junior Achievement of Central South Carolina announced has received a grant from Rent- A- Center, Inc., to fund the implementation of JA Worldwide's K- 12 curriculum with financial literacy components.

The $4,400 grant will enable JA of Central South Carolina to extend the breadth of its programs, emphasizing the critical need for financial education before young people leave high school and college to make their way in life.

With the generous funding, the JA operation will be equipped to better engage community volunteers to implement JA Worldwide programs, teaching children how they can impact the world around them as individuals, workers, and consumers.

As a cornerstone of the partnership, Rent- A- Center will help expand JA Worldwide's hands- on classroom programs preparing students for future financial issues they may face.

All JA Worldwide programs implemented through Rent- A- Center grants must be delivered in schools in which 51 percent of the student population qualifies for a free or reduced lunch program, stressing the importance of ensuring all young people have a fundamental understanding of personal financial literacy.

The funding is part of a nationwide initiative between JA Worldwide and Rent-A-Center, which involves an $800,000 grant to be implemented and dispersed over a four-year period. JA Worldwide Area Offices throughout the United States have the opportunity to apply for the annual funding. In 2008, 35 local grants will be distributed.