The format may have changed due to COVID, but TruMark Financial® Credit Union hosted its annual Financial Jeopardy competition Apr. 20, 2022, and awarded seven students scholarships totaling $10,800.
Prior to COVID, the credit union hosted a game-like competition with a 10 x 10 screen where participants were given clues focused on personal finance subjects, and the room was staged with podiums and buzzers, much like the television version of Jeopardy. To keep everyone comfortable and safe, the credit union opted to forgo having a large audience with students, parents, and guests. Instead, students were given two scenarios and asked to write an essay recommending the best way to address the situations by applying their personal finance knowledge. In addition, there was a personal interview component via Zoom and a final Jeopardy question.
Edwin Santos, a senior at Northeast High School walked away with first place, a $5,000 scholarship. He applied the personal finance concepts he learned, made good recommendations, and offered several options to address the situations. His responses during the interview were right on the mark. He will be attending Community College of Philadelphia where he plans to study accounting. He said he chose a community college because it was more affordable than a private school where he would incur a huge amount of debt. "The $5,000 grand prize scholarship means a year of tuition paid and it’s a weight off my chest," said Santos.
Second place winner, Upper Dublin High School student Daniel Duan, received a $3,000 scholarship. He is headed to Dartmouth College in the fall and plans to study environmental science.
Radnor High School senior Casey Cullen clinched third place and will attend Herbert College of Business at Auburn University where she will major in finance and be a member of the swimming and diving team.
In addition to the top three prizes, TruMark Financial awarded a $200 credit union savings account to each of the other four contestants:
- Tom Khmil, Bensalem High School
- Chloe Kirkland, Cheltenham High School
- Vicky Zhang, Lincoln High School
- Alex Halbert, Plymouth Whitemarsh High School
TruMark Financial held its annual Financial Jeopardy competition via Zoom this year. The contestants eagerly await to learn who won the $5,000 grand prize scholarship
Edwin Santos, a senior at Northeast High School, was the grand prize winner of a $5,000 scholarship. Santos plans to attend Community College of Philadelphia in the fall.