A new financial education platform was made available Tuesday to help Los Angeles youth learn how to budget, save money and make informed spending decisions, City Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez announced.
The platform is known as the L.A. Financial Literacy Hub, and is part of existing app called Suma Wealth. The Department of Youth Development and Rodriguez’s office partnered with Beatriz Acevedo, CEO and co-founder of Suma Wealth, to do the build.
Rodriguez said the idea stemmed from an article she read that highlighted how UC Berkeley offered a so-called “adulting 101” class.
“Young people are no longer being prepared with the tools to help navigate adulthood,” Rodriguez said during a news conference Tuesday at City Hall.
Officials said the tool comes as many young people are taking on more responsibility as heads of their households or for themselves after losing a parent or guardian due to federal enforcement of immigration law.
“You have the combination of that plus emancipated youth from our foster care system. Young people are having to figure things out for themselves, but more importantly, in this moment that we’re in, their head of household can change overnight,” Rodriguez said.
“It became incredibly far more important to do this work right now and invest in this launch and make this all happen with all these partners because we see how many families will now become destitute,” she added.
Rodriguez emphasized that it’s important for young people to be advocates for their families and make smart decisions.
“We want to make sure that we’re giving them a lifeline of support and not just sending them our thoughts and prayers,” Rodriguez said.
In 2021, Acevedo co-founded Suma Wealth with Xavier Gutierrez and 9thWonder, an independent marketing agency. The app is billed as a digital platform to teach the Latinx community how to build and sustain wealth, according to its website.
Acevedo explained there are free courses available on topics such as budgeting, savings, interest and credit scores. The app can examine spending patterns, contains a feature for savings, and can guide users to pay off debt.
“It’ll help you create a budget based on how much you are making. It’ll adjust your budget,” Acevedo said. “Some of our users asked if they could afford to go to Puerto Rico for a Bad Bunny concert. Instead of saying no, the app will say: `Let’s revise your budget. I’ll let you know what tweaks you need to make and what things you have to do.”
Acevedo, who also co-founded LA Collab and founded mitú, among other ventures, noted that 70% of Suma Wealth users are small business owners or individuals who are “solopreneurs, micropreneurs, and side hustlers.”
“Sometimes you hear from students that they sell on TikTok or have a side hustle with their family on the weekends, so we are also able to give you that coaching,” Acevedo said.
Information on the L.A. Financial Literacy Hub and the Suma Wealth app can be found at ydd.lacity.gov/FinancialLiteracy.