Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 1
POD: Secondary Discretionary
Expenses
Education, Communication,
Entertainment & Philanthropy
These budget categories should be considered in the final choices for the day.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 2
Education
Education: Fontbonne University
How does education affect income?
Advanced education opens up career
opportunities and usually leads to higher
income & lower unemployment.
Ask students for their thoughts. Ask them to stop by the Fontbonne University store front to find more information
displayed on their walls.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 3
Education
Career
Education
Avg. Income
6 yrs of College + Continuing Ed
$116,670
Mechanical Engineer 4 Year Degree + Continuing Ed
$84,770
Exterminator
HS Diploma + Certification
$30,060
Certification + Licensing
$19,220
Pharmacist
Nail Technician
Point out the increasing education and correlating increasing income for these careers.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 4
Education
Check your Life Scenario-What is your
educational background and
educational debt?
Your minimum payment for education today
will be towards paying off your debt. You may
choose additional education at an extra cost.
Remind students that they will need to add additional money to the monthly budget for education if they want to seek extra
education.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 5
Phone
Communication: Phone decision
Land lines
• Available at all times
• Faster emergency
response for 9-1-1
Cell phones
• Portable, but potential
signal problems
• Possible data
package
Consider these benefits to both types of phone service. If you have small children, which service is better? What happens
when children are with a babysitter or home alone? What happens in a power outage or when batteries are drained?
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 6
Cable & Internet
Communication: Internet
When you use the internet, are you using
it more for entertainment, school work, or
business?
Consider how you use the internet to choose
the most affordable access.
Is access important for communication with school, work, family or friends? If time allows, ask the students how their
families in the JAFPA are most likely to use it.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 7
Cable & Internet
Internet access
• Pay for internet access at home
• Use a data plan on a cell phone
• Free Wi-Fi at local library or some restaurants
In addition to internet service on cell phones, they can act as ‘hot spots’ to provide internet access to computers.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 8
Cable & Internet
Communication: Cable
What are the different delivery
methods for TV programming?
digital antennae, cable, satellite,
internet streaming
Ask each student to answer this question. Those who spend the most time watching TV are more likely to want a cable
TV package. TV programs can be watched via DSL U-verse, cable, satellite or digital antennae or the internet (Hulu,
Netflix, etc)
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 9
Phone, Cable & Internet
Communication: Phone, Cable & Internet
Consider the ages of your children when
making phone decisions today. If you bundle
your cable and internet you may be able to
reduce your monthly payment.
The average family of 4 spends about $400 each
month for phone, cable & internet.
Take an informal poll of services that students currently use. Ask them to estimate what their parents pay for these
services each month. In the JAFPA program, land line, cell phones and cable TV for a family of four will be about $400 a
month.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 10
Entertainment
Entertainment could include:
• Concerts
• Theater tickets
• Movies
• Dining Out
• Sporting events
• Playing sports
• Pet ownership
• Museums
All of these activities cost money. Most of them are a one-time expense. Pet ownership is a continuing expense. Food for
pets can be as much as $20 each month, with annual trips to the vet costing an additional $100.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 11
Entertainment
Stretching your entertainment budget:
• Visit the park
• Board Games
• St. Louis Zoo
• Bike riding
• Jogging/running • Hiking
• Grant’s Farm
Examples of free entertainment.
• Yard games
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 12
Entertainment
Dinner for four at a casual dining
establishment would be about $50.
What is the difference between casual
dining and fine dining?
Examples of casual dining would be an Applebee’s or Buffalo Wild Wings.
Fine dining establishments offer ambiance with table linens and gourmet food. They usually have a dress code and are
considerably more expensive.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 13
Entertainment
What would you expect to spend for an
evening at Busch Stadium for a St. Louis
Cardinals baseball game?
Approximately $75 per person. This could vary depending on:
Parking, seat location, food & souvenirs
How could you save money? Take public transportation, to avoid parking fees, bring in a small cooler of drinks, avoid
souvenirs, get bleacher seats!
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 14
Philanthropy
How will you share your time,
talent and treasure?
Make a plan and put it in your budget.
Ask students how they can help their community as they get older.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 15
Philanthropy
Volunteer Time – work in a soup kitchen,
coach a youth sports team
Donate Money – financially support
churches or other non-profit organizations
such as Junior Achievement
During Shopping today, students will be asked to make a philanthropy choice. They may choose an organization for a
monetary donation, and/or an organization to donate volunteer hours to monthly.
Volunteer Research Notes for Pod: Secondary Discretionary Expenses
Slide 16
Education: Fontbonne U
Communication: Phone
Communication:
Cable & Internet
Entertainment:
Philanthropy
Business ID:
Business ID:
Business ID:
918
879
768
Business ID:
Business ID:
246
221
Students must unlock each of these budget categories.
Please advance to first slide before the
next group of students arrives. When all
Research is complete, display the last
slide for the remainder of the day.
Thank you!