Our Partners
Take Charge America, Inc. (TCA)
Founded in 1987, Take Charge America, Inc. , is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization headquartered in Phoenix, AZ. TCA is committed to helping consumers gain control of their finances through education, counseling, and when necessary, debt management. Education is the primary vehicle through which TCA assist consumers to stabilize their finances, manage their money wisely, use credit sensibly and save for the future.
Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE)
Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) is a global, non-profit organization that is literally changing the world through highly dedicated student teams on more than 1600 university campuses in 40 countries. SIFE offers these students the opportunity to develop leadership, teamwork and communication skills through learning, practicing and teaching the principles of free enterprise, thereby improving the standard of living for millions in the process. Guided by distinguished faculty advisors and supported by businesses around the globe, SIFE Teams teach important concepts through educational outreach projects, including market economics, entrepreneurship, personal and financial success, and business ethics to better themselves, their communities and their countries. Each year, SIFE competitions are held worldwide, drawing together thousands of students and business leaders to pay tribute to these extraordinary educational outreach projects.
University of Arizona SIFE
The UA SIFE team was established in 1998 and initiated the Credit-Wise Cats as a SIFE project in 2002. With funding provided by Take Charge America, Credit-Wise Cats has grown to the sizable program it is today.
Terry J. Lundgren Center for Retailing
The Terry J. Lundgren Center for Retailing is the home for the Take Charge America Institute (TCAI). This Center supports the Retailing and Consumer Sciences academic program by providing experiential learning opportunities for students. Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) is an example of one of the experiential opportunities that led to the development of the Credit-Wise Cats and the endowment establishing the Take Charge America Institute.
Take Charge America Institute (TCAI)
Take Charge America Institute for Consumer Financial Education and Research expands on existing outreach programs and research projects to bring its considerable resources and expertise to bear on one of the nation’s most troubling economic problems. Funded through an endowment from Take Charge America, the institute’s vision is both focused and far-reaching: to promote financial literacy, create new knowledge and implement research-based outreach programs for consumers nation wide. The mission of TCAI is “changing behavior through education” and the institute focuses on the issues of financial literacy through education, research, and outreach.
Family Economics and Financial Education (FEFE)
The mission of the project is to provide educators with no-cost curriculum materials, and the skills and confidence to effectively teach family economics and finance to their students. This is accomplished through a grant from Take Charge America, Inc. The project began in 2001, with the goal of determining what makes a curriculum work and how to effectively disseminate it to educators. In a collaborative effort with family economics and finance educators, it was determined that an effective curriculum must be easy to understand, simple to use, and low cost. It is the unique combination of no-cost, ready to teach curriculum materials and professional development opportunities that distinguishes the project from other family economics and finance program. FEFE is housed with Credit-Wise Cats in TCAI.
John and Doris Norton School of Family & Consumer Sciences
The Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences is in The University of Arizona's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The School provides instructional, research, extension and outreach programs that enable families, individual family members and consumers to achieve an optimum quality of life. Instructional programs prepare professionals for careers serving families and consumers in a culturally diverse and rapidly changing society.
