It is not uncommon for financial capability practitioners in Indian Country to be stopped in the grocery store by our students and told how the class they attended changed their lives— that they now have an emergency fund. This has inspired us and prompted meaningful dialogue around what conditions improve long-term outcomes, and how to conduct follow-up that supports financial behavioral change. This report is intended to launch the longstanding and much-loved Building Native Communities: Financial Skills for Families (BNC) curriculum into all areas of this national dialogue. This report will argue that the BNC financial education program not only works, but that it has been critical in promoting long-term behavioral change.

This report will also argue that financial education curricula, uniquely adapted to the culture and needs of the intended audience, such as the BNC curriculum, is the cornerstone of effective financial education. Lastly, it will make recommendations, such as how to maximize the impact of financial education by using it as the foundation on which to build other financial capability programming.