Angela Lin's Persistence in the H&R Block Budget Challenge Will Pay Her College Tuition
KANSAS CITY, MO -- (Marketwired) -- 05/25/16 --
High school senior Angela Lin thought a lot this year about the university she would attend. With two older brothers already in college, a mother who teaches, and a father working abroad to help cover costs for the family, she also worried about how she would pay her tuition. That all changed this week when Angela won the H&R Block Budget Challenge and earned $120,000 in college scholarships.
Lin, age 18, of Sugar Land, Texas, was named most "real-world ready" out of more than 150,000 high school students competing in the national personal finance competition this school year. Lin earned a $20,000 scholarship through the H&R Block program this fall and was surprised at the Clements High School year-end ceremony for graduating seniors to learn she had also earned the competition's $100,000 grand prize.
Lin said she knew participating in the H&R Block Budget Challenge would help her learn more about money management and be beneficial for her future. But she had no idea just how beneficial.
"It's unbelievable," said Lin, who plans to enter the University of Houston this fall, studying management information systems. "This scholarship will pay for my entire college career and then some. This is such a tremendous help for my family, and my parents can retire now knowing my education is covered."
The H&R Block Budget Challenge offers high school educators free online curriculum that replicates an adult's financial life by requiring students to pay bills, save for retirement and repay student loans from the safety of a classroom. Lin's home state of Texas is one of only seven states that requires high school students to be tested on personal finance concepts before graduation1.
"Too many teens graduate each year without personal finance skills or the confidence to succeed on their own," said Kathy Collins, H&R Block chief marketing officer. "The H&R Block Budget Challenge helps address a critical need in thousands of high schools each year. Hearing what this program means to teachers and students is so rewarding and reinforces how important this program is."
In addition to providing free curriculum, H&R Block has awarded more than $6 million in scholarships and grants nationwide through its Budget Challenge. Lin's classmates, Jonathan Chang, Ashvin Nihalani and Christopher Winters were among the 132 students who earned $20,000 scholarships this year, and their business education teacher, Gregory Eppes, was among the 60 teachers awarded a classroom grant.
A new season of the H&R Block Budget Challenge will launch in September. More details will be available at www.hrbds.org.
About H&R Block
H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE: HRB) is the world's largest consumer tax services provider. More than 680 million tax returns have been prepared worldwide by and through H&R Block since 1955. H&R Block Dollars & Sense helps increase financial literacy among teenagers through curriculum and resources, grants to supplement the cost of personal finance education and scholarships to help young Americans pay for higher education. Since 2009, H&R Block Dollars & Sense has donated more than $8.4 million in grants and scholarships. For more information, visit the H&R Block Newsroom, www.HRBDS.org or follow us on Twitter and Instagram, @TeenMoneyTips and our Facebook page, HRBDS.
1- http://www.councilforeconed.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/2014-Survey-of-the-States.pdf
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Gene King
mediadesk@hrblock.com
816-854-4287
Source: H&R Block
