The Scholarship That Teaches Investing

Real Money. Real Education.

THE FINANCE LAB MODEL

01

$250 disbursed

Set Your Goals

Complete self-paced modules on financial goal-setting and define what wealth means for your life.

02

$250 disbursed

Know Your Risk

Learn about risk tolerance, index funds, and the principles of long-term investing. Open your real brokerage account.

03

$250 disbursed

Build Your Portfolio

Invest at least 10% of your scholarship in real markets. Make real decisions with real money.

04

$250 disbursed

Present Your Strategy

Present your investment approach and portfolio rationale to a panel of professionals at our showcase event.

WHY THE FINANCE LAB

Free online curricula teach students about investing. We teach them investing by doing it. That's a fundamentally different philosophy — and it changes outcomes.

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Real Money, Real Stakes

Our students invest actual dollars in real brokerage accounts. Not simulations. Not hypotheticals. The emotional weight of real money changes how students engage with every concept.

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Earned, Not Given

Scholarship funds are disbursed in milestones tied to learning. Students earn their next $250 by demonstrating competence — creating accountability that a free course cannot replicate.

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Authentic Audience

Students present their investment strategies to panels of real professionals. Knowing you'll defend your choices in public transforms how seriously you approach the work.

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Designed for Equity

Built specifically for underserved communities — with inclusive processes and a focus on first-generation wealth builders who won't typically get this education at home.

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Years-Long Relationship

From spring application through the first two years of college, our scholars have ongoing mentorship and support. Learning sticks when it happens over time, not in a single afternoon.

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College Transition Support

Financial literacy meets a critical moment: the transition to college. Students learn to invest while navigating the biggest financial decisions of their young lives.

What Makes Us Different

Every year, over one million students receive scholarships to pay for college.

But here's what most scholarship programs miss: the opportunity to teach students about the money itself as it changes hands.

Most scholarships fund education.

We fund education AND teach financial independence.

What We Do

The Finance Lab gives students scholarship dollars AND teaches them to invest a portion of it. Students open real brokerage accounts, build portfolios, and learn to manage money while they're still in school—not a decade later when they're making life-changing financial decisions like buying a house, changing jobs, or starting a family.

Students in The Finance Lab don't just answer questions about compound interest—they watch their own investments grow in real time.

They don't just learn what an index fund is—they buy one.

They don't just read about risk tolerance—they experience it as the market changes.

Mission

To provide students from underserved communities with personalized, experiential financial education that teaches them to invest and build wealth.

Vision

To prepare youth to pursue their financial goals and navigate life's money challenges.

The Impact

By teaching students to invest at 18 instead of 30, we give them a 10-15 year head start on wealth building.

That head start can translate to hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional retirement savings and helps break the cycle of financial insecurity.

We're not just preparing students for college. We're preparing them to build generational wealth.