Ms. Barbara Sutton

Barbara Sutton brings reality "front and center" for the financial literacy class she leads. "Many of my students are interested in starting their own business, so I give them as many tools as I can," Ms. Sutton says.

The 90-day class is part of a life skills program that for young lawbreakers, who are typically 17 to 28 years old.

Her toolbox is quite full. Ms. Sutton has built on the curriculum she inherited from previous program leaders, and added various Practical Money Skills lesson plans. The class uses budgeting worksheets, a financial literacy quiz and exercises that help her students carefully think through every aspect of starting up a new venture.

Students in Ms. Sutton’s class learn about crucial entrepreneurial tasks like performing market analysis, calculating start-up costs, and getting the right fiscal and legal guidance. The financial literacy quiz also covers general topics like how to be a savvy consumer and maintain a good credit rating.

"We brainstorm ways to save more. We talk about financial scam artists. I get them to create a budget, and most are amazed at their findings," she says.

They also look inward, examining their personal motivation for wanting to become a business owner and questioning whether their personality and situation in life are well suited to the extreme challenges involved in making a new company prosper.

These exercises are a first for many students. The business checklist is especially useful, says Ms. Sutton, "to let them see what is required for starting a business. It doesn’t look as easy on paper as it does in their dreams."