Starting in the 2026-2027 school year, personal finance will become a requirement for all graduating seniors. This change comes as a result of an act passed by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
According to the PDE, personal finance “focuses on the fundamentals of personal finance, income, spending, saving and investing, risk and insurance and credit.”
“Students gain some real world knowledge that they will need to apply as young adults once they hit the age of 18,” personal finance teacher Zoe Horton said. “All different types of loans, retirement planning, as simple as what is the difference between a debit card and a credit card, how to write a check, just the small things that no one thinks about teaching.”
Junior Julian Trimmer takes personal finance for the fall semester.
“I think it’s super good that it’s a required class because lots of people are financially illiterate, and I’m a big fan of both the class and Ms. Horton,” Trimmer said.
This change will require all current eighth graders to take personal finance, but no current high school students will need the class to graduate.
Personal finance will be scheduled as a junior class, similar to how health is typically a sophomore class.
“I think eleventh grade is the perfect age to take it because you might have just started earning your own money, or you’re starting to think about at least the future,” Horton said.
As of Dec. 19, 2025, no decision has been made as to whether personal finance will be offered as a summer school or cyber class.
“Overall I think it’s a necessary class, but I’m not 100% sold on how they are implementing it as a mandatory class,” sophomore Elijah Gibson said. “[A summer school option] makes it better, but I still wouldn’t be happy because that’s then $75 for a class I still don’t think I should have to take.”
Horton feels that personal finance being made a required class will help better prepare students for life after high school.
“It’s important because a lot of kids lack the skills, and you can’t just set them into the world without teaching them the skills they need to learn,” Horton said.
