UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Co-developing a workshop about financial literacy, presenting that information to diverse audiences whose need for it is critical, and honing skills to prepare for a career that leverages her skills and values is exactly what Lex Shawbaker signed up for while pursuing dual master’s degrees in Penn State’s Smeal College of Business.
As part of the Tarriff Center for Business Ethics and Social Responsibility, Shawbaker is in the middle of MBA and master’s in corporate innovation and entrepreneurship programs. And as significantly important as it is for the Tarriff Center to conduct ongoing financial literacy and entrepreneurship programs for people who are incarcerated, what is equally purposeful is the dual success of the MBA students and faculty who teach the workshops.
“Financial literacy helps people center their values in their lives and elevate aspects of their identities that are genuinely important to them while navigating life’s tradeoffs,” said Shawbaker, a second-generation Penn State Smeal student whose father, Steve Shaw, graduated in 1982 with a marketing degree. “When I teach financial literacy, I approach the subject matter from the affective domain, connecting with students’ desires, emotions and motivations to facilitate the cognitive aspects of money management. Learning to budget starts with your why behind getting organized and how this action improves your life.”
The center’s most recent workshops offered financial literacy advice and instruction for those incarcerated at the State Correctional Institution at Huntingdon and at the Quehanna Boot Camp in northern Clearfield County, a military-style program with a drug and alcohol treatment component that focuses on discipline, cognitive therapy, work ethic and reentry services.
Shawbaker said topics during the workshop at SCI-Huntingdon were budgeting; managing loans and debt; credit cards, scores and reports; saving and investing; and finance and family. “We took the opportunity to get to know our students' values and what they wanted to learn from us as business students,” she said. “We wanted to build on their lived experiences and offer reliable financial information so they can make sound financial decisions anchored on their own values and goals.”
Shawbaker also cited the importance of the students’ comfort level of sharing their stories and feelings about money. She noted that attendees at SCI-Huntingdon enjoyed the series of workshops and there is a waiting list for the Tarriff Center’s next series; an additional session was added to the spring workshop to cover interests and answer questions, she said.
“The topics were relevant to their lives and goals upon release and immediately; many students have an interest in entrepreneurship and starting their own businesses,” Shawbaker explained. “Their professional interests fused with a desire to know more about current living costs such as rent, groceries and vehicles making for practical discussions alongside goal setting throughout the series.
“Many talked about applying the information learned about loans to pursue their educations and open businesses. I think they were pleased with just how much they already knew about credit, budgeting and general money management. That helped us elevate into additional layers for each topic.”
Shawbaker said the experience was electric with energy as the students knew the instructors were there to support them in succeeding after release. “One student’s ethics will stick with me personally and professionally,” she said. “In exploring debt, we were discussing what can be considered good debt versus bad debt. This student reframed the debt he owed to the victim’s compensation fund as good debt, an opportunity to support those hurt.
“His insight and depth opened a class discussion on the additional unique debts they juggle to society and their families that have supported them through the years and what it means to them to return some of the support. The consensus at the conclusion of the series was that everyone had a sense of hope, having gained significant knowledge and felt more capable after attending the series.”
Michelle Darnell, director of the Tarriff Center, associate clinical professor in management and the college’s honor and integrity director, oversaw the financial literacy development opportunity, but the six-week workshop at SCI-Huntingdon was largely developed by Shawbaker, MBA student Annie Cotton and a third MBA student who preferred to remain anonymous.
“Engaging our MBA students to develop content and teach courses in local prisons is a way for them to experience, firsthand, how they can leverage their own skills, knowledge and experience to empower others,” Michelle said. “Education plays a critical role in personal development. Business can positively impact lives. At the Tarriff Center, we are seeking to establish a sustained initiative, where faculty and graduate students can be supported to, in turn, support members of our communities.”
The 10-week entrepreneurship workshop at Quehanna, titled “The Entrepreneurial Mindset,” was developed and taught by Jamey Darnell, assistant professor of entrepreneurship, assistant director of the Center for Penn State Student Entrepreneurship and the assistant director of the Intercollege Minor in Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Its focus was on thinking like an entrepreneur, building a business model and validating that model.
Jamey said he was able to sense hope in the tone of the eight students participating at Quehanna. I would define it as more confidence in being able to try and start a new business,” he said. “I recall from my interactions with them that there were really two things that stood out the most to them. One was learning how to talk to customers. We practiced what are called problem interviews. The students really recognized the importance of this, being able to talk with and understand a customer’s needs.
“The second thing was focusing on and trying to understand the customer’s emotions. Both of these topics were mentioned in the student evaluations of the course as important things they learned. They are also central to the entrepreneurial mindset, which is how I taught the course. This views a business venture as a solution to a customer’s problem, rather than a ‘product.’”
The programs’ genesis, according to Michelle, emanated from a nationwide Prison Entrepreneurship Program (pep.org) designed to bring positive, transformative changes to the students, their families and communities. Michelle believed there was an opportunity for the Smeal College to engage in the broader community by collaborating with organizations and people involved with prison education programs. She collaborated with Efraín Marimón, assistant professor of education (curriculum and instruction) in the College of Education and director of the Restorative Justice Initiative (RJI).
That initiative is a group of faculty members, graduate students and stakeholders dedicated to restoring and empowering individuals who are incarcerated by providing programming and educational opportunities in multiple correctional facilities in Pennsylvania.
The Darnells believe the program is a success, but progress ultimately will be measured, Michelle said, on whether various institutional partners such as Tarriff Center, RJI and prison administrators believe their own objectives have been met; volunteers can describe specific ways that they have grown as leaders; and participants’ skillsets objectively increase.
Equally important is experience gained for the students who help conduct the workshops. Shawbaker, whose professional background is in teaching financial literacy and in managing cooperative, sustainable businesses that emphasize ethical practices, said she leaned into how much she valued learning from others’ differences while preparing for the workshop series by intentionally crafting open-ended questions and pivoting the delivery weekly.
“I knew the students would each come to the classroom with unique life stories, and it was up to us to draw those stories out and connect them to the financial management topic of the session,” she said. “It is a rare opportunity to explore business ethics with such a diverse group of people.”