Shatana Johnson, vice president at Citizens First Bank, talks to area middle school girls Wednesday, March 13, 2019, during Junior Achievement's JA Girl$ financially literacy program at Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College. The JA Girl$ program is a gender-specific initiative designed to teach girls and young women about financial literacy, career preparation, and entrepreneurship. (Bac Totrong/photo@bgdailynews.com)

Two hundred middle school girls traveled to Southcentral Kentucky Community and Technical College on Wednesday to learn about budgeting, debit cards, personal branding and more during Junior Achievement of South Central Kentucky’s third annual JA Girl$.

The one-day event aimed to empower girls by preparing them for the working world utilizing Junior Achievement’s curriculum – along with successful Bowling Green women.

“These are real world lessons,” said Abby Phillips, director of education at Junior Achievement of South Central Kentucky and event organizer. “It’s a chance for the girls to ask questions and build confidence.”

About a dozen professional women led the girls through worksheets, group activities and mini lectures on how to be financially successful.

Lindsey McClain, assistant vice president of business development at American Bank & Trust Co. in Bowling Green and a Beautycounter consultant, returned for a second year with a new face: Allie Sharp, the coordinator of student and young alumni engagement at Western Kentucky University.

McClain and Sharp taught the girls about personal branding.

“Our brand builds our reputation, we build it every day,” McClain said. “You might think ‘I don’t need a brand at this age, I’m in middle school.’ But a lot of times what we do at that age follows us. … We have to make sure what we’re presenting to the world is positive.”

Sharp warned the girls that employers can review social media profiles set to “private” and draw conclusions on potential candidates based on posts.

They gave examples of “positive” social media influencers like Beyonce and Justin Timberlake, and the girls suggested Taylor Swift, Cardi B and Kylie Jenner.

The girls appeared particularly engaged in this lesson, and Sharp and McClain conveyed gratitude for the opportunity to work with them.

“It’s amazing to see all these young women wanting to do better,” Sharp said.

“Some of these ladies may not have a positive influence at home,” McClain said.

Jana Sublet, executive director of Court Appointed Special Advocates of South Central Kentucky, offered a lesson on how to be a well-rounded employee and helped the girls differentiate between technical skills and soft skills.

Sublet helped initiate the program after learning about Junior Achievement’s work during an annual Women’s Fund of South Central Kentucky – a philanthropic nonprofit – dinner. She participated in the first two Junior Achievement Girl$ events, too, and thought the inclusion of more worksheets, PowerPoints and sweet treats helped capture the girls’ attention this year.

“I think they walk away with different knowledge,” Sublet said. “We targeted this age group because this is the time they should be learning that stuff.”

Shatana Johnson, vice president of branch banking at Citizens First Bank, packed as much financial literacy into the girls’ minds as she could in a roughly 20-minute session.

Using a $25,000 salary as an example, Johnson guided the girls through the calculations to determine tax liability and biweekly paychecks, and explained how to create a budget by tracking short-term, long-term and sporadic expenses.

“Every expense, no matter how small, you should keep up with it and track it,” Johnson said, “to set up an accurate budget.”

Six schools participated this year: Bowling Green Junior High School and Warren East, South Warren, Butler County, Drakes Creek and Henry F. Moss middle schools. Each school handpicked the 220 seventh- and eighth-grade students for the event.

Next year, Phillips thinks Junior Achievement can create an even larger influence.

“The hope would be that we would be able to expand and impact more girls every year,” Phillips said. “At the end of the day, it’s not just about the careers. It’s about exposing them to different pathways and different people in the community.”