Personal Finance for Native Americans

Course description:

Starting on Feb 27, 2025, this free course will be held live online via Zoom, offering a unique opportunity to enhance your ability to manage your finances and take the first step towards your financial goals. The course will utilize a Native centered curriculum to address the unique needs of Native American communities.

The course includes four virtual sessions (you can watch and participate at home on your computer or smartphone!) covering topics such as organizing your finances and record-keeping, goal setting, budgeting, saving, using credit, understanding credit reports, and more. Pascua Yaqui Tribe members and employees are offered an additional in-person session to be held at the Pascua Yaqui Tribe-University of Arizona Microcampus (7400 S Settler Ave, Tucson, AZ 85746). Participants will choose between specialized tracks depending on their financial goals. Tracks may include Starting Your Investing Journey, Financing Post-Secondary Education, and Starting a Business.

Class schedule: Virtual over Zoom:

• Thursday, 2/27/2025, 5-6:30pm
• Thursday, 3/6/2025, 5-6:30pm
• Thursday, 3/13/2025, 5-6:30pm
• Thursday, 3/20/2025, 5-6:30pm

• Final date for the in-person session is to be determined.

Final class In person at the Pascua Yaqui Tribe – University of Arizona Microcampus – 3/27/2025.

Course fee

A $10 registration fee is required to participate in the course. No additional tuition is required.

Admission procedure

Enrollment is limited to 25 students. Applications will not be considered for admission review until the applicant has paid the $10 non-refundable application fee. 

Should we receive more applications than available seats, priority will be given to Pascua Yaqui students, in line with our commitment to support the PYT-UA Microcampus mission and enhance tribal access to educational opportunities. 

Applicants not admitted in this batch will be considered on a rolling basis for future batches.

Instructor

Shawn Spruce (Laguna Pueblo) is a financial education consultant serving tribal entities and other organizations.  He draws from a diverse background of professional expertise, engaging interpersonal skills, and impactful life experience to empower individuals, families, and communities.  Tribal investment training, lump sum preparedness workshops, and fraud awareness outreach highlight a few of his specialties.  In 2021 he was awarded the Ketchum Prize, the highest honor from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation in recognition of his outstanding advocacy, teaching, and outreach as a champion of investor education and financial capability in Native communities.