Summer is around the corner! For those of us in the colder regions of the U.S., the warmer months present us with options we longed for during the winter, but how do we take advantage of the warm weather? What are some ways we can save over the summer? Check out local opportunities: If you are...

Webinars provide a safe environment to explore new or challenging topics. As financial educators, we aim to provide a safe and inclusive environment where participants feel comfortable asking finance-related questions. Chat comments from participants during our 2023 financial education webinar...

Have you heard the news? Do you use the Mint app to track your spending? Maybe you haven’t if you are not a Mint user. But the very popular budgeting app Mint launched in 2009 is phasing out to become integrated into the Intuit-owned app, Credit Karma. They are saying the Mint app will no longer be...

Hi everyone! My name is Emily Harmon, and I am Extension's new Finances Educator for Champaign, Ford, Iroquois, and Vermilion counties. While I am new to this position, I am not new to Extension. I was one of the program coordinators for the finances and family life programs since 2019. I...

We’re back! After a hiatus, the Plan Well, Retire Well blog is back with renewed energy! We will introduce our Illinois Extension bloggers in the next few weeks. We hope you’ll enjoy our blog posts and find timely, research-based financial information that will help you in your daily life. A...

Travel is the spice of life!  Travel is an opportunity to see and do things differently from our daily lives, connect with family and friends, and re-energize ourselves. Whether you choose to out of the county, across the country, or around the world, thinking about ways to decrease costs can...

One of the best parts about attending professional conferences is the chance to update and reset my thinking about teaching personal finance. While teaching about money might sound like the same old, same old, there’s always something new to learn and share! Three topics stand out in my mind as I...

As we move through our lives, different challenges and needs rise. In my own family, our needs have changed over time. When my children were young, I was concerned with finding quality childcare and used clothing and toys. As family members aged, we needed home delivery of meals, medical care...