NEFE, Champlain College celebrate next chapter for state assessment
Vermont Business Magazine The National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) and the Champlain College Center for Financial Literacy (CFL) announce a new chapter for the National Report Card on High School Financial Literacy. Beginning with the 2026 edition, scheduled for release in September, NEFE will assume responsibility for the report, expanding its reach and influence as a leading measure of state-level financial education policy for years to come.
“NEFE is honored to become the steward of the National Report Card, a resource that has helped shape and advance financial education policy across the country for more than a decade,” says Billy Hensley, Ph.D., president and CEO of NEFE. “As more states adopt high school personal finance education requirements, maintaining a trusted, objective assessment of those efforts is more important than ever. We are committed to preserving the report’s rigor while expanding its value to educators, policymakers, advocates and researchers.
Founded in 2010, the CFL has been widely recognized for its leadership in financial education research, advocacy and educator training. In 2013, the Center launched the National Report Card, which evaluates all 50 states and the District of Columbia on the strength and effectiveness of their personal finance education for high school students.
Over the past decade, the report has become one of the field’s most trusted benchmarks, helping drive momentum for state financial education requirements for students to complete a personal finance course before graduating high school.
As part of the transition, John Pelletier, who has served as the CFL’s founding director since its inception and as the architect of the National Report Card, will join NEFE as a senior fellow. In this role, he will support future editions, ensuring continuity in methodology, quality and impact.
“I am thrilled to see the National Report Card find a new home with the National Endowment for Financial Education, an organization with a long and exemplary history advancing effective financial education,” says Pelletier. “I look forward to working with NEFE and partners across the field to continue helping states adopt and implement policies that ensure all students have access to high-quality personal finance education.
This transition reflects a shared commitment between NEFE and Champlain College to sustain and expand the reach of the National Report Card, ensuring it continues to celebrate success, challenge better and more widespread implementation and inform policy decisions that drive progress in financial education nationwide.
“We are proud of how the Champlain College Center for Financial Literacy advanced a national movement for financial education policy,” says Alex Hernandez, president of Champlain College. “We are confident that NEFE and John will build on that legacy and expand the National Report Card’s impact to help ensure all students receive the practical education they need to thrive.
The 2026 edition of the National Report Card on High School Financial Literacy will be released in September 2026. To view past reports please visit the Center for Financial Literacy website. For more information about the 2026 Report Card and future management by NEFE, please reach out to [email protected].
About Champlain College
Founded in 1878, Champlain College is an innovative college with a distinctive, career-focused approach to higher education. Champlain offers a residential undergraduate experience at its beautiful campus overlooking Lake Champlain in Burlington, VT, as well as over 100 online undergraduate and graduate degree programs and certificates to students across 50 states. Champlain College is different by design: we believe experiential, real-world learning creates unreal opportunity for students. Our graduates are ready to advance their careers with leading employers in future-focused fields—on average, 90% of on-campus students have a successful career outcome within six months of graduation. Champlain ranks in multiple categories of U.S. News and World Report’s “Best Colleges,” is included in the Princeton Review’s 2025 list of “The Best 390 Colleges” and earned the #9 spot in Princeton Review’s “2025 Top Schools for Game Design.” Champlain was awarded one of America's Best Colleges by Money for combining quality and affordability.
About NEFE
The National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) is the independent, centralizing voice providing leadership, research and collaboration to champion effective financial education and advance financial well-being. NEFE has received national recognition for strengthening action-oriented research agendas, mobilizing intermediaries, and creating better solutions for researchers, educators, practitioners and policymakers. For more information, visit www.nefe.org.