Teen Bankers Run A Lunch-hour Business

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Students Julie Suen and Ashley Ramirez assist Castle High School vice principal Shanti Honda (right) with her deposit. Photo courtesy of HawaiiUSA.

HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union has opened a new branch, and it’s not where you’d expect savings to be a high priority.

Marketing and Business Core students at Castle High School,who are part of the school’s Business Center Career Pathway program, opened a real credit union during lunch period May 8 in teacher Dale Detton’s classroom; before they closed for the summer, they’d established 19 accounts and handled 40 transactions.

The branch operated once a week through the end of school and will reopen during the 2009 second quarter, or earlier, to accept deposits and loan payments from students, teachers, faculty and staff.

“We’re like a mini branch for HawaiiUSA on campus,“said Detton at the end of May.“It’s kind of neat for the kids to experience. Right now it’s in my classroom. We move the tables, put up signs, and students come and get dressed in their business clothes.

“It’s kind of hectic, but we try to organize it.” High school branches also have sprouted at Farrington, Waipahu and Campbell.

The credit union approached Castle about establishing its branch, Detton said, and its staff trained students and put them through job interviews (complete with resumes and cover letters). Students then were placed in various positions, such as branch manager, teller, new-accounts reps and security personnel.

The response on campus has been great so far.

“A lot of the teachers and staff members, they’re really supportive; they come in and deposit $20.

“But when the teachers come in,” Detton added, laughing,“students get intimidated.”

Students aren’t dispensing any cash (via an ATM machine or withdrawals) nor are they privy to any personal information on customers, like account numbers or personal phone numbers, when accepting deposits. They assist in filling out deposit slips, take names and a work phone numbers. At the end of the school day a HawaiiUSA representative picks up all of the deposits and takes them to its main branch. Students also can open savings accounts with a minimum of $5.

They also are experiencing what it’s like to work as a team in a real-world setting, Detton pointed out.

“It’s interesting for them to deal with personnel (issues). Some students are really good with the interviews, but once they come to work they talk with friends, talk on the phone, call in sick. Or they realize that so-and-so didn’t show up for work and encourage people to come in on time.

“I have contests for employee of week, employee of the month.”

Detton is eyeing a portable classroom for its headquarters for the reopening. She also is excited to be adding a whole new batch of students to the staff of returning veterans.

The business career pathway curriculum is one of six such programs established by the state Department of Education, each focusing on a particular area of study and offering courses to prepare students for further study in that field when they go to college.

Castle has all six - business and marketing, economics, health occupations, natural resources, arts and communication, and engineering and technology.