The Campbell Soup Homeowner Academy utilizes the principles of adult education. Recognizing that most families have existing budget and credit practices, the Academy provides a forum where families share these practices with one another and with Academy staff. In that living exchange Academy staff lead, correct, inform, and support positive steps towards financial growth.

Normally each Academy session requires two instructors. The first is the Academy leader who coordinates all 12 sessions with the students. This individual develops a mentoring bond with the participants. He or she steers the Academy and often acts as a facilitator of the discussions and a confidant to the participants. It is strongly encouraged that the leader complete a mortgage counseling certification process.

The leader begins each Academy with a savings and expense report from participants. This requires each participant to catalog how much money was spent during the past week. The Academy leader probes report details to identify trends within the individual expense reports, particularly those which can have cumulative significance, e.g. gambling, smoking, etc.

When the leader has established a sense of common effort among participants, usually a few weeks into the series, he or she can choose to comment to the group on the expense patterns noticeable in these reports. The tactic is deliberate: to commend those who have begun a process of change in their spending habits and to encourage those who find it difficult to make positive changes to their lives. Often the leader’s probing will elicit comments from other participants who offer alternatives or peer pressure to encourage continued effort at budget changes.

In addition to the Academy leader there is a session teacher who is an expert in a specific field. It is best to secure teachers who demonstrate the ability to communicate effectively what the adult participants need to understand.

The teacher must apply each topic to the particular class. He or she can encourage the participants to share their life experiences in relation to the topic. The teacher will monitor such open discussions because during these exchanges it is often common for misinformation to circulate. Clarifying common misconceptions and financial “myths” is critical to the Academy’s success. Each teacher must teach certain core principles, but clients will continue to use improper financial tactics unless the teacher handles erroneous information. An example follows:

In this case Rosie most likely misunderstood that for a certain period of time withdrawing the investment would be penalized. The banker may have emphasized the penalty to the extent that Rosie assumed her initial investment was never allowed to be withdrawn.

It is important for participants to discuss these misunderstandings and for the teacher to hear them. Given Rosie’s perception of CDs, she would dismiss good advice (based on her understanding she would be correct to do so) and assume the teacher’s knowledge of finance did not apply to her environment.

The dynamics of the Academy demand teachers who possess a unique blend of technical competence and an empathy for the life experiences of low income residents. Specifically, over-use of technical jargon, examples that do not reflect the experience of students, and non-participatory instruction will reduce the effectiveness of the Academy. Conversely teachers who relate well but who have a limited understanding of technical material will be unable to identify and correct misinformation or respond with authority to questions.

Finally it is the leader’s responsibility to surface questions and to help tailor information to each particular group of students. The instructor may not know the specific issues that affect the group. The leader often acts like a coach, drawing out hesitant participants or encouraging doubtful students to implement a lesson directly in their daily activity. Such teamwork between the teacher and the leader is a key element in this adult training model.