Reality Store Event
Welcome Middle School Teachers, Counselors, Principals and/or Superintendents!
We hope this page will cover any questions you may have regarding the Reality Store.
If you have any questions that are not answered in regards to the Reality Store please contact me for more information! I'd be more than happy to come out and meet with you to discuss the Reality Store more in-depth.
Deanna Strauss
419.755.4794 or
email: dstrauss@ncstatecollege.edu
2010 Reality Store Mini-Grants have been awarded to the following schools:
Clearfork Middle School
Colonel Crawford Middle School
Mansfield City Alternative School/IMAC & Star Programs -- In partnership with the Culliver Reading Center
Malabar Middle School
Loundonville-Perrysville Middle School
Lucas Middle School
Ontario Middle School
What is the Reality Store?
The Reality Store is geared towards Middle School kids; typically for 8th graders. The Reality Store gives students an important glimpse of the future; especially the financial balance and challenges they will face as adults. It will also help students to become aware of the need to set goals for themselves, make wise decisions in regards to career choices and their educational attainment.
Students are the sole provider for their family; their spouse does not work and they have anywhere from 0 - 5 children.
How are students assigned their occupation for the Reality Store?
Typically, students choose one of sixteen career clusters for their occupation. Some schools choose to assign students their occupation based upon their G.P.A. in correlation with educational attainment; others choose to assign students their occupation based upon their O.C.I.S. career.
What expenses do students face?
Students will incur the following monthly expenses:
- 24% tax deduction
- 10% retirement
- Student loan debt appropriate to their educational attainment levels
- Credit card debt
- Housing
- Transportation
- Insurance
- Health Care
- Chance Table
- Utilities (Gas / Water / Sewer / Electric)
- Cell Phone / Cable / Internet
- Groceries
- Beauty (hair & nail care)
- Clothing
- Entertainment
- Pets
How much time and money is required to run a Reality Store?
The only monetary expenses you will incur is the cost of a light breakfast or lunch for the Business Partners as a way of saying "thank you" and bussing expenses should you choose to bring the students to the campus of NC State for a follow up visit.
We will provide for you the checks, check ledgers, Tri-Fold display boards for your business partners, pens, calculators and signage the day of the event.
A whole "pre-day" will be spent at your school (usually in an 8th grade history class) informing students what their occupation, family size, and income will be for the day. The day of the event will take approximately 3 hours. What option you choose for the "follow up" will depend on how long the follow up visit takes, but it usually takes a whole day. We can come back to your school and visit the classroom again; or you can bring students on campus for a follow up that includes divisional breakouts, campus tour, and lunch on campus.
Your school is responsible for lining up all business partners, which can be time consuming in the beginning. However, businesses are ususally very excited to participate in the Reality Stores to help our young people become financially savvy. Schools that have participated in the Reality Stores will tell you that once you get business partners to the event, they'll come back year after year!
What about these Business Partners? Who are they and what do they do?
Business Partners are the core of the Reality Store. Business Partners are recruited by you, to participate in the Reality Stores. Business Partners would be local Realtors, Bankers, Grocery Stores, Utility Companies, Entertainment (resturants, travel agencies) etc...
The size of your school will depend on the number of Business Partners needed for a successful Reality Store. We often suggest the following:
- 3 - 4 Banks
- 2 - 3 Realtors
- 2 Car Dealerships
- An Internet / Cable Provider
- A Cell Phone Provider
- 2 Insurance Companies
- 2 Grocery Stores (offering a wide variety of food plans for singles & families, with generic, moderate name brand, and name brand plans)
- 2 Child Care Centers (If given enough advanced notice, we can bring a representative from the CDC at NC State)
- Local Charity for Donations (United Way, Catholic Charities, etc...)
- Part Time Job Provider (be sure to limit students to only working one part time job)
- Local
Veterinarian
- Local Police Department (for "traffic violations", "littering", and "crime deterrence")
- Jobs & Family Services (to help economically struggling students survive)
- Any other "Stations" you think your students would enjoy
A Business Partners meeting will be held about a month before the event, to let the Business Partners know what is expected of them the day of the event. They will be given the Tri-Fold Boards at that time for their presentation table. College Tech Prep will talk to them more in depth about what the Reality Store is and how the day will run.
It is helpful if the Realtors can bring copies of the houses they're "putting on the market" so that the Utilities and Insurance Business Partners can draw up accurate costs for those houses.
It is also helpful if the Car Dealership can bring copies of the cars they're "selling" so that the Insurance Business Partners can draw up accurate costs for those cars.
Several tables can be staffed by either your staff, or a College Tech Prep or NC State representative.
These tables are:
- Health Care Choice Cards (information provided to you)
- Chance Choice Card (information provided to you)
- Cost of Pet Care (information provided to you)
- "Judge" to fine students with criminal violations
Is there money to help pay for my school to host a Reality Store?
Yes! Please click here for the Reality Store Mini-Grant Application. If you've discovered the Reality Store after the deadline for the Mini-Grant application; please contact me! We may have additional funds from other sources to help fund your Reality Store!
If you have any questions that are not answered in regards to the Reality Store please contact me for more information!
I'd be more than happy to come out and meet with you to discuss the Reality Store more in-depth.
Deanna Strauss
419.755.4794 or
email: dstrauss@ncstatecollege.edu
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