Beginning May 10, women in the valley have an opportunity to learn about the basics of finance. Financial planner Danielle Howard, in partnership with domestic violence support organization RESPONSE, offers the four-week course to help women learn about saving, giving and budgeting on their own.
The point of the women’s financial empowerment course is to create a judgment free learning space where you can talk about money — even if that means admitting you don’t know anything about accounting, 401Ks, social security, or annuities.
“... I’m in an environment where I don’t feel shame — where I can really explore some of the beliefs I have about what's of value to me,” said Jill Gruenberg, the program director at RESPONSE.
Gruenberg sees first hand how money can be used to hold power over women. Abusive partners may make women turn over all their earnings, or not allow them to work at all. Being in control of your finances allows an independence that diminishes the power of a controlling partner.
In teaching financial literacy to her clients, Gruenberg realized these skills are something all women — actually all people — should know. But managing a budget is a specialized skill that many aren’t instructed to do — they just learn on their own to varying degrees of success.
“They should start financial empowerment classes in grade school,” said Emily Marshall, who went through the program last year.
Even as a successful local businesswoman, Marshall found there was a lot to learn, and the first step was to lose the fear of talking about money. She said growing up she wasn’t talked to about finances
“Even now in this day and age my mom and I don't talk about finances and I find that disheartening because regardless of your gender we all have to have concern for our financial future,” she said.
Danielle Howard helps families and individuals throughout the valley manage their finances. She said women are smart enough to handle budgets — and there is less math involved than it sounds — but even women with advanced degrees tend to bow to traditional gender roles when it comes to what’s in the bank account.
“The financial component of that is not based on how smart they are,” said Howard. “It’s based on some very interesting research that shows that women will just relinquish power around that area.”
Diane Darling and her family live in Carbondale. She says she and her husband split their roles in accordance to societal norms at the time — she would do most of the child rearing and he would handle the money. She says while her husband is a great father, she just never took the time to learn the financial aspects of the household.
“So many of us have given our power over to our husbands and that’s not a good thing,” she said. “I’m not proud of the way I lived my life I was just so busy doing other things I didn’t take the time to learn it all.”
Darling enrolled in the Women’s Financial empowerment class last year when she realized if anything were to happen that meant she was on her own, she would be in deep water. Worldwide, women’s life expectancy outpaces men. Statistically, whatever a couple’s arrangement may have been while they were young, women will be the ones ultimately dealing with the dollars at the end of their lives.
Course organizers acknowledge that the Roaring Fork Valley is a difficult financial environment. With great wealth disparity, seasonal income and and the high cost of living, being a step ahead with financial goals and creating a disciplined budget can make all the difference. Howard sees the unique struggles of women in the valley.
“With the wealth that comes into this valley it’s kind of challenging to keep our perspective about what’s really important versus seeing what’s all around us and kind of hitting us upside the head with ‘you need more you should be more,” she said.
To acknowledge local successful business women, each of the four evening classes will be catered by female chefs in the valley. The course runs once a week May 10-31. There are scholarships available and discounts for pairs signing up together.