This blog post is a reflection from Taylor Banaszewski ‘17 about her completion of the Privilege &Poverty academic cluster and how it has impacted her current work post-graduation from Middlebury.

          During my senior year, I sifted through dozens of jobs trying to find a career path that would tie all my interests and passions together. I knew I wanted to positively impact the lives of others and I always had a strong interest in financially stability. I never imagined myself working at a bank, but I found being a Relationship Manager at Bank of America to be the best fit.

          One of Bank of America’s goals is to positively impact the financial lives of its consumers and as a Relationship Manager, I am one of the first faces a client sees when walking into a financial center. I am the person a client would go to with any questions they might have regarding their finances. While being in this role for over a year now, I can see how completing the P&P academic cluster has helped me become a better relationship manager. During my summer internship through the Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty at Foundation Communities, I was able to explore my interest in financial literacy by working at a nonprofit that provided financial coaching. I was able to see how having somebody help you through setting a budget and explain credit to you can make a real impact in the lives of a person who is struggling financially. It is so important for that person to have somebody supporting and helping them through the process. The P&P academic cluster allowed me to explore these interests further in the classroom and conduct my own research on consumer debt for my senior thesis.

          As a Relationship Manager, I frequently find myself in situations where I am educating clients in regards to credit, savings, and borrowing funds. I help clients use the budgeting tools Bank of America provides to help them set goals and I set follow up appointments with clients to check in on their progress. I am using my position at a bank to become a trusted advisor to my clients while also helping increase their knowledge on various topics.

          I still strongly believe that financial literacy is a big issue and we need to be doing more to educate everyone on the basics of budgeting, credit, loans, etc. We don’t traditionally think of banks as having the responsibility of being an educator, but I use my role within my organization to educate people whenever I have the opportunity. The knowledge and experience I gained through the P&P Academic Cluster has been essential in helping me positively impact the lives others through my career.

Taylor Banaszewski ’17 receiving her certificate of completion from James Calvin Davis, Academic Director of Privilege & Poverty