By John Benson, special to cleveland.com

OLMSTED FALLS, Ohio -- A secondary education is all about educating students for their future. This includes life lessons in regard to money management and career decisions.

At Olmsted Falls High School, the state-required personal finance class involves numerous teachers with different backgrounds educating students on various related topics throughout the year.

"We want each student to look at their interests and how they're going to make money doing those interests," said digital marketing, marketing, internship and accounting teacher Liz Cleary. "We talk about college, trade schools, the military.

"We talk about jobs and income, budgets, emergency funds and saving for the future. We really cover the whole lifespan."

Over the years, Cleary has witnessed how the class has made an impact on students. Former pupils have credited the course for preparing them for paying taxes, while others wish they could retake the class for a refresher.

"We have the kids watch a documentary about some pitfalls of what happens to people when they get into financial problems and how it causes stress," Cleary said.

"So if they start now and have a foundation for when they become an adult with those challenges, they're kind of aware and have some tools to cope with those and get past those challenges. That's what we're hoping for," she said

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