You might remember the computer game and PBS show Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego? (which has recently been rebooted on Netflix for a new generation), but have you ever played Where In The World is Mission2030ego? This guessing game is based on the trips, travels, trials, and tribulations of NGPF's advocacy team, the NGPF Mission 2030 Fund. Have fun!

NGPF’s mission is that by the year 2030, ALL students will take a one semester personal finance course before graduating from high school. The NGPF community is working to reach this goal through a combination of grassroots efforts - teachers championing the importance of teaching financial capability for all - and statewide legislative efforts to change course guarantees led by the Mission 2030 Fund, an affiliated nonprofit that advocates for this policy in all states.

Where in the World is Mission2030ego?

The NGPF Mission 2030 Fund team in an undisclosed advocacy location.

L to R: Christian Sherrill (that's me!), Yanely Espinal (advocate), Tim Ranzetta (co-Founder, advocate), Kit Kaufman (legal advisor), Mark Burton (strategy advisor)

Today on the NGPF blog we're going to play a fun guessing game!

Here's how it works:

1. See photos, snapped by NGPF Mission 2030 Fund team members, of capitals and capitol buildings where the team has advocated for personal finance education.
2. Use the provided clues and hints to decipher which capital / capitol building you think each photo corresponds to.
3. Scroll all the way down for the answers!

Thank you for playing, and for advocating for personal finance education in your school, community, and state!

1. A Hill of a Good Time

Tim snapped this photo at a 2024 event while promoting personal finance education with the Jump$tart Coalition and National Endowment for Financial Education.

2. A race 500 miles long

Yanely traveled to this state capitol building in 2023 to deliver an impassioned case for why all students should be guaranteed to take a personal finance course! Her advocacy was as iconic as the motor race the state is famous for. The result was this state becoming the 19th with a personal finance graduation requirement!

3. Be Still, My Hart!

I forded several rivers to reach this state capitol building in 2023. The result was my home state becoming the 21st with a personal finance graduation requirement!

4. It makes you want to 'sing

In 2021 and 2022, Tim traveled to this state capitol building by planes, trains, and especially automobiles made in this state. The result was the state becoming the 14th with a personal finance course guaranteed for all high school students. Plus, Tim worked with Mark Burton on this state - kicking off an advocacy partnership that endures today! Here's a photo Tim snapped while on his way to a vote.

5. Bringing the Sunshine

Yanely visited the pan handle of this state in 2022 in order to meet with dozens of lawmakers, educating them about the feasibility of adopting a graduation requirement for personal finance. This is the largest state to have adopted the policy as of writing! Here's a photo of Yanely snapped just before a pivotal hearing in the state capitol.

Answers

1. A Hill of a Good Time. Tim and I visited Washington, D.C. for a Hill Day Financial Literacy Event earlier this month!
2. A race 500 miles long. Indianapolis, Indiana. Yanely represented the NGPF Mission 2030 Fund in Indianapolis, and she rocked it! You can find footage of her testimony on Instagram @missbehelpful
3. Be Still, My Hart! Hartford, Connecticut. This was where I visited as a child to see how government works. Decades later, I advocated (successfully!) for a personal finance graduation requirement there.
4. It makes you want to 'sing. Lansing, Michigan. Tim and Mark formed a veritable dream team, knocking down barriers to access. Michigan is now in the midst of implementing its new personal finance course guarantee!
5. Bringing the sunshine. Tallahassee, Florida. The sunshine state got a little more sunshine with Yanely's successful advocacy for a personal finance guarantee!

About the Author

Christian Sherrill

Former teacher, forever financial education nerd. As NGPF's Director of Growth & Advocacy, Christian is laser-focused on our mission to guarantee all students a rigorous personal finance course before crossing the high school graduation stage. Having paid down over $40k in student loans in the span of 3 years - while living in the Bay Area on an entry level teacher's salary - he's eager to help the next generation avoid financial pitfalls one semester at a time.