Financial Literacy Workshops

Financial Literacy Education

Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) Albany County offers the following free financial literacy workshops. Each program runs one-hour in length and can be requested by community partners as a standalone program/training or combined for a series. Workshops can be delivered virtually or in-person. 

To receive more information or schedule a workshop, contact CCE Resource Educator, Laura Coraldi, at 518-410-6831 | LCoraldi@cornell.edu

Back to Budgeting Basics
Managing personal finances can be challenging. Join CCE Albany County to learn tips and strategies to improve your basic budgeting skills. Refresh your personal financial plan with new ideas on setting financial goals, tracking monthly expenses, and creating a monthly budget that works for you. We will also discuss how to assess your financial well-being and the importance of setting financial boundaries with friends and family. Get your budget organized and on track!

Budget Your Way to Happy Holidays: Smart & Savvy Holiday Spending Strategies
However you celebrate the holidays there’s always a potential amount of stress that can go along with the excitement. We don’t want our special time with friends and loved ones to be overshadowed by a sense of never-ending ‘to do’ list anxiety: especially when that list involves spending money. We also don’t want to find ourselves mid-winter with depleted bank accounts and/or over-extended credit cards. This workshop will provide tips and strategies to find that holiday balance. Join us to explore ideas that will allow you to make it through the holiday season within your budget, while still enjoying all those special moments.

Credit Awareness 101
Do you know what to do if you spot an error on your credit report? Join me to learn how your credit score is determined and how to use credit reports as a financial literacy tool. Additional credit management strategies will also be discussed.

Financial Fitness for Older Adults
This workshop will discuss personal finances as they relate to aging. Participants will learn strategies to assess financial situations, understand the importance of goal setting, and share ways to manage personal spending plans. Discussion will also include how to protect yourself from consumer scams.

Financial Fitness for Teens
Through interactive games, activities and discussion, this workshop teaches teens how to create and use a spending plan/budget and understand the importance of saving. Teens will discuss and identify the difference between wants, needs, and obligations as related to prioritizing spending. Teens will work to identify short-term, intermediate, and long-term financial goals, and discuss creating a savings plan and strategy to reach those goals. This workshop inspires teens to think about their future and how to establish healthy money habits early.

Healthy Money Habits for Kids
This workshop is designed to provide elementary-aged kids a fun introduction to money management topics.Through activities and stories, we explore attitudes about money, how to set goals, the importance of saving, and making good spending choices.This workshop will emphasize how kids can create healthy money habits, and how parents can reinforce these messages.

Managing Personal Finances in Times of Stress
Managing finances during difficult times can cause stress for many of us. This program will provide strategies that empower you to assess your financial situation, set goals, create a working budget, and manage potential income loss. We will also discuss communication strategies for making financial decisions with a partner or within your family.

Money & Communication: Strategies to Avoid Financial Conflict
Money issues frequently create conflict within relationships. Join CCE Albany to discuss strategies that help avoid conflict over money matters and financial decisions. Adapted from curriculum developed by Purdue University, this program will help participants better understand the relationship between money and emotion and learn to effectively communicate with a partner when making money choices, reflecting compromise, negotiation, and shared goals.

Paying Down (Off!) Debt
Carrying debt can cause financial stress and affect our health and well-being. It can also delay us from reaching our personal financial goals. This workshop will help participants create a realistic plan to pay down debt, prioritize accounts, and maintain motivation. Learn about Power Pay, a free online tool created by Utah State Extension! Join us to create strategies to pay down (off!) debt and get you moving toward your financial goals.

Raising a Money Smart Kid (for parents/caregivers)
This workshop guides parents/caregivers in helping youth develop responsible money habits and attitudes. This program will share age-appropriate activities, conversations, and messages about healthy money choices and management for youth (ages 3 -18). We will also discuss strategies on how to use an allowance as a teaching tool, which gives kids the chance to manage money within a learning structure. Join us and help your kids develop healthy money habits from a young age!

Setting Financial Goals and Create a Savings Plan
Do you have an emergency spending fund? Let’s talk about how you can slowly and realistically build emergency savings through weekly saving targets that break down larger savings goals. Create a plan for upcoming life events and how to deal with unexpected expenses along the way. Don’t be overwhelmed by juggling current expenses and future goals – join us to empower yourself, build your savings and take control of your future.

Understanding Your Credit Report & Score
Whether you are just starting out or have an established credit history there are still things we can do to improve or maintain a good credit score. In this workshop, participants will learn how to request and review a free credit report. We will also discuss how to dispute credit report errors and strategies for getting or maintaining a positive credit history. Join us to ensure your credit report and score are heading in the right direction.

What’s Your Money Personality?
This workshop will allow you to reflect on your personal money values, and how these values impact financial decision-making styles. Using a tool adapted by North Carolina State University, learn your “Money Color” by identifying spending and saving personality traits and tendencies, and how these influence your money habits and attitudes. We will discuss how to connect these understandings to strategies that help you meet your personal financial goals.

Last updated January 23, 2026