VALDOSTA – Rep. Austin Scott visited Valdosta Middle School students participating in the SIFMA Foundation’s Capitol Hill Challenge^™ program, supported by Charles Schwab.  This national 14-week financial education competition pairs individual members of Congress and financial capability programming with public schools in every congressional district nationwide to teach middle and high school students about saving, investing, and government.

Rep. Scott met with the student teams who are investing a hypothetical $100,000 in listed stocks, bonds, and mutual funds and learning about the capital markets. The national top 10 teams will be recognized at an awards reception in Washington, D.C. on June 13.

“For more than a decade, the SIFMA Foundation’s Capitol Hill Challenge^™ and Stock Market Game^™ have helped students from around the country become financially capable,” said Kenneth E. Bentsen, Jr., SIFMA President & CEO in a press release. “Our industry is committed to giving students the necessary tools to build a solid foundation so they can one day achieve their financial goals. I’d like to give special thanks to lawmakers like Rep. Scott who are making personal visits to engage students on these important issues.”

Since the Capitol Hill Challenge^™ began in 2004, the program has made more than 4,200 matches of U.S. representatives and senators with schools, reaching more than 113,000 students. Middle and high school students from all 50 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and Washington, DC are participating in this year’s Challenge.

“I think it’s wonderful that we are teaching these young men and women real world knowledge about investing,” Scott said while visiting VMS.

As students gathered in the media center, Scott not only discussed the importance of what they are learning through the program, but gave them advice he hopes they will live by in the future.

“I was elected when I was 26 years old and I can’t tell you the number of people who told me I couldn’t accomplish what I needed to accomplish,” Scott said. “When you’re  setting your goals, don’t let other people set them for you. Don’t let them set your bar.”

For more information, visit the Capitol Hill Challenge^™ website at  www.stockmarketgame.org/capitol-hill-challenge.html.