HWS Students Tackle National Debt in ΓÇ£Up to UsΓÇ¥ Competition
16 February 2018 HWS Students Tackle National Debt in Up to Us Competition
As part of the 2017-18 Up to Us competition, which works to inspire millennials to take collective action on fiscal and economic issues, Hobart and William Smith will host the annual My Two Cents Day tabling event on Thursday, March 1, beginning at 12 p.m. in the Scandling Campus Center.
At the My Two Cents event, students will have the opportunity to win $100 by placing their two cents in one of seven coin-banks that symbolize different solutions to the debt. Cookies, hot chocolate and apple cider will be served.
The student-led HWS team joins teams from more than 75 colleges and universities in 40 states in a day of mobilization, engagement and education that kicks off this years competition. Each team received startup funding to sponsor creative non-partisan events on campus and was invited to attend the Up to Us Conference in San Francisco, Calif., later in February for a formal training.
I believe this competition is a good opportunity for HWS students to learn more about the current state of the national debt, says John Camara 19, who helped organize the event with Ryan Skinner 20, Jesse Maltese 20, Brian Schaumloffel 20 and Mikaela Zallen 20. The national debt is on track to be unsustainable for our generation. We have a responsibility to educate our peers about what is happening and any possible solutions.
Up to Us, which is sponsored by the Peterson Foundation, Clinton Global Initiative University and Net Impact, ranks schools based on number of pledges signed as well as the creativity of the events a team organizes. This years competition officially ends March 23. The winning team wins a prize of $10,000, and top-ranked teams are invited to attend the Peter G. Peterson Foundations Fiscal Summit in Washington, D.C. to discuss the importance of millennials involvement in fiscal issues with various political leaders.