Starting at the beginning of the 2019-20 school year, the Redstone Federal Credit Union made its way into our school and established a student-run banking service for our school to use. The students running this in-school bank are in a class taught by Mrs. Van Dam. 

Shaniya Lanier, a student who works at the bank at Bob Jones, stated, “It’s a small class, so stronger bonds are able to be established…” Unlike the larger classes, she mentioned, people do not form groups that they rarely talk outside of. Since this class is very close, working together is more engaging and it opens doors for friendships. 

The students working in the bank get the same training as the bank tellers do, but it’s geared more towards high school students. Student’s privacy and money are handled very strictly and orderly, and the students working at the bank are held up at the same standards as the bank tellers at RFCU. With that, the students gain knowledge of what it’s like to work at the RFCU whilst adhering to workplace discipline, making this experience like a career prep class. It is a wonderful opportunity to learn about how working at RCFU is like. 

According to Shaniya and Ian, the bustle has been sparse due to the free lunches, which require no transaction, and the fact that the bank only opened back up recently. Ian Finney mentioned that “…it’s a great feeling when you balance out the end of the day and have a feeling of accomplishment.” They wish it was busier, but the lack of activity has its positives also. 

Any student interested in working at the bank next year should express their interest to Mrs. Van Dam, and spots are usually reserved for students in the accounting and business classes.