Sponsor Spotlight: Eide Bailly Inspires World Citizens

A Finance Minister in the UK determines whether a country has a positive or negative balance of payments.

Did you ever think that the perfect job to have “when you grow up” would be to travel the world?

Thanks to Eide Bailly, proud partner of Young Americans Center for Financial Education’s International Towne program, middle school students don’t have to wait until they are adults to get a taste of what foreign countries have to offer.  International Towne’s 16 countries provide 6^th and 7^th graders with hands-on experience in global economics, world travel, and more.

Eide Bailly is a natural partner of International Towne because the firm works with businesses across the globe.  Besides providing financial support, Young Americans has partnered with Eide Bailly to produce a video that helps students understand trade.  Lessons prepare students to run a world economy of their own, complete with imports, exports, and tariffs.  For example, International Towne’s China imports tea from India and exports transportation equipment to Netherlands.  (These products are based on the top imports and exports of the real country of China.)

Finance Ministers, in particular, must understand trade in order to keep track of their country’s revenue and expenses.  The goal is to end up with a positive balance of payments at the end of the day.  Finance Ministers calculate the income from product sales, exported goods, and tariffs, and subtract the cost of taxes and fees, imported goods, and salaries to determine the final balance of payments.

While the complexities of international trade and business are eye-opening for middle school students, the larger goal of International Towne is to prepare students for the future in a fun, hands-on way.  After participating with Mountain Ridge Middle School, Roenik writes, “I would recommend International Towne to one of my friends because it was really fun and lets you get a little glimpse of the real world.”  Young Americans Center is grateful to Eide Bailly for their important role in this learning experience.