Michael Rupured has story after story about the success of the Consumer Financial Literacy Program.

“We have stories about immigrants who found jobs because a program assistant worked with them on what to wear and how to answer questions during an interview,” says Rupured, the FACS consumer economics specialist who established the CFLP program. “We also have stories of life-long Georgians who had no jobs, were living with relatives, were at risk of losing their children and, really, had no future, who are now homeowners with good jobs, a terrific future, and whose children are doing well.”

Rupured began the CFLP in fall 2002 with a grant from the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs that allowed a pilot project to begin in 10 counties. It’s now expanded to 28 counties.

The counties now served by the program are: Bleckley, Calhoun, Candler, Clay, Crawford, Crisp, Dodge, Dooly, Early, Emanuel, Gilmer, Houston, Johnson, Laurens, Macon, Marion, Peach, Pulaski, Quitman, Randolph, Schley, Stewart, Tattnall, Taylor, Toombs, Webster, Whitfield and Wilcox.

In addition to the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs, funding is being provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Rural Development, Goldkist, Whitfield and Gilmer counties. Other partners include the Internal Revenue Service, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Fort Valley State University Cooperative Extension Program.

Although Rupured has been the driving force behind the CFLP, he’s quick to credit the educational program specialists and program assistants for making the CFLP successful.

“Our goal from the beginning was to hire people from the community, particularly for the program assistants,” he says. “We wanted people who would be known in the community, people who spoke the same language as those they’re working with and who could easily connect with potential clients.”

Rupured is proud to count four Spanish speakers among the nine program assistants and four educational program specialists currently working in the CFLP. The staff is offering about 30 workshops each month for adults, in addition to the programs offered for youth. Many of the staffers also write weekly newspaper columns, have programs on local radio stations and appear on television via local cable access programs.

“The first step is to let people know you have something they’re interested in,” Rupured says. “If they hear a radio program discussing ways to fix your credit rating, that can be enough for consumers to pick up the phone and give us a call.”

One of the first projects undertaken by CFLP staffers focused on encouraging more people to file their state and federal income tax returns.

“The issue for our clients isn’t that they owe taxes,” Rupured says. “It’s that they’re owed money as a result of changes in the tax system.”

In 2003, CFLP staffers provided tax return preparation for 1,300 families. These filers received a total refund of $1.4 million.

“That $1.4 million was either spent in the counties where these Georgians live or, in many cases, it served as the first effort at saving for many of these families,” Rupured says. “Preparing tax forms is a first step in reaching many of these residents. Once residents meet our staff and realize that we’re here to help them reach their personal financial goals, they become much more open and willing to enroll in the CFLP.”

Rupured’s goal for CFLP is to see it as a statewide program, reaching out to all Georgians. For now, he continues working closely with CFLP staff to ensure they’re able to help clients meet their goals. He’s also searching for funding to further expand the project.

“As the leaders of the counties see our success and see that their residents are improving financially, they’re talking to the leaders of other parts of the state,” he says. “CFLP is very much a grassroots effort, but if we’re successful these seeds will spread across the state and the ability of Georgians to manage their financial future will improve dramatically.”