Financial Math & Bloomberg Financial Markets Lab

The development of financial literacy empowers students to manage their personal finances effectively. It enables them to budget, save, invest, and spend wisely, leading to improved financial well-being and stability. To this end, Mount Saint Mary Academy incorporates personal finance into our Mathematics curriculum. Additionally, our campus features an in-house Bloomberg Financial Markets Lab for the real-world application of concepts.  

Mount Saint Mary Academy began the Financial Literacy program over a decade ago by implementing a Financial Math course. The goal was to equip students with the skills they need to achieve economic independence and make informed financial decisions that will impact their lives. Understanding financial concepts such as interest rates, loan terms, and credit scores helps individuals borrow money and manage debt responsibly. 

The Mount’s Financial Math course features the Working in Support of Education (W!se) Certified Financially Literate™ (CFL™) credential, which is awarded to students who pass the W!se Financial Literacy Certification Test. Students who pass the test become Certified Financially Literate™ and earn this credential, demonstrating that they have developed sound financial knowledge and skills. This national standardized test is administered to students after a course or unit on personal finance. The CFL™ credential demonstrates to colleges and employers that Mount students have the capacity to make fiscally responsible decisions. Each year we continue to improve and expand this program to ensure that our students have the financial skill set to protect their future.

Beginning with the Class of 2024, all Mount students have been required to complete our Financial Math course before they graduate.

In the fall of 2023, W!se named Mount Saint Mary Academy a Blue Star School for our students’ outstanding performance on the 2022-2023 W!se Financial Literacy Certification Test. To earn the Blue Star School award, a school must have achieved an 80 percent passing rate on the certification test with at least half the students on a grade level or a minimum of 10% of school enrollment having taken the test. The Mount has achieved a 100 percent passing rate on the Financial Literacy Certification Test since the program began. Our students continue to excel in this course and on the certification test each year.

Additionally, high school students who pass the W!se Financial Literacy Certification Test with a score of 95 percent or higher are eligible to apply for the Financial Literacy Ambassador Award. Applications are reviewed and scored over three rounds by a distinguished panel of judges, and the winners each earn a monetary award. The Mount has featured several Financial Literacy Ambassadors in the past, and at the end of each school year, multiple Mount students are recognized as eligible for this award.

Furthermore, for both the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years, Mount Saint Mary Academy attained Platinum Star designation in the W!se Financial Literacy Program. This is the highest level of excellence that the organization recognizes, indicating that Mount students earned top scores on the certification test. In addition, on April 25, 2025, W!se announced that the Mount has been included in the 2025 “100 Best W!se High Schools Teaching Personal Finance” list.

Committed to expanding our financial literacy program, the Mount has included an exciting new unit into the Financial Math curriculum. This unit utilizes our Bloomberg Financial Markets Lab, which the Mount acquired in 2018 and has been featured in various courses within our curriculum, such as the Business Analytics course. As of the 2024-2025 school year, all Mount students receive Bloomberg Certification through the Bloomberg Market Concepts program. In this program, students learn about the financial markets, familiarize themselves with over 150 Bloomberg terminal functions, and earn a certificate of completion. Students use the terminals to explore topics such as economic indicators, currencies, fixed income, equities, commodities, and portfolio management.

Students also have the opportunity to earn their Bloomberg Finance Fundamentals Certificate through an additional program provided through the Finance Data Lab here at the Mount. The Bloomberg Finance Fundamentals Certificate program is a self-paced, interactive e-learning course that provides an introduction to the key concepts involved in finance and investment. Students explore real-life scenarios through the perspectives of various professionals, helping them to manage their money and build an understanding of the different careers available across the finance sector. Topics include investment strategies and risks, the benefits and types of investing, and portfolio management. 

We are thrilled to offer these cutting-edge, state-of-the-art opportunities to our students. Our goal is for all Mount students to embark on their collegiate and professional careers as independent, knowledgeable, financially responsible citizens.