SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 15 through Oct. 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month and ScholarShare 529, California’s official college savings plan, recognizes and celebrates the histories, cultures, and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.
The day of September 15 is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on September 16 and September 18, respectively. Also, Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, which is October 12, falls within these 30 days.
While a recent report by the Campaign for College Opportunity shows college attendance for Latinx Californians has increased from 28 percent to 40 percent of residents ages 25-64 over the past decade, Latinx adults in California still have the lowest levels of college attendance despite being the state’s largest ethnic group. One of the major barriers cited was a lack of financial support. Parents, guardians, and loved ones can help break through this major barrier by opening a ScholarShare 529 college savings account to help students they care about save money to help attain their higher education goals.
“If we want a bright future for California, we need to ensure members of our Latinx community have access to higher education,” said Julio Martinez, Executive Director of the ScholarShare Investment Board. “Parents, grandparents, godparents - anyone can open a ScholarShare 529 account and start investing in their loved one’s future.”
Opening a ScholarShare 529 account is simple, and the entire process can be done online. An account can be opened on www.ScholarShare529.com by filling out a brief enrollment form and since there are no application, sales, or maintenance fees, it’s affordable even for those on a modest budget. Accounts can be started with any dollar amount, be set up in just 15 minutes, and can be easily managed online or by mail.
Once a new account is opened, a Ugift code is generated, which can be easily shared with family and friends via email, Facebook, Twitter, or other methods. The code allows loved ones to contribute any amount at any time by depositing birthday, holiday, and graduation money directly into the account.
ScholarShare has Spanish language information and assistance available online at scholarshare-espanol.com or by calling 1-800-544-5248. In addition, there is a Spanish language FB page to stay up to date: https://www.facebook.com/ScholarShare529.Espanol.
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by investing in the future of California and your loved ones today. Start a ScholarShare 529 account today.
About ScholarShare 529
ScholarShare 529 serves as California’s official college savings plan. Administered by the ScholarShare Investment Board, ScholarShare 529 provides families with a valuable tool that offers a diverse set of investment options, tax-deferred growth, and withdrawals free from state and federal taxes when used for qualified higher education expenses, such as tuition and fees, books, certain room, and board costs, computer equipment, and other required supplies. ScholarShare 529 manages $11.5 billion in plan assets across more than 381,000 ScholarShare 529 accounts as of June 30, 2022. To open a ScholarShare 529 account or get more information about the plan, visit www.ScholarShare529.com. For information about the ScholarShare Investment Board, visit www.treasurer.ca.gov/scholarshare, like ScholarShare 529 on Facebook at www.facebook.com/scholarshare529, and follow them on Twitter at @ScholarShare529. For more information about ScholarShare 529, visit www.ScholarShare529.com.
