Boys Embarrassed to Ask for Financial Directions: Leading Finance Educator Provides Supportive Summer Environment

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., March 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Independent Means Inc., one of the world's leading providers of financial education for children and families, today announced the launch of two new summer programs for young men being held this season: Camp $tart-Up(R) and Summer$tock(TM).

"Too many young men are hampered by old stereotypes that men are magically good with money," says Independent Means CEO, Joline Godfrey, who founded Camp$tart-up for girls 13 years ago. "And like asking for directions, they hold back from seeking financial guidance because they think they are supposed to magically KNOW! Camp $tart-Up and Summer$tock offer perfect supportive settings for teenage men to exercise their entrepreneurial muscle and develop financial skills that provide an ethical, economic platform for their whole lives."

While the two camps offer practically identical curricula (including golf lessons, guest faculty and graduations that include business plan and portfolio presentations by the campers), counselors for the boys camps are young men with MBAs and life experience; and dynamic women with broad life experience are camp counselors for the young women. The aim is not to re-enforce gender stereotypes but to give young people space and time to explore their passions and interests with out the added pressure of proving prowess, or playing down competence, so often present in co-ed education settings.

The company's track record for providing innovative programming for both the poor and the privileged has been recognized by companies like Northern Trust and Lincoln Financial, private schools, and wealthy families who want to ensure that the next generation acquires skills to perform successfully in the context of a global economy.

Long recognized for successful financial education for young women, Independent Means now offers gender specific financial education for young men. Programs like their DollarDiva(R) and MoneyGuys(R) Workshops give young people a chance to develop economic self confidence without worrying about the pressure to perform for the opposite sex at a pivotal stage in life.

Camp $tart-Up and Summer$tock for Boys will be held at Clark University, outside Boston, and Westmont College in Santa Barbara, Ca. Camp $tart-Up and Summer$tock for Girls will be held at Cornell, as well as at Clark University and St. Timothy's School in Stevenson, MD.

For a detailed schedule, see http://www.independentmeans.com/imi/summer