At the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, a remarkable financial literacy program is set to make a significant impact. This initiative will collaborate with Jay-Z's Shawn Carter Foundation to introduce a wealth-building curriculum to historically Black colleges and universities, including the nearby Lincoln University. The program aims to address the persistent racial wealth gap on a local scale and empower communities.

Empowering Communities through Financial Literacy

Wharton's Efforts to Bridge the Wealth Gap

Wharton professor emeritus Keith Weigelt founded Bridges to Wealth with a clear mission. He recognized the need to tackle the nation's intractable racial wealth gap at a local level. Through this program, he offers financial literacy and wealth management education to Philadelphia's predominantly Black residents without charging them a dime. It's not that people in low-wealth neighborhoods don't want to build wealth; they simply lack the knowledge. As Weigelt said, "They just don't know how."This partnership will kick off with pilot programs at Lincoln University, Norfolk State University, and Virginia State University in the spring. Here, student cohorts will learn the financial literacy curriculum and be tasked with sharing their newfound knowledge in their communities. The accredited curriculum, called Champions for Financial Literacy, is based on a community service-based class that Weigelt taught at Penn.When Weigelt started teaching at Wharton in the late 1980s, his walks through West Philadelphia sparked a passion for closing the Black-white wealth gap. One day, he realized the potential to do more for the neighborhood, and Bridges to Wealth was born.Despite a decline in Philadelphia's poverty rate between 2022 and 2023, the city remains the poorest big city in the nation. The share of Black residents in poverty is nearly twice that of white Philadelphians. According to a 2024 report from the Brookings Institution, Black wealth lags far behind other racial groups, and the racial wealth gap continues to widen. Median Black wealth is just under $45,000, compared to $62,000 for Latino families, $285,000 for white families, and $536,000 for Asian families.Weigelt identified several factors contributing to the wealth gap, including a well-founded distrust of financial institutions. Many community members he works with are hesitant and scared, often overestimating market risk. His program through Wharton is neutral, accepting no sponsorship and being free for participants, which helps build trust.Tramel Parker's story is a testament to the program's impact. Working at Penn, she had a background in financial markets. At 18, she landed a job on the trading floor of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. She worked at Goldman Sachs and earned a business degree from Temple University. But it wasn't until she started attending Weigelt's classes about 10 years ago that she felt empowered to build her own wealth."When I went, it was amazing. He was teaching predominantly Black people — other races were there, too — basically the ABCs of being financially literate," Parker said, rattling off terms like expense ratio, portfolio performance, ETFs, and indexes. "He was giving us information that financial advisers will charge you for."Kevin Brown, who manages the West Philadelphia Neighborhood Advisory Committee for HopePHL, played a crucial role in bringing Weigelt's programs to the group's monthly meetings. After committee members discovered the program and wanted to improve their financial literacy, Brown invited Weigelt."Keith came and he shared with us how vast the wealth gap was between Blacks and whites," Brown said. "It was so bad." Weigelt encouraged community members to involve their families and start investing in funds for themselves and their children, starting with as little as $1. Brown invested $20 and has seen the benefits. "It really put me in the game. And it did so with real knowledge. I'm like, OK. I can do this. I'm not scared."