The distribution is part of its participation in a nationwide effort to boost financial literacy among consumers. Copies of the five-module teaching guide, Basics of Saving and Investing , are being provided to an initial group of 16,000 high school teachers across the country, including 189 Virginia educators. FL2001 involves state securities agencies along with the non-profit Investor Protection Trust, the North American Securities Administrators Association, Inc., and the National Association of Securities Dealers' Office of Individual Investor Services. Each teaching guide is extensively customized for a particular state, and the SCC has worked with FL2001 to identify trainers to work with teachers in Virginia. The Division's goal is to ensure that persons purchasing securities in the Commonwealth obtain complete disclosure about the securities products and services they are sold and that they understand their rights and obligations.
Investor education is clearly a very important facet of that mission.
There are two ways the SCC makes a difference in the lives of Virginia residents, according to Thomas. First, we oversee the grassroots investment marketplace to make sure that it operates smoothly and with a minimum of fraud and abuse.