are the building blocks of a strong community and help support a vibrant economy across the country — from here in the midwest to the coasts on either side. research on community banking and the accessibility of financial services is incredibly important. community bankers and policymakers want to better understand how technology, competition, regulation, and other factors are driving decision making, consolidation, and the other challenges and opportunities that are shaping community banking. existing research provides us with some answers to these questions, but there are many gaps. the lack of a full understanding of these institutions, their functionality, and their needs may limit our ability to identify important areas of focus for research. this is where i would like to ask for your expertise and assistance. we need to challenge ourselves to tackle some questions and issues that have not been fully explored by researchers. if you are a community banker, are involved in economic development or city or county management, or live in a community served by a community bank, your own experiences likely provide anecdotal evidence regarding the answers to these questions, but research can provide more comprehensive and systematic evidence, leading to more definitive answers. so i need your help. to begin, let ’ s look at the questions. community banks provide a variety of benefits to their communities, but these benefits can be difficult to quantify and measure. therefore, economists and policymakers would like to be able to define and understand the full economic effects of - 3a community bank in an area that relies on it and identify the different channels by which a community bank finances spending, investment, economic development, and job creation. in addition, what happens to a community when a bank headquartered or chartered in that community is acquired by a financial institution located elsewhere? can we calculate the cumulative contribution of community banks to u. s. investment, employment, and economic output? i hope that presentations at future community banking research conferences can help answer some of these questions and provide a stronger foundation for policy development. perhaps as a baseline for this discussion, we can start by looking at what has happened to the structure of the banking industry since the financial crisis. while community banks face considerable challenges, in general they have emerged from the last decade as strong competitors : on average, they have grown somewhat larger and have expanded their geographic footprints. in other words, we have a more resilient, stronger community banking sector, but one with fewer locally headquartered banks. with that in mind, let ’ s look at what leads me to these conclusions. as seen in

ben s bernanke : junior achievement finance park brief remarks by mr ben s bernanke, chairman of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, at the grand opening of the junior achievement finance park, fairfax, virginia, 19 october 2010. * * * financial education helps young people cultivate a sense of financial responsibility. it is essential for their personal well - being, and for the effective functioning of our economy. junior achievement was founded in 1919 and continues to be one of the world ’ s largest and fastest - growing organizations dedicated to educating youth in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. it is committed to relevant, hands - on learning for students from kindergarten through high school. it serves 10 million students each year in 121 countries – about 50, 000 of them here in the washington, d. c., area. i applaud junior achievement ’ s mission, which is to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy and cultivate their understanding of the principles of market - based economics and entrepreneurship. we are here today to discover junior achievement ’ s finance park in fairfax county. it is the 15th such facility in the united states and will serve 14, 000 students annually. the program offers an intensive six - week classroom curriculum, followed by a capstone day at the finance park where students participate in a practical personal budgeting simulation. this experiential facility helps students build financial skills that are essential to a successful financial future. students immerse themselves in reality - based decision making. they practice essential household skills by developing a budget that includes housing, transportation, food, utilities, health care, investments, philanthropy, and banking. the opportunity will enable them to better navigate real - life decisions. i applaud the ongoing partnership among junior achievement, schools, and businesses in the greater washington area. as states and school districts around the country continue to integrate personal finance instruction into their curricula, organizations like junior achievement can provide important services to both students and teachers. thank you for inviting me to participate in today ’ s event.