“When I was growing up there was never that encouragement to prepare or think about going to college. I think this SEED money will give parents and children a chance to look at it in a different way. Parents will know the money is there and will talk to their kids about it and encourage them to go to college.
“I think when someone takes the time and actually gives you the knowledge and understanding to know how much to put away and the best way to save, that gives you the push you need to go ahead and get started.”
– Shanita Porchia, Del City
“I’m very grateful. I have three other kids but haven’t saved anything because I’m a single mom and just can’t afford it right now.
“A lot of the kids in our neighborhood don’t have the chance to go because college is expensive. They don’t even think about college or even graduating high school. But if they had that money in the bank, it would make them think ‘yeah, I’m going to college’ because the money for them to go would be there.”
– Jennifer Russell, El Reno
“We have four kids. We’ve been meaning to set up a plan, but we just had not done that yet. This definitely got us started. When you’re as busy as parents are, you say ‘yeah we need to set up something,’ but your life is hectic and you just don’t get around to it. Being chosen to receive this SEED money made us take the time to fill out the paperwork and even put some additional money in an account for our son Samuel.”
– Lisa Creed, Edmond
“For people who may not be in favor of saving for college for their kids, this is a step in the right direction. I hope this study plants a seed in the minds of parents to start an account for their children because as the cost of college goes up, every little bit helps.”
– Brent Farris, Choctaw
“My husband and I are both teachers and though we don’t have huge salaries, our income level doesn’t matter. We believe whole-heartedly in education and we want our child to be able to attend college without reservation. We had planned on starting an account, but being chosen for the SEED OK study gave us the information and money we needed to get started. That made it a lot easier.
“I work in a school where only a few parents were able to attend college. But I try to teach my students that it doesn’t matter what your parents did or didn’t do, it doesn’t matter what you’ve come from, what’s important are the choices you make. You can choose to do something with your life. A program like SEED, I think, would push some of these kids toward better choices and a better life.”
– Jody Webber, Stillwater
“My husband and I don’t want our twins to have the burden of paying off their student loans after they’ve graduated. A program like SEED, not only helps pay for the rising cost of college, it also teaches financial responsibility to parents and children. If you start saving when your children are young, you’ll have all of their college – or at least almost all of it – paid for and you won’t have the worry of putting all that burden of paying off student loans on them.”
– Heather Roe, Jones
“Even if you only save just a little bit on top of the SEED money that’s provided, it’s a big incentive to know that it’s possible for your child to attend college. This is something for your children’s future and their children’s future. It’s very important.”
– Jennifer Higgs, Yukon