Toyota Financial Services
Toyota Financial Services (TFS) and Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) are thrilled to collaborate in helping girls become self-reliant; financially informed; and capable of using their talent, resources, and personal business values to make the world a better place.
Through this multiyear partnership worth over $3.3 million, more than 40,000 4th- through 12th-grade girls in underserved communities across the United States will take part in the “Driving My Financial Future” program, an initiative that teaches girls how to become financially savvy leaders, obtain real-life, age-appropriate financial skills, and gain the tools necessary to make a positive influence in their communities.
According to the Girl Scout Research Institute study Having it All: Girls and Financial Literacy (PDF), nine out of ten girls say it's important for them to learn how to manage money, and 88 percent think it's important to set financial goals. However, only a handful of girls surveyed (12 percent) feel confident making financial decisions.
Thanks to the TFS partnership, select Girl Scout councils are provided with grant funding for their participation in the “Driving My Financial Future” program, which helps bridge the divide between many girls’ current economic health and their dreams of being financially independent. Through this important program, girls become financially confident and empowered as a means of pursuing their dreams.
The 12 TFS-selected grant-funded councils are:
- Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania
- Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta
- Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana
- Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles
- Girl Scouts of Greater New York
- Girl Scouts of Nation’s Capital
- Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada
- Girl Scouts of Western Ohio
Using the TFS “Driving My Financial Future” Tip Sheet (PDF) as an enhancement, girls at the grant-funded councils who earn two grade-level Financial Literacy badges through The Girl’s Guide to Girl Scouting curriculum requirements are then awarded a TFS “Driving My Financial Future” patch. The Tip Sheet (PDF) is also available to all councils to enhance financial literacy curriculum.
As part of its sponsorship, TFS also offers Take Action awards to the grant councils. Thirty-two TFS Take Action projects from eligible grant-funded councils were awarded in 2018. Take Action projects are girl-led, hands-on, and geared toward making sustainable and influential changes in a girl’s community and beyond.
Additionally, eligible girls at grant-funded councils were able to apply for the TFS Making Life Easier (MLE) scholarship. In 2018, 28 girls were awarded this scholarship, with 23 girls awarded in 2019.
Congratulations to the 2019 MLE scholarship recipients:
- Carmen Acosta, Girl Scouts of Greater New York
- Morgan Andrulis, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Lauren Arnott, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Adaeze Atumah, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Huda Bhatti, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Maddie Bohman, Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles
- Kelleigh Brooks, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Sophia Falies, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Clarissa Fuentes, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Alexandra Georgopoulos, Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana
- Julia Griffin, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Divya Lal Lal, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Avery McCarty, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Catherine Meenan, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Patricia Ortiz, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Anonymous, Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana
- Jennifer Park, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Mia Porter, Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta
- Sydney Ramenofsky, Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada
- Taylor Richardson, Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles
- Chloe Schraeder, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
- Hannah Sliwa, Girl Scouts of Greater Chicago and Northwest Indiana
- Victoria Taylor, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
For the grant-funded councils, be on the lookout for 2020 MLE scholarship information.
For more information on TFS's corporate social responsibility strategy and programs, visit www.tfsinthecommunity.com.
About Toyota Financial Services
TFS is the finance and insurance brand for Toyota in the United States, offering retail auto financing and leasing through Toyota Motor Credit Corporation (TMCC) and Toyota Lease Trust. TFS also offers extended service contracts through Toyota Motor Insurance Services (TMIS). Lexus Financial Services is the brand for financial products for Lexus dealers and customers. TFS currently employs approximately 3,300 associates nationwide, and has assets totaling over $120 billion. It is part of a worldwide network of comprehensive financial services offered by Toyota Financial Services Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation. It announces material financial information using the investor relations section of its website (www.toyotafinancial.com) and SEC filings. TFS uses these channels, press releases, and social media to communicate about its company, its services, and other issues. While not all information it posts on social media is of a material nature, some information could be material. Therefore, TFS encourages those interested in the company to review its posts on Twitter at www.twitter.com/toyotafinancial.
For the past four consecutive years, Points of Light has named TFS one of its Civic 50, the most community-minded companies in the nation. For more information about the company’s support of financial empowerment, youth development programs, and other community initiatives, visit www.tfsinthecommunity.com.
For age-appropriate activities that help girls learn savvy finance skills while earning their Financial Literacy badges, download the TFS "Driving My Financial Future" Tip Sheet (PDF).
