SAN DIEGO, Calif., (September 1, 2021) –  San Diego County Credit Union® (SDCCU®), one of Southern California’s largest locally-owned financial institutions, is committed to helping families prepare and save for college, one of the biggest investments in life. To help educate the community, and celebrate September’s National College Savings Month, SDCCU will present free weekly educational webinars on college savings and financing as part of Financial Wellness Wednesdays. The topics include the FAFSA: The Key to Unlocking Financial Aid, Federal vs. Private Student Loans and How to Save for College.

“We are pleased to do our part to help educate the community on how to best prepare and save for college,” said Teresa Campbell, SDCCU president and CEO. “College and higher education expenses can be daunting, but having a plan and saving early can make a big difference. SDCCU is happy to provide these resources to help students and families create their plan.”

According to Forbes, “There are 45 million borrowers who collectively owe nearly $1.6 trillion in student loan debt in the U.S. Student loan debt is now the second highest consumer debt category - behind only mortgage debt - and higher than both credit cards and auto loans.” This is why the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) created National College Savings Month to help students and families prepare and save for this expense.

The college savings month webinars are part of Financial Wellness Wednesdays, an ongoing program hosted by SDCCU to help provide the community access to free financial wellness information. Upcoming topics, dates and times can be found on sdccu.com/fww. For more college saving tips and resources visit sdccu.com/knowledge.

SDCCU is one of the nation’s top credit unions, proudly serving the financial needs of customers in Southern California counties including Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura. SDCCU has assets of $10.5 billion, more than 423,000 customers, over 40 convenient branch locations and 30,000 surcharge-FREE ATMs. SDCCU provides breakthrough banking products that meet the demands of today’s lifestyle and delivers banking services that save customers money. SDCCU is leading the way, offering FREE Checking with eStatements, SDCCU mobile banking, mortgage loans, auto loans, Visa® credit cards and business banking services. Federally insured by NCUA. Equal Housing Opportunity. For more information, visit www.sdccu.com.