News Release from DCCA

HONOLULU – The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) Office of the Securities Commissioner celebrates the 10th anniversary of the LifeSmarts Competition in Hawaii and announces the start of the 2013-2014 season. For the last 10 years, DCCA has sponsored the LifeSmarts competition in Hawaii with more than 800 local student participants.

LifeSmarts is a fun, educational competition run by the DCCA and the National Consumers League that tests middle school and high school students nationwide on real-life consumer issues through online quizzes and live competition. It is a FREE consumer education competition open to teens in grades 6-12.

High school teams may sign up and compete online until Dec. 7, 2013 (11 p.m. EST) at www.lifesmarts.org.

At the end of the online competition, scores will be tabulated, and the top two scoring high school teams will be invited to compete at the state championship to be held in Honolulu on Feb. 8, 2014. DCCA will send the winning team to represent Hawaii at the national competition, which will take place from April 26 to 29, 2014, in Orlando, Fla.

LifeSmarts teaches teens critical life skills in areas ranging from health (how to recognize second-degree burns) to finance (how to sign travelers checks) and more. The program is run in a fun team quiz show format that helps build teamwork, confidence, verbal skills and leadership.

Coaches gain access to up-to-date, broad-based consumer educational resources through online curriculum, pre and post tests for students, and links to local and national organizations.

For teachers looking for ways to supplement their classes, LifeSmarts will complement any school curriculum and can be used as a learning activity for classes, groups, clubs, and community organizations.

Interested coaches can log onto www.lifesmartshawaii.com for additional information about the Hawaii competition.

All teams must have an adult sponsor or coach to participate. A team competing online may have any number of students, but a team that competes in-person must be made up of 4-5 students.

Registration is FREE and is done online at www.lifesmarts.org. To form a team, contact LifeSmarts State Coordinator Theresa Kong Kee at (808) 587-7400 or tkongkee@dcca.hawaii.gov for more information.

The middle school or “Junior Varsity” teams may sign up and participate in an online-only competition designed especially for middle school students in grades 6-8 from September 2013 to February 2014. Winners of the JV competition will be recognized online.

LifeSmarts is brought to Hawaii by the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Office of the Securities Commissioner in partnership with the Hawaii Credit Union League and is run by the National Consumers League. Local businesses interested in becoming a sponsor may contact the state coordinator for more information.

For up-to-date information on the LifeSmarts program, connect with the Office of the Securities Commissioner on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching “HISecurities.”