Virginia high school seniors spent the day on March 20 spent the day shadowing bankers at Bank of Botetourt as part of Bank Day, a statewide effort sponsored by the Virginia Bankers Association (VBA) Education Foundation and the VBA Emerging Bank Leaders.
The purpose of the day is to expose students to the banking industry and to provide them with an opportunity to learn about banking, financial services and the vital role Bank of Botetourt plays in its community.
The third Tuesday in March was declared Bank Day by the Virginia General Assembly in 1991.
Participating students will write an essay on their experience for the chance to win a scholarship. Six regional scholarships of $2,500 each will be awarded, and from those six winners an overall statewide winner will be chosen. The statewide winner will receive an additional $5,000 scholarship— $7,500 in total. There will also be six honorable mention scholarships of $1,000 each. In all, 12 students will receive scholarships totaling $26,000.
During their visit, the students toured various bank departments and learned about the loan process, deposit products, the importance of good credit, the profile of a qualified borrower, bank income and expense, technology and IT security, E-commerce, how Bank of Botetourt is involved in the community, the Federal Reserve System, payments, and more.
“Bank Day is one of the best short-term, hands-on experiences that a classroom teacher can offer their students—the opportunity to go inside the bank vault, to watch customer/bank officer interaction, to learn about the many services that banks offer, and to start the networking that often leads to part-time and summer jobs, scholarships, and a start on a career path in the financial world,” said Bruce Whitehurst, president & CEO of the Virginia Bankers Association.
“At Bank of Botetourt, we take our slogan, ‘Taking Care of You,’ seriously,” said Lyn Hayth, president and CEO of Bank of Botetourt. “We feel that the financial education of our youth is one more way the bank serves our communities. This year at our VBA Bank Day, we hosted 23 seniors from home school programs, Northside, Glenvar, Rockbridge, William Fleming and James River High Schools. This unique opportunity allowed these seniors to experience community banking at its finest. We are proud to continue partnering with the VBA to offer this scholarship opportunity and program.”
