Research shows that individuals in the 50- to 70-year age group believe they
are prepared for a comfortable retirement, but many may have not saved enough to
achieve that goal. The Garrison Financial
Institute in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of
Arkansas is collaborating with the Fayetteville Public Library and Adolphine
Fletcher Terry Library and John Gould Fletcher Library in Little Rock, Ark., to
host the "How Can I Afford Retirement?" series of workshops.
The workshops are noncommercial and free, but participants must register in
advance. The first series of workshops will be offered at the Fayetteville
Public Library on:
Session 1 - Taking the Mystery Out of Retirement Planning
- 6:30 p.m. Thursday Nov. 19
- 10 a.m. Saturday Nov. 21
 Session 2 - Closing
the Gap: Investment and Expense Strategies - Even for Late Starters!
- 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 11
- 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 13;
Session 3 - Investing Wisely to
Avoid the Financial Risk of Longer Life Expectancy
- 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March
11
- 10 a.m. Saturday, March 13;
Session 4 - Protecting Your Investments -
The Best Defense is a Wise and Safe Investor
For more information and to register, go to:
http://gfi.uark.edu
The workshops will also be offered in April, May and June 2010 at the
Adolphine Fletcher Terry Library and John Gould Fletcher Library, both part of
the Central Arkansas Library System in Little Rock. In addition, they will be
repeated in these locations over the next two years.
"In keeping with our mission to contribute to the economic development of the
state of Arkansas and the welfare of its citizens, the Garrison Financial
Institute will offer these workshops free of charge," said Wayne Y. Lee,
executive director of the institute. "We are grateful to the U.S. Department of
Labor for providing free copies of the publication, Taking the Mystery out of
Retirement, and other materials for the workshops.
"We want to provide an objective, noncommercial program to help individuals
make informed investment choices with their retirement assets. Each session will
have a different topic concerning retirement planning. Although a financial
professional will present the workshops, our program is not affiliated with any
commercial organization," Lee said.
Some of the goals of the "How Can I Afford Retirement?" workshops:
- Provide ways for people with limited retirement savings to make the most
of their remaining earning years.
- Discuss the investing concerns of women and how divorced or widowed
women particularly can be vulnerable to fraud.
- Help participants choosing investments wisely.
- Assist participants in protecting their life savings by avoiding
investment scams and by covering the Investor Bill of Rights and the role of
federal and state governments in protecting investors.
- Offer suggestions on how to choose financial advisers.
"We are grateful to the Investor Protection Trust for providing the grant to
make these informative workshops possible," added Lee. "With the responsibility
for retirement planning falling on individuals instead of employers, and the
baby boom generation approaching this stage of life, the importance of investor
education and protection has never been more important."
The Investor Protection Trust is a nonprofit organization devoted to investor
education. Since 1993, the trust has worked with states to provide independent,
objective investor education needed by all Americans to make informed investor
decisions. To learn more about Investor Protection Trust, visit their Web site
at http://www.investorprotection.org.
A financial professional will present each "How Can I Afford Retirement?"
session, which will also include a 15-minute briefing by a reference librarian
regarding various resources available in the library; small discussion groups;
and a question-and-answer session.
"We are very pleased that the grant is also providing funds to buy retirement
and financial reference information for each of the libraries," said Lee. "These
resources will be available for participants and the community to use at their
convenience."
The "How Can I Afford Retirement?" Workshop sessions include:
Session 1: Taking the Mystery Out of Retirement Planning
- Setting retirement goals
- Projecting retirement income and expenses
- Allocating assets for retirement investments
- Developing a personal financial/investment plan
- Next Steps
Session 2: Closing the Gap: Investment and Expense Strategies - Even
for Late Starters!
- Determining the gap between desired and projected income
- Building investment strategies to address financial gaps
- Creating retirement income from investment assets
- Learning catch-up provisions
Session 3: Investing Wisely to Avoid the Financial Risk of Longer Life
Expectancy
- Assessing the risk of outliving your assets
- Determining the best diversification, asset allocation and types of
investments
- Understanding the impact of withdrawal rates on your investments
Session 4: Protecting Your Investments - The Best Defense is a Wise
and Safe Investor
- Learning the common investment and retirement planning mistakes
- Understanding common methods of financial and fraud abuse
- Discovering basic insurance investment strategies for retirement
The Garrison Financial Institute was created in 2005 by a gift from the
Garrison family and the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation to advance
financial education and research through practice. Its mission is to enhance
student learning through experience, foster research that extends and perfects
best practices, and contribute to the economic development of Arkansas and the
welfare of its citizens.
CONTACT
Rochelle M. Costrell, Associate Director, Garrison Financial Institute
Sam M. Walton College of Business
479-575-4399,
rcostrell@walton.uark.edu
|
print article
