Trust

Special Trustee Vince Logan joins financial education committee

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Special Trustee Vince Logan speaks at the National Congress of American Indians annual convention in San Diego, California, on October 22, 2015. Photo by Andrew Bahl for Indianz.Com

The Financial Literacy and Education Commission has a voice from Indian Country for the first time.

Vincent Logan, the Special Trustee for American Indians, joined the federal panel on Thursday. He is officially representing the Department of the Interior but he's also the first Native person to serve.

“This is an important step in elevating Indian Country’s voice in the conversation regarding financial wellness and responsibility, as a whole,” Logan, who is a member of the Osage Nation, said in a press release. “OST, through its employees in the field, has its finger on the pulse of issues that are affecting the lives of our beneficiaries every day. I have a lot to share with the commission and look forward to our work together.”

Congress created the commission in 2003 in order to develop a national financial education web site, known as MyMoney.gov, as well as a national strategy on financial education. Representatives from numerous federal agencies work together on the initiative.

MyMoney.gov does not appear to include much information about financial literacy for individual Indian beneficiaries. Logan, who joined the Obama administration in the summer of 2014, has placed a priority on those efforts.