Preckwinkle, Bank of America Highlight Financial Literacy Partnership

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, together with Bank of America, teamed up today to highlight their ongoing collaboration providing unemployed and underemployed residents the tools they need to find work and develop critical new skills in this difficult economy. These financial literacy workshops, designed to help people do more with less, are another aspect of the comprehensive services that Cook County Works provides to Cook County residents. Dozens of residents from throughout the west and south suburbs were in attendance to take advantage of the productive training sessions that covered topics such as: financial literacy, budgeting and money management after a financial setback as well as employment skills training. Cook County Works Director Karin Norington-Reaves and Cook County Works staff gave President Preckwinkle and Bank of America officials a tour of the Cook County Works' One-Stop employment training center in Cicero. We need to do all we can to continue to provide this critical training for our residents who are out of work, President Preckwinkle said. Learning new skills to find work and learning new tools to help get back on your feet is more important than ever in today's economy. By engaging partners like Bank of America who can provide dedicated volunteers to assist in this training is an important part of being a civic-minded institution. I want to commend them for their efforts and look forward to working with them in the future. Tim Maloney, Bank of America Illinois State President, joined President Preckwinkle to stress the critical importance of public-private partnerships to help Cook County residents find gainful employment and develop critical employment, financial and life skills. Bank of America understands that good financial management is important now more than ever, especially as individuals and communities face uncertain economic times, said Tim Maloney, Illinois State President, Bank of America. One of the most impactful ways we can partner to lead Chicagoland forward is through our collaboration with Cook County Works as we demonstrate our significant ongoing commitment to financial education to move individuals and families to greater economic self-sufficiency. Bank of America has trained a corps of 86 volunteers who will be facilitating the workshops which are projected to provide more than 350 individuals with the tips and tools they need to better manage their finances during strenuous financial periods. Karin Norington-Reaves, Director of Cook County Works, was on hand at the event and said that Cook County Works will continue to make these types of programs available to more of Cook County's residents. She predicts that these programs will be able to serve roughly 500 Cook County residents each month, thanks to Bank of America volunteers. We are excited to offer this nationally-recognized financial literacy curriculum to not only our clients but all Cook County residents in need of financial planning assistance, Norington-Reaves said. Bank of America is a natural partner in our effort to support those who are struggling to do more with less in this challenging economic climate. We look forward to continued success and a wonderful partnership. The workshops, provided through the County's One-Stop Employment Training Centers, will be available to the public on November 8th and 22nd in Chicago Heights, Cicero and Oak Forest. Maywood workshops will be offered November 9th and 30th. The sessions will resume after the New Year. Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 58 million consumer and small business relationships with approximately 5,700 retail banking offices and approximately 17,750 ATMs and award-winning online banking with 30 million active users. Bank of America is among the world's leading wealth management companies and is a global leader in corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 4 million small business owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations in more than 40 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.