CentsCity Featured in Pop City

August 12th, 2009 | Tags: AlphaLab, CentsCity, Customers, Felix Lloyd, Financial Education, Financial Literacy, Finovate, Media, Pilot Partners, Pop City Media, Press, WYEP

CentsCity is featured in this week’s issue of Pop City.  Check out the article here.  Also pasted below:

Skill-Life launches real-life financial game for tweenagers; founder named to 40 under 40

Skill-Life, an Alpha Lab startup, has quietly launched a new online game that teaches life skills and financial literacy to tweenagers.

Founder and CEO, Felix Lloyd, is also making a splash as a local celebrity, having been recently named to the Pittsburgh Magazine list of 40 under 40 and chosen as one of 32 companies in the world to attend Finovate 2009, a showcase of the hottest new startups and best new financial and banking technology.

The decision to move to Pittsburgh was a no-brainer, Lloyd says.

He and his wife, both former school teachers, considered San Francisco but Pittsburgh made more sense on many levels. His wife works for Google while Lloyd pursues his entrepreneurial dream. The goal, he says, is to build healthy communities and educate young people to be smart money managers through gaming technology and real-life awards.

Skill-Life began as CentsCity in January 2007. Seed funding came from Echoing Green (see the Pop City story here), Innovation Works’ Alpha Lab, the Technology Collaborative, Idea Foundry and local foundations. The software was initially tested with the help of students in Mt. Lebanon and Fox Chapel.

Designed for students ages eight to 14, CentsCity is based on the 70-10-10-10 principle of spending, savings, investing and charitable sharing. Players navigate through a world of landmarks and work their way up to financial guru. Hopes to add a nutrition and citizenship component too.

“This is something we don’t teach in schools,” explains Lloyd. “It’s intimidating to most of us. I was going over the limit on my own credit card, doing all this teaching, and I realized that I needed to learn these things as an adult.”

WYEP is running a pilot program with CentsCity for local youth, giving kids an opportunity to earn concert tickets and prizes by racking up points in the game. To receive a Passport and gain access to the online world, smail here.

Writer: Debra Diamond Smit

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Northside Urban Pathways

October 30th, 2008 | Tags: Pilot Partners, Schools

While attending a breakfast at the Rivers Club this morning (and straightening my tie in the bathroom), I had the good fortune of meeting David Richardson of the Center for Family Excellence.  Mr. Richardson was there for a BAAM (Benefitting African-American Males) Breakfast with the Northside Urban Pathways Charter School — http://pathways.k12.pa.us/.  He was incredibly kind and, quite clearly, committed to serving the school’s youth.

As it goes, I soon after had the opportunity to meet the school’s CEO, Linda Clautti.  I couldn’t attend the BAAM event as I was there for another breakfast.  Nonetheless, I’m hopeful that I’ll soon visit the school, serve as a mentor, and perhaps form a pilot partnership.  Given my own experiences as a teacher and administrator in a charter school, I’d love to get a closer look at the work they’re doing in and out of the classroom.

I’ve actually heard a great deal about Northside Urban Pathways and been encouraged by a few folks to eventually make contact.  Goes to show how small and open Pittsburgh can be.

As Skill-Life seeks our first group of pilot partners and foundation funding to launch Skill-Life in settings where it could be of particular benefit to youth and families, this could prove to be a pretty fortuitous encounter.

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