Because he’s such a standout student at Collinsville High School, it’s not surprising that Bryan Hoyt is on the board of directors for the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Especially since it’s the student board of directors and all 12 members are high school seniors.
Business department teacher Vicki Fuhrhop nominated Hoyt for the newly created board. Hoyt was in her consumer education class last year and she recognized both his academic effort and leadership.
“The one thing that really stood out about Bryan was how admired he is by his peers they really look up to him,” Fuhrhop said. “If someone needed something, they always felt comfortable going to Bryan. If I needed a student volunteer, the class would be like ‘pick Bryan.’ He’s very well-respected, polite and hard-working. And he’s always conscientious about his work. He always wanted to learn more, always went above and beyond.”
The student board of directors will meet in the St. Louis Fed’s downtown office every quarter. Hoyt is the only student from the Metro East that will be participating. This is the first year that the bank will have the student board.
The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is one of 12 regional banks that comprise the Federal Reserve System which formulates American monetary policy. One of its goals is also to promote financial literacy and economic education.
Economic Education Officer Mary Suiter said the students will be hearing presentations from people who work at the bank about the basics of economics and about developing leadership skills. She said the group was formed to provide educational opportunities to students and to create a pool of future leaders.
“We decided this would be a way for us to reach out to students and perhaps develop some enhanced understanding of economics and have them learn about careers in economics and in banking and finance,” said Suiter. “Informing them about economic content is also a benefit to us because an educated population is really important to a healthy economy.”
Suiter said two of the student board members will have an opportunity to complete a summer internship at the bank.
A recognition banquet will also be given to the students, their parents and their nominating teachers upon completion of the program.
Hoyt, who is an officer in the student council, a vice president for the Model UN Club, a member of the math and science honors society and part of the school spirit club called the Kahok Krazies, completed a financial literacy class at the high school last year. He said that while he’s not sure if he wants a career in banking (he’s leaning toward engineering), he knows he wants to learn how the country’s monetary system works and the best way to handle his own money.
“I thought it would be an interesting way to learn about our economic system in our country,” he said. “I definitely think that it’s something that I need to learn and something that everybody needs to learn.”
Fuhrhop, his teacher, found out about the new student board of director because she participates in professional development opportunities that the St. Louis Fed provides. She said she is confident Hoyt will benefit from participating.
“I wanted a student who would be a great representative of the high school and he is,” Fuhrhop said of her selection. “At the same time, I knew he was going to enjoy the topic and how that is gong to apply to his whole life.”