Arkansas Personal Finance Standards & Graduation Requirements
Arkansas requires every public high school student to complete a course that embeds the state's personal finance standards, but it does not mandate a single standalone personal-finance class.
Arkansas at a glance
- Requirement
- Required, embedded in another course
- Legislation or authority
- Act 480 of 2017 (Personal Finance and Job Readiness Act, HB1442) plus companion Act 466 of 2017
- Passed
- Signed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson on March 14, 2017 (Act 480); companion Act 466 same 2017 session
- Takes effect
- Applies beginning with the 9th-grade class entering in 2017-18; fully in effect for all current cohorts
- First graduating class affected
- Class of 2021
- Course length
- Typically 0.5 credit, varying by which of six ADE-approved course options a district uses
- State standards
- Arkansas Personal Finance Standards (adopted 2017), with the companion Economics with Personal Finance framework (revised 2022)
What Arkansas requires
Act 480 and companion Act 466 of 2017 require every Arkansas public high school student, beginning with the 2017-18 freshman class, to complete a grades 9-12 course that embeds the state's personal finance standards. The Arkansas Department of Education pre-approves six course options that satisfy the requirement — Financial Literacy, Economics, Quantitative Reasoning/Literacy, AP Macroeconomics and Personal Finance, AP Microeconomics and Personal Finance, and Financial Planning — with Economics the most common path.
Districts may also embed the standards into other existing courses by submitting an approval request to ADE's Office of Curriculum Support Services. Because most districts route compliance through Economics rather than a dedicated Financial Literacy class, Champlain's Center for Financial Literacy has flagged concerns about inconsistent depth, timing, and statewide monitoring of student achievement.
Last reviewed against official sources on 2026-07-15.
How Rapunzl maps to Arkansas standards
Rapunzl's curriculum is built on the Council for Economic Education's six pillars. Here is how they line up with the Arkansas framework.
| Arkansas strand | CEE pillar | Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|---|
| Employment and income | Earning Income | Taxes & IncomeCareers In Finance |
| College and career planning | Earning Income | Taxes & IncomeCareers In Finance |
| Credit | Managing Credit | The Power & Risks Of CreditHow To Make Loans Work For You |
| Money management | Spending | The Basics Of BankingBuying Your First HomePaying For College |
| Insurance | Managing Risk | Diversification & RiskInsurance & Retirement |
| Saving and investing | Investing | Welcome To The Stock MarketWhat Makes A Good Stock?ETFs & Mutual Funds |
Educators can request a full Arkansas standards crosswalk through the Educator Dashboard.
Standards alignment details: how Rapunzl covers Arkansas's personal finance standards
A standard-by-standard look at the Arkansas framework. 37 standards are covered across 15 Rapunzl modules; each links to its lesson so you can preview exactly what students learn.
Employment & Income
| Arkansas standard | Aligned Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|
| PF.1.EI.1Explain factors that influence career and job selection | Taxes & IncomePaying For College |
| PF.1.EI.2Determine ways to locate and apply for a job | Taxes & Income |
| PF.1.EI.3Evaluate ways to make a positive impressions during a job interview | Taxes & Income |
| PF.1.EI.4Compare job offers for employee benefits | Insurance & RetirementTaxes & IncomeCareers In Finance |
| PF.1.EI.5Summarize skills needed to be successful in the workplace | Taxes & IncomeCareers In Finance |
| PF.2.EI.1Compare and contrast the methods by which employees are paid. | Taxes & Income |
| PF.2.EI.2Represent and analyze various types of income deductions and how they impact income | Taxes & Income |
| PF.2.EI.3Analyze differences among salary, hourly, commission, and overtime pay | Taxes & Income |
| PF.2.EI.4Complete work related forms | Taxes & Income |
Credit
| Arkansas standard | Aligned Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|
| PF.4.C.1Identify types of fraud and credit abuse and develop strategies to protect oneself from identity fraud and theft | The Power & Risks Of CreditThe Basics Of Banking |
| PF.4.C.2Discuss common crimes against consumers and examine federal consumer protection laws | Insurance & RetirementThe Economy & Federal Reserve |
| PF.4.C.3Compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages of renting versus owning a home | Buying Your First HomeBusiness Of Buildings & Ownership |
| PF.4.C.5Understand different components of credit | The Power & Risks Of Credit |
| PF.4.C.6Understand the different components of bankruptcy | The Power & Risks Of Credit |
| PF.4.C.7Understand the different components of loans | The Power & Risks Of CreditHow To Make Loans Work For You |
Money Management
| Arkansas standard | Aligned Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|
| PF.5.MM.1Compare types of banking institutions including products and services available | The Basics Of Banking |
| PF.5.MM.2Explore the process of opening and managing different types of accounts | The Basics Of Banking |
| PF.5.MM.3Analyze the advantages and disadvantages of various retirement plans | Insurance & Retirement |
| PF.5.MM.4Analyze expenses to create a household budging including, but not limited to, housing, utilities, food, saving, insurance, taxes, and charitable giving | Saving Versus Investing |
| PF.5.MM.5Examine the influences on financial planning decisions (e.g., needs vs - wants, priorities, values, stages of life, estate planning) | Welcome To The Stock MarketSaving Versus InvestingInsurance & RetirementBuying Your First HomeBusiness Of Buildings & Ownership |
Insurance
| Arkansas standard | Aligned Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|
| PF.6.I.1Analyze the need for insurance in managing risk and how risk affects cost | Insurance & Retirement |
| PF.6.I.2Investigate the relationship between insurance premiums and deductibles | Insurance & Retirement |
| PF.6.I.3Evaluate auto insurance options and factors affecting cost of coverage including split limit | Insurance & Retirement |
| PF.6.I.4Assess health related insurance options and types of coverage | Insurance & Retirement |
| PF.6.I.5Analyze various types of life insurance | Insurance & Retirement |
| PF.6.I.6Investigate property insurance and potential riders including, but not limited to; homeowner’s, renter’s, and mortgage | Insurance & Retirement |
Savings & Investing
| Arkansas standard | Aligned Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|
| PF.7.SI.1Compare the effects of interest rates as applied to saving and borrowing money | Saving Versus InvestingThe Basics Of Banking |
| PF.7.SI.2Examine how consumers are affected by raising and lowering interest rates | Saving Versus InvestingThe Basics Of Banking |
| PF.7.SI.3Calculate simple and compound interest and explain the difference between the two | Saving Versus Investing |
| PF.7.SI.4Analyze the relationship between risk and return | Diversification & Risk |
| PF.7.SI.5Compare the characteristics of saving tools (e.g., liquidity, interest rates, term length) to determine how to best meet a financial goal | Welcome To The Stock MarketSaving Versus InvestingHow To Make Loans Work For YouThe Basics Of Banking |
| PF.7.SI.6Interpret the role of goal setting as an integral part of financial planning and construct a well written goal | Saving Versus Investing |
| PF.7.SI.7Research different types of investments and consider the importance of diversification | Welcome To The Stock MarketWhat Makes A Good Stock?Diversification & Risk |
| F.7.SI.8Understand the regulation of savings and investments | Welcome To The Stock MarketSaving Versus InvestingReading Company FinancialsThe Basics Of Banking |
College and Career Planning
| Arkansas standard | Aligned Rapunzl modules |
|---|---|
| PF.3.CCP.1Explore potential careers (including an employment forecast) and the steps needed to achieve them based on interests and/or talents | Paying For College |
| PF.3.CCP.2Explore opportunities for internships, job shadowing, and real-world experiences to determining future career paths | Taxes & Income |
| PF.3.CCP.3Develop a flowchart to outline the steps needed to achieve chosen career paths (e.g., trade school, associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, doctorate) | Taxes & Income |
Standards alignment for Arkansas is provided for planning and is updated annually. Educators can request a formatted Arkansas standards crosswalk through the Educator Dashboard.
Why Arkansas schools choose Rapunzl
Rapunzl pairs a standards-aligned curriculum with a real-time investment simulator, so students learn personal finance by making real decisions with simulated $10,000 portfolios priced on live market data — not by reading about it. The curriculum scales from a three-week unit to a 28-week year-long course, which means it fits whichever shape Arkansas's requirement takes in your district.
- 100,000+students have completed Rapunzl's curriculum
- 93%average financial literacy scores on national test over past 5 years, 24% above average
- 31interactive modules that can be customized into a course progression for your classroom
- 20+hours of gameplay in 2 interactive mini-games alongside our investment simulator and financial calculators
Teachers get an educator dashboard with grade export and standards crosswalks, English and Spanish materials, screen-reader accessibility, and a free national scholarship competition their students can enter each January.
Arkansas personal finance requirement FAQ
Arkansas requires every public high school student to complete a course that embeds the state's personal finance standards, but it does not mandate a single standalone personal-finance class.
The requirement is set by Act 480 of 2017 (Personal Finance and Job Readiness Act, HB1442) plus companion Act 466 of 2017.
Takes effect: Applies beginning with the 9th-grade class entering in 2017-18; fully in effect for all current cohorts.
Typically 0.5 credit, varying by which of six ADE-approved course options a district uses.
Arkansas's requirement is an embedded requirement.
In practice that means the personal finance content lives inside another required course, so every graduate covers it without a separate class on their schedule.
The Class of 2021 is the first graduating class that has to meet it, so earlier classes are not held to the requirement.
Timeline: Applies beginning with the 9th-grade class entering in 2017-18; fully in effect for all current cohorts.
If you are planning a course now, that timeline is the window to have curriculum in place before Arkansas starts holding students to it.
Arkansas Personal Finance Standards (adopted 2017), with the companion Economics with Personal Finance framework (revised 2022).
Rapunzl's curriculum is built on the Council for Economic Education's six pillars: Earning Income, Spending, Saving, Investing, Managing Credit, and Managing Risk. Those pillars map to every strand in the framework, which is why the same course can satisfy standards that are worded differently from one state to the next.
Yes. Rapunzl's modules and real-time investing simulator cover the CEE six pillars, and those pillars crosswalk to the Arkansas strands listed on this page.
Students learn by making real decisions with a simulated $10,000 portfolio priced on live market data, and teachers get an educator dashboard with grade export, materials in English and Spanish, and screen-reader accessibility.
Request a demo and we'll send the Arkansas standards crosswalk along with classroom access.
Bring Rapunzl to your Arkansas classroom
Explore the curriculum and real-time simulator free for 30 days. Tell us about your school and we'll send your all-access demo along with the Arkansas standards crosswalk.
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