The Maryland Council on Economic Education (MCEE) today announced its endorsement of the Advanced Placement (AP) Business with Personal Finance course, encouraging Maryland education leaders to promote and adopt it as a course that sets the standard for high-quality financial literacy education.

“Every Maryland student deserves to graduate with the financial knowledge and skills to navigate adult life successfully,” said Julie Weaver, Executive Director of MCEE. “AP Business with Personal Finance delivers exactly that — at a college level of rigor. We’re proud to endorse a course that gives our students real, lasting skills. Recognizing it is the right move for students, for districts, and for Maryland.”

MCEE is the state’s leading nonprofit dedicated to advancing economic and financial literacy education. The organization supports the nationally recognized Standards for Personal Financial Education, developed in partnership with the Council for Economic Education and the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy. Those standards define what students must know and be able to do to make sound financial decisions — covering budgeting, saving, credit, investing, risk management, and long-term financial planning — and serve as the national benchmark for quality personal finance instruction.

AP Business with Personal Finance is a full-year course explicitly designed to teach and assess those standards at a college level, situating personal finance concepts within broader business and economic contexts to deepen students’ real-world application skills. Rather than give students simple exposure to financial topics, the course requires them to demonstrate mastery through coursework aligned to defined competencies and an externally developed AP exam.

In a survey of all 24 public school systems in Maryland, MCEE learned that six plan to offer the new AP course in the 2026-2027 school year: Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Harford County, St. Mary’s County, and Talbot County.

In addition, MCEE hosted a webinar with the College Board on August 24 for Maryland school system leaders, including teachers and administrators. The session helped participants learn more about the course, including how it fits within the AP portfolio and how it aligns with national and Maryland personal finance standards, to help more systems make an informed decision about offering it.

MCEE’s endorsement rests on three pillars:

  1. Standards-based integrity. AP Business with Personal Finance fully addresses the competencies outlined in the CEE/Jump$tart standards, making it a principled and rigorous model for financial literacy education in Maryland.

  2. Rigor that raises the bar. Recognizing this course signals that Maryland values substantive financial education — not just exposure to financial topics, but demonstrated mastery through a college-level experience with an external assessment. It establishes a high standard before a mandate exists, not after.

  3. Financial education for all students. Providing a clear, recognized pathway for students to access high-quality financial education gives districts — especially those with limited course offerings — a proven option to deliver essential skills within existing programs. No student should miss out on financial literacy because of where they live or what their school can offer.

Maryland has an opportunity to get ahead of the curve. By offering AP Business with Personal Finance, we can ensure that students across the state have access to world-class financial education and lay the groundwork for a future in which every Maryland graduate leaves school financially prepared.

About The Maryland Council on Economic Education (MCEE):

The Maryland Council on Economic Education (MCEE) is an independent nonprofit and the statewide leader in youth financial and economic education. Founded in 1953, MCEE has spent more than 70 years helping Maryland students build the knowledge and confidence to make smart money decisions for life. Each year, MCEE reaches more than 225,000 students through hands-on programs including The Stock Market Game, the Personal Finance Challenge, the Economics Challenge, Invest in Girls, Family Financial Nights and more. MCEE also delivers professional development for more than 2,000 educators each year and writes curriculum for school systems statewide, equipping teachers to bring financial and economic concepts to life in the classroom. MCEE relies on the support of donors, financial institutions, foundations, and community partners to expand access for students across Maryland. For more information, visit www.econed.org.

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