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NASAA & NAA Foundation Launch
FSI: Fraud Scene Investigator
New Online Investor Education Program Teaches Students to Fight
White-Collar Crime
WASHINGTON, D.C.– The North American Securities Administrators Association Inc. (NASAA) and the
Newspaper Association of America (NAA) Foundation today launched FSI: Fraud Scene Investigator,
an innovative online initiative to help teach students how to fight investment fraud firsthand.
“FSI: Fraud Scene Investigator,” is an interactive investor education program that teaches and
empowers students how to detect and stop investment fraud, using a resource they’re most familiar
with—the Internet. The program, along with a corresponding guide for teachers, is available free
to educators for use in classrooms and at home through the NASAA website at www.nasaa.org.
The FSI program is designed to help students learn how to:
- Understand an investment account statement.
- Examine a company’s stock chart and trading activity.
- Research a brokerage company / individual broker.
- Identify a common investment scam.
In the initial FSI program, titled “Suitable Investments,” students help uncover a million-dollar
fraud in progress and put the mysterious con man, “Mr. X,” behind bars. Along the way, students
learn how to read stock reports, research companies, and decipher the warning signs of fraudulent
sales pitches.
The FSI Resource Guide for Teachers (available at
http://www.nasaa.org/Investor_Education/FSI/ )
offers pre- and post-program student assessment surveys, definitions of investment terms, quizzes, and
additional materials and suggestions to lead class discussions on how to research a company, what to
look for in a company’s prospectus, and how to read a balance sheet.
“Fraud prevention is often an overlooked piece of many financial education courses. NASAA’s FSI:
Fraud Scene Investigator program fills this need by integrating easily as a companion to other
financial literacy programs, or functioning as a stand alone resource on investing and fraud
prevention,” said Joseph P. Borg, NASAA President and Director of the Alabama Securities Commission.
“Special thanks go to NASAA’s Investor Education Section, Youth Outreach Project Group and the West
Virginia State Auditor’s Office for making this project possible.”
NASAA’s grassroots member investor education network is working with educators to integrate the FSI
program into schools across the nation. In cooperation with NASAA, the NAA Foundation will assist in
making the FSI program available to teacher’s throughout the United States through its Newspaper in
Education (NIE) network of newspaper websites and resources.
“The NAA Foundation believes in developing engaged students through support of programs like FSI:
Fraud Scene Investigator, which enhance understanding not only of investment fraud but the importance
of utilizing the channels of verifiable information available to them through online news sources,”
said Jim Abbott, Vice-President of the Newspaper Association of America Foundation. “Our Newspaper
in Education (NIE) program is a cooperative effort between schools and newspapers to promote the use
of newspapers as an educational resource. We are always looking for ways to bring effective online
programs to students; FSI: Fraud Scene Investigator is one example of that cooperation.”
About NASAA
NASAA (www.nasaa.org ) is the oldest international organization devoted to investor protection.
Its membership consists of the securities administrators in the 50 states, the District of Columbia,
Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Canada, and Mexico.
About the NAA Foundation
The Newspaper Association of America Foundation’s ( www.naafoundation.org) program Newspaper in Education
(NIE) is a cooperative effort between schools and newspapers to promote the use of newspapers as an
educational resource. The NAA Foundation is the administrative organization for over 950 NIE programs
in the United States.
Contacts
Bob Webster, Director of Communications, NASAA (202) 737-0900
Melinda Semadeni, Investor Education Manager, NASAA (202) 737-0900
Jim Abbott, Vice President, NAA Foundation (571) 366-1006
Release Date: August 14, 2007
Contact Justin Southern via email at justin.southern@wvsao.gov
or by phone: 304.558.2251.
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