History of the Delaware Bank At School

In 1992, Dr. Bonnie Meszaros, Associate Director of the Delaware Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship (CEE&E) and Ronni Cohen, then a 
fourth grade teacher at Burnett Elementary School in Wilmington, Delaware, traveled to New York to visit the Bay Terrace School of Business, Trade, and Finance. At the school, they saw parents collecting students’ money that the parents would later deposit for them in a local bank.

On the train back from New York, Ronni told Bonnie repeatedly that she would 
like a real bank at her school. So they got to work. Ronni’s principal, Wilbert “Bunny” Miller, said he would get a bank to work with them. Bonnie and Ronni wrote lessons on money and banking. Mr. Miller arranged for Banking Officer Charles Emory of Wilmington Trust to come to Burnett School every Tuesday 
so that the children could open non-custodial savings accounts. The Wilmington Trust school branch opened in October 1992 with over 200 students signing up 
for savings accounts the first month. Mr. Emory interviewed students and hired “junior tellers.” The number of depositors grew each month; over 60% of the students opened accounts that year. 

The Delaware Bank of School program spread to Chicago; East Orange, New Jersey and schools in California when teachers in the Master of Arts in 
Economic Education and Entrepreneurship at the CEE & E learned about the program. 

In the last twelve years, the Delaware Bank At School program opened in 27 Delaware public, charter, and private schools. The program grew with the leadership of the Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship and State Treasurer Jack Markell; the Delaware Financial Literacy Institute and Delaware Money School, Delaware Bank Commissioner and the Delaware Bankers 
Association have joined as partners in the Delaware Bank At School program. 

The Delaware Bank Commissioner has given permission for these “off-site branches” to operate. The Delaware Bank At School was recognized as a 
Delaware State Chamber of Commerce Superstar in Education program. In 2002, the Bank At School program was part of the Delaware initiatives given an innovations award by the Council of State Governments. 


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