High School Ranking Last in Financial Literacy Starts Sim Racing Program
School says it teaches real word skills such as taking on credit card debt, easy upgrades, and how to explain that "It wasn't that expensive."
SPRINGFIELD—After being ranked last in statewide financial literacy for the seventh straight year, Robert E. Lee High School has announced it is improving its curriculum and hiring qualified instructors for its new launch of a fully funded sim racing program.
“We couldn’t continue to be last,” said Principal Patrick Simpson. “So we figured we’d teach them how to be fast. The fastest. I have one of these sim rigs at home. My iRating is almost 1500.”
The school’s former computer lab has been converted into a sim racing cafe complete with triple monitors, load-cell pedals, direct-drive wheel bases, and rigs that cost way more than they are paying their teachers. Administrators claim this setup provides “a real education.”
“Students learn how to make purchases they absolutely cannot justify,” said program coordinator Melissa Stevens. “They learn about credit card limits. They learn about upgrades that cost more than real car parts. It’s basically economics in motion.”
Teachers have been reassigned from core subjects to roles like Marshals, Team Principals, and Mechanics. Algebra teacher Mr. Lyles says he hasn’t seen students this motivated in years.
“Yesterday a kid asked what bankruptcy was,” he said. “Not because of math, but because he bought an eight-hundred-dollar wheel on a payment plan with 80 percent APY. Honestly, I’ll take the win.”
Parents, however, are confused. “My son still can’t calculate a tip,” said local mom Deborah Debs. “But he came home explaining why upgrading to a motion rig is crucial for his development as a human being.”
Students seem thrilled with the new program. Sophomore Eric Vaughn said sim racing has already prepared him for adult life. “I learned that if you can’t afford something, you get a credit card that lets you afford it,” he said proudly. “That’s budgeting.”
The school insists the program is already improving real world readiness. “Financial literacy is about understanding choices,” Principal Simpson said. “And our students are learning the most important skill of all. When someone asks how much something cost, you look them in the eyes and say, ‘It wasn’t that expensive.’”