About Us

The Center for Financial Security (CFS) in the University of Wisconsin-Madison was founded by the School of Human Ecology (SoHE) in 2008.  The CFS focuses on applied research that promotes individual and family financial security and informs public policy about financial issues on a local, state, and national level.

The CFS engages researchers and graduate students through inter-disciplinary partnerships with the goal of identifying the role of products, policies, and advice that would help overcome personal financial challenges.  In general, CFS research can be categorized as:

  1. Measurement - how to measure financial security and literacy levels
  2. Targeting - who should be the focus of interventions, and
  3. Testing - which interventions work and for whom.

The CFS embodies the Wisconsin Idea by not just conducting applied research but also focusing on partnerships and outreach.The CFS has a focus on households, consumers and personal financial decision making, but works collaboratively with other centers, institutes and schools at the University. The CFS defers to other units on issues of corporate and commercial finance, as well as securities and other traditional finance issues and the work of the CFS is notable for its focus on vulnerable populations as defined by income, education, race, household status and disability.  Households facing financial crises are another key population for which research can inform which tools and resources are needed to help manage unexpected negative shocks. 

The Center for Financial Security partners with a number of agencies and organizations including the Social Security Administration Financial Literacy Research Consortium (FLRC), the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Institute for Research on Poverty, Abt Associates, the Certified Financial Planners Board, the West Coast Poverty Center, New York City's The Financial Clinic, United Way.

Steering Committee:

Faculty Whose Tenure Home is in SoHE
Wendy Way
Karen Bogenschneider

Faculty with Affiliation from Another University Unit
Timothy Smeeding
Pamela Herd

Academic Staff
Rob McCalla

UW-Madison Graduate Student
Nilton Porto

CFS Governance Document

To learn more about the Center for Financial Security, read our brochure.

To learn more about the UW CFS Year One FLRC work, click here.

To learn more about the UW CFS Year Two FLRC work, click here.