A $200,000 grant has been granted to conduct a study among Wisconsin's credit unions that aims to prove that financial education can motivate members to use investment tools to build wealth.

The study is expected to last 18 months and will provide as much as 30,000 hours of online investment education to 4,000 participating employees, starting with those at credit unions. Employees will complete up to ten hours of online learning, receive additional information about investment products and opportunities and have access to an educational coach.

The grant is from the Investor Protection Trust, a nonprofit organization devoted to investor education. The Wisconsin Credit Union League, Gov. Jim Doyle's Council on Financial Literacy and the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions will handle the coordination and promotion efforts. John Hoffmire, director with the Puelicher Center for Banking Education at the Wisconsin School of Business, University of Wisconsin-Madison, is spearheading the study.

Pre- and post-tests will measure participants' investment knowledge, and behavior will be tracked quarterly during the following year to determine whether participants have initiated investment activity. Credit unions' participation in the study is part of the ongoing REAL Solutions initiative.