A week ago, I had the privilege of presenting to the women of Dress for Success Mid-Fairfield County at the offices of GE in Norwalk Connecticut.  We appreciate GE being gracious and opening up their offices.

I say it was a privilege because these brave women all have a story (don’t we all) – about raising children on their own, making homes and marriages work, finding work and losing jobs – and the thrill of getting a new job again.

Most have a high school education – several some college – or college degrees.

And, through it all, I am there to help them understand credit scores and credit reports, and budgeting and more — Through our seminar on Credit 101.

They learn about three credit scores and more – and really how good scores can open doors.

I received lots of great insightful questions –

Like – “if I don’t keep a balance on my credit cards, does it mean that I do not get credit for making payments on my credits report?”  Of course the answer is no.  You get credit as longs as you pay your bills on time.

Another woman is paying off a college loan that she feels was already handled – but she is diligently doing it.

I also heard lots of basic questions as well – as straightforward as “What is a credit score and how is it calculated?”

Which led me to this – we really need to educate Americans (especially those in high school) about credit scores and more.

Many schools are making this part of the curriculum.  I arrived to help these women.  I hope for them, we arrived in time to help them – because it is never too late to improve your credit standing and credit scores.

Like anything in life, you just need to know what to do.

Which leads me to Debbie Venditti, my host, who runs Dress For Success in Fairfield County.

She is an amazing woman helping women.  When I wrote earlier about the thrill of getting a new job – it is Debbie and her team that gives these women the courage, confidence and belief that that can land back in the workforce.  Debbie and team make dreams into reality for many.

Every week, we usually provide a weekly roundup of the news about credit and credit scores.  This week however, we are going to look at the week ahead.

And in doing so, FreeScore.com is recognizing and giving credit where credit is due.

Next week marks Martin Luther King Day in the United States.  As the figurehead, and leader of the civil rights movement, we pay tribute to him during this week as January 15^th would have been his 83^rd birthday.

While Dr. King led the Civil Rights as its leader and figurehead, we also recognize a few key events and people that that helped Dr. King make Civil Rights a cornerstone in American history.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, (1954), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional.

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks (February 4, 1913 – October 24, 2005) was an African-American civil rights activist, whom the U.S. Congress called “the first lady of civil rights”, and “the mother of the freedom movement”.

On December 1, 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, Parks refused to obey bus driver James F. Blake’s order that she give up her seat to make room for a white passenger.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 (enacted July 2, 1964) was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation. It ended unequal application of voter registration requirements and racial segregation in schools.

Here is to thanking Dr. King and all of those people and events that made freedom and civil rights in the United States a reality.

The FreeScore.com Team

Starting today, we began national airing of our TV commercial entitled, “Line-Up,” featuring a line-up of criminals at a police station, one of whom is responsible for “robbing” the victim on his interest rate. The 60-second spot points out you can “keep an eye on your three scores at FreeScore.com.” It also notes key FreeScore.com features such as accessing your three scores on a mobile device, plus the ability to find signs of identity theft.  Airing begins on national cable networks plus select spot-market TV stations. To see the spot go to FreeScore.com Line-Up or check it out below!

FreeScore.com will also be producing a 30-second commercial.

According to Jeff Paradise, senior vice president of FYI Direct, Inc., the parent company of the FreeScore.com brand, “While this spot is fun and memorable – we really want to help people remember that checking their three credit scores helps puts them in financial control.  It is increasingly more important for consumers to know more about their credit histories than do lenders and future bosses.  You can’t have that kind of control without regular access to your three reports and scores – and as many know, credit scores usually change five or more time per year.”

The spot was directed by Leigh Scott of Palace Productions in Norwalk, CT.

Watch the new commercial: