This year, Meyer Wilson Werning invited qualifying students to apply for The Importance of Personal Finance Education Scholarship. This scholarship promised $2,500 to a student in need of financial aid who has cultivated a complex understanding of the power of financial literacy.
The team decided to award this scholarship to Sara MacNeil, a law student at the University of New Mexico School of Law. MacNeil’s powerful essay goes into detail about financial literacy, inspired by her mother’s determination and experience with financial abuse. MacNeil notes that financial literacy can become a tool to encourage individual safety and power.
The investment fraud lawyers and scholarship selection committee with Meyer Wilson Werning were impressed and moved by MacNeil’s essay, and hope that the scholarship’s $2,500 will alleviate some of the financial stress that comes with a legal education.
Meet Sara MacNeil
Sara MacNeil may currently attend the University of New Mexico School of Law, but she has previous legal experience. Prior to starting law school, she worked as a paralegal with New Mexico Legal Aid.
There, she “assisted clients facing domestic violence, housing insecurity, and discrimination” and “helped prepare court filings, conducted client intakes, and supported survivors seeking protection orders and emergency housing.”
“That work reinforced my commitment to public-interest law and continues to inform my studies,” she says. “I also bring experience from my previous career in journalism, where I reported on government accountability, environmental justice, education policy, and public safety.”
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Financial Literacy and Safety
MacNeil emphasizes that her understanding of financial literacy stemmed not from part-time classes or books but rather from firsthand experience. Her mother raised her, along with her siblings, while navigating pharmacy school, and passed an urgent need for financial stability onto MacNeil.
“From a young age, I saw how seriously my mom took money. She did buy frivolous things, but they were always on sale,” MacNeil says. “She taught me that money was a tool for freedom, not indulgence. She used student loans to get through pharmacy school…but she believed education was worth it. She was careful, cautious, and forward-thinking because she had to be.”
The Unfortunate Dynamics of Financial Abuse
“Part of my financial education also came from watching my parents’ relationship,” MacNeil continues. She goes on to tell a difficult story about her mother’s decision to marry young and her father’s intense need to control their family’s finances, even when MacNeil’s mother was the higher-earning partner in the relationship.
Financial Literacy and Power
It was her new understanding of her family’s history and her continued work with New Mexico Legal Aid that helped MacNeil understand that financial literacy does more than ensure someone can pay for groceries every month. Financial literacy is about survival and the power to dictate one’s own living circumstances and security.
MacNeil’s mother has since passed, though MacNeil notes that “she was still teaching me how to be financially responsible even while dying,” taking it upon herself to get her student loans forgiven and arrange an affordable funeral.
It’s in the wake of her lessons that MacNeil decided to pursue a career as a lawyer who could help people explore connections between financial planning, legal protection, and personal safety. “Financial literacy isn’t just about budgets or spreadsheets,” she says. “It’s about power. It’s about choice. It’s about being able to leave when things are no longer safe.”
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MacNeil’s Goals for the Future
MacNeil is set to graduate in May 2028 with her Juris Doctor, after which she’ll take the bar. She hopes to build the foundation of her legal career on “legal analysis, advocacy, and client-centered lawyering.” She notes that she’s interested in a wide range of legal fields, including housing law, family law, environmental law, criminal law, and abuse law.
She hopes to use her education and familiarity with practical financial practices to empower her clients. She plans to start working in public-interest law, where she can ideally serve “survivors of domestic violence and individuals facing discrimination as well as financial or housing insecurity.”
“My goal,” she says, “is to become an attorney who helps clients understand the intersection between money, safety, and legal rights—whether that means navigating protection orders, preventing eviction, or accessing public benefits. Long-term, I hope to advocate for systemic change that recognizes financial literacy as a critical component of personal safety and justice.”
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About the Meyer Wilson Werning’s The Importance of Personal Finance Education Scholarship
Meyer Wilson Werning’s The Importance of Personal Finance Education Scholarship explicitly asked today’s students to consider the impact that financial literacy can have on their security and professional success. Students applying for The Importance of Personal Finance Education Scholarship had to ask themselves:
“How can financial literacy empower individuals to make informed decisions about their money and achieve long-term financial stability?”
The scholarship selection committee with Meyer Wilson Werning proudly awarded the scholarship and its $2,500 award to students whose personal experience with financial literacy made them a stand-out example of how economic awareness can transform a person’s life. This year, Sara MacNeil joins the firm’s previous scholarship winners:
- 2023 Winner: Jace Beard
- 2024 Winner: Hannah S. Robinson
Meyer Wilson Werning Celebrates Sara MacNeil’s Powerful Financial Message
MacNeil’s scholarship essay for The Importance of Personal Finance Education Scholarship is a moving testament to her mother’s determination. She tells a story of her mother’s will to survive and ability to enjoy “frivolous” things, if on a tight budget and with great love for the clearance rack.
At the same time, MacNeil doesn’t shy away from the hard facts of her life. She emphasizes that her legal experience unearthed realities about her father’s financial abuse while establishing how truly important it is to remain in control of one’s finances.
The lessons that MacNeil discusses in her essay thoroughly explore the complex relationship people can have with financial literacy and the power that it offers.
The scholarship selection committee with Meyer Wilson Werning applauds her ability to thread the needle and wishes her the best of luck as MacNeil continues with her legal education.
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