High school students from the Applications and Research Laboratory in Ellicott City, earned first runner-up honors in this year’s National Personal Finance Challenge (NPFC). Competing teams showcased their understanding of an essential life skill: how to manage money, whether you have a lot of it or not much at all.

Nearly 10,000 students from more than 350 schools competed across the United States in the NPFC this spring. Students from Millard North High School in Omaha, Neb., earned the top finish, with teams from Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, Calif., and Germantown High School of Madison, Miss., rounding out the top four finalists from the 24 semifinals teams.

The competition showcases students’ ability to use their knowledge to assess a family’s financial situation and present a thoughtful plan including earning, spending, saving, using credit and investing.

Organized by the Council for Economic Education (CEE) with help from the Nebraska Council for Economic Education, it was held entirely online due to COVID-19. The NPFC is sponsored by Voya Financial.

The Ellicott City’s team second-place win extends a Maryland winning streak started last month when Mt. Hebron High School swept teams from around the United States to win all levels of CEE’s National Economics Challenge, in which students demonstrate mastery of economic principles.