In Coppell High School Securities and Investment teacher Brian Simpson’s class, students learn the importance of managing their money and that wealth does not require lots of earning but rather good budgeting.

“Offense sells tickets, defense wins championships,” Simpson said.

Offense represents people who like to spend money on luxury products; many Americans spend more than they can afford and end up going into debt. Defense represents people that live below their means and budget well.

Simpson applies these theories in his personal life. He wants to make his kids financially independent and thus has set up a system similar to a 401K. Every time he pays his kids for chores, they can either spend it or give it back to Simpson. If given back, Simpson then doubles the amount and invests it into the stock market. When his kids turn 16, they can withdraw the money and buy a car.

“Simpson is very helpful,” sophomore Suhan Joshi said. “He loves to answer questions and make things easy to learn. The class is really useful because it’s one of the only classes that focuses on the real world.” 

Simpson starts his class by reading The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko. The book is a compilation of research done by the two authors on the profiles of American millionaires. Students are encouraged to take notes as they listen to prerecorded chapters of the book. 

The book teaches students that many millionaires don’t spend a lot of money: they wear common clothing and drive normal cars.

“My class is very easy. Over 80% of students have an A,” Simpson said. “Listening to the video will get you at least a 50, taking notes will at least get you a 80, but if you read along you will at least get a 90.”

After listening to the book, students are quizzed over the content. The quizzes are on important vocabulary in the book or important events.

Simpson takes his classes outside the front office to talk about the book and answer questions using their notes. Students have a short discussion with their group and share their answers with the rest of the class. 

Simpson loves going outside; it enhances learning and makes it more unique since in many classes students are stuck in a class. It makes students more interactive with the lesson.

“I am not even mad we have to put our phones up because the stuff we learn is actually going to help me in real life, but my favorite part is when we go outside for discussion,” sophomore Ayaan Gaziyani said. “It feels so nice to have something different, and it is so refreshing in the mornings.”

After discussions, the class moves to the Lecture Hall, where Simpson presents a slideshow on different types of financial vocabulary and discusses it with students.

“The lessons are very interactive,” Joshi said. “It makes them more fun.” 

On Thursday (the second B day), Simpson assigns debate teams, and they skip the lesson to prepare for debate on Friday ( C day). 

Three teams debate on C days about financial decisions an imaginary person should make based on their scenario.

“Debating is a great way to learn,” Simpson said. 

Simpson used to be a debate coach at Ferris High School, Byron Nelson High School, and Argyle High School. He has won six UIL State Championships as debate coach at FHS in 2005-09 and BNHS in 2009-14.

The debate topics include many financial decisions such as investing, debts and payments with real scenarios.

Teams are then ranked; first place gets three points, second place gets one point and third place gets zero points. Simpson keeps track of winning teams and ranks students based on how many debates they have won in order to create a more competitive atmosphere.

Simpson likes to keep his lessons organized, allowing for students to learn different and valuable material in every class.

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