Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Well, it’s April of 2025 and we know that there’s been a lot of uncertainty recently about the stock market. So, we thought it’d be a good idea to do an episode about this. But even though the market is low, that…
Category Archives: Podcast
Episode 61 – Exploring economics with TikTok’s @EconChrisClarke
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Today our guest is Chris Clarke, who’s an economics professor at Washington State University in Pullman. And he’s gained a bit of internet fame for making economics more approachable by posting videos on Instagram and TikTok. And if you want to follow…
Episode 60 – Strategies and benefits of VEBA, a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA)
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Now, when you separate from public service, either to retire or to go work in the private sector, you might have the option to cash out your vacation leave and sick leave. And depending on where you work, these cash outs could…
Episode 59 – Cash-out strategies for your leave balance
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Today we’re looking at leave cash-outs. And for anyone who’s either getting ready to retire, or maybe you’re just leaving public employment and moving to the private sector or whatever that choice is. A lot of people choose to cash-out their annual…
Episode 58 – Returning to work after retirement
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Now, for a lot of people, retirement is a time to kind of sit back and enjoy, maybe sit on a beach or do some gardening or maybe some volunteering. But some people may even decide that they want to go back…
Episode 57 – Understanding separation vs. retirement dates
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Today we’re looking at the difference between separation date and retirement date. When you apply for retirement with DRS these are two very different dates. But they’re both super important to know. So, let’s kind of dig in. So, the separation date…
Episode 56 – Affordable staycations in Washington state
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. And on this podcast we like to talk a lot about pensions and government programs, but we also like to share money tips. And one of the things we wanted to talk about today was staycations in Washington, especially during those winter…
Episode 55 – ABLE savings plans for people with disabilities
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Today we’re talking about kind of a new-ish type of savings plan for individuals with disabilities and their families called an ABLE savings plan. And it allows folks with disabilities to put away money without worrying about losing some of those disability…
Episode 54 – Pension plan funding with the WA state actuary
Episode transcript: [music intro] Seth Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. Today we have the Washington State Actuary, Matt Smith, with us here to talk about the recent actuarial valuation report that his office released in August. Actuarial valuations are technical reports providing full disclosure of the financial and funding status of public…
Episode 53 – New Retirement Strategy Fund for DCP and Plan 3
Episode transcript: [music intro] Jenny Welcome back to Fund Your Future with DRS. And this January we are updating the target date fund options for investment accounts in DCP, Plan 3 and JRA. So today we’ve got Chris from AllianceBernstein here as our guest. He helps manage the Retirement Strategy Funds and here to talk…
