Renegade Buggies App Launches, Makes Smart Spending Fun for Families

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - February 16, 2015) - Renegade Buggies, a brand new game for iOS and Android, launched today to help parents and children gain financial literacy skills together -- all with a little fun and competition along the way.

The free app is a joint project between the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) and the Dollar General Literacy Foundation (DGLF) -- longtime partners in giving families resources to learn together regardless of the parents' educational or economic background.

In Renegade Buggies, players navigate a digital course and make real-world decisions in the midst of addictive fun: grab items from a shopping list, collect coins and coupons and watch out for obstacles -- all with the goal of saving as much money as possible. As a reward for completing various stages of the game, players earn Buggy Bucks, in-game currency that can be used to purchase Buggy upgrades for even more game accomplishments.

By capturing these situations in a game, Renegade Buggies engages parents and children in a joint-learning process. It also reinforces money-saving tips parents may or may not know while instilling the value of fiscal responsibility in children from a young age. Renegade Buggies gives families a free opportunity to turn popular tablets, smart phones, and other devices into learning moments.

"Like adding vegetables to macaroni and cheese, it's easy to do something fun and good for you at the same time," said Emily Kirkpatrick, vice president, NCFL. "Renegade Buggies embraces that logic and helps parents teach valuable lessons all under the guise of a fun game."

"Basic literacy and math skills play an important role in increasing opportunities and enhancing personal growth," said Denine Torr, with the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. "NCFL does a brilliant job of teaching outside the box. We are proud of our collaboration with NCFL and hope that families enjoy this new fun learning experience."

Renegade Buggies comes just in time for the Digital Kids Conference, an annual event that gathers experts who share their insights on creating best-selling games, apps, digital toys and media services for children. At this year's show, both Kirkpatrick and Torr will share their insights gleaned from more than a decade's worth of driving literacy and learning among children, adults and families. As emcee and presenter, Kirkpatrick will also relay NCFL's experience in building digital platforms -- such as NCFL's Wonderopolis® and Renegade Buggies -- that foster meaningful learning experiences in classrooms, homes and on the go.

The NCFL-DGLF partnership has a long history of producing innovative programming and resources, including the National Literacy Directory, that support families on their journey of learning to read, receiving a GED® or learning the English language.

Renegade Buggies was created by renowned educational game developer FableVision and is available in the iTunes and Google Play store, as well as on NCFL's site, renegadebuggies.familieslearning.org.

ABOUT NATIONAL CENTER FOR FAMILIES LEARNING
The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to helping adults and children learn together. NCFL creates and deploys innovative programs and strategies that support learning, literacy, and family engagement in education. From the classroom to the community to the digital frontier, NCFL collaborates with educators, advocates, and policy-makers to help families construct hotspots for learning wherever they go. For more information on NCFL's 25-year track record, visit www.familieslearning.org.

About Dollar General Literacy Foundation
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education as part of the company's mission of serving others for over 20 years. Since its inception in 1993, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation has awarded more than $98 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 5.8 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy or continued education. For more information about the Dollar General Literacy Foundation and its grant programs, visit www.dgliteracy.com. 

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