It probably doesn’t show up on your calendar, but May is Disability Insurance Awareness Month. And you might agree that such a month is useful, when you consider the following:

Another school year is drawing to a close — so if you have young children, they’re one year closer to the day when they head off to college. And both you and your children need to prepare for that day. Your kids can do so by developing good study habits. As for you, it’s never too soon to start preparing for the high costs of higher education.

Dear Mikey,

Meeting city, state, faith and education leaders on Thursday, Sen. John McComish, of District 18, voiced his continued support for Gov. Jan Brewer’s plan to expand Medicaid in the state at a panel hosted by the Valley Interfaith Project (VIP).

If you work for an employer who offers a benefits package that includes life insurance and disability income insurance, consider yourself fortunate. But you can’t necessarily consider yourself fully protected. And if you don’t have appropriate life and disability insurance, your long-term financial goals could be at risk.

Here’s a sobering statistic: 46 percent of workers surveyed had little or no confidence that they will have enough money to live comfortably throughout their retirement years, according to the 2010 Retirement Confidence Survey, issued by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. So you may want to explore all possible retirement savings vehicles —including a variable annuity.

Centennials are normally cause for celebration, a chance to applaud some thing or person standing the test of time. But not so for the income tax. Even the IRS is declining to mention that this year is the 100-year anniversary of the 16th Amendment of the Constitution, which authorized the tax.

When Arizona voters approved the use of medical marijuana in 2010, Steve Cottrell saw a way to combine his laboratory background and his interest in the plant he’d been studying since his 11-year-old son died of cancer more than a decade before.

As an investor, you want your money to grow so that you can achieve your important goals, such as a comfortable retirement or college for your children. But you may also invest to increase your cash flow. In fact, without a strong cash flow, you may be forced to dip into your growth-oriented investments to pay for short-term needs — and if you do this repeatedly, you could damage your prospects for attaining your long-term goals. That’s why you’ll want to look at different ways of boosting your cash flow — one of which may be premium bonds.

Just as schools in Ahwatukee are starting and finishing their spring testing of AIMS, incoming freshmen for next school year are beginning to wrap their heads around the idea of their familiar testing coming to an end.

Gun rights

California has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation. In addition to the over 9,000 federal gun laws, California has also enacted many laws at the state level, including ban on high-capacity magazines, ban on “assault weapons,” waiting period on gun purchases, an approved handgun list — handguns must be certified by the state before they can cross the state line, private party sales require transfer via a licensed dealer, identification of “gun free zones” and many others.

Life is full of ups and downs — and the financial markets are no different. As an investor, you’re no doubt happy to see the “ups” — but the “downs” can seem like a real downer. Isn’t there any way to help smooth out the volatility in your investment portfolio?

The Montessori Exploratory Committee has moved forward in its year-long proposal to build a stand-alone Montessori high school within Tempe Union, gaining added support from parents.

The Arizona Board of Regents has approved tuition increases at the state’s three public universities.

When I took office last year, I made three commitments about the city’s budget. I made the commitment to cut wasteful spending and build a smarter government that does more with less. I committed to use our savings and increased revenues from a recovering economy to lower taxes. And I made the commitment not to accelerate any tax cut if the result hurt our public’s safety.

The 3-year-old resource center in Tempe serving Ahwatukee families is in need of food donations for April.

1238 E. Chandler Blvd.,

If you’re a “Gen-Xer,” born between 1965 and 1980, you’ve still got many years to go until you retire. At this stage of your life, what can you do to help build resources for the retirement lifestyle you’ve envisioned?

American Legion Post 64 is hosting its Fifth Annual American Legion Tournament on Saturday, March 23 at the Ahwatukee Golf Club, 13431 S. 44th St. The Legion is a homeless Club, without any income from food services, which means it has to raise funds through outside events like this golf tournament.

For the first time since 2008, contribution limits have risen for one of the most popular retirement savings vehicles available: the IRA. This means you’ve got a greater opportunity to put more money away for your “golden years.”

It’s that time again. Between the flurry of the holidays and the energy of spring is tax season, the chance for people, including young people, across the country to organize their finances and prepare their returns.

The state’s jobless rate jumped a tenth of a point in January to 8.0 percent.

This year’s Fore the Dogs Golf Event was the most successful event in Valley Dogs history, raising more than $10,000 and giving away more than 100 prizes.

When you invest in stocks, you want their price to go up. But of course, you can’t control the rise and fall of stock prices. However, there is a key element of investing that you can control — the number of shares you own. And in the long run, share ownership may be more important than rising stock prices in determining your long-term investment success.