asset development part 2: practical application and implementation of asset development strategies...
TRANSCRIPT
Asset Development Part 2:
Practical Application and Implementation of
Asset Development Strategies for DRCs
2011 Asset Development Webinar Series
Hosted/Facilitated by: DJ Diamond
Presented by: Elizabeth Jennings
NDI Technical Assistance Team
According to the SGA, states were required to choose at least two service delivery components as a primary focus for their grant implementation. Asset Development, as a service delivery component was selected by six of the nine DEI projects.
Training and Technical Assistance to DEI Projects in understanding and implementing the Asset Development Service Delivery Component is provided under U.S. DOLETA contract with NDI Consulting, Inc. and the National Disability Institute (NDI).
Evaluation of the impact of the DEI Projects implementation and outcomes of Asset Development Strategies will be provided under U.S. DOL ODEP contract with Social Dynamics.
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Upon completion of this webinar, DEI Project staff will:
Understand your role in supporting individuals with disabilities in building towards increased financial stability.
Recognize the need to partner with organizations currently providing services that support financial stability.
Have resources to support you in moving forward.
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Asset Development Part 2:Asset Development Part 2:Practical Application and Implementation of Practical Application and Implementation of
Asset Development Strategies for DRCs Asset Development Strategies for DRCs Learning ObjectivesLearning Objectives
Review of Asset Development Strategies
Your role as an Advocate, Facilitator and Collaborator
Resources to support your efforts
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Economic Empowerment is a series of strategies that has the potential to:◦ help people with disabilities improve their economic stability, ◦ decrease stress and financial crisis in an individual’s life◦ expand opportunities for community participation, and ◦ positively impact an individual’s quality of life experience.
The presence of a disability and the need to maintain a public benefit should not require one to forfeit their economic stability and live in poverty. Without knowledge and guidance, individuals are not empowered to earn, learn, save and build.
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Post-secondary EducationEmployment
Self-employmentMicro-EnterpriseHome Ownership
Family Self-Sufficiency ProgramsIndividual Development AccountsAssistive Technology Loan Funds
Student LoansRetirement Accounts
Use of work incentivesUse of tax incentives Volunteer Income Tax
AssistanceEarned Income Tax Credit
Financial LiteracyBudgeting
Credit RepairGetting Banked
Medicaid Buy-In
Programs
Protection and Advocacy, Taxpayer Advocates, Credit CounselingVolunteer Income Tax Assistance, WIPA
The Strategies ExistThe Strategies Exist
◦Public attitudes
◦ Low expectations of and within the disability community, and
◦Current partnerships don’t support savings and building a financial future.
◦Regulations discourage saving for the future; retirement, emergencies, etc.
People with disabilities are unable to work. ◦ Work produces income which is the first step towards saving and
building assets.
People with disabilities have all their needs met by their special programs.◦ People with disabilities may need to maintain one or more benefits
due to their disability but ultimately want freedom and independence.
People with disabilities can’t be expected to save and build assets.◦ People with disabilities want a better economic future. They are
starting businesses and becoming homeowners.
Assume all people want to better their lives.
Engage people with disabilities in the conversation. Provide simplified opportunities for individuals to improve their
financial stability.
Acknowledge the limited financial literacy of all Americans including those with disabilities.
Just as you assume competence, assume the desire to live beyond poverty.
Expect the systems to adjust to support this movement.
You are in a key position to identify and empower individuals who want to move beyond poverty.
You are a key source of information on local programs, including resources to better understand how building income and resources may impact Public Benefits.
You can identify potential collaborations that will support the efforts of non-disability organizations in reaching out to those you serve.
You can ultimately impact each individual's level of economic empowerment.
How can you assist with economic empowerment?
◦Advocate
◦Facilitator
◦Collaborator
Make the paradigm shift.
Acknowledge that public benefits in exchange for a life of poverty is a bad deal for all.
Individuals with disabilities live in poverty at higher rates than any other group in America. Discussing a movement from poverty to financial stability is a new conversation that may seem counter-intuitive at points but is the only way to ensure equal opportunity and full participation.
Re-consider the goal of work.
How do you go about seeking employment?
Do you consider……
1. your talents and abilities?
2. your budget?
3. the cost of going to work?
4. benefits offered?
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Don’t underestimate your power to create change through
encouragement.
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Identify available online financial literacy tools and local organizations working to increase financial literacy.
Refer individuals to local opportunities that will help them to get banked, become more financially literate, get taxes done free, secure their Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), participate in an Individual Development Account (IDA), etc.
Federal Resources - http://www.mymoney.gov/
FDIC provides FREE Financial Literacy Curriculum - Money Smart and Money Smart for Young Adults Not Copyrighted, can be customized by you to meet your
needs. Available in Braille
http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/moneysmart/
Wi$eUp is a financial education program designed for Generation X and Y Women. It was developed by the US DOL Women’s Bureau - http://wiseupwomen.tamu.edu
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Real Economic Impact Tour Web site: http://www.realeconomicimpact.org/REI-Tour.aspx
Success of Saving (SOS) program in New Jersey for individuals with significant disabilities. Telephone number: (609)689-0136 website: http://www.alliesnj.org/programs-services/financial-literacy/
The National Foundation for Credit Counseling website: http://www.nfcc.org/FinancialEducation/index.cfm.
Visa’s Practical Money Skills website: http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com.
Doorway to Dreams’ Financial Entertainment website: http://financialentertainment.org.
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Taking Ownership of the Future: The National Strategy for Financial Literacy. Financial Literacy & Education Commission, 2006. http://www.mymoney.gov/sites/default/files/downloads/ownership.pdf
“Can Financial Literacy Enhance Asset Building?” – Elizabeth Bell and Robert I. Lerman, Opportunity and Ownership Project (6), September 2005. http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/311224_financial_literacy.pdf
“Financial Literacy: An Overview of Practice, Research, and Policy” – Sandra Braunstein and Carolyn Welch, Federal Reserve Bulletin, November 2002, 445-457. http://federalreserve.gov/pubs/bulletin/2002/1102lead.pdf
A Longitudinal Evaluation of the Intermediate-term Impact of the Money Smart Financial Education Curriculum upon Consumers’ Behavior and Confidence, Federal Deposit Insurance Commission, 2007. http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/moneysmart/pubs/ms070424.pdf - PDF
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Facilitate free financial education training.
◦The FDIC’s Money Smart Financial Literacy Program offers a “Train the Trainer” workshop for groups of 12. You need to provide space and lunch, FDIC will provide everything else.
◦To learn more about the Money Smart “Train the Trainer” program please visit the following website: http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/moneysmart/trainthetrainer.html
Connect individuals to local CASH Coalitions/Tax Coalitions at tax time to have their taxes done free and to apply for the Earned Income Tax Credit
Refer individuals to financial stability programs within their local area…. such as Family Self-Sufficiency programs, Individual Development Accounts, Way to Work, First-Time Homeowners, Savings Clubs, etc.
Develop New Partnerships
1. United Way2. Financial Institutions (Banks and Credit Unions)3. IDA Providers4. Prosperity Campaigns (Tax Coalitions)5. Microenterprise and Small Business Supports6. Junior Achievement7. Financial Education Trainers8. Credit Counselors9. Local Governments10. State Comptroller’s Office
Join your local EITC coalition or support their work by….
Spreading the word about the VITA, EITC, IDAs and other strategies
Referring individuals to VITA sites during tax time
Advising them of your work, your partnerships with organizations who support low-wage workers and your willingness to participate on planning/steering committees.
National Coalition of Tax Coalitions - http://tax-coalition.org/
Host a VITA Site……
Recruit volunteers from within your organization
Market to workers you serve
Support a tax site coordinator
Work with your local Tax Coalition and IRS-SPEC point of contact.http://tax-coalition.org/program-tools/managing-a-tax-site/site-procedures-and-management/relations-with-the-irs/spec/SPEC_Territory_Managers_Oct_2009.pdf/view
Explore opportunities with partners to….
◦ Bring the Disability Community and Asset Building Community together to talk about their services and how they can collaborate to support low-wage workers with disabilities
◦ Host speakers such as those from your State’s Consumer Affairs office
◦ Deliver financial literacy with local banks◦ Offer Financial Fitness Fairs◦ Bring Assets for Independence (AFI) funds to your
community
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Bring the Disability Community and Asset Building Community together to talk about their services and how they can collaborate to support low-wage workers with disabilities.
◦ Initiate the conversation
◦Ensure access
◦Seek assistance
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You can get the conversation started by hosting an introductory meeting of key stakeholders from the asset building community and the disability community.
The goal of this first meeting is to learn about each other’s work, discuss opportunities to support the work and identify a limited number of next steps to begin your partnership.
This is an initial meeting so you don’t have to wait to have everyone on board but you will greatly benefit from being thoughtful as to who is leading current efforts and has the ability to bring others to the table. Consider one key partner who can assist you in recruiting others.
No time like the present.
As with any community gathering, neutral ground provides a quality foundation for building consensus.
Naturally, you will want to ensure that the location is accessible.
A joint letter from a trusted partner representing each community will garner the attention of both the Asset building and the Disability community.
Include in your language:◦ Stated desire to discuss outreach and education efforts to
benefit low wage workers with disabilities ◦ The goal of collaboration among community groups to enhance
and maximize existing services and the fact that each participant will simply be asked to contribute in a manner that fits their mission and capacity.
Don’t forget to identify a partner to accept RSVPs and requests for accommodations. Please remember to assign someone to fulfill the request for accommodations.
Keep in mind that the introductory meeting is guiding the community towards the goal of recognizing the need and benefit of collaboration.
◦ Overview of the local economic empowerment efforts that includes the mission of serving low wage workers.
◦ Overview of the local disability services that highlight the disability community as low wage workers with the desire to increase their financial stability.
◦ Open discussion to identify opportunities for collaboration, additional partners, marketing/outreach strategies to increase participation and service to people with disabilities.
Now that you have buy-in, the conversation should continue and be formalized as a disability workgroup.
The disability workgroup should consist of a representation of both the disability and asset building communities.
This group should be attached to a larger Committee such as the IDA Program Steering Committee or the local EITC Coalition.
Define a regularly scheduled meeting time to keep the group moving forward
Develop cross-training opportunities
Define goals
Create an action plan
Communicate with the larger coalition
That there are barriers to economic empowerment for individuals with disabilities and strategies to overcome those barriers.
Your role in supporting individuals with disabilities in building towards increased financial stability.
The types of organizations that are currently providing services that support financial stability.
Tools and resources you can use and share.
Questions?Questions?
If you have a comment or question you can :
A: Submit it to the host in writing via the Chat or Q&A Box to the right, or…
B: Click on the “raise hand” icon to have your line un-muted and ask your question/make your
comment.
Elizabeth Jennings
Program Associate
NDI Technical Assistance Team
Danielle “DJ” Diamond
Program Associate
NDI Technical Assistance Team
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Contact InformationContact Information