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An Advanced Practice Institute for Funders Interested in Asset Building in Rural America
2 – 5 p.m., May 7, 2008
Council on Foundations National Leadership Summit
National Harbor, MD
Funders and community leaders across rural America are working to improve the economic well-being of low–income families and struggling communities. But even as they invest in efforts to ‘fill the bucket' – to increase income and assets and expand economies – holes in the bottom threaten to drain it even faster than it is being filled.
This Advanced Practice Institute will focus on building our collective understanding of the impact of pay day lending in rural America, identifying promising policy developments and program approaches and articulating role(s) that individual funders and funder networks can play.
Among the largest of the “holes in the bucket” is pay day lending, an industry that provides short-term loans at typically exorbitant interest rates, trapping working families in spiraling debt. The average pay day borrower takes out 9 loans in a year and pays more than 400% interest on each. As a consequence, families are unable to meet their basic needs let alone save for the future. They are unable to become homeowners or to start businesses and they spend fewer dollars in the local economy. Moreover, this phenomenon reduces funders' impact whether they are investing in education, health, economic development, wealth creation, community building or other areas.
This Advanced Practice Institute will be organized as a conversation that draws on the experience, insights and expertise of all participants. Initial framing will be provided by several guests and resource people:
- Painting the backdrop. Using Carsey Institute quantitative research and analysis, Mil Duncan will describe the economic stressors that make rural working families especially vulnerable to these practices.
- Mapping the problem and the policy responses. Leslie Parrish of the Center for Responsible Lending will provide a snapshot of the industry and an update on the fight to limit predatory pay day lending activities through state and federal policy.
- Protecting families by providing alternatives: Bill Bynum, President and CEO of Enterprise Corporation of the Delta/Hope Community Credit Union, will introduce the products HOPE is piloting to provide affordable alternatives for working families.
- Why funders care: Regardless of interest area, funders who invest in rural America have a stake in understanding and helping to protect families from predatory lending:
- Corporate funder: Annika Little, Bank of America
- Private funder: Miriam Shark, Annie E Casey Foundation
- Community foundation: Linda Reed, Montana Community Foundation
Advance registration is recommended. You may do so before the conference by emailing Melissa Reddick at melissa@nrfc.org.
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