NWMT was awarded a mini-grant for costs related to in-house financial fitness classes for residents of the Helena YWCA, a transitional living facility for women and children. There is a strong need for financial education among residents. However, it is difficult for them to attend classes outside the YWCA, and difficult to get educators to teach in-house classes.
Seven residents participated in the intensive fifteen-hour class, which covered credit repair, fraud prevention, free tax preparation, establishing a banking relationship (including a visit to a local credit union), and budgeting. The class was intended to equip residents with the range of financial knowledge they will need to live independently once they leave the YWCA, particularly how to attain stable housing.
“To be able to take more control over their lives and take those next steps, these women need to have control of their finances,” says Liz Sump, an Americorps VISTA with NeighborWorks. Beki Brandbourg, who taught the class, agrees. She noticed that the information provided was brand new to participants.
Providing that information has proved to be effective. Says Sump, “We’ve found that women who receive education [on managing their finances] are more successful when they leave transitional housing.”
Brandbourg will be returning to the YWCA in February and March to teach the class to fifteen additional residents.
For further information on NWMT, please visit their website: http://www.nwmt.org/.