Tulsa Financial Empowerment Center. Photo credit: Tulsa Center for Financial Empowerment.
(New Nation) — A partnership between Goodwill and the City of Tulsa provide free financial counseling to local residents to help improve their credit scores and reduce debt.
Financial literacy is a challenge for many Americans. One estimate is that less than one-fifth of Americans took a financial literacy course in high school. Gaps in literacy rates among young people, black and Hispanic communities, and low-income households make them more vulnerable to economic hardship, he said. To the FINRA Foundation.
Tulsa’s Financial Empowerment Center (FEC) opened in December 2020 thanks to a government grant. Cities for Financial Empowerment Foundation.
The service is provided free of charge to all residents by the city, but the counselors and staff are provided by Goodwill.For comparison, a nonprofit credit counseling service can charge a fee Up to $79 per month.
“These are one-on-one sessions,” said Modi Kwanza, Goodwill’s program coordinator. “So we don’t have group classes or anything like that. We’re talking privately to that counselor, that client.” (Couples are also welcome.)
The consultations focus on several general areas.
“We are talking about banking, we are talking about credit, debt and savings,” Kwanza said.
However, there is no single curriculum that the Center directs each client to follow. Counselors help clients identify areas of need and work with clients to develop plans that help improve their financial situation.
The FEC also coordinates with other departments of the city government. For example, a city agency that assists Tarsan homeownership might send customers to the center to prepare for what happens next.
“What happens after we buy the house? We start looking for a budget for that,” Kwanza said.
Data is critical in this process. The center tracks progress toward customer goals, such as improving savings or reducing debt.
“So for every homework or goal they set, we have a place where we can mark it and show it when they’ve accomplished it,” Kwanza said.
A possible goal for a customer might be a 35% improvement in credit score or a 10% reduction in non-mortgage debt.
Since the center’s operation, customers have reduced their non-mortgage debt by $770,000 and increased their savings by approximately $243,000. The average customer’s savings increased by about $3,000 and the average reduction in debt was about $2,400. In total, we have served approximately 1,300 customers.
But Kwanza emphasized that the center’s goal is financial counseling, not financial counseling.
“So I can’t say we have great stocks to invest in here. It’s not our discipline, it’s not our field,” he said.
Janae Bradford, director of the city’s Department of Financial Empowerment and Community Services, said one of the biggest challenges the city faces is overcoming stigma.
“We are trying to convince people that it is safe and non-judgmental and that they can come to the FEC whether they are in crisis mode or not,” she said.
Kwanza stressed that better budgeting cannot solve all of a client’s financial problems if the client doesn’t have enough income.
“Personally, I don’t buy into the idea that you can raise money to lift someone out of poverty. Counselors can get frustrated, too,” Kwanza said.
But he also pointed out what financial literacy can achieve.
“Not many people have a $400 to $500 buffer for emergencies. It’s another sign of things,” he said.
