Northwest Community Credit Union Awards DevNW $150,000 Grant

Tagged with: Youth Financial Foundations Financial Wellbeing financial literacy

We are excited to announce that Northwest Community Credit Union has awarded DevNW a $150,000 grant (over 3 years) to support expansion of our Youth Financial Foundations programming, helping to make financial literacy education accessible to young adults and teens facing economic barriers. This funding has enabled us to hire a full-time Youth Asset Building Specialist who works with youth to promote financial literacy and skills development. It is also supporting the development of existing and new partnerships with youth serving agencies throughout our service area of Lane, Linn, Benton, Lincoln, Marion, Polk and Clackamas Counties.

DevNW CEO, Emily Reiman notes, “Financial capability is a crucial skill to develop early, but far too few youth – particularly those from historically marginalized communities and households with low incomes – receive personal finance education. Despite this reality, youth graduating from high school must make big decisions about student loans, credit card spending, and budgeting for living expenses.”

“Our founders formed the credit union to honor the dignity of every member seeking financial assistance — including teens and youth just beginning the financial chapters of their lives,” said Northwest Community Credit Union President and CEO John Iglesias.

“We’re proud to partner with DevNW as they work to build essential financial life skills with young people. This outreach provides a road map to spark personal growth — using goals, designing steps for action, and providing educational support for many of the financial responsibilities just on the horizon.”

DevNW’s Youth Financial Foundations programming seeks to bridge youth’s knowledge and experience gap, providing the financial foundation to best position youth for financial stability as they identify future goals.

With the support of Northwest Community Credit Union, our dedicated Youth Asset Building Specialist works with youth to introduce them to the concepts and skills involved in healthy financial management practices, providing youth with more confidence about money, taxes, investing, banking, and debt avoidance. One-on-one counselors leverage this newfound knowledge and confidence, helping youth to transition their new knowledge into immediate action.

Thank you, Northwest Community Credit Union!