Launched in 2010, The Partnership's Bay Area Economic Empowerment Project (BAEE) aims to increase access to services and economic empowerment for domestic violence survivors by increasing providers' knowledge and application of innovative promising practices. The Partnership increased the capacity of local programs to respond to the unique economic needs of survivors and support their efforts to achieve safety and economic security through the provision of six (6) mini-grants. With support from The California Endowment (TCE), these mini-grants enabled participating domestic violence organizations to enhance their services to include economic empowerment activities for survivors and strengthen community collaborations with partners possessing economic empowerment resources.
BAEE Project Highlights:
• 756 survivors recognized financial abuse as a part of their domestic violence experience
• 233 survivors developed a budget/spending plan
• 125 survivors achieved a major financial goal
Promising Practices:
Each of the BAEE mini-grantees developed and documented promising practices related to economic empowerment for domestic violence survivors.
The Family Violence Law Center (FVLC) - worked with "Bank On Oakland" and its partner organizations to facilitate domestic violence survivors' access to low and no-fee bank accounts. FVLC developed a step-by-step fact sheet that explains to survivors how to open up a bank account. They also developed a fact sheet that educates domestic violence survivors about the costs of using check cashing/payday loan institutions.
La Casa de Las Madres - developed a 3-part Economic Empowerment Workshop Series that addressed topics related to financial literacy and was tailored to the needs of victims of domestic violence. Participants received a workbook of materials, a binder, calculator, pen and paper, and completed homework that related to the in-class training. In the end, participants who completed the series received a Certificate of Completion.
Napa Emergency Women's Services - built upon existing community relationships to lead a multidisciplinary group interested in self-sufficiency issues thereby improving the community response.
Narika - launched the South Asian Economic Empowerment Development program (SEED) which was designed to foster women's economic independence through the development of leadership skills and the encouragement of personal and professional growth. The SEED Program consisted of independent 12-week training modules. Each module began with a formal participant needs assessment to identify strengths, goals, and tools required for professional advancement, such as ESL training, personal financial management tools, basic computer skills, and career development skills.
Next Door Solutions - developed a program aimed at addressing the self-sufficiency needs of domestic violence survivors. The first component of the program was the development of an interactive library that could be accessed online and provided clients with up-to-date information on various resources. The second component was the development and implementation of series of workshops on financial related topics that helped survivors become more self-sufficient.
The YWCA of Sonoma County - found a need for teaching budgeting techniques, healthy spending practices, and saving habits to survivors. The income/spending "tracking tool" they developed provided a realistic look at how much money is being spent in daily living.
0 comments:
Post a Comment