People living in the urban neighborhoods of Indianapolis need resources to help them get jobs, manage their finances, and gain access to credit, information, and services that can help them advance in life. That’s why LISC became involved with the Centers for Working Families (CWF), a national model developed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation to help the working poor develop, grow, and protect their assets. CWFS are neighborhood-based one-stop shops offering access to such family support services as job training and placement, help with job retention skills, and training in financial management and investing.
Currently, there are CWFs in six Indianapolis neighborhoods:
Flanner House of Indianapolis
Myron Richardson, Executive Director
(317) 925-4231
[email protected]
Hawthorne Community Center
Diane Arnold, Executive Director
(317) 637-4312
[email protected]
John H. Boner Community Center
Terri Bailey, Deputy Executive Director
(317) 808-2306
[email protected]
Martindale Brightwood Center for Working Families
Operating Partners
Jay Height, Executive Director
Shepherd Community
(317) 375-0203
[email protected]
Tysha Hardy-Sellers, Executive Director
Edna Martin Christian Center
(317) 637-3776
[email protected]
Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center
Clark Lienemann, Executive Director
(317) 236-7400
[email protected]
Southeast Community Services
Terri Garcia, Executive Director
(317) 236-7400
[email protected]
To date, the program has served over 4800 families who have received a whole array of “bundled” services, including employment assistance, financial coaching, and strategic and practical support to help break through the barriers of poverty.
In 2010, the program received a major financial boost with funding from the federal Social Innovation Fund (SIF) in the amount of $500,000 along with $300,000 in local match funding from the Central Indiana Community Foundation, The Clowes Fund, State Farm, Staples Foundation, Making Connections Indianapolis and the Open Society Institute.