Funding

The CFE Fund is now accepting applications for FEC Academy. This planning opportunity supports local governments interested in launching a Financial Empowerment Center (FEC), which provides professional, one-on-one financial counseling as a public service. Selected local government partners will receive a $20,000 planning grant and significant technical assistance for up to 15 months to design and prepare for the launch of a FEC. Partners that complete the FEC Academy planning process are eligible to apply for a two-year implementation grant from CFE Fund of $250,000 to launch the FEC initiative ($150,000 in the first year and $100,000 in the second year).

Before applying, we encourage interested partners to join us for an informational webinar on September 2 at 3pm ET. Applications are due by Tuesday, October 6th at 11:59 PM ET and must be submitted through the CFE Fund’s online portal. Please contact Zach Etzin, Senior Associate, [email protected] with any questions about this opportunity.

The CFE Fund is now accepting applications for Youth Banking Connect Academy, our entry point for the Youth Banking Connect (YBC) initiative, formerly known as Summer Jobs Connect. YBC Academy participants will receive no-cost, robust technical assistance to learn how to integrate banking access into their youth workforce programs, build partnerships with financial institutions, deliver financial education, and leverage data to improve program performance. Academy participants will join the national Youth Banking Connect learning community. They also will receive support to attend an in-person YBC Academy convening, access to our robust resource library, and more. We are also excited to continue to offer expanded eligibility for YBC: any youth program that provides a paid work opportunity to youth ages 14-24 and has a government connection can now apply to YBC Academy. 

Before applying, we encourage interested partners to join us for an informational webinar on July 22 or August 13. Applications will be accepted through August 28 and must be submitted through our online portal.  Please reach out to Matt Trombley ([email protected]) with any questions. 

The CFE Fund is accepting applications for the next cohort of our CityStart initiative. In this wealth equity-focused iteration of CityStart, the CFE Fund will work with cities and counties to identify financial stability supports for residents in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods, prioritizing individual and systemic efforts that foster wealth accumulation and mitigate wealth extraction CityStart helps local governments develop a municipal financial empowerment blueprint based on stakeholder and community engagement; check out past CityStart blueprints from the City of Cincinnati and the City of Newark.

Grantees will receive funding of $100,000, and significant technical assistance to develop an actionable blueprint outlining financial empowerment strategies (such as financial education and counseling; asset building; access to banking; and consumer protection) and opportunities for broader systems investments to further equitable financial stability.