News

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition (ONAC) is requesting letters of interest, from tribes and Native nonprofits in Oklahoma, that wish to partner with ONAC to open Children’s Savings Accounts with Native youth in their community.  

Currently, ONAC is working with eight partners to open 380 accounts with funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and First Nations Development Institute.  The partners include the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes (Anadarko), Osage Financial Resources, Inc. (Pawhuska), Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation (Shawnee), Cherokee Nation Child Support Program (Tahlequah), Mvskoke Loan Fund (Okmulgee), Ponca Tribe Head Start (Ponca City), Kaw Nation (Kaw City, new mini grant awardee), and Ranch Good Days, Inc. (Altus, new mini grant awardee).  ONAC is grateful to our funders and partners for the opportunity to open accounts with Native youth.

With a grant from First Nations Development Institute, ONAC has funding for an additional 190 Children’s Savings Accounts for Native youth in Oklahoma.   We will be opening 40 of these accounts by October 31, 2016, and the remaining 150 accounts by June 30, 2017. 

At this time, we are requesting letters of interest to learn if there are tribes and Native nonprofits in the state that would like to partner with ONAC to open the remaining 190 accounts.  

With each account, ONAC will provide a $100.00 opening deposit.  The accounts may be opened at a financial institution of your choice (bank or credit union) or through the Oklahoma 529 college savings plan.  The accounts do not have to be custodial though you may choose to add your tribe or Native nonprofit’s name to the accounts as custodian.  ONAC is happy to speak with you about these various options prior to your submission of a letter of interest.  With the accounts, ONAC will also provide each child with a piggy bank, certificate celebrating their participation in the program, and a Native-specific financial education activity booklet.

Why is ONAC interested in funding Children’s Savings Accounts for youth? We hope that this project will help youth to have their own savings account that can grow over time with potential deposits from their family, the child, and/or the tribe or Native nonprofit (it is not a requirement that the tribal or Native nonprofit partners deposit funds into the account though you are welcome to do so).  ONAC would like for these accounts to be a nest egg of savings for Native children to help them save for college or trade school costs, or other purchases, as approved by the tribes and Native nonprofits ONAC will partner with on this initiative.   In terms of how these accounts may promote college attendance and graduation, if the accounts are used for postsecondary education, there is recent research from the University of Kansas and Washington University in St. Louis that suggests that “youth who expect to graduate from a four-year college and have designated a portion of their savings for college are approximately four times more likely to attend college than youth who have no account.”  Also, “youth who expect to graduate from a four-year college and have an account are approximately seven times more likely to attend college than youth who have no account.” With such research in hand, ONAC believes that Children’s Savings Accounts can make a difference in the lives of children.  With this program, we wish to help support Native youth’s future plans.

*Elliott, W., & Beverly, S. (2010).  The role of savings and wealth in reducing “wilt” between expectations and college attendance (CSD Working Paper 10-01).  St. Louis, MO : Washington University, Center for Social Development.  

What are the criteria for partnership?

• Eligible partners include Tribes or Native nonprofits located in Oklahoma.
  
• Partners should choose a specific group of youth for which you wish to open the accounts (the youth may be ages birth to 18). When drafting your letter of interest to ONAC, please determine a target population for which you wish to open the accounts.  For example, you may wish to propose that you would open accounts for all youth in your tribal after-school program, Head Start class, Native language immersion school, or for a certain number of youth being served by your tribally-administered child support program.   If you are administering a Voluntary Income Tax Assistance site, you may wish to propose that you would open accounts for the youth of the parents you serve.  For those administering a tribal food program, you may wish to work with a certain number of grandparents raising grandchildren to open Children’s Savings Accounts for their grandchildren.  If you manage a Summer Youth Employment program, you may wish to open accounts for all the youth in the program.   For those of you managing a housing program, you could open accounts with the families of those you serve.  If you offer an Individual Development Account (matched savings account) program, financial education, family emergency savings account, or credit builder/credit repair program for adults, you could offer Children’s Savings Accounts for the children of the parents in the program.
  
• Please specify if you would like to open either savings accounts at a bank or credit union of your choice or if you would like to open the accounts through the Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan.
  
• Include the numbers of accounts you would like to work with ONAC to open by June 30, 2017.
  

What does ONAC provide with this partnership?

ONAC will provide $100.00 per account as an opening deposit, as well as, a piggy bank, Native-specific ONAC financial education booklet, and certificate of participation.  ONAC will directly send the $100.00, for the opening deposit, either to the bank or credit union, of your choice, or to the Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan.  ONAC will provide the forms for the program.  Our coalition will pay for necessary printing and shipping costs.

As a checklist, please include the following in your letter of interest:

1).  Name of tribe or Native nonprofit in Oklahoma interested in partnering with ONAC on this Children’s Savings Account (CSA) pilot project.

2).  Contact information for contact at tribe or Native nonprofit (name, title, mailing address, phone number, and email address).

3).  Short description of the target population of youth for which you propose to work with ONAC to open Children’s Savings Accounts.   Please provide brief general information about the ages of the children, the program or department they are served by, if they live in a certain geographic area, general social/economic information, etc.

4).  How many accounts would you like to open with the target population?

5).  From now through June 30, 2017, when would you be available to work with ONAC to help the families open the accounts? 

6).  Anything else you wish to tell ONAC about your interest in such a partnership?  Any questions or concerns you have for ONAC? 

To whom do we submit our letter of interest, by midnight, April 22, 2016?

You may email your letter to Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director, at cfinsel@oknativeassets.org. 

When will we be notified about the status of our letter of interest?

Based on the responses we receive, ONAC respond to all interested parties by May 6, 2016. 

Who do I contact if I have questions about this opportunity?

Please contact Christy Finsel (Osage), ONAC Executive Director, at either cfinsel@oknativeassets.org or (405) 401-7873.

ONAC appreciates your consideration of this partnership!

The ONAC Leadership

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC) 

Announces ONAC Mini Grant Awardees

March 24, 2016.  With support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, First Nations Development Institute, and the Ford Foundation, we, the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC), announce that we have awarded four ONAC mini grants.

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition (ONAC) is a nonprofit Native asset building coalition that works with Oklahoma tribes and partners interested in establishing asset-building initiatives and programs in Native communities, for the purpose of creating greater opportunities for economic self-sufficiency of tribal citizens.

In January 2016, ONAC released our second request for proposals (RFP) to fund Native asset building projects in Oklahoma.  We received excellent applications from tribal governments and tribal programs based in Oklahoma.  ONAC has awarded a total of $14,500 in mini grants to four ONAC constituents.  We are excited to work with the awardees as they continue to offer Native asset building projects to their tribal members.  If needed, ONAC is available to provide free training and technical assistance to the grantees as they implement their asset building programs. 

The new ONAC mini grant awardees are as follows:

• The Kaw Nation will conduct a financial education workshop for Kaw Nation students, between the ages of 13-17.  As part of the workshop, the tribe will work with the youth and their parents to either open a savings account at Eastman National Bank or an account through the Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan.  With the mini grant funding, the Kaw Nation will provide the opening deposit for the accounts.  The youth will have an opportunity to earn more money for their accounts by participating in an essay contest.  A panel, comprised of representatives from the Kaw Nation Tribal Youth Program, the Johnson O’Malley (JOM) program, and the Kaw Nation Education Department, will choose the essay topics. The students will be asked to share what they learned from the financial workshop and how they will use this financial knowledge toward their future goals.  Essay rules and applications will be made available to all students at the conclusion of the workshop.  A committee comprised of representatives from various Kaw Nation departments as well as a representative from Eastman National Bank will read and select the winning essays.  Winners of the contest will be announced on the Kaw Nation’s website (awarded $3,500).
  
• Seminole Nation Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Program will develop customized curriculum and administer a six-hour “Managing Your Family Finances” workshop, held on two days during summer 2016, for fourteen participants.  Those eligible for the workshops include Native American families residing in the Seminole Nation jurisdiction, which comprises 97% of Seminole County.  During the workshop, participants will gain knowledge related to budgeting, building credit, and saving towards a goal.  Each family will establish a savings plan.  The Program will work with the families to open a family emergency savings account, at BancFirst, and they will provide the opening deposit.  The participants will be encouraged to add their own deposits to the account by following their individual savings plans.  The Program will contact the participants at 30-and 60-day intervals to assess the effectiveness of the savings plan.  The Program staff will conduct a pre-and post-workshop assessment. Childcare and meals will be provided during the workshop (awarded $3,500).
  
• Ranch Good Days, Inc. will work with the Na Tsista Girls Basketball Team (from the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes), their coach, and the girl’s families, to open twenty Children’s Savings Accounts.  The accounts will either be opened at a local bank or through the Oklahoma 529 College Savings Plan. After the girls have saved funds in their account for six months, they will receive a $50.00 savings incentive, to be added to their accounts. The families will be asked to complete a program survey (awarded $3,500).
  
• The Native Alliance Against Violence will develop a Financial Empowerment Training for survivors of domestic violence.  The training will be made available to survivors, via the internet, and to the twenty-two tribal domestic violence programs operating in the state of Oklahoma to offer to the domestic violence survivors they serve.  A minimum of twenty survivors who view the web-based training, and successfully complete a proficiency quiz, will be offered funds to open either a family emergency savings account or a 529 Oklahoma College Savings Plan account.  The Alliance will work with the tribal domestic violence programs to open the accounts (awarded $4,000).
  

Award Total: $14,500

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. thanks those who applied for these grant funds.   After June 1, 2016, once additional confirmed grant installments arrive, ONAC will formally announce two additional ONAC mini grant awardees. 

For more information about the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc., please go to http://www.oknativeassets.org/.    If you have any questions about ONAC and the mini grants, contact Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director, at cfinsel@oknativeassets.org.

Update on NativeGiving Campaign

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC) is a nonprofit organization that relies on grants, memberships, and generous donations to do our work in Oklahoma.   

With your support, in December 2015, ONAC met the NativeGiving match gift challenge.   Through this year-end campaign, our coalition received $500.00 in match funds.  During this campaign, with the donations from 39 individual donors, and the match funds, ONAC raised a total of $1,250.00.  

We wish to thank all the individuals who donated to our coalition.  ONAC also thanks those who passed along our NativeGiving campaign requests to colleagues, family, etc.   

ONAC congratulates two other Native nonprofits in our NativeGiving cohort.  Sust'ainable Molokai (Kaunakakai, HI) and Tewa Women United (Española, NM) won the two NativeGiving campaign incentive awards for the most funds raised and the highest number of gifts.  Both of these organizations are like ONAC in that they are smaller Native nonprofits doing work with Native children and families.  We are proud to be in this cohort.

As we begin 2016, ONAC is grateful to work with our grantees and partners as we fund, design, and implement asset building projects in Oklahoma.  It is an honor to work with you. 

We appreciate your support and look forward to collaborating with you this year!

Christy and the ONAC Board and Advisory Committee Members

PRESS RELEASE

Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                               CONTACT: Christy Finsel

January 15, 2016                                                                             (405) 401-7873

OKLAHOMA NATIVE ASSETS COALITION RECEIVES GRANT FOR ASSET-BUILDING POLICY AND PRACTICE PROJECT

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC) recently received a $120,000 grant from the First Nations Development Institute, with support of the Ford Foundation.  First Nations is located in Longmont, Colorado.  This award will support Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition’s Asset-Building Policy and Practice Project.

With this grant, the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc. (ONAC) will receive funding  for constituency building, educating policymakers, and building asset building programs.

“This grant will support ONAC as our coalition hosts our annual conference, provides funding for Children’s Savings Accounts and mini grants in Oklahoma, and offers free technical assistance to our partners who are designing and implementing asset building programs the state.   This funding will also help ONAC to continue to work with tribal, federal, and state policymakers, and administrative staff, to provide information about the unique challenges associated with the racial wealth gap in American Indian communities including the need to respect tribal sovereignty and understand what program designs have worked in American Indian communities to build family economic security.  We appreciate First Nations Development Institute’s investment in our coalition.  ONAC is excited about this opportunity to help Native families build their assets by working with tribes and Native nonprofits to increase the numbers of asset building programs,” said Christy Finsel (Osage), Executive Director of the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, Inc.

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC), founded in 2001 and now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is a Native asset building coalition that works with tribes and partners interested in establishing asset-building initiatives and programs in Native communities, for the purpose of creating greater opportunities for economic self-sufficiency of tribal citizens. 

The mission of ONAC is to build and support a network of Native people who are dedicated to increasing self-sufficiency and prosperity in their communities through the establishment of comprehensive financial education initiatives, Individual Development Accounts, and other asset-building strategies.  For more information about the coalition, visit http://oknativeassets.org.            

# # #

January 11, 2016 

Dear Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Constituents and Friends,

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition (ONAC) is writing to let you know of our 2016 ONAC Membership Drive.  We invite you to join our coalition as a member.  Your support helps us to be a sustainable coalition. 

Beyond our Native asset building coalition in Oklahoma, there are few other such Native coalitions in the country.  ONAC’s first priority is to serve tribes, Native nonprofits, and other supporters in Oklahoma.  Given the lack of other Native asset building coalitions near us, and around the country, we also invite those interested in Native asset building, outside of Oklahoma, to join our listserv and to participate in our conferences, webinars, and peer learning calls, given the need for such information in other Native communities.

What is ONAC and What Types of Asset Building Projects are Members Involved In?

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition (ONAC) represents a consortium of Oklahoma tribes and partners interested in establishing asset-building initiatives and programs in Native communities, for the purpose of creating greater opportunities for economic self-sufficiency of tribal citizens.  Our coalition is a 501(c)(3) and is Native-led.

ONAC members might engage in any of the following asset-building efforts: financial education programs, Individual Development Account programs, Child Savings Account programs, entrepreneurship activities, homeownership assistance programs, credit repair and credit building programs, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) outreach, foreclosure prevention programs, microenterprise development programs, family emergency savings accounts, and other communal asset-building activities, etc.

Such members might also be seeking funding for asset-building projects; evaluating asset-building programs; drafting case studies highlighting best practices and lessons learned; addressing asset-building policies with tribal leaders, Native non-profits, and at local, state, and national levels; and engaging in peer learning and sharing.

What Does ONAC Provide Constituents?

• Mini grants to tribes and Native nonprofits for asset building projects.  (We awarded four $3,500 mini grants in 2014.  The project administrators completed those projects in 2015.  As of November 23, 2015, we have awarded three new grantees.  Earlier this month, we released a RFP for another round of mini grants.  Those proposals are due to ONAC by February 18, 2016.  To apply, go to http://www.oknativeassets-apply.org.  You will be asked to establish a username and password for the application). 

• Funding for ONAC Children’s Savings Account pilot projects.  We have six confirmed partners (tribes and Native nonprofits in Oklahoma) for our current pilot project. The partners include the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes (Anadarko), Osage Financial Resources, Inc. (Pawhuska), Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation (Shawnee), Cherokee Nation Child Support Program (Tahlequah), Mvskoke Loan Fund (Okmulgee), and the Ponca Tribe Head Start (Ponca City).  We plan to release a RFP for additional partners in February 2016.

• Asset building resources, models, and strategies.

• An Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Conference to be held annually.  This year our conference will be held on Tuesday, July 12, 2016, at the Oklahoma History Center in Oklahoma City, OK.  More information to follow.

• A forum to talk about tribal, local, state, or federal asset building policies that affect your work and lives. 

• Opportunities to connect to Native and non-Native asset building practitioners in Oklahoma, and around the country, for partnership.

• Outreach to Oklahoma tribal leaders, tribal government programs, and other Oklahoma-based Native organizations/businesses to provide information about asset building related grants, conferences, webinars, peer learning calls, etc.

• Free asset building program design and implementation technical assistance (TA) and training (a value worth $5,000 to $20,000, per tribe and/or Native nonprofit, depending upon their TA needs).

• Administrative Policy Guidance requests to federal programs, as needed (such as our request for information about Tribal TANF-funded Individual Development Account program purchases, etc.)

• Opportunities to speak at asset building conferences about your asset building programs.  In the last year, for example, we nominated the Cherokee Nation Commerce Group to participate on a youth entrepreneurship research advisory panel hosted by the Association for Enterprise Opportunity; nominated Patsy Schramm for the Taxpayer Opportunity Network Steering Committee;  and invited a number of Native asset builders to speak at our 2015 annual conference. 

ONAC Requests Your Support!

Your support helps Native families to build assets.  We invite you to join as a coalition member.  All membership donations are fully tax deductible as no goods or services are provided in exchange.  

To join as a member, please click here.  If needed, the membership/donation form is attached.  Sponsorship opportunities also exist. 

If you have any questions, please contact Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director, at (405) 401-7873 or cfinsel@oknativeassets.org.  

Thank you for your support of the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc.!

ONAC Leadership

ONAC Seeks Proposals for Native Asset Building Projects in Oklahoma

January 5, 2016 

Grant Overview

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition (ONAC) is pleased to announce this January 2016 Request For Proposals (RFP) to help fund Native asset building projects in Oklahoma.   ONAC, with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Ford Foundation, and First Nations Development Institute, will award a total of $10,500 in mini grants to Oklahoma grantees.  Depending upon the projects (financial education curriculum supplies may cost less than seed money to open Children’s Savings Accounts), the mini grants will average $3,500 each.  Some awards may be slightly higher or lower than this average.  The grant period is for 12 months beginning March 15, 2016 and ending March 14, 2017.

Given our funding sources for these mini grants, two of the grants will be made to grantees implementing a family emergency savings account program.  The funds for such a program may be utilized for the initial account deposit money for your participants and other related program costs. While this is not a grant requirement, the family emergency savings accounts may be linked to other asset building programs you already administer such as financial education, entrepreneurship development, elder meal, seed saving, foreclosure prevention and homeownership preparation, matched savings account, credit builder/credit repair, and free tax preparation assistance.

The funding for family emergency savings account programs will help Native families, with lower incomes, to open flexible savings accounts, at a bank or credit union, to buffer them in times of emergency, income fluctuation, or irregular expenses.  Such accounts will promote financial inclusion by providing a mechanism for Native families to connect to mainstream financial services that are safe and affordable.  With this funding, you may provide the initial opening account deposit and then the families can grow the accounts over time with their own deposits.  Emergency savings accounts, for any family, can be a step along the way towards family financial stability and economic mobility.  Depending upon the numbers of participants you wish to serve with a family emergency savings account program, you could, for example, provide the initial opening deposit of $50.00 each for 70 accounts or you could fund fewer accounts with more money (as an example of the latter, with a $3,500 project budget, you could fund six family emergency savings accounts at $500.00 each and then use the remaining $500.00 for other program expenses).  Depending upon the participants you serve, you can design your family emergency savings account program to meet local community needs.  For this program, ONAC does not require that you make the bank accounts custodial with the name of your tribe or Native nonprofit on the account.

The remaining mini grant ONAC will award during this round of funding may be used to fund any existing or new Native asset building program in Oklahoma.   Examples of how mini grants may be used for such programs include funding for:

• Financial education curricula materials for your financial education programs
  
• A computer for your Voluntary Income Tax Assistance site (such sites help eligible tribal members prepare their tax returns for free and claim their tax credits
  
• Match funds for your tribal Individual Development Account program
  
• Initial deposit money for your Children’s Savings Account program (to help youth build a nest egg of savings)
  
• Stipends/payments for youth employees working in your tribal employment program, so they so they have earned income to deposit into Individual Development Accounts
  
• Training for your staff to be able to provide foreclosure intervention services to clients/tribal citizens
  
• Loans made to customers through your Native nonprofit credit builder loan program 

If you would like to talk through any of your asset building program ideas, please contact Christy Finsel, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition, at (405) 401-7873, or email her at cfinsel@oknativeassets.org.

Deadline

The grant applications are due by February 18, 2016.  ONAC will review the grant applications and make the award determinations, awarding up to $10,500 total, among this round of grant recipients. ONAC will send the award notifications by March 4, 2016. A list of awardees will be posted on the ONAC website. ONAC will send the grant payments to the grant recipients.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants include:

•  Tribal governments based in Oklahoma;
  
• Tribal programs based in Oklahoma; or
• Native organizations based in Oklahoma. 

If applicants are not a tribal government, 501(c)(3), a 7871, or Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), they must have a fiscal sponsor. We do not require federal recognition for tribal governments; however, you must have, at a minimum, proof of state recognition.

Application

All applicants must fully complete the ONLINE grant application.  To access the application, please go to http://www.oknativeassets-apply.org.  You will be asked to establish a username and password for the application. 

Help

If you need technical assistance with the online grant application, please contact Christy Finsel, Executive Director, Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc., at cfinsel@oknativeassets.org or (405) 401-7873.

 The deadline for applications is February 18, 2016, at 5:00 p.m. Central Time. 

Please Note: The online system automatically closes at 5:00 p.m. CST and applications not completely submitted by that time will be rejected by the system.  Please allow plenty of time for submitting online.  Proposals that are incomplete or are received after the deadline will not be considered.  No exceptions will be permitted.

 

 

ONAC Newsletter, December 2015

ONAC Awards Three New Grantees in November 2015

On November 23, 2015, ONAC announced three new ONAC mini grant awardees.   The three awardees are the Mvskoke Loan Fund, Citizen Potawatomi CDC, and the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma.

In January 2014, ONAC released our first ONAC Mini Grant Request For Proposals (RFP) to fund Native asset building projects in Oklahoma.  We received seven excellent applications from tribal governments and tribal programs based in Oklahoma.  At that time, we had funding for four projects.  Thus, we awarded a total of $14,000 in mini grants to four ONAC constituents.  Those awardees have since completed their projects.  Over the past eighteen months, ONAC has worked to raise additional funds to support the three remaining applicants.  At this time, we have secured funding through the Ford Foundation and its generous support of First Nations Development Institute and ONAC.

ONAC is excited to work with the three new awardees as they continue to offer Native asset building projects to their tribal members.  If needed, ONAC is available to provide free training and technical assistance to the grantees as they implement their asset building programs. 

Below is information about the three new ONAC mini grant awardees and their projects:

• The Mvskoke Loan Fund will enroll one of their staff members in the credit counseling certification program offered by Rural Dynamics, Inc.  The staff will then work with entrepreneurs to improve their credit rating and help prepare them to receive business loans (awarded $3,500).
  
• Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation (CPCDC) will offer Shonya Mbwaka (Money Smart) to stimulate sustainable economic opportunity for the Citizen Potawatomi tribal community and all past and current clients.  Through this project, the CPCDC will provide five workshops for a target of 50 people.  The main topic will be investing, but they will also review the basic financial essentials. Participants will receive a plan developed for their situation in the form of workshops, individual credit sessions, and budgeting sessions (awarded $3,500).
  
• The Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma will offer their tribal employees the opportunity to become more economically self-sufficient as they participate in Dave Ramsey “Financial Peace University” classes. Through video teaching, class discussions, and interactive small group activities, this financial education program will present culturally-appropriate and practical steps toward economic self-sufficiency.  Employees will be taught how to get rid of debt, manage money, spend and save wisely, and plan for retirement.  Additionally, during this project, the tribe will provide youth financial education materials for the tribal employee’s children. To incentivize class participation, the tribe will offer $50.00 each, in opening deposit funds for a family emergency savings account, to twenty-four of the tribal employees who complete the financial education program (awarded $3,500).
  

Award Total: $10,500.  Congratulations to these grantees!

ONAC to Release Request for Proposals for Next Round of Mini Grants

On January 5, 2016, ONAC will release a Request for Proposals (RFP) for another round of ONAC mini grants.  Two of the grants that will be awarded will be for family emergency savings accounts.  The remaining mini grant will be available to support other asset building programs such as credit builder/credit repair, financial education, matched savings accounts, foreclosure prevention, homebuyer education, Children’s Savings Accounts, etc.  The applications will be due on February 18^th.  Applicants will be notified about award determinations on March 4, 2016.  The grant period will run from March 15, 2016, to March 14, 2017.  If any Oklahoma tribes or Native nonprofits have questions about a potential proposal, please contact Christy Finsel at cfinsel@oknativeassets.org or (405) 401-7873. 

2016 ONAC Conference

The 2016 ONAC Conference will be held on July 12, 2016, at the Oklahoma History Center, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  Please save the date!  More information to follow.

Children’s Savings Account Pilot Updates

ONAC has been preparing materials for our Children’s Savings Account (CSA) pilot.    The Cherokee Nation Child Support Program was the first of our six confirmed partners (tribes and Native nonprofits in Oklahoma) to launch the project.  They opened their first account in December 2015.  They will work with their child support clients to open Children’s Savings Accounts for families with an annual income equal to or less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level who have children ages birth to eight.   ONAC will provide the $100.00 initial deposit, as well as a piggy bank, Native-specific financial education booklet, and certificate of participation for the child. The other five partners will launch their Children’s Savings Accounts pilots throughout the next year.  We are excited to get the 320 savings accounts opened!

As part of our CSA campaign over the past several years, ONAC has worked with child support contacts to tease out alternatives to state owned debt forgiveness (such as with the CSA in the state of Kansas) as state owed debt forgiveness is not currently allowed in Oklahoma.  We have arrived at an alternative option that tribally- administered CSAs may want to offer their clients.

To add extra incentive for parents served by the Cherokee Nation Child Support Program to deposit funds in the accounts, they will offer the custodial and non-custodial parents, who have established cases, an offer for private mediation.  If both parties are willing, and the non-custodial parent owes a custodial parent money, in order to work a good obligation, the non-custodial parent may deposit money into the Children’s Savings Account for the benefit of their child.  This reduces the non-custodial parent’s debt, and helps the child to have a bigger nest egg of savings.  We hope that this Children’s Savings Account project, with an added debt reduction component, may be a model for other tribally-administered Child Support Programs that wish to offer Children’s Savings Account programs.  We appreciate the opportunity to partner with the Cherokee Nation Child Support Program to launch this program.

ONAC Welcomes Donations and Memberships

As part of our efforts to sustain and grow the coalition, ONAC welcomes donations and memberships.  For more information about donations and memberships, please go to www.oknativeassets.org.  ONAC appreciates your support!

ONAC Thanks Our Constituents and Friends Who Donated to ONAC Through NativeGiving.org.  We Met the Match Gift Challenge! Several More Days to Give to Help Us Win a $1000.00 Prize. 

With your support, we reached the match gift challenge.  Thank you!  This means that between November 1st to December 27th, twenty-one individuals donated a total of $500.00 to ONAC, helping us receive an additional $500.00 in match funds.  ONAC thanks those who have donated to ONAC through NativeGiving.org!  

If you would like to make a donation through December 31st, a generous donor has pledged to award a prize of $1,000.00 to the participating organization that raises the most funds through the website by the end of the year, plus a $1,000.00 prize to the organization that raises the largest number of individual gifts through NativeGiving.org (regardless of the total dollar amount).  To donate, please go to http://www.nativegiving.org/node/20.  

Happy New Year!  Thank you for your support of ONAC.  We appreciate the opportunity to work with you to support asset building opportunities for Native families in Oklahoma. 

Christy and the ONAC Board and Advisory Committee Members

PRESS RELEASE

Help ONAC Meet A Match Gift Challenge!

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (November 18, 2015)– Help us meet our match while giving your donation even more impact!

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC) is a nonprofit organization  that relies on grants, memberships, and generous donations to do our work in Oklahoma.  From now through Dec. 31st, we are conducting a matching gift and year-end campaign to help support our mission.

Will you please help?

If you make a donation to us through the NativeGiving.org fundraising platform, it will be matched by another generous donor – dollar for dollar – up until we hit a total of $500 in gifts. That’s a great way to double the impact of your gift to our organization, so we can serve even more Native families in Oklahoma.

And, of course, your gift to us is tax-deductible as allowed by law.

Beyond that, your gift will have even more power!  It will make us eligible for additional incentives that will help us further our mission. Since we are one of several Native organizations participating in NativeGiving.org, a generous donor has pledged to award a prize of $1,000 to the participating organization that raises the most funds through the website by the end of the year, plus a $1,000 prize to the organization that raises the largest number of individual gifts through NativeGiving.org (regardless of the total dollar amount).

Please give today or soon, because the match and the prize opportunities will end at midnight on Dec. 31st. A gift to ONAC will allow us to greatly increase our reach and effectiveness in our community.

About ONAC

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition Inc. (ONAC), first organized in 2007 and now a nonprofit, is a Native asset building coalition that works with Oklahoma tribes and partners interested in establishing asset-building initiatives and programs in Native communities, for the purpose of creating greater opportunities for economic self-sufficiency of tribal citizens. 

The mission of ONAC is to build and support a network of Oklahoma Native people who are dedicated to increasing self-sufficiency and prosperity in their communities through the establishment of comprehensive financial education initiatives, Individual Development Accounts, and other asset-building strategies.  For more information about the coalition, go to http://oknativeassets.org.              

About NativeGiving.org

NativeGiving.org is a project of First Nations Development Institute. NativeGiving.org is dedicated to strengthening and improving the lives of Native children and families while raising awareness of the needs of the communities we serve. Consistent with Native American values of sharing and reciprocity, the goal of this unique initiative is to increase giving to philanthropic efforts in Native communities. NativeGiving.org aims to direct more investments to worthy nonprofits such as those featured on the site. The featured nonprofits have developed successful and innovative projects that promote educated kids, healthy kids and secure families.

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Media Contact:
Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director
cfinsel@oknativeassets.org, (405) 401-7873

ONAC Newsletter, September 2015

ONAC Constituent Mini Grant Projects Completed 

ONAC is pleased to note that the four 2014-2015 ONAC mini grantees have completed their projects.  Each grantee implemented innovative asset building projects.  To read the final report about the mini grant outcomes, click here.  ONAC thanks the project administrators for all their work!

ONAC to Release Request for Proposals for Second Round of Mini Grants

Later this year, ONAC will release a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a second round of ONAC mini grants.  Two of the grants that will be awarded will be for family emergency savings accounts.  The remaining mini grants will be available to support other asset building programs such as credit builder/credit repair, financial education, matched savings accounts, foreclosure prevention, homebuyer education, Children’s Savings Accounts, etc.

ONAC Board Member, Mary Elizabeth Ricketts, Selected as an Honoree for the 2015 AARP Oklahoma Indian Elder Honors

ONAC nominated Mary Elizabeth Ricketts, ONAC Board Member and retired Executive Director of Osage Financial Resources, Inc., for the AARP Oklahoma Indian Elder Honors.  Ms. Ricketts was selected as an honoree.  According to AARP Oklahoma, “this is one of AARP Oklahoma’s most prestigious and visible awards, given to recognize outstanding Native American Elders who are making a powerful difference in their communities, and Indian Country, in ways that are consistent with AARP’s mission and vision, and who inspire others to service.”  Ms. Ricketts will be recognized, along with other Native American elders, on October 6^th, at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum.  ONAC thanks Ms. Ricketts for her service on the ONAC board.

2015 ONAC Conference

The 2015 ONAC Conference was held on July 14^th, at the Oklahoma History Center, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The conference sessions included an opening welcome by Osage elder, Mr. Eddy Red Eagle, and information about the work of the coalition over the past year, presented by Christy Finsel; acknowledgement of the ONAC leadership committee and board members as well as First Nations Development Institute colleagues; state legislative updates in relation to tribes, as offered by Representatives Dan Kirby and Seneca Scott; an update about the National Asset Scorecard for Communities of Color Project; financial education resources/information from First Nations Development Institute and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; an update about the Chickasaw Nation’s use of a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) grant to expand their VITA program; information about four Native Community Development Financial Institutions in the state; project reports from ONAC mini grantees; a session on asset building and elders; information about asset building and food sovereignty/food systems; and a round-robin sharing with information from the Oklahoma Arts Council, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Small Business Administration (SBA), and the Invest Ed STARS Project. 

ONAC wishes to thank those who had attended earlier ONAC conferences including representatives from the Oklahoma State Service Learning program, United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, Small Business Administration, Thlopthlocco Tribal Town, Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians, First Nations Development Institute, Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Chickasaw Nation: Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation, HUD, The New School, Arvest Bank, Oklahoma Native Caucus, Cherokee Nation Commerce Group, Absentee Shawnee Development Corporation, Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, FDIC, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, OK Farm and Food Alliance, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City (Oklahoma City Branch), AARP Oklahoma, Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, and the Buder Center for American Indian Studies at Washington University in Saint Louis.  ONAC also wishes to thank those who attended our annual conference for the first time.  Those participants included those from the American Indian Institute at The University of Oklahoma, Mvskoke Creek Loan Fund, Oklahoma Policy Institute, the Osage Nation, Oklahoma City YWCA, Anne and Henry Zarrow School of Social Work at The University of Oklahoma, OKDHS Office of Planning, Research, and Statistics, Oklahoma Department of Securities, Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, Apache Tribe, The MICAH Foundation, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, TBI Raiders, Oklahoma Arts Council, and the Housing Authority of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. 

Following the conference, constituents have told us about the connections they made with other conference attendees.  ONAC holds our conferences in an effort to foster such relationships.

ONAC wishes to thank First Nations Development Institute and AARP Oklahoma for their financial support of the conference. 

Next summer, we will hold our 2016 ONAC Conference.  More information to follow.

ONAC to Share Information at Upcoming First Nations Development Institute LEAD Conference

This week,  ONAC Executive Director, Christy Finsel, will present information about ONAC’s work at the First Nations Development Institute LEAD Conference.   She will speak about ONAC’s Children’s Savings Account efforts, as well as, ONAC’s community engagement work.    For more information about this conference, click here.  In the future, this conference may be of interest to you in your asset building efforts.

Children’s Savings Account Pilot Updates

ONAC has been preparing materials for our Children’s Savings Account pilot.  With support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and First Nations Development Institute, our coalition will provide the $100.00 initial deposit, as well as a piggy bank, Native-specific financial education activity booklet, and certificate of participation for the child.  We anticipate that the first of our six confirmed partners on the project will start opening accounts with their clients in October.  The other five partners will launch their Children’s Savings Accounts pilots throughout the next year.  We are excited to get the 270 plus savings accounts opened!  More information to follow.

ONAC Partner Wins a National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) Gold Star Award

The University of Oklahoma Enrollment and Student Financial Services Office was awarded a National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) Gold Star Award for their work on “The Nine Things Every College Student Should Know About Money” course.  According to the award notice, the course provides “students with an understanding of personal finance and how financial decisions will impact their lives going forward.” To read more, click on this news release. 

Judi Voeller, Associate Director, Grants and Special Projects, OU Financial Aid Services, has attended several ONAC conferences and is a cheerleader for the coalition’s work.  Occasionally, she sends us journal articles about Children’s Savings Account research.  ONAC knows that for tribes and Native nonprofits to successfully implement asset building programs in the state, we need reciprocal partnerships with a variety of partners, including tribal colleges and universities.   ONAC congratulates the University of Oklahoma on their financial education efforts with their students.

ONAC Welcomes Donations and Memberships

As part of our efforts to sustain and grow the coalition, ONAC welcomes donations and memberships.  For more information about donations, please click here.  For information about ONAC memberships, click here.  ONAC appreciates your support!

ONAC Chosen as One of Seven Native Nonprofits to Participate in NativeGiving.org

ONAC announced on September 16^th that it is one of seven Native American organizations invited to participate in the NativeGiving.org initiative. This initiative is a project that aims to attract donors to smaller Native nonprofits to help them expand their services in their local communities. Sponsored by First Nations Development Institute, this project offers fundraising assistance, and an online giving portal, at www.NativeGiving.org.  

ONAC was selected by First Nations Development Institute to participate in the project to assist the organization with its fundraising efforts.  Besides ONAC, the other participants in the project are College of Menominee Nation in Wisconsin, Oyate Teca Project in South Dakota, S.T.A.R. School in Arizona, Sust'ainable Molokai in Hawaii, Zuni Youth Enrichment Project in New Mexico, and the Santa Fe Indian School Leadership Institute.

The NativeGiving.org website is now up and running. On the site, people can research the organizational profiles and financially support one or more of the nonprofits. First Nations will incur all processing, administrative and handling costs. Thus, 100% of the gifts made to the participants will go to furthering that organization’s mission.  ONAC is thankful to be included in this initiative.

Thank you for your support of ONAC!

ONAC 2014-2015 Mini Grant Final Report

Prepared by Christy Finsel, ONAC Executive Director

August 2015

The Oklahoma Native Assets Coalition (ONAC) represents a consortium of Oklahoma tribes and partners interested in establishing asset-building initiatives and programs in Native communities, for the purpose of creating greater opportunities for economic self-sufficiency of tribal citizens.    

In January 2014, ONAC released our first-ever request for proposals (RFP) to fund Native asset building projects in Oklahoma.  We received seven excellent applications from tribal governments and tribal programs based in Oklahoma.  When ONAC released the RFP we had a total of $10,500 to award to recipients (an average of $3,500 each for three grantees).  After receiving seven applications in February, First Nations Development Institute, a national Native nonprofit, and the fiscal sponsor for ONAC at the time, was able to secure $3,500 more to fund a fourth grantee.  Thus, ONAC, in collaboration with First Nations, awarded a total of $14,000 in mini grants to four ONAC constituents.  During the past year, ONAC was excited to work with the awardees as they continued to offer Native asset building projects to their tribal members.   ONAC was available to provide free training and technical assistance to the grantees as they rolled out their projects. 

As of August 2015, the four grantees have completed their mini grant projects.  With the use of their grant funds, each grantee grew their own capacity to continue providing asset building programs for their citizens.  Through their projects, the grantees reached a minimum of 179 tribal citizens.  While this impact was immediate and impressive, ONAC anticipates that the positive effects of these initiatives will continue into the future.  In the case of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Housing Division and the Housing Authority of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, their efforts to further educate tribal members about foreclosure prevention or credit and budgeting will likely continue to ripple out into their communities as family members share their learning with each other and know how to access the varied services of their housing authorities.  The longer-term impacts of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes’ work to teach youth about their culture, history, and good health practices, as well as to open savings accounts with them, will likely help the youth and their families to be more comfortable connecting to mainstream financial services, save for their future, and continue to develop a strong tribal identity. The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians’ project also helped youth to connect to mainstream financial services through the opening of a bank account, as well as, provided youth with the opportunity to develop their employment skills and increase their financial literacy.   We believe these investments in tribal citizens will strengthen these nations.

Grantee Projects and Outcomes

·      The Muscogee (Creek) Nation Housing Division held three foreclosure prevention classes for twenty-four citizens.  Ms. Laura Frossard, of Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma, was the featured speaker.  One of the classes was videotaped, with permission, and will be used as a training tool for Housing Services staff to become more aware of the resources available to their citizens.  A computer and supplies were purchased for credit checks and a printer was provided by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Department of Housing.  The computer has been a great resource for applicants, those considering the mortgage assistance program, and those learning to read their credit report.  The Department of Housing set up an informational booth at a March Madness basketball tournament for high school students.  Foreclosure prevention information was distributed to 40 individuals, over 18 years of age.  These efforts helped citizens to be more aware of the resources available to them so that they do not wait too long before they seek help to prevent foreclosure on their homes (awarded $3,500).

·      Wichita and Affiliated Tribes administered a Wichita SummerSmart Youth Program where, in addition to building tribal pride through teaching Wichita history and culture and promoting good health practices, they offered savings accounts for the interns and youth participants as well as financial education classes.  During the program, with the grant funds, they opened 27 Children’s Savings Accounts (including four accounts for their youth interns).   During the program, the children learned about tribal presidents, aboriginal homelands of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, traditional foods such as corn, and some language.  They were introduced to a wide variety of physical activities such as dodgeball, kickball, and other sports.  They were also provided nutrition classes by their Food Distribution staff.  A banker came and discussed with them  the importance of saving money and the children noted the things they would like to save for in the future.  The President of the Tribe also held a discussion with the youth to reemphasize the importance of saving for things that they wanted and needed (awarded $3,500).

·      The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians offered a youth employment and financial education program where they required that the participants save earnings in a savings account.  During this program, eight participants received information about ONAC, completed online financial education training, and developed an action plan for saving.   Students learned about savings, interest, credit scores, and the importance of saving and budgeting.  Students were placed at work sites, in their community, and paid to complete 20 hours of service.  The students then deposited their earnings into a savings account established through this program.  The participants completed their work hours at the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians Library and the Cherokee Nation Heritage Center.  They also worked as helpers during community events and as elder assistants.  The year-long program ended with a ceremony held in honor of the participants at the George Wickliffe Education Center (awarded $3,500).

·      The Housing Authority of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma continued to build internal staff capacity by sending a staff member to participate in the Native American Credit Counseling Program, provided by Rural Dynamics, Inc., in Great Falls, Montana.  They also worked with a colleague, Kyra Childress, from the Chickasaw Nation Housing Authority, to hold five credit counseling and budgeting classes for their clients during the year.  Eighty clients attended their classes (awarded $3.500).

ONAC Mini Grant Lessons Learned and Future Plans

Through this pilot round of mini grants, given the interest in the grants, ONAC has learned that there is need for flexible sources of funding for asset building projects among constituents in Oklahoma.   Additionally, the coalition has learned of, and been impressed by, the considerable reach of these initiatives in tribal communities.  Thus, going forward, ONAC will strive to continue to offer such grants to our constituents.   In the last year, ONAC received IRS approval of tax exempt status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and has fundraised to be able to offer additional mini grants.  Later this year, ONAC will release a RFP for the next round of mini grants.  

ONAC thanks each of these constituents for their willingness to engage with the coalition and for all their work to design and implement these projects.   The coalition looks forward to working with these constituents, and others, to offer additional asset building projects in the future.  

For more information about ONAC mini grants, please contact Christy Finsel, Executive Director, at (405) 401-7873 or cfinsel@oknativeassets.org.