“My purpose is to liberate financial capital for the advancement of Black women.”
A Message From
Aisha Nyandoro
Welcome! I’m thrilled you’ve taken the time to visit this space, which is dedicated to sharing additional writings and learnings outside of my day-to-day work with Springboard to Opportunities.
My journey has been deeply rooted in a commitment to social justice, economic equity, and community empowerment. From the earliest days of my career, I’ve been passionate about dismantling the barriers that prevent people from reaching their full potential. As the CEO of Springboard to Opportunities, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside resilient and determined individuals, families, and communities, each with a unique story and an unwavering drive for change.
Regardless of how you came to this page, I encourage you to browse our entire website. Here, you’ll find stories of triumph and perseverance, insights into the policies that shape our communities, and resources to help you get involved in creating the change we all wish to see.
Together, we can drive the conversation forward, challenge the status quo, and create lasting impact.
Thank you for your continued support and for believing in the power of community-driven change. I look forward to connecting with you and working together to build a brighter, more equitable future for all.
With gratitude and determination,
Aisha
Aisha Nyandoro is the founding CEO of Springboard to Opportunities, a Jackson, Mississippi nonprofit that uses a “radically resident-driven” approach to end generational poverty. She is a third-generation descendent of a family dedicated to advocating for those whose voices have been silenced. Growing up, her dining table was more like a round table; each sitting was a forum where minds met to discuss social issues. Although the problems and challenges faced by the community were discussed in detail, the conversation did not end there. The ultimate goal was to create solutions. These early dinner conversations helped Aisha develop a deep love for community and people, which ultimately led her to found Springboard To Opportunities and develop The Magnolia Mother’s Trust (MMT).
In 2018, very few organizations were thinking about guaranteed income. But Aisha knew from her family that one can make magic out of what Lucille Clifton calls “starshine and clay.” Most importantly, she believed that the stories and voices of families mattered, and they were saying they didn’t need another program – they needed cash. What started as a small pilot with 20 moms has grown into the longest-running guaranteed income project in the country, and the first to take a racial and gender equity approach challenging long-standing narratives of deservedness. Not only has the Magnolia Mother’s Trust supported over 400 moms to date, this initiative has ushered in a movement of guaranteed income programs in this country, changing the way we talk about deservedness, agency and trust.
In addition to leading Springboard’s community work and growing the Magnolia Mother’s Trust exponentially, Aisha is focused on shifting gendered and racialized narratives around poverty and deservedness, and working to show how the success of MMT can be scaled nationally through policies like the expanded Child Tax Credit and a federal guaranteed income. She recently testified on Capitol Hill, sharing the success of MMT and calling on members of Congress to reform the safety net to offer direct cash to finally end poverty.
Aisha is an unapologetic servant leader, connecting her passion and purpose instilled in her during those dinnertime conversations into her leadership and carrying on the dreams of generations of Black women before her. Her expertise on economic, racial and gender justice issues is regularly featured in outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR Essence Magazine, NBC Nightly News and CNN. She has received several prestigious fellows including: Ascend at the Aspen Institute, The Highland Project and W.K. Kellogg Foundation Community Leadership Network. She is a 2022 McNulty Prize Winner and the 2022 Disrupter Change Champion from Community Change. She holds a B.A. from Tennessee State University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Michigan State University. When not working to liberate financial capital, she is a wife and mom to two very charming sons.
TED Talk: What Does Wealth Mean to You?
For people living in poverty, a guaranteed income can mean finally having the space to dream of a comfortable life. Sharing the stories of single moms who participated in a first-of-its-kind program that offered them $1,000 per month with no strings attached, poverty disrupter Aisha Nyandoro calls for us to redefine what it means to be wealthy — putting aside lavish vacations and fancy cars in favor of paid bills and a well-fed family — and to listen when people tell us what they need most.
Selected Writing & Media Appearances
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September 17, 2024
CEO Aisha Nyandoro has been awarded the 2024 Heinz Award for the Economy!
We are delighted to announce that our CEO, Aisha Nyandoro, has been named by The Heinz Family Foundation a recipient of the prestigious 29th Heinz Award in the Economy category. Established by Teresa Heinz in 1993 to honor the memory of her late husband, U.S. Senator John Heinz, the Heinz Awards celebrates the accomplishments and […]
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September 17, 2024
2024 Heinz Awards | Aisha Nyandoro
Springboard CEO Aisha Nyandoro was selected as a 2024 Heinz Award winner for her innovative approach to equipping mothers to exit poverty and changing narratives around who deserves trust and care.
The Heinz Awards
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June 5, 2024
The Court Ruling to Halt The Fearless Fund Fails Black Women
On Monday, June 3, a federal appeals court’s decision to block a grant program for Black female entrepreneurs in Georgia was a level even the most jaded among us are not accustomed to.
Time
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November 30, 2023
CEO Aisha’s Nyandoro’s conversation with Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom
Anyone who does work that is thinking about a tomorrow is hopeful. I have been thinking about those words from Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom since I had the honor of interviewing her at Bold New Consensus earlier this month. Our conversation was part of the larger event, hosted by Economic Security Project in collaboration with […]
Springboard to Opportunities
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November 29, 2023
Aisha Nyandoro is Making Guaranteed Income a Reality in Mississippi
The longest-running guaranteed-income program in the United States just turned five years old — and it’s led by a trailblazing woman in Mississippi named Aisha Nyandoro.
Vox
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October 16, 2023
Aisha’s TED Talk is Here!
“Wealth is about a sense of agency, a sense of freedom, and being able to care for the collective whole.” Last week, our CEO, Aisha Nyandoro, took to the TEDWomen stage to ask us all if we are brave enough to reimagine what wealth looks like in this country. Through a powerful personal testimony, the […]
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September 20, 2023
The Guaranteed Income Program That’s Helping Black Moms – and Trying to Change the World
The Magnolia Mother’s Trust provides needed monthly funds to Black mothers in Mississippi. The folks behind it want this local action to inspire a global – or at least national – shift.
The Story Exchange
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July 14, 2023
Empowering Families, Disrupting Systems and Building Hope: Q&A with Aisha Nyandoro
Our desire was to actually prove that you can give poor folks money, that families know exactly what it is that they need for themselves and their families.
W.K. Kellogg Foundation: Every Child Thrives
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July 13, 2023
CEO, Aisha Nyandoro, testifies before the U.S. House Ways & Means Work & Welfare Subcommittee
“With so many families in poverty, we come in telling them what it is that they need or what they don’t need or how they must govern their lives. We tell them to take their baton back. But we shouldn’t have their baton to begin with.” Dear Partners, Yesterday, I had the opportunity to share the […]
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June 1, 2023
Alone Our Work Wasn’t Enough
Guaranteed income is meant to supplement, not supplant, existing social safety net benefits. It is grounded on the values of trust and respect for recipients with a fundamental commitment to preserving and reinforcing the freedom of choice and dignity of individuals and families.
Just Economy Institute
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May 6, 2023
Guaranteeing Black Mothers the Space to Write Their Own Stories With Aisha Nyandoro
Financial security is not just about having enough money to afford everyday expenses or being prepared for unexpected emergencies. It means having the space to navigate life with ease and being able to make time — for ourselves and each other.
Black Women Know Best
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November 30, 2022
Give Moms the Gift of Guaranteed Income
Nyandoro said her immediate Christmas wish is to get every mom off her wait list: That would mean giving that $1,000 monthly stipend to an additional 500 moms in 2023.
The New York Times
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November 29, 2022
Locked Out: Black Women, Wealth, and Homeownership
Expert co-authors connect the lived experiences, hopes, and dreams of low-income Black women and their perspectives on homeownership to the historical and current policies that fuel our exclusionary housing market.
Nonprofit Quarterly
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November 4, 2022
How the Magnolia Mother’s Trust Is Changing Lives
Aisha Nyandoro and Tamika Calhoun talk about the Magnolia Mother’s Trust, how it changed Calhoun’s life, and what people get wrong about families on public assistance.
Acumen America
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September 23, 2022
Biden Has Helped the Quiet Revolution of Giving People Money
Among the big changes ushered in by the pandemic was a quiet revolution in American welfare policy.
The New York Times
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August 29, 2022
Guaranteed Income Is a Blueprint for a Better Social Safety Net: ‘Give People Money—Not Vouchers, Not Subsidies’
For low-income families looking to receive benefits from state or federal welfare agencies, bureaucracy can prevent them from getting the food, housing and money they need to survive.
Ms. Magazine
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August 19, 2022
Magnolia Mother’s Trust Marks a History-Making Three Cycles of Paying Black Mothers $1,000 a Month
The Mississippi fund is the longest-running guaranteed income program in the United States.
The 19th
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July 27, 2022
Courage in Action: McNulty Prize Winners at the 2022 Aspen Action Forum
On July 27th, the 2022 John P. McNulty Prize Winners engaged in a dynamic conversation about their bold visions for solving humanity’s most intractable social problems, and how they stay true to their values and convictions in the face of enormous challenges.
The McNulty Foundation
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July 18, 2022
$450,000 McNulty Prize Awarded to Leaders Driving Bold Solutions to End Hunger, Thirst, and Poverty
Magnolia Mother’s Trust replaces an adversarial system of welfare with one that trusts mothers to do what is best for their families.
AP News
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July 6, 2022
Why Black Women Must Remain Front and Center
The recent rolling back of Roe v. Wade will hurt low-income Black women in conservative states like Mississippi the most. This is in addition to the cruelty of state legislators who refused to expand postpartum Medicaid access earlier this year.
Ms. Magazine
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June 22, 2022
The Differences Between UBI and Guaranteed Income Reveal the Importance of Equity
Guaranteed income programs like the Magnolia Mother’s Trust focus on low-income Black women to address the deeply entrenched economic inequities caused by systemic racism and sexism.
Ms. Magazine
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April 28, 2022
Where the Guaranteed Income Movement Is Going Next
Cash programs for low-income parents are popping up in city after city. But they’re no replacement for federal policy.
Vox
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March 29, 2022
With $1,000 a Month, Low-Income Black Moms Get a Chance to Dream
A guaranteed income program with no strings attached—and free of capitalist talking points—is changing the lives of mothers in Mississippi.
Jezebel
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March 22, 2022
Why Cities Are Piloting Guaranteed Income Programs
The first few years of a child’s life are pivotal and new research has found that a guaranteed income may actually help brain development during this time.
PBS News Hour
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December 22, 2021
A ‘Radically Resident Driven’ Approach to Helping Mississippians
The expanded Child Tax Credit has been a game-changer for many families this year and nowhere more than in the economically-challenged state of Mississippi.
Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity