A Holistic Approach to Socioeconomic Well-Being
Centering residents of affordable housing means listening and responding to their multidimensional needs and goals. Here are some ways Springboard to Opportunities supports socioeconomic well-being for whole people, whole families, and whole communities.
Guaranteed Income
Guaranteed income refers to recurring cash payments made to a targeted, often historically disadvantaged group of people, without placing conditions on their employment status, household composition, or how the money may be used. It injects greater autonomy into the social safety net by putting decision-making power in the hands of recipients.
Guaranteed income is meant to serve as an income floor and ensure that individuals who receive it are able to meet their minimum basic needs. It is distinct from Universal Basic Income, which emphasizes regular cash payment to all members of a society regardless of income or need.
Magnolia Mother’s Trust
The Magnolia Mother’s Trust (MMT) is a first-of-its-kind Guaranteed Income program pioneered by Springboard to Opportunities. Since 2018, MMT has provided $1,000 each month for 12 months to over 100 Black mothers living in affordable housing—no strings attached.
Emergency Cash Disbursement
Our cash disbursement work directly responds to the needs and feedback of the affordable housing residents in our community. For instance, during the 2022 water crisis in Jackson, we provided all families in Springboard communities with $150 each month for six months to mitigate the consequences of the ongoing water disruptions. In 2024, when Mississippi decided to opt out of the USDA’s Summer EBT program, we announced that we would provide summer cash disbursements to families with school-aged children to offset the costs of summer meals.
Lending Circles℠
We explore opportunities for economic well-being that center mutual care and community, such as Lending Circles℠ that allow for collective support and trust building while helping individuals work toward their financial and personal goals. Lending Circles℠ enable participants to collectively contribute funds each month and, reciprocally, receive a sizable loan from the collective to access educational opportunities, housing deposits, car and housing down payments, and more. Lending Circles℠ is a social loan program managed by Mission Asset Fund (MAF).
What do we mean by “whole people”?
To truly partner with the communities we serve, we must deeply understand and respect how residents view themselves, what they value, what motivates them, and what they dream of. When we use the term “whole people,” we communicate our commitment to seeing residents of affordable housing as complex individuals with nuanced stories—never as statistics.