Newsletter | Springboard to Opportunities

Summer is here – so what’s for lunch?

Jackson, Mississippi is officially in full summer mode! Not only has the heat and humidity crept back up into sweat-drenching territory, but schools have had their last days, graduations have wrapped up, and parents are desperately trying to figure out the extra expenses (like food and childcare) that come along with the summer months.

Earlier this year, we announced that, in response to Mississippi’s failure to opt-in to the new federal Summer EBT program for families, we would be providing cash disbursements to Springboard families to support the additional food costs families have during the summer. This Tuesday, we will be sending out the first disbursements. Part of our commitment in our new strategic plan is to expand our cash disbursement support in response to unexpected disasters – including policy disasters like failing to implement Summer EBT.

While we are thrilled to be helping almost 700 students have an additional layer of food security this summer, we know this is just a drop in the bucket compared to the children across Mississippi (and the other states that opted out of Summer EBT benefits) who will not have access to additional benefits this summer. That’s why we’re doing more than just giving out cash; we’re also collecting data.

It is our belief that the best policies are always grounded in trust and dignity and informed by family voice and expertise. When polled, 75% of our families reported not having sufficient food for their family’s needs during the summer months. Many state leaders who opted-out of Summer EBT claimed that families already had access to summer feeding sites, so additional benefits were unnecessary. But only 14% of Springboard families actually reported having used summer feeding sites. The inability to take children during work hours, consistent access to transportation, and insufficient information regarding site location and hours were just a few of the issues cited.

The largest percentage of families said that additional support through Pandemic EBT funds (the pandemic-era program which laid the groundwork for the new Summer EBT program) was how they met their families’ nutritional needs during the summer. Not only was it simpler than getting kids to specific places at specific times, but it provided choice and options – allowing parents to accommodate allergies, health needs, and preferences. It provides flexibility for working parents – something these same lawmakers say is a priority – and ensures children aren’t skipping or eating inadequate meals when summer sites aren’t open.

Throughout the summer, we will be capturing stories from families about how the cash is making a difference in their lives and how it shifts their ability to keep their homes stocked with enough nutritious food throughout the summer. We’ve already seen these stories and data help states like Nebraska, Louisiana, and Alabama change course and plan to opt-in to Summer EBT moving forward. We have no doubt that Mississippi can be next.

Defining Holistic Prosperity

In 2018, Springboard to Opportunities launched The Magnolia Mother’s Trust, a first-of-its-kind guaranteed income initiative supporting first 20 and then 100 Black mothers each year in subsidized housing with $1,000 per month for 12 months, no strings attached. Now six years, five cohorts, and hundreds of moms in, MMT is consistently recognized as a leader in the cash disbursement field; and our evaluations have not only shown that cash-based benefits are good for a family’s economic security but also lead to an enhanced sense of self-efficacy and agency, which allows families to make their own decisions around work, prioritize their children, and enhance the overall well-being of their family.

As we developed and refined MMT alongside our families over these past years, we often asked participants to describe their vision of a prosperous life. When our families talk about prosperity, they do not talk about being rich with big houses, fancy cars, or growing stock portfolios. Rather, they talk about a life free from chronic stress and worry, free time to spend with their children or on their own interests, a safe and caring community, and being able to pay their bills with a little extra leftover to put in savings or spend on a special treat. They have a deeper, richer vision of prosperity. Holistic prosperity.

So today, we are excited to release a new white paper and toolkit that defines and offers implementation strategies for a new holistic prosperity framework.

Holistic prosperity is a framework for guaranteed income and cash-based support programs that recognizes families’ own definitions of success, wealth, and prosperity, as opposed to one-dimensional measures like economic self-sufficiency. Based in the belief that families know better than anyone else what they need to succeed, this definition consists of four interconnected and interdependent pieces of a puzzle and shows that it takes more than just cash for families to feel they are living a prosperous life.

Financial Stability — The ability to meet their families’ needs and navigate financial emergencies while providing opportunities for joy and care for themselves and their families.

Time Autonomy — The ability to make decisions about one’s own time and schedule and determine who or what they want to be able to prioritize.

Dynamic Well-being — Physical, mental, and emotional health and freedom from chronic stress and anxiety.

Social Capital — Strong, supportive relationships with family, friends, and community members that support connectedness and social mobility.

Throughout the paper, you will find stories from families that demonstrate how centering family voice and expertise allowed us to create a guaranteed income program that not only gave families economic security; but truly allowed them to feel whole. Since we launched MMT in 2018, we have consistently been asked what sets it apart from other cash-based programs and how to incorporate the same principles and strategies into programs in their own communities. The holistic prosperity framework provides the tools and mechanisms to do just that.

As cash disbursement programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or other guaranteed income programs consider metrics for success and program implementation, it is our belief that these four elements should guide that process. In doing so, we are working to create policies and programs grounded in dignity, equity, and trust to ensure all families can experience a life of holistic prosperity, as MMT has been doing for years.

Read Full Report

Springboard Goes to Colombia!

One of our goals as an organization is to help the families we work with recognize the power they already have to make change within their own lives, communities, and the many policies and systems that affect their day-to-day lives. One of the most debilitating consequences of poverty is the boundaries it puts on families. They feel limited in where they can go, what they can do, and who they have access to. It is easy to believe the story that you don’t have power or agency or your voice does not matter when you are acutely aware of the limitations imposed upon you.

Over the years, we have tried to help push those boundaries for our families through various trips and opportunities to travel to conferences and convenings where residents are able to share their wisdom and experiences. Residents will often point to these trips as times when they were able to deepen their knowledge about the world and see the way their lives and stories fit into it. Some discover a new career they didn’t know was possible, learn about a new place or story they want to share with their families, or make a life-long friend—expanding their experiences and connections.

These trips have always been incredible, but for the first time, Springboard went international this past Spring!

In April 2024, nine Springboard residents who have been a part of our Fellowship programs and have either started or are working to start their own businesses and traveled to Bogotá, Colombia with members of Springboard’s staff for a weeklong program focused on women’s entrepreneurship in the global economy.

We partnered with the Aspen Global Innovators Group and Fundación Sanctuary Colombia to create an experience that both introduced our women leaders to the rich historical and cultural landscape of Colombia and allowed women entrepreneurs from the US and Colombia to meet and share strategies around how they can sustain and grow their businesses.

While there are so many reasons we were excited about this trip and opportunity, at the top of that list was the chance for our residents to shift their own internal narratives and see new possibilities for themselves. For all these women, it was their first international experience and — for most of them — their first time even on a plane. They ended this trip not only with new connections, ideas for their own businesses, and a richer understanding of the world, but with a renewed confidence in themselves and their ability to go after their goals and push against the barriers that have been placed on them.

Thank you for your continued belief in our residents to push toward new stories.

Cash in Crisis

In October, we announced that in response to the ongoing Jackson water crisis, we would be providing all families in our multifamily Jackson communities with $150 each month for six months to help cover the additional costs families were incurring due to continued water outages and unsafe drinking water. The last of these six month payments was disbursed this month and based on the feedback and evaluation of the program, we heard one big thing: cash works.

When asked “in times of crisis, which type of support is most helpful?,” 70% of respondents in the communities said cash. 17% preferred in-kind donations, while 13% had no preference.

When asked more about why they felt this way, the answer was clear – cash provides agency, choice, and the ability to deal with all the effects of a crisis, not just the obvious ones like not having water.

“With cash, you have options.”

Residents often cited the importance of being able to choose for themselves. Some talked about having delayed paying utility bills or other household necessities so that they could stock up on water. These participants were able to use the cash assistance toward their utility bills or rent. Another participant said she used the funds to pay her internet bill as schools were forced to close when they had no water and students needed WiFi to participate in virtual learning from home.

Others talked about using the funds to put gas in their car to make it to water distribution sites or drive to other towns to find water, especially when the shelves in stores in Jackson were empty. Still others cited that donated food – a necessity since residents were unable to cook with the water they had – often contains ingredients their families could not consume because of allergies or restrictions. Having cash allowed them to pick out items that they knew were safe and appropriate for their household.

“I could go shopping for my own personal needs and not have to wait in line and drive from site to site for assistance.”

“It allows me the freedom to allocate the assistance as I see fit.”

“Cash gives me the opportunity to budget and make sure I get everything.”

“It helps me pay on my high bills for having to boil my water in the kitchen where I don’t have hot water. This runs my light bill up high. I also can buy a few groceries with what is left over.”

“Because with cash I could, if I needed to, relocate. Go to a different county and pay for a room, or stay with a friend and help with her utilities while I’m there. Transportation to and from school or work.”

“Because during a crisis we need help in all ways and with cash it could help for anything that we are lacking.”

“We are able to get the things we need without all the stress and fear of not having what we need for our household.”

A crisis never just affects one part of a family’s life; it affects everything. Providing cash acknowledges this and trusts our residents to know better than anyone else what they need to care for their family through that crisis. When everything around someone feels like it is falling apart, cash gives back a bit of agency and stability. And that is what every family deserves, despite economic circumstances, in any crisis.