Families Save: College Bound Savings Program

YPI, with support from Citi Community Development, now offers a new program for Los Angeles families living in Hollywood and Pacoima called 'Families Save.' Significantly more than 51% of the 'Families Save' program clients are classified as Low and Moderate Income (80% or less of the Area Median Income of Los Angeles County in 2012, which is $64,800 for a family of four).

Families Save seeks to work with these families to increase access to financial education and asset building with a focus on how to start saving for college. This program is an integral component to YPI’s Los Angeles Promise Neighborhood Initiative, which will provide a cradle-to-career pipeline of services that includes: case management, early childhood education, financial education, asset building, school transformation, work experience for youth, college preparation, adult education, job training, and holistic family and health services. These efforts are concentrated in the communities of Hollywood and Pacoima, both of which experience high levels of poverty and need.

Financial Education

Financial education workshops (offered in both Spanish and English) utilize FDIC curricula and address how families can save and pay for college through the following topics: budgeting; understanding credit, debt reduction and acquiring assets; and how to identify and avoid predatory lending practices. Youth that participate in financial education workshops have the opportunity to visit the Junior Achievement Finance Park of Southern California. During this day-long visit, youth apply the concepts they have learned in financial workshops by assuming life-like roles through various family and income scenarios. Youth practice money management skills by paying their bills, going shopping, buying a house, buying a car, purchasing insurance, and other real-life activities that require financial literacy and financial planning.

If you would like more information about the 'Families Save' program, please contact Kristen Gates at kgates@ypiusa.org or Luz Gonzalez at lgonzalez@ypiusa.org or the YPI Hollywood FamilySource Center at (323) 836-0055.