Financial Opportunity Center Network
LISC Jacksonville knows that healthy, sustainable communities are made up of residents who have living wage jobs and feel confident about their economic futures. A thriving community offers its residents opportunities for income and career growth—and the confidence that their neighborhood can enrich their lives. Sustainable communities need a long-term strategy for helping families with low-incomes achieve economic stability. This goes beyond having adequate income to meet necessary expenses; it means informed financial planning and behavior as well. That’s why LISC invests in helping people tackle all the facets of financial life—earning a steady paycheck, budgeting, building good credit, and saving for education and retirement.
Financial Opportunity Centers (FOCs) are career and financial coaching service centers that focus on the financial bottom line for individuals living with low-to-moderate incomes. LISC has a network of more than 130 FOCs across the country, embedded in community-based organizations that are trusted, known for their history of providing quality services, and convenient to where people live and seek out services.
FOCs provide employment and career counseling, one-on-one financial coaching and education, and low-cost financial products that help build credit, savings and assets. They also connect clients with income supports such as SNAP benefits, utilities assistance, and affordable health insurance.
The cornerstone of the FOC model is providing these services in an integrated way—rather than as stand-alone services—and with a long-term commitment to helping clients reach their goals, while simultaneously narrowing racial wealth gaps in historically disinvested communities.
LISC has learned that integrated or “bundled” services lead to concrete gains in net income and job retention. Research shows that FOC clients who take advantage of combined services are 50 percent more likely to land a well-paying job than people receiving employment services alone. In addition, long-term job retention—holding a job for a year or more—almost doubles when financial coaching reinforces the work of employment counseling.
How LISC Supports the Financial Opportunity Center Network
Financial Support
- LISC provides operating grants and develops national and local partnerships to invest in the network.
Technical Assistance
- LISC shares best practices and provides FOC staff with training an support.
Shared Data Systen
LISC provides a shared data system (Salesforce) and conducts network wide analysis an evaluation of program trends and areas for improvement.
Network Collboration
LISC sultivates an atmosphere of and opportunities for learning and peer-sharing yielding better results network-wide.
In collaboration with its operating partners, LISC Jacksonville provides residents with access to the following services in the place where they live:
- Job placement, career improvement and employment services
- Financial education and coaching
- Public benefits
Funding Partners for 2023
- The Siemer Institute / United Way Northeast Florida
- The Jim Moran Foundation
- Bank of America
- TD Bank
- Wells Fargo
- Truist
- PNC Foundation
For Jacksonville Network Locations click here
