The THRIVE Network model is a data driven model with promising evidence showing that this strategy works to increase the financial capability and economic mobility of participants that fully participate. Expansive research affirms this model’s impact on low-income job seekers’ employment, net income, credit, and net worth. All THRIVE Network partners are required to track data through the Apricot data tracking platform.  Partnering in the THRIVE Network activities is a requirement for all grantees, as it is an opportunity for peer learning, group training and resource sharing. Thrive partners may have one or more types of coaches, with Thrive participants working with coaches from  multiple organizations.  Meetings allow coaches to discuss cases in order to ensure they are coordinating and bundling their coaching in a way that helps participants meet their goals.

United Way is committed to helping residents achieve economic stability. However, achieving economic stability—a combination of adequate income, liquid and long-term assets and good financial management behavior—is a process that builds upon itself, and requires long-term planning and commitment from individuals, families and non-profit partners. Economic stability can be defined as:

• Sufficient family income for daily living expenses, enough to address minor emergencies and longer-term goals
• Sufficient financial assets to weather unexpected events and invest in the future
• Transferrable employment skills that lead to higher paying jobs or a smooth transition to a new job if terminated
• Smart debt with market-rate interest that contributes to a positive credit history, that leads to appreciating assets (such as a house) or that can be paid off in a reasonable period of time
• Good relationships with mainstream financial institutions and the ability to easily access credit at mainstream rates
• A plan for post-secondary educational opportunities for themselves and/or their children
• Realistic opportunity for retirement with income beyond just Social Security

The THRIVE Network model focuses on improving the bottom line for low to moderate-income families and helping people change their financial behavior in ways that encourages a long-term commitment to increasing income, decreasing expenses, building credit, and acquiring assets. THRIVE partners accomplish this primarily through a Coaching Model, utilizing client-centered, goal oriented one-on-one coaching to help THRIVE clients make incremental progress toward the THRIVE Network’s primary outcomes of increased net income, increased net worth and increased credit scores. In order to accomplish this, THRIVE Network provides families with three core program services:

Employment placement and career improvement — The ability to find or transition to living wage jobs is the basis for a family’s financial security. Employment services include basic job readiness and essential skills training, industry-specific skills training or other post-secondary education, and/or career advancement. THRIVE Network focuses on training, education and employment opportunities in industries that offer pathways to family sustaining income and opportunities for advancement.

Financial education and coaching — While partners in the THRIVE Network may provide different forms of financial education, the core model of one-on-one financial coaching focuses on solving specific problems or crises, such as high debt or eviction prevention; and then working—through a coaching relationship—on long-term financial interventions. THRIVE partners can also offer group-based financial education in addition to one-on-one coaching, which provides general information on a range of topics, such as budgeting and developing savings plans. Finally THRIVE partners help clients to connect to affordable mainstream financial services whenever possible.

We believe financial coaching is the best technique in partnering with individuals and families to achieve their goals. Though Coaches are versatile enough to help clients fix an immediate problem, their key role is to work with clients to establish a vision of financial stability, develop financial goals, and hold the client accountable for achieving those goals. The coaches’ ongoing encouragement and support helps to make it easier for clients to stay on a consistent asset building course that leads to economic stability.

Income supports access — THRIVE Network participants are employed or will become employed with the help of the THRIVE Network, but at program entry, their wages and benefits are often insufficient to meet their daily needs. Income supports such as SNAP (Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program), the EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit), housing or childcare assistance, play a key role in helping working families manage their everyday living expenses. While individuals may want to access public benefits, the system itself is cumbersome and complicated, making it difficult for working people to access the benefits for which they qualify. Successful THRIVE partners assist clients with accessing income supports by: helping them understand benefit eligibility, making sure they understand the steps to complete applications correctly, and advocating for them during the application process with agencies that administer the benefits.

Other services — THRIVE Partners also offer supplementary services, such as free tax preparation, digital literacy, family support services for participants with young children, and healthcare navigation in order to assist clients in meeting their goals. These activities are also tracked in Apricot and may be part of the deliverables individual organizations include in their grant agreements.

These three core services are integrated and delivered to participants in a bundled fashion to provide a multi-faceted approach to income and wealth building. Different from collaboration that many non-profits expertly navigate, integration in the THRIVE Network model also influences how services are organized in an organization’s overall operations. Integration is purposely built into program design, staff communication plans, data collection and service delivery so clients can benefit from multiple, reinforcing services and systems that contribute to their overall financial stability. Bundling of services is central to the THRIVE Network model and clients’ success.

Who are THRIVE Network Clients?

The THRIVE Network is designed for people who are working or want to work, who have the ability to set and follow through on longer-term goals. The THRIVE Network model is not designed to focus on people who are in crisis. That does not mean clients may not experience periodic crises, but at entry into the THRIVE Network they are stable enough to follow through on appointments and can focus on the economic mobility goals central to the THRIVE model. For example, a person who has been chronically homeless should seek services from a housing organization and achieve a stable living situation before seeking services through the THRIVE Network.

Accessibility

Applicants should expect and be open to changing their current client flow and service model, both at entry into the THRIVE Network and over time to meet the needs of clients and in response to outcome data. THRIVE Network Partners should also have accessible hours (such as evenings or Saturdays) in order to accommodate the schedules of working people.

About The Application

Reminder: Application Deadline is April 15, 2022 at 11:30 pm

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