Stay Informed!

Individual Development Account (IDA) Basics

September 23, 2010 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Room: Washington 4

This session is sponsored by Wells Fargo.

In this session, novice practitioners and organizations will learn the nuts-and-bolts to launch a successful matched savings program. Panelists will explore different models to implement a program, highlight the advantages of matched savings accounts for people with disabilities and dialogue about strategies to fundraise for the local match.

Speakers

• Rochelle Howard, CFED - Moderator
  Rochelle Howard is a senior program manager for savings and financial security at CFED. She is responsible for leading field development activities to support the development and delivery of Individual Development Account (IDA) programs and other matched savings strategies that enable low-income individuals and families to build assets. From 2005 to 2009, she participated in the implementation of CFED's Savings for Education, Entrepreneurship and Downpayment (SEED) Initiative, a national demonstration of matched savings accounts for children and youth. Prior to joining CFED, Ms. Howard served as the Asset Development Manager at the Community Financial Resource Center (CFRC) in Los Angeles, CA-a nonprofit community development financial institution-where she ran two IDA programs, managed three homeownership programs, and conducted extensive training with IDA accountholders and new homebuyers. Prior to CFRC, she was a research analyst for the Center for Research Employment Strategies (CRES), the research arm of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, conducting applied research on employment training programs for union members and individuals transitioning from welfare-to-work. Ms. Howard holds a Masters degree in Urban Planning from the University of California, Los Angeles and a B.A. in Business Administration from Loyola Marymount University.
• Maggie Reilly, CASA of Oregon (Innovative Idea Champion)
  Maggie Reilly has served as program manager at CASA of Oregon for over three years, where she focuses on program development and operations for one of the country's largest IDA networks. In 2008 Ms. Reilly started the Matched Education Savings Account College Initiative (MESA), which offers students an opportunity to access IDAs while in school and for post-secondary educational institutions to leverage their institutional resources. Prior to joining CASA of Oregon, Ms. Reilly worked at Mercy Corps NW supporting entrepreneurs through microfinance and microenterprise development. She holds a dual-degree in International Affairs and Foreign Languages and Literature.
• Thomas Foley, World Institute on Disability (Innovative Idea Champion)
  Thomas Foley, J.D. is deputy director of the World Institute on Disability. Trained as a lawyer, Tom’s professional experience includes more than 25 years as an advocate in the independent living movement focusing on wealth planning, employment policy, emergency preparedness, tax policy and information technology access in employment, government, and education both internationally and in the United States. During his tenure at WID, he has developed and influenced federal and state legislation to encourage employment and increase participation of people with disabilities in employment and wealth building programs. Tom works to include underserved populations and transition age youth in programs to increase employment, economic security, emergency preparedness, broadband access and health care for people with disabilities. Tom, who gradually lost his vision as a result of the degenerative eye condition retinitis pigmentosa, is a graduate of the University of California Hastings College of the Law, where his dissertation focused on federal tax credit policy.
• Jim Gatz, Office of Community Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  James Gatz manages the Assets for Independence (AFI) Program at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Community Services. This program funds more than 400 entities throughout the nation that administer Individual Development Account projects through which low-income families receive financial literacy education and are given access to special matched savings accounts. Grantees include State and Tribal government agencies, local United Ways, Community Action Agencies, Community Development Corporations, community colleges, and many others. His education credentials include a law degree from St. Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri, a Master in Public Affairs degree from the Lyndon B. Johnson School at the University of Texas at Austin, and a Bachelor of Arts from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Resources

Combined Presentation

Rochelle Howard - pdf presentation