Financial Coaching Update December 16

Hello Financial Coaches,

I have some updates before we wrap up the year.

FINANCIAL STABILITY PROGRAMS RECEIVE AWARD

The Housing Authority of the City of Austin held an awards ceremony where they recognized outstanding clients of the Family Self Sufficiency Program as well as an outstanding partner organization.  The partner organization was chosen by FSS members (clients), which many of you have worked with. 

Foundation Communities was honored with the outstanding partner organization award.  The most striking part of the ceremony was when Becky Summerset, one of the FSS Program Coordinators, announce the award.  She said that not only had Foundation Communities Financial Stability Programs fulfilled the needs of their members, but changed their lives.  

I can not thank all of you enough for being such wonderful coaches, this honor is for you.  Please know that you are changing lives.

2012 IS UPON US

As the end of the year approaches, I invite you to sign up for a few things on MyVolunteerPage for 2012.

• Sign up to see new clients.  As the Community Tax Centers start to open on January 13, thousands of people will see information about all of our Financial Programs, and many of them will request appointments with Financial Coaches.
• Sign up for training opportunities.  The Continuing Education Gathering will be January 18, 12-1 pm.  We will be discussing all of the Financial Stability programs available during tax season, including new saving incentives!  A refresher course will be offered on January 24, 10 am-12 pm and January 26, 5-7 pm (you will only need to attend one).  Join us if you would like to brush up on your coaching skills and resources before meeting with a client in the New Year.

With that, I leave you for the Holidays.  I hope that 2012 comes to a close with joy and fulfillment for all of you.

Best Regards,

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Program Update December 7, 2011

Hello Financial Coaches,

I hope you're enjoying the holiday season and the chilly weather so far!  Please read below to find information about our featured resource and updates to MyVolunteerPage for 2012.

And don't forget that we need volunteers to serve as FAFSA preparers in 2012. For more information, please contact Courtney Salcedo at Courtney.Salcedo@foundcom.org or by phone at 512-610-7385.

FEATURED RESOURCE – THE CITY OF AUSTIN CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE DISCOUNT PROGRAM

Periodically, we would like to feature a resource that many clients may not be taking advantage of.  It will be highlighted at the top of our Volunteer Resource Web Page.  Right now, our featured resource is the City of Austin Customer Assistance Discount Program.  Clients may qualify for about $49 in monthly discounts off their City of Austin utility bill through the Customer Assistance Program.  A household will qualify if someone in the household currently participates in any of the following assistance programs:

• Medicaid program type 3, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 22, 23, 24 or 51
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Travis County Hospital District Medical Assistance Program (MAP)
• Travis County Energy Assistance Programs:  CEAP or FEMA
• State paid Medicare Parts A and B (QMB, SLMB, or QI)

To apply, clients must fill out the Enrollment Card available in the Financial Coaching office and mail it in along with copies of documentation that shows someone in the household is participating in one of the programs listed above.  Copies can be made in the Financial Coaching office.

MYVOLUNTEERPAGE IN 2012

The “I am available” and “I have an appointment” schedules for the spring of 2012 are now posted on MyVolunteerPage.  You will notice a difference - the activities are not split up by hour any more.  To sign up for available days and times:

• Log in to MyVolunteerPage
• Go to the Sign-Up tab
• Choose “Financial Coaching – I am available – COMMUNITY FINANCIAL CENTER”
• You will see ALL the days and times that you can sign up 
• Filter by day of the week or by time simply by un-checking any days or times you do not want to sign up for at the top of the page
• Click on the Filter Shifts button
• You will now see a filtered list of days and times
• Check any specific days and times that you would be available to meet with a new client, and you will be added to our list of available coaches that we will look at when we get an appointment request from a client.

Thanks everyone for making 2011 a great year for Financial Coaching, we're in the home stretch!

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching update - November 3, 2011

Hello Financial Coaches,

I hope you're enjoying the cool weather!  We have some program updates to share with you as well as some great new resources that you can share with clients.  

PROGRAM CHANGES

Income limit simplified!  The income limit for both the Community Tax Center and Financial Coaching is now $50,000 a year, regardless of the number of people in the household.

New credit authorization form.  Please note the new credit authorization form on our Volunteer Resource Page (in the credit section).  Our contract with our credit report provider has changed and now we have to be a HUD Certified Credit Counseling Agency in order to pull credit reports without impacting the client's score.  The new authorization form informs clients of the impact on their score and the alternative for getting their credit report, annualcreditreport.com.  It is impossible to tell any one client how many points they will lose because of this inquiry, but for most people, it will be less than 5 points.  You can read more about how inquiries affect credit scores on the MyFico web site.

NEW RESOURCES

Volunteer Resource Page updated!  We added new resources and organized the Volunteer Resource Page.  One new resource you will find is Assurance Wireless, the free cell phone service for people receiving public benefits.  

Great budgeting tips.One of our volunteers shared this post on One Cobble at a Time.  It's a simple, yet thorough way to think about budgeting, from creating to tracking.  Maybe you will find some helpful tidbits to share with your clients.  I will be emailing the link to all our clients as well. 

I hope you find this information helpful.  Thank you so much for all you do for our clients, our program and our community.  

Sincerely,

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Continuing Education - Credit recap and October 19 session

We had a great discussion last month on the different things we had heard about credit, but didn't have any concrete sources.  I was able to find further information on some of the points we talked about, but if anyone has further experience or resources that we can reference, please share by commenting on this post!  Below is a recap of what we discussed:

I heard that different types of bankruptcy stay on your credit report for different lengths of time – either seven or ten years. 

During our discussion, multiple people had heard this information.  Short of scouring through the text of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, I found a bankruptcy blog by a Texas law firm.  In short, the FCRA does not distinguish between the types of bankruptcy and it states that bankruptcy information cannot be reported after 10 years from date of filing.  However, credit reporting agencies will often choose to report Chapter 13 bankruptcy for only 7 years.  See the Texas Bankruptcy Blog for more information. 

I heard that medical collections are not considered when purchasing a home.

All collections negatively affect credit scores, including medical collections.  However, I have also heard that medical collections are not seen as negatively as other collections, but I do not have any documentation to back that up.  There is an article in the Union Plus about medical debt.

We have a few volunteers who are realtors or work for lenders.  I invite you to share your experience in working with people who have medical collections and are trying to buy a home.

We also discussed student loans and how they affect credit.  

Again, all collections negatively affect credit scores, including student loans.  The important thing here is that borrowers continue to work with their lender or guarantor (if the loan is in default).  A great resource for information about student loans is the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation. 

October Continuing Education gathering 

The next gathering will be on Wednesday, October 19, 12-1 pm at the Community Financial Center.  Bring your lunch and learn about 2-1-1 Texas, the program of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission that is committed to helping Texans connect with the services they need. Bridgette Kern, a representative from 2-1-1 will be giving an overview of 2-1-1 and the services they provide. She will also demonstrate how to use 2-1-1’s online database. Sign up on MyVolunteerPage.

Thanks everyone for participating and I hope to see you on the 19th!

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Continuing Education - September topic: Credit "I heard that..."

Hello Coaches,

On September 21st, we will be talking about common myths and misconceptions that are out there about credit.  We hear many clients say "I heard that ___ will affect your credit. Is that true?" I would love for all of you as coaches to be ready to talk about those "I heard" moments that either a client (or you yourself) has wondered about.

Please feel free to bring your lunch.  We will discuss these common myths as we enjoy our lunches.

I hope to see you there!

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching update - August 29, 2011

Good afternoon Financial Coaches,

First, I would like give a big WELCOME to all our newest Financial Coaches who completed training this month!  We appreciate you joining our team!

As you can see in the Events section, we have a busy month ahead - that is, after taking a break for Labor Day!

EVENTS FOR CLIENTS
Please share the following information with clients who you think might be interested.  Those clients who provided an email address got this information by email.  See details by following the links in the Events section.

• Money Management.  These classes are open to all Financial Coaching clients who would like to learn about credit, debt and saving in a classroom setting. 
• Scholarship Workshops. The workshops will focus on finding and writing essays for scholarship applications.  

EVENTS FOR COACHES

See details by following the links in the Events section.

• Community Tax Center Volunteer Kick off Lunch - Join us for lunch if you or someone you know would like to learn more about becoming a volunteer for the Community Tax Center.
• Continuing Education Workshops for Coaches - In September, we will have a presentation about finding resources on 2-1-1.

OTHER INFORMATION

• Debt in Focus - Try out this great tool for creating debt repayment plan.  It's completely anonymous and all you do is plug in your numbers and it does the math.  The functionality is similar to PowerPay, but with nicer presentation of the results (think colors and graphs!).  Check it out and share with clients!
• The Austin City Council is creating an ordinance to place restrictions on Payday Lenders.  Read about the restrictions in the KXAN report.

Thanks everyone, have a great week!

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Financial Coaching update - August 15, 2011

CONTINUING EDUCATION SERIES FOR AUGUST
See the Events Section to sign up.

The most any of us know about the child support system is that the client we’re working with is either receiving child support or isn’t.  Please consider joining us to learn more about the child support system from Chris Giangreco of the Attorney General’s office.  Chris will present two sessions – Wednesday, August 17^th at noon, repeated again at 6:30pm.  Both sessions will be held at the Community Financial Center.

In Chris’ hour-long presentation, he will provide an overview of the child support system and talk about how we can make it work best for our clients.  Some of the things he’ll cover are:

·         What you can do to help your client receive child support

·         Where to refer clients when they have issues with their child support case   

·         What clients should do if they have trouble making their child support payments

He’ll allow time for your questions to be answered.  Some of us have heard Chris’ presentation recently – and it’s interesting stuff!  


WEBINARS AVAILABLE FROM MONEY MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL
See Links Section to sign up.


Money Management International has several free webinars coming up that you may be interested in participating in.  The topics are "When income decreases, but the bills don't," "Put your debt on a diet" and "Your credit report and score."


Have a great Monday!


Erika Leos
Financial Coaching Coordinator

Continuing Education - Cash for College recap and future topics

CASH FOR COLLEGE RECAP

The Cash for College program staff and volunteers will help clients fill out the Federal Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which will determine whether they’re eligible for the Federal Pell Grant.  The FAFSA will also calculate the client’s Estimated Family Contribution, which is used to determine how much a student qualifies for in other grants, scholarships, student loans and Work Study.  The Cash for College program also serves as a general resource for anyone currently attending or thinking about attending college.  Some of the topics that are often faced by our clients are:

• The temptation to attend for-profit schools.  Many for-profit schools (often vocational or technical schools) are very good at convincing students that the school is perfect for them, often without being clear about the cost.  The reality is that most programs offered by those schools can also be found at Austin Community College for a fraction of the cost.  The Financial Coaching and Cash for College programs do not advise students against attending a for-profit school, but will help students compare all aspects, including cost, time commitment, quality of education, and type of certification/degree attained.
• The difficulty of the registration and financial aid process at Austin Community College.  While ACC can offer a huge cost advantage, for-profit schools have made the process of enrolling and financing very easy.  A for-profit school recruiting agent is always there guiding the client through every step of the way.  That is not the case at ACC.  Some clients get stuck in the process of enrolling at ACC and have a hard time finding someone who can help them keep moving forward.  Clients facing difficulty enrolling at ACC can always call or visit the Cash for College program to get assistance with the enrollment process.
•  Student loan debt.  Some of our clients have huge amounts of student loan debt.  Currently, there is no relief for student loan debt.  It is not dismissible through bankruptcy, and lenders can garnish wages and tax refunds if payment is not made voluntarily.  A new law (HR 2028 Private Student Loan Bankruptcy Fairness Act of 2011) is being proposed "to amend title 11 of the United States Code to modify the dischargeability of debts for certain educational payments and loans."

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND RESOURCES

•  The report from the United States Government Accountability Office about for-profit school performance can be found here.
• A New York Times article about for-profit schools can be found here.
• A Washington Post article about legislation that took private lenders out of the federal student loan equation can be found here.

FUTURE CONTINUING EDUCATION TOPICS

August 17, 12-1 pm OR 6:30-7:30 pm:  Child Support

August 31, 9 am-12 pm OR 5-8 pm:  Credit Counselor Training

September:  2-1-1 Community Resources

All of the sessions above will be held at the Community Financial Center.  Sign up today on MyVolunteerPage. 

Thank you everyone for making the Continuing Education series a success!

Regards,

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Program Updates - July 27, 2011

Hello Financial Coaches, 

SUMMER SCHEDULES

Summer is in full swing and many of us are taking advantage and going on vacation - myself included!  I will be out of the office starting July 28 and I will be back on August 8.  

Please take a moment to log on to MyVolunteerPage.  Having your updated availability on the site will make it much easier for out scheduling helpers while I'm out.  

• Any time that you are available to meet with a new client, please sign up under "I am available"
• If you are on the available schedule and you will be out of town or otherwise not available, please remove yourself from the "I am available" list

If you have any other questions, you can direct them to Courtney Salcedo.

NEW INTAKE PAPERWORK

Starting next Monday, August 1st, all new clients that meet at the Community Financial Center will be filling out the updated intake form (thank you all for your suggestions!) as well as an addendum.  The addendum asks the client for additional information that we are collecting for a pilot project.  The addendum does make the intake paperwork look a little long, but most of the addendum consists of check-box answers.We will be collecting the information on the addendum for the months of August, September and October.  Please bear with us during that time and encourage our clients to fill it out as completely as possible.  

TOUR OUR NEWEST HOUSING PROPERTY

We have a special M-Station tour set up just for us.  Our Design + Development Director is going to meet us on site and give us a tour.  Please meet us at M Station, 2906 E. Martin Luther King Blvd, 78702 on Monday, August 8, at 10 am.  Learn more about this beautiful new housing property on our web site. 

Hope you’ll be able to adjust your schedule to join us!  If you have any questions, please contact Courtney Salcedo, otherwise, we'll see you there!

Thank you!

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Program Updates July 7, 2011

FINANCIAL COACHING AT AREA NON-PROFITS

We are still looking for volunteers to work with employees of a few local non-profits at the following locations: 

• SafePlace: 1515 Grove. Blvd., 78741
• Meals on Wheels and More: 3227 E. 5^th St., 78702
• LifeWorks: 8913 Collinfield Dr., 78758
• LifeWorks: 4606 Connelly St., 78751
• LifeWorks: 3700 S. 1^st St., 78704
• LifeWokrs: 1910 E MLK Jr Blvd., 78722

Please email Katie.hazekamp@foundcom.org or call 215-1295 if interested in volunteering at any of these locations.


MY VOLUNTEER PAGE

As you may have noticed, MyVolunteerPage got a makeover during the4th of July weekend.  I encourage you to log on and explore the changes as well as do the following:

1.        Update the “My Profile” tab, specifically, the “Basic Info” section

• Update any contact information that may be out of date
• Add a secondary email so you can receive updates at two addresses if you would like
• Add a picture!  Our staff will be better able to connect names with faces.

2.       Sign up for some “I am available” shifts at the Community Financial Center!

•  Click on the “Sign-up” tab
• There are some new columns with symbols for each activity.  Scroll over the column headings and symbols if you would like to see what they mean.  They are referring to you as a volunteer (Q tells you whether you are qualified to perform this activity)
• Click on a time of day that works for you, then check the sign up box for any days that you are willing to meet with a new client.  OR, you can check the box at the top left of the blue box to be added to the backup list.  We’ll contact you if we need a volunteer at that time and can’t find one.

Thank you!

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Foundation Communities

Phone:  (512) 610-4026

Fax: (512) 916-4420

www.foundcom.org

Continuing Education - Coaching Concepts recap

Hello Coaches,

We had a great conversation around Coaching Concepts at our June Continuing Education session!  Below is a link to the video and materials that we used as well as a recap of the conversation.  I hope you will read through this post, then add your own comments!

MATERIALS


Financial Coaching Strategies from the University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension
http://fyi.uwex.edu/financialcoaching/learning-to-be-a-coach/

• Watch the second video on this page (about 10 minutes)
• Review "The COACH Model"in the table titled "Training Materials for Future Coaches" 
• Explore the other videos and materials on this web site (The ones listed above are the only ones we discussed during the gathering, but the rest are helpful too!)

DISCUSSION

Below are some of the things we noticed and found value in while watching the video demonstration:

• The coach recognized that the client had already done a lot to manage her finances
• The coach allowed the client to come up with all the ideas and solutions
• The coach provided a recap of each step 
• After identifying what a "10" would look like for the client, the coach asked the client to think of what a "5" would look like
• The exercise was kinesthetic, which accommodates different learning styles

YOUR TURN

Now, it's your turn to tell us what you learned from the video and/or the COACH Model document.  Please take a moment to post a comment so that we can all learn together.

Thank you!

Erika

Erika Leos

Financial Coaching Coordinator

Foundation Communities

Phone:  (512) 610-4026

Fax: (512) 916-4420

www.foundcom.org

Program Updates - June 27, 2011

Hello, Coaches!

I would like to share with you the opportunity to attend a webinar all about HelloWallet, one of the personal finance web sites that we encourage clients to use.  The webinar is being hosted by the National Community Tax Coalition.

Date:  July 20, 2011
Time:  2:30 pm
Location:  You can join in from any computer, anywhere!
Registration:  http://tax-coalition.org/skill-building/trainings/current-trainings/hellowallet-getting-started-webinar

Please be sure to put Foundation Communities in the field where it asks for your organization.  Also, feel free to use Foundation Communities' contact information (below) if you do not wish to provide your own while registering.  As a Foundation Communities volunteer, you get to attend for free.  

Foundation Communities
Community Financial Center
2600 W. Stassney Ln.
Austin, TX 78745
(512) 610-4026

Thank you!

Erika Leos
Financial Coaching Coordinator

Program Updates June 6, 2011

Welcome to the first edition of Financial Coaching's Program Updates via the blog!  In this post, you will find information about Financial Coaching Continuing Education, Community Resource trainings and the Free Minds Project.  All the important dates will be listed in the events section of the blog.

Financial Coaching Continuing Education
Wednesday, June 29, Coaching Concepts
Community Financial Center, 12-1 pm

In order to help you stay current with topics that are important to Financial Coaching, we are providing Continuing Education sessions.  The purpose of the sessions will be to gather and learn, share experiences and support each other.  These Continuing Education sessions will be held on the third Wednesday of each month (although the very first one will actually be on the 5th Wednesday of June, the 29th) at the Community Financial Center from 12 to 1 pm.  We will be providing drinks and snacks and we encourage you to bring your lunch.  Register on MyVolunteerPage.
In June, we discuss Coaching Concepts.  Come learn about and discuss the concepts that make Coaching sessions successful.  We will be reviewing the COACH model and seeing a great example of how coaching can work with our clients.
If you can't attend the session, don't worry.  We will be posting key discussion points on the blog and you can post a comment if you would like.


Community Resource 101
Friday, June 24, 2-1-1
United Way Capital Area, 2-4 pm


Community Resource 101 is a free training that will teach participants about when to use 2-1-1 and how to use the 2-1-1 Texas Database to find social service and community resources.  Learn how to better utilize this helpful tool when referring clients to other agencies.  Sessions about 2-1-1 will be held every month through October.  To RSVP for a Community Resources 101 training, visit the United Way Capital Area registration page. 
  


Education Resource for Clients:  Free Minds Project
Application Deadline:  July 5



The Free Minds Project offers a unique opportunity for adults to explore their intellectual potential and jumpstart their college education. In this humanities course, award-winning faculty from UT and ACC lead 
students in lively conversation and help them improve their skills in writing, communicating, and critical 
thinking.  Download the application here.


The 2011-2012 class of The Free Minds Project will be held at Foundation Communities' newest housing community, M Station.  


I hope you find this information helpful.  Please feel free to post a comment and let me know what you think!


Thank you!


Erika Leos
Financial Coaching Coordinator
(512) 610-4026
Erika.Leos@foundcom.org

Welcome to Foundation Communities' Financial Coaching Blog

Hello and welcome to the Financial Coaching Program's very first blog!  Through this blog, we will share information that is important to our work as Financial Coaches, keep a calendar of training opportunities and provide the forum for all of you, the coaches, to comment, share experiences and support each other.

Thank you for generously giving your time and talents to the Financial Coaching Program.  I hope you will find this tool helpful.

Sincerely,

Erika Leos
Financial Coaching Coordinator