Brianna’s Story

Brianna enrolled in Making Cent$ while working on completing her drug and alcohol treatment program through a local partner agency. She was hesitant about the class since she barely had enough money to meet her and her child’s basic needs each month, leaving her doubtful of her ability to budget and save. During the classroom activity, dreams for the future, Brianna shared with the class that in 5 years, she would like to be enrolled in community college, have a college fund established for her daughter and have a safe, clean and sober, stable place to call home. Brianna met with her Bradley Angle advocate to discuss her dreams for the future.

Brianna and her advocate brainstormed a number of ways that she could work towards achieving her goals. They decided that an Individual Development Account (IDA) would be a great asset-building tool to fund her education. She would save $1000 over 12 months and this savings would be matched with $3000 through the IDA fund which would pay for her tuition and books. She could continue her IDA for 3 years, resulting in $12,000 matched savings upon completion. She also planned to apply for scholarships with the help of her advocate, which would cover her housing and childcare costs each term.

Over the next year, Brianna made her monthly deposit into her IDA by working full time at a local restaurant. She worked hard every day to stay clean and sober, getting support from her advocate as well as through strengthening her support system. She found affordable housing within walking distance of her daughters’ school and continued attending DV support groups which were in her neighborhood as well. She completed scholarship applications, met with an academic adviser and solidified her academic plan for starting school in the Fall.

Now, Brianna is just 2 months away from reaching her 3:1 matched savings goal for her IDA. She is registered at Portland Community College and set to start class in September. She has been awarded the Women’s Independence Scholarship for the Fall and continues to research other scholarship opportunities. She is hopeful that she and her daughter will continue to thrive and grow. With each day, Kisha is making her dreams for the future come true.