NeighborWorks America and the NeighborWorks network continue to address the immediate needs of Hurricane Katrina evacuees. Here are some of the latest developments:

• NeighborWorks America has provided $800,000 in immediate grant assistance to organizations in its network that are located in areas damaged by Katrina or are supporting evacuees from those areas.
  
  
• NeighborWorks America is delivering three RVs to NeighborWorks organizations for use as temporary housing for staff and mobile office units. Two units were sent to NHS of New Orleans; one was sent to Voice of Calvary Ministries in Jackson, Mississippi.
  NeighborWorks organizations have made nearly 400 houses and apartments available to evacuees needing temporary or permanent housing.

• NeighborWorks America and network organizations also are making available personnel and technical expertise to respond and rebuild.

• NeighborWorks America and the Enterprise Corporation of the Delta, a community development financial institution in Jackson, Mississippi, are partnering to create an emergency loan fund designed to provide interim personal loans to homeowners whose homes have been damaged or disrupted by Hurricane Katrina. The loans will be for up to $3,000 and will assist homeowners in commencing cleanup and repairs while they await settlements from government agencies and insurance companies.

Few press release.

NeighborWorks' 26 years of experience provides some instructive lessons and insights into how consumer education and counseling, creative lending, and technology can confront predatory lending and reach underserved markets, says NeighborWorks America CEO Kenneth D. Wade in a recent article published by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. View article.

This Friday, September 23, at 2 p.m. EDT, experts will be available to discuss FEMA benefits for victims of Hurricane Katrina. The call will highlight who is eligible, what benefits are available to them, and how they can access them.

DATE: Friday, September 23
TIME: 2 p.m. EDT
CALL-IN NUMBER: 800-895-3606
PASSCODE: FEMA Call (the operators will ask for this ID)
MODERATOR: Ali Solis, Enterprise Foundation

During the call you will need to press *1 to ask questions. If you plan to join the call, please e-mail rsvpkatrinacall@enterprisefoundation.org with your name, title, organization and e-mail address by 5 p.m. EDT on Thursday, September 22. This call is an effort by the Enterprise Foundation, National Alliance to End Homelessness, National Center on Homelessness and Poverty and National Low Income Housing Coalition to host weekly calls focused on key Katrina recovery issues. The calls will take place every Friday at 2 p.m. EDT.

Experts will be on hand to answer questions, and materials will be provided to help advocates on the ground assist displaced residents as effectively as possible.

For information on how federal agencies are responding, including IRS, FEMA, and Treasury, visit www.nw.org/katrina. This page, which includes many useful links, will be updated frequently.

The fellowship program is committed to advancing progressive social change by helping to sustain long-time activists of color. The program honors those who have devoted their lives to helping their communities organize for racial, social, economic and environmental justice.

Each year, 10 fellows receive an award of $15,000 to take sabbaticals of three months or more for reflection and renewal. The sabbaticals may be used to explore new interests, travel, relax, visit with other activists, or do whatever the fellows think is necessary to prepare for their future work.
How to Apply.

Participants must be enrolled as a CHAM candidate to receive a professional certificate. Visit us online to learn more about the CHAM course agenda and CHAM certification.

The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University has issued two new publications in its Working Papers series: The Impact of Minority Growth and Minorities’ Rising Household Income on Housing Markets [PDF] by Zhu Xiao Di, Ruby Henry, Eric Belsky, and George Masnick; and
The Importance of Wealth and Income in the Transition to Homeownership [PDF] by Zhu Xiao Di and Xiaodong Liu.

Barbara J. Lipman, research director at the Center for Housing Policy, has authored a study that found, among other things, that working families who spend more than half their total household expenditures on housing put 7.5 percent of their expenditures toward transportation. Download study [PDF, 4.6 MB]

Building A Better Urban Future: New Directions for Housing Policies in Weak Market Cities focuses on market-driven approaches, the integration of affordable and market-rate housing, and the use of housing as a core element in both economic development and neighborhood revitalization strategies. The project is in collaboration with the Community Development Partnerships’ Network, LISC and The Enterprise Foundation. Abstract and download information.

Low- and moderate-income consumers are often assumed to fit neatly into two mutually exclusive categories: the banked and the unbanked. But, according to a new study from The Center for Financial Services Innovation, the reality is much more nuanced. Most of these households actually rely on a patchwork of services provided by both bank and non-bank institutions. Join KnowledgePlex for an online chat Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 2 p.m. ET to learn more about this research and its implications for financial institutions and consumers. Jennifer Tescher, director of The Center for Financial Services Innovation, will moderate the discussion with Ellen Seidman, senior managing director at ShoreBank Advisory Services and a former NeighborWorks America chair. For more details about the chat, go to http://www.knowledgeplex.org/xchat.html.