Upcoming NCN Webinars:
The CDFI Fund’s Small Dollar Loan Program
Friday, May 13, 2:00 p.m. EDT
Join SDL Program Manager Tanya McInnis and Sequoyah Fund Executive Director Russ Seagle as they share about the SDL Program. The Program, which was created to encourage federally certified CDFIs to establish and maintain small-dollar loan programs and provide alternatives to high-cost small dollar loans, will accept applications for funding later this spring. The CDFI Fund anticipates that up to $11.1 million will be available for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 application round of the SDL Program.
Initiate: A Blended Learning Approach to Technical Assistance by Northern Initiatives
Thursday, May 19, 2:00 p.m. EDT
Chris Wendel and Jessa Armstrong from Northern Initiatives will present Initiate, an online collection of best practice business resources. With its vetted videos, resources, tools, and templates, Initiate helps both beginning and experienced business owners improve and realize business success. Through a “Blended Learning” of Initiate’s online learning and coaching, business owners have been able to use Initiate to successfully grow their businesses. The webinar will feature a tour of the Initiate website and show examples of challenges that entrepreneurs face and how Initiate’s Blended Learning provides relatable solutions.
SAVE THE DATE!
NCN Annual Policy and Capacity Building Summit: DECEMBER 6-8, 2022
Native CDFI leaders, staff, and other interested stakeholders are encouraged to save December 6-8, 2022 on their calendars to attend the Native CDFI Network’s 2022 Annual Policy and Capacity Building Summit in Washington, D.C. The Summit will be held at the National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) Conference Center near Capitol Hill, with lodging options within close walking distance of the event. The first day (December 6) will feature a capacity-building training for attendees. Stay tuned for more details!
NCN Institute Offering Summer Training Series for Senior Native CDFI Staff
Join the Native CDFI Network (NCN) and Jack Northrup of New England Market Research, Inc., for the NCN Institute, a summer training series for senior-level Native CDFI staff.
These hands-on, skill-building sessions will provide tools and resources you can use to take your CDFI management strategy to the next level. Training will be on Zoom and is free of charge. Enrollment is limited to the first 15 registrants to ensure an interactive learning environment.
Participating organizations that complete all three sessions and submit pre- and post- training questionnaires for each session will be eligible to receive a grant of up to $4,000 to update the organization’s technology system (e.g., updated software, computer, video conferencing subscriptions, etc.). (Limit one grant per organization.)
Dates and training topics include:
- June 15: Small Business Loan Underwriting
- July 13: Advanced Cash Flow Projections
- August 17: Loan Product Price Pointing/Market Choice
All two-hour sessions will be at 2 p.m. EDT. To be eligible for the technology grant, each organization may have one staff member attend all three sessions or three different staff members attend each session separately.
TFederal Government Releases NPR on Community Reinvestment Act; NCN Leadership Quoted in Story on CRA
Last Thursday, the three agencies tasked with regulating lending institutions’ compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) of 1977 jointly released their much-anticipatedInteragency CRA Notice of Proposed Rulemaking(NPR) designed to strengthen and modernize the regulations governing the Act. Importantly, the NPR features a section specifically focused on Indian Country titled “Activities in Native Land Areas” (see pages 96-103).
COMMENT PERIOD NOW OPEN: Native CDFIs, tribal governments, and other interested stakeholders have 90 days to submit formal comments on the NPR (submission deadline: August 5, 2022). To review the NPR, the interagency press release, the NPR Fact Sheet, and other materials, please click here
Interagency Webinar to Explain the NPR Scheduled for This Wednesday
The Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency will host an interagency webinar this Wednesday, May 11 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time to provide an overview of the CRA Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. The webinar is open to the public. To register for the webinar, please click here.
NOTE: The NCN Policy Chair Robin Danner Featured in Tribal Business News article on Community Reinvestment Act NPR
Today, Tribal Business News published an article on the new Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the Community Reinvestment Act that features excerpts from an interview with Robin Danner, NCN’s Policy Chair. To read the article, please click here.
NCN “Difference Makers” Interview Series:
Jeff Johnson and Tawney Brunsch
Last week, the Native CDFI Network released its latest edition of “Native CDFIs: Difference Makers for Indian Country,” an interview with Jeff Johnson, Interim CEO of the Wisconsin Native Loan Fund. To read the interview, please click here.
Coming this Thursday: “Difference Makers” sits down with Tawney Brunsch, Executive Director of Lakota Funds, a federally certified Native CDFI serving the Pine Ridge Reservation and other Native communities in South Dakota.
To read the other interviews in NCN’s “Difference Makers” series, please click here.
Tribal Business News Wraps Up Three-Week Series Highlighting the Role of Native CDFIs in Growing Small Businesses
This week, Tribal Business News wraps up a three-week multimedia reporting project examining the crucial role Native Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) play in supporting small business formation and growth in tribal communities. This special report featured conversations with Native CDFI executives, profiles of Native businesses, and an online interview with an expert on Native American economies. To read the latest stories in the series, please click on the links below: