More Than Jobs: Women’s Economic Security Wraparound Strategies

Launched in 2011, the Partnership for Women’s Prosperity (PWP) is a national initiative of six women’s foundations convened by the Women’s Funding Network and working with the initiative’s evaluator, Korwin Consulting, to build the economic power of all women — community by community. Collectively, the foundations have granted $11 million to support more than 80 organizations throughout the country advancing women’s economic security efforts, thanks in part to Walmart Foundation funding.

Drawing from research in the field, first-hand information from grantee partners and the women they support, and deep community-based experience, PWP partners knew from the start that it takes more than job training and post-secondary education for low-income women to progress from lives of economic scarcity to achieving economic goals for themselves and their families. Wraparound support strategies — whether to help women cover financial and other basic needs while attending school, meet their responsibilities as primary caregivers in their families, or gain the knowledge and capacity necessary to reach their goals — was a critical component of each approach the PWP partners invested in.