Heartland Alliance operates several programs that address economic security, serving a wide variety of populations. Our signature programs include:

• Matched Savings Programs
• Transitional Jobs
• Homeless Prevention
• Refugee Vocational English Skills Training

Matched Savings Programs:

Heartland Alliance operates several matched savings programs, each targeted at a specific population, including lower-income working women, families living in Chicago Housing Authority mixed-income developments, Hurricane Katrina survivors relocated to Chicago, public housing residents of CHA's Madden-Wells and Dearborn Homes developments, and formerly homeless participants of several Heartland Alliance programs.

Each program matches the participant's savings, in some cases providing $3 for every $1 saved, and requires participants to spend at least 10 hours attending financial literacy programs. Heartland Alliance also trains private employers on how to create a matched savings program for their employees, an approach that benefits the employee as well as the employer when fewer financial worries mean the worker can spend more time focused on the job.

Transitional Jobs:

Heartland Alliance operates the largest transitional jobs program in the Chicago area, serving about 600 participants at any given time. This supportive employment program combines work experience, skill development, and supportive services to help the hardest-to-employ participants transition into the labor market. The two largest programs serve ex-offenders and residents of the Chicago Housing Authority.

A variety of smaller programs serve survivors of domestic violence and former sex workers, among others. Transitional jobs participants work 30 hours a week for up to nine weeks for a nonprofit, for-profit, or government employer while their wages are paid by Heartland Alliance. They also get an array of supportive services, from group meetings in which they share work experiences, ask questions, get advice, and connect with resources such as transit vouchers, substance use counseling, and help finding a permanent job.

Homeless Prevention:

Heartland Alliance helped more than 1,000 families avoid homelessness in 2007 with its homeless prevention grant program. Program participants were facing eviction because of a one-time financial disaster.  Those who could prove their ability to pay their rent or mortgage going forward were eligible for a grant of up to $1,500 to use toward their mortgage, rent, or security deposit on a new apartment or unpaid utility bills. Families also got one-on-one help with budgeting from Heartland Alliance and a follow-up visit six months later to see whether the assistance prevented the participants from becoming homeless. Last year, 85 percent of the families were still housed, a stunningly high success rate.

Refugee Vocational English Skills Training:

Heartland Alliance provides job-related English training to refugees in need of work while its partners in the landscape maintenance and hospitality industries provide technical training. The program provides more than work skills though. As many of the participants struggle to overcome the trauma of political violence and refugee camp conditions, the program gives them a future to look forward to, rather than focusing on what's behind them.