Each day we live further into our mission with a commitment to equity and creating a more inclusive economy by supporting organizations and programs that create real structural and systemic change in underrepresented and marginalized communities. Throughout the last few years, we have continued to refine our focus areas (economic security, education and emergency aid) by listening to and centering the needs of our community. Equity is all about centering the voice of the community.

Here are a few key examples from 2021 of how the community approached us to work alongside them together to help people access more equitable housing and career opportunities in CUNA Mutual's backyard here in Madison, Wis.

Housing

According to the Economic Stability Council (ESC) and Madison Development Corporation (MDC), a group made of local employers and funders in Dane County (where Madison is located), the number one economic stability issue is lack of affordable housing near a worker's place of employment.

"Twenty-five percent of Dane County renters struggle to pay for housing. Families of color are disproportionally affected by this lack of affordable housing," CUNA Mutual Vice President of Customer Optimization Karim Habib said. Habib also sits on the board of CUNA Mutual's Foundation. The Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) organization and serves as the philanthropic arm of CUNA Mutual.

Because communities of color are disproportionately impacted by this lack of affordable housing, the ESC and MDC created the Dane Workforce Housing Fund. The fund's goal is to help create 500 new, multifamily workforce housing units over the next three years and keep that housing affordable for the next 15 years. These units will target households whose incomes fall between 40% and 80% of the area's median income.

Karim added, "Affordable housing ensures people have the resources to take care of their largest expense. This allows them to put additional dollars toward other necessities like food or clothing. Those additional dollars help them survive and eventually thrive."

CUNA Mutual Group's Foundation pledged $1 million to help the Dane Workforce Housing Fund. In total $350,000 of that $1 million commitment has been distributed to help with the creation of four affordable housing projects.

Career Opportunities

According to the Urban League of Greater Madison (ULGM), in the 2017 American Community Survey data, out of the 9,755 employers with more than one employee in Dane County, 39 (.4%) are Black-owned businesses. That same data showed working-age non-Hispanic whites in Dane County were seven times more likely to own firms than their African American counterparts2.

One of the reasons we see these disparities is because BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) communities have received disproportionately fewer investment dollars. "Over the years there has been an under-investment in south Madison," ULGM President/CEO Dr. Ruben Anthony said. South Madison is home to some of the city's oldest communities of color.

That lack of investment has caused many Black and Brown entrepreneurs to look outside of Madison's historic BIPOC neighborhoods for resources to build and grow their businesses. As I approach three years at CUNA Mutual, I have listened to countless stories of people who grew up on the south side, have generational ties to that neighborhood, but unfortunately pick up and leave because they can't get what they need to survive and more importantly thrive.

To help curb this trend, Dr. Anthony and the ULGM are spearheading an ambitious project on Madison's south side called "The Black Business Hub" or "The Hub" for short. The Hub will be the Madison region's premiere enterprise center devoted to incubating, accelerating and networking for BIPOC entrepreneurs. The four-story, 76,000 square foot, state-of-the-art center of commerce and entrepreneurism will be home to retail and other businesses owned by entrepreneurs of color.

In December of 2021 CUNA Mutual's Foundation invested $1 million in both The Hub and another project that aims to advance the south side community in Madison – The Center for Black Excellence and Culture (The Center).

The project, which is Black-inspired, Black-designed and Black-led, will create a space where people can come together to celebrate and learn about the Black community, hold performances, socialize and more.

"By investing in south Madison and its cultural legacy, CUNA Mutual's Foundation is helping to preserve and strengthen our Black culture and sense of home in our city," Founder and CEO of The Center Dr. Alex Gee said.

More important than the investments CUNA Mutual made in 2021 are the various ways our team, Foundation and employees have stayed proximate to the issues being faced. By continuing to center our communities, we are learning more about how we can best partner and work together to effect change. Through our efforts we are identifying organizations and people doing the work at a grassroots level to uplift and strengthen these communities. In 2022, we will continue with our focus on racial equity and diving deeper.

Alexzandra Shade

Alexzandra Shade is Director, Corporate Social Responsibility for CUNA Mutual Group in Madison, Wis.