Economic Access Initiative

Of the 1.8 million residents in Hampton Roads, Virginia, over 150,000 live below the poverty line, and 425,000 struggle to meet basic needs. Structural barriers—including inadequate access to living-wage jobs, limited opportunities for skill development, and inequities in transportation, childcare, and housing—trap individuals and families in cycles of poverty. These challenges disproportionately impact communities of color, single parents, and individuals with criminal records, deepening disparities along lines of race, class, and gender. Among working-age individuals living in poverty, 67% work full-time or multiple jobs, while 25% work part-time or are actively seeking work.

Meanwhile, regional employers face a severe shortage of skilled and reliable talent in critical industries such as healthcare, infrastructure, IT, and logistics. This disconnect—what we call the “Tragic Gap”—reveals a systemic problem, not a lack of individual effort. Rigid hiring standards, credential-focused practices, and insufficient support systems often lock capable talent out of opportunities. The result is an employment ecosystem misaligned with community needs, where those most eager to work remain excluded from pathways to stability. This critical gap signals an urgent need to address structural inequities and create accessible pathways to meaningful careers.

We believe that our low income communities represent a valuable, yet underutilized resource for meeting continually increasing workforce demands. Neighborhood breaks barriers for those unfairly impacted by systemic inequities, working to ensure that the income of every family in Hampton Roads surpasses the cost of living during our lifetime. Our innovative and replicable program model addresses the talent scarcity plaguing employers and revolutionizes workforce access for low income communities. Our 6-month holistic program begins with a rigorous recruitment and selection process. A kickoff retreat and 6-week Leadership Lab equips individuals with high-level emotional intelligence, effective communication, decision-making, and problem-solving skills to lead confidently in their communities and careers. Next, our 3-month Career Lab provides fully-funded access to industry-leading training, credentials, and skill development, preparing inviduals for meaningful career-advancing employment in the field of their choosing. A total of 75% of Leaders (participants) complete their training and / or earn a certification in a growing industry sector. Throughout the program, Leaders receive 1:1 career coaching, 8 hours of free mental health counseling, and a $500/month stipend. Our Career Launch propels graduates into living-wage jobs that were once out of reach, with continued support to ensure lasting success and upward mobility.

All program participants, whom we call Leaders, qualify as low-income. Eligibility requires a GED or high school diploma, stable housing, a desire to work full-time, and sobriety from hard drugs. Typical class demographics include: 70% women, 74% Black, 56% single parents (84% of all participants are parents), and 63% with a criminal record. Many come from historically marginalized communities, have experienced homelessness or substance use issues, and face systemic barriers such as limited access to affordable childcare, transportation, and skills training. These obstacles trap them in cycles of financial instability and low-paying jobs.

Our six-month program provides a holistic pathway to economic mobility. Leaders develop critical soft skills, earn industry-recognized certifications, and receive robust support to secure living-wage jobs. Wraparound services like case management, weekly Family Gatherings, and mentorship from volunteer Allies address common barriers, foster a strong sense of belonging, and build social capital. This approach empowers Leaders to break free from systemic challenges, achieve financial stability, and create better futures for themselves and their families.

Neighborhood’s solution is deeply rooted in the lived experiences of its founders, Josh and Ondria Jones, who moved to a historically marginalized  neighborhood in Hampton Roads over 18 years ago. The neighborhood had been eroded by decades of disinvestment, industry shifts, and systemic inequities such as redlining and segregated schooling - a far too common story for many communities. While initially aware of the narrative of poverty and crime imposed on the area, living alongside their neighbors revealed a deeper truth: a community rich in resilience, creativity, and determination.

A pivotal moment came when a single mother working three jobs sat at their kitchen table and said, “I know I need to go back to school so I can get a better job…but how?” Her question illuminated the gap between the desire to escape poverty and the systemic barriers that hinder upward mobility. This inspired Neighborhood’s comprehensive, holistic program, which works to address the root causes of poverty while honoring the community’s strength and potential.

Before launching the program, the founders spent nearly two years building relationships, listening to the community, and engaging in strategic planning. A pilot class launched in 2019, and nearly 100 individuals have since enrolled, with another 500 applications from people waiting to get into the program. Neighborhood remains committed to ensuring the program reflects the voices of those it serves and utilizes dynamic feedback from participants, community members, local leaders, and regional employers, to drive continuous improvement and strategic direction. This iterative process, combined with the program team’s lived experience, ensures that Neighborhood is uniquely positioned to create lasting, transformative change.

Neighborhood’s solution is in the growth stage, with a proven model ready for further expansion. Since launching the Career & Community Development Program in 2019, we’ve served nearly 100 participants across multiple cohorts, integrating leadership development, industry-recognized certifications, and wraparound services to address barriers such as childcare, transportation, and housing instability.

The program delivers measurable outcomes tracked through pre- and post-program assessments, surveys, and longitudinal follow-ups at 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months post-graduation. Key metrics include wage growth (from $11.13 at enrollment to $15.89 at graduation and $19.75 two years post-graduation), skill certification completion rates (75%), and job placement in living-wage careers (60%). Additionally, 94% of participants complete the Leadership Lab component, and the Ally mentor network fosters increased social capital and long-term engagement in community-building activities.

Continuous feedback from participants and community stakeholders ensures the program adapts to meet evolving needs. With a new training facility, strong partnerships with local employers and organizations, and a waitlist of over 500 applicants, Neighborhood has the infrastructure and resources to scale to multiple sites regionally and begin to package the program model for replication on a broader scale nationally.

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Our innovation begins with a critical truth: poverty is not a personal failing—it’s the result of systemic, structural barriers that make escaping it nearly impossible. Rather than blaming individuals, we tackle the structures that keep families in a relentless struggle. This shift in perspective shapes everything we do.

We don’t just train participants for jobs; we equip them with leadership skills, social capital, and wraparound supports that challenge the structures working against them. By integrating mentorship, cohort-based learning, and employer partnerships, we open doors to living-wage careers often out of reach for those labeled “unskilled.”

Our approach rejects the outdated notion of a “culture of poverty.” Instead, we celebrate the resilience and determination of people who defy poverty’s odds every day. By focusing on investment—not judgment—we transform not only individual lives but entire communities.

Beyond immediate outcomes, our solution reshapes how society understands and addresses poverty. When employers, policymakers, and community leaders witness the power of holistic, dignity-driven support, they see tangible benefits—better retention, innovation, and a more vibrant workforce. This person-centered model is a blueprint for broader change: invest in the talent of those most marginalized, and you unleash potential that benefits everyone.

We believe that when organizations adopt our integrated approach, they don’t just help individuals—they challenge broken systems and create a future where opportunity is truly within reach for all.

Our Economic Access Initiative is a $4.2 expansion project designed to break down barriers and create pathways for families to achieve lasting prosperity. Here’s how we plan to make it happen:

Double the Lives Transformed: Expanding each class to 30 participants and increasing from two to three classes per year means twice as many families transition into living-wage careers every year—doubling the positive impact on children, neighborhoods, and the local workforce.

Bring Opportunity to the Doorstep: Opening new training sites in underserved communities across the region, eliminates transportation hurdles and brings transformative resources directly to those who need them most.

Elevate Outcomes with a World-Class Team: Investing in top-tier staff and mentors so every Leader receives high-touch support. When people feel seen and guided, they develop the confidence and skills to build brighter futures for themselves and their families.

Expand Our Impact Beyond Direct Services: While we remain dedicated to equipping individuals for success in the face of systemic obstacles, we also tackling poverty at its roots—advocating for policy reform, partnering with local employers to address hiring practices, and engaging the communities we serve to identify and address other barriers.

We track progress and impact through pre- and post-program surveys, exit interviews, and follow-up assessments at 3, 6, 9, 12, 24, and 36 months. Alongside employment status and income growth, we measure skill development, credential attainment, and job promotion or retention. By combining personal empowerment with systemic change, we’re making an escape from poverty not a rare exception, but a new norm.

Neighborhood currently has four (4) full-time staff and one (1) part-time staff. 

While the Economic Access Initiative is a new expansion, Neighborhood has been working on this solution for eight (8) years. Initial planning, development, and fundraising began in 2017. The first "pilot" cohort began the program in Fall 2019 and graduated in Spring 2020. Since then, our team has worked to continuously improve the program model, develop innovative solutions to recruitment, program delivery, employer engagement, and establish and expand a robust employer network and other partnerships to support career pathways in targeted industries. We are poised to begin scaling the program to multiple sites and communities in 2026.

At Neighborhood, we know that achieving economic empowerment starts with cultivating a team that embodies the diversity of the communities we serve. Our leadership includes individuals who reflect varying racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds, as well as lived experiences that inform the challenges facing our neighbors. Currently, 75% of our staff are women, and 50% identify as people of color. As we plan for growth and hiring new positions, we continuously refine our recruitment practices to reach traditionally underrepresented groups and ensure that opportunities at Neighborhood remain accessible to all.

Beyond hiring, we strive to create an environment where every team member feels valued and has a clear pathway to professional growth. This includes transparent promotion structures, ongoing mentorship, and leadership/professional development that equip staff with the skills to excel in their roles. We recognize the unique and often demanding nature of working in the social impact sector and provide flexibility in work arrangements to help remove barriers to employment and retention and reduce burnout.

At Neighborhood, we believe that poverty stems from societal choices that too often disadvantage people along lines of race, class, and gender—despite our country producing sufficient resources for everyone. Guided by this belief, we seek to make organizational decisions that uphold equity in how we allocate resources and opportunities. Our commitment to inclusivity is grounded in open dialogue: staff and participants share feedback to shape Neighborhood’s culture and service delivery, and we regularly review practices to identify and address biases, dismantling structural barriers to economic mobility. By championing diversity, equity, and inclusion across our team—integrating diverse perspectives, expanding access to opportunities, and fostering belonging—we build more innovative programs, deliver stronger results for those we serve, and ultimately advance our vision of a future where the income of every family surpasses the cost of living.

At Neighborhood, we see poverty as a solvable problem rooted in limited access to resources and relationships. Through our collaborative model, we welcome individuals living in poverty into a supportive cohort where they gain professional credentials, leadership skills, and meaningful connections that open doors to living-wage careers with advancement opportunities.

The participants we serve are predominantly women and people of color, many of whom face structural barriers to upward economic mobility. Our community-based approach meets them where they are—offering wraparound services like stipends, tuition, flexible scheduling, childcare, transportation assistance, counseling, and 1:1 career coaching—so each person can complete the program without having to put their life on hold - something we know they can't afford to do.

Since our founding, we have relied primarily on a major donor strategy, but have worked to develop and implement a comprehensive grant strategy focused on corporate, private foundation, and government funding, as well as employer partnerships. By teaming up with forward-thinking employers, we co-develop training curricula and pathways tailored to real-world workforce needs, guaranteeing graduates relevant skills and viable job opportunities. Employers benefit by diversifying their talent pipeline, and donors and grantmakers see their contributions directly fueling transformative economic empowerment. A Social Return on Investment (SROI) study found that for every dollar invested in Neighborhood's program, the region sees a $5.15 return through earned income, taxes paid, and decreased reliance on government benefits. 

Ultimately, our entire model stems from the belief that poverty can be abolished when people have the right tools and support. By aligning our mission-driven funding with a participant-focused approach, we’re not only transforming individual lives—we’re building more equitable, thriving communities for all.

Neighborhood relies on a balanced mix of grants, contracts, corporate partnerships, major gifts, and annual giving. Their support isn’t just about the money—it’s about building relationships and sharing in the success and lasting impact of our work. Our corporate and foundation partners regularly attend events like Mock Interview Days and graduations to support our Leaders. We collaborate closely with local employers to create custom workforce development programs that meet their hiring needs while giving our participants a direct path to living-wage jobs. Although most employers currently back Neighborhood through corporate giving or grants, we are exploring additional revenue models—such as packaging business services for sale, offering program curricula and training to other nonprofits, negotiating contracts to serve SNAP participants, and creating outsourced business services staffed by our participants and graduates.

In 2024, Neighborhood raised $614,207 in revenue: A total of $295,450 from private foundation, corporate, and government grants (48%); $16,730 from government contracts (3%); $193,158 from one-time major gifts (31%); and $108,869 from recurring monthly donors (18%). Neighborhood has received support from community catalysts including the Hampton Roads Community Foundation, Southeast Virginia Community Foundation, United Way; from corporate philanthropists including Norfolk Southern, TC Energy, Sentara, Virginia Natural Gas, Dollar Tree, Dominion Energy, Towne Bank; and from local and state government grants and contracts including the Cities of Chesapeake, Norfolk, and Portsmouth, as well as $50,000 from the Hampton Roads Workforce Council to partner on an infrastructure grant, $84,000 from the Commonwealth of Virginia, and $275,000 from the US Department of Labor. Neighborhood has the support of local leaders including Chesapeake Mayor Rick West, Congressman Bobby Scott, and Senator Tim Kaine, who recently conducted a site visit to meet with program participants and discuss how the program model can be expanded to other communities.

Neighborhood is applying to the Truist Foundation Inspire Awards because we believe true change happens when systemic barriers are removed, and individuals have access to opportunities, relationships, and pathways to living-wage careers. While any financial support is helpful, what really energizes us is the chance to collaborate with MIT Solve and Truist Foundation to strengthen our model, refine our strategy, and connect with partners who can amplify our impact.

We’re especially drawn to the six-month support program, with its tailored workshops, ongoing mentorship, and peer-to-peer learning. We believe these tools will help us tackle key challenges: from building more employer partnerships and scaling to a multi-site model, to packaging our Leadership Lab curriculum and training so it can spread to other communities. By working with experts and peers, we can pinpoint where we need to grow and gather fresh ideas on how to get there.

In addition, the opportunity to pitch our solution and receive direct feedback is invaluable. We want to shine a spotlight on the potential of our work—supporting individuals trapped in cycles of poverty by equipping them with marketable skills, leadership development, and a supportive network. If selected, we look forward to using new insights and connections to increase our reach and serve more people. Our ultimate goal is to show that, with the right approach and partnerships, we can open up pathways to stability and prosperity for everyone in our communities, and the Inspire Awards program offers the perfect platform to help us do just that.