Union Bank of California Foundation—Theory of Change

Partnering, Investing, Building—Our Foundation for Your Growth

Vision

To build a charitable contributions program that positions the Union Bank of California Foundation as an innovator of partnerships and a grant-maker intent on helping to create and sustain healthy communities.

Mission

The Union Bank of California Foundation will proactively invest in the communities in which the Bank and its businesses operate, targeting resources to benefit low-to-moderate income populations.

Values

  • We believe that the long-term success of the Union Bank of California business model is dependent on the existence of healthy communities within our market place
  • Unhealthy communities limit Union Bank of California’s prospects for growth over time
  • We believe that healthy communities will exhibit many of the following characteristics:
  • Stable families with high rates of home ownership
  • Adequate stock of affordable housing—both rental and for sale
  • Livable wage job opportunities in and adjacent to the community
  • Accessible public transportation
  • Convenient access to professional services—doctors, lawyers, accountants, etc.
  • Adequate public services—police, fire, sanitation
  • Safe public places to relax and recreate
  • Parks, libraries, theaters, etc.
  • Clean air and water supplies
  • High level of civic engagement
  • Residents at a variety of income levels
  • Well funded public schools
  • Successful small business owners who live in the community
  • Variety of retail shops and restaurants
  • Traditional financial institutions in or adjacent to the community providing access to capital
  • We understand that many of the communities within our marketplace face serious challenges that inhibit the characteristics found in healthy communities
  • We are therefore intentionally moving from charity work to philanthropy:
  • Charity focuses on relieving the symptoms of social problems, while philanthropy focuses on eliminating the root causes of those social problems
  • We recognize that we are only one of many stakeholders in the communities in which we do business, and that our resources are limited
  • Therefore we seek partnerships that serve to leverage the impact of our giving
  • We will evaluate grant proposals in each of our funding categories based on the degree to which they address and mitigate the challenges to healthy communities that we have identified
  • We will evaluate grant recipient organizations on the following criteria:
  • Organizational history and track record
  • Governance, executive management and leadership
  • Organizational vision and strategy
  • Proposed project—planning, outcomes and evaluation
  • Human resources
  • External communication and relationships
  • Financial health
  • We will give strong consideration in our grant making to organizations pursuing the “social enterprise” business model
  • An organization or venture that advances its social mission through entrepreneurial earned income strategies
  • We believe that the Union Bank of California Foundation can achieve the greatest impact on the health of communities by targeting its funding to the following strategic categories:
  • Affordable Housing
  • Community Economic Development
  • Education
  • Environment

Affordable Housing

Challenges

  • Home ownership is becoming increasingly unreachable for most working families
  • Economic and market conditions will keep real estate prices high in California for the foreseeable future
  • Existing homeowners are in jeopardy of losing their homes due to predatory lending practices
  • Foreclosure is on the rise
  • Homelessness is increasing
  • Deterioration of existing housing stock
  • Construction of new dwellings has been inadequate to meet demand
  • Expiring entitlements are endangering the supply of affordable housing units

Assumptions

  • Homeownership unequivocally is the best vehicle for individuals and families to build wealth and enter the financial mainstream
  • Homeownership provides stability and economic health within a community
  • Clean, safe and habitable living space should be available to all
  • In migration of new California residents will continue
  • Gaps in wealth and incomes will continue to increase

Target Groups

  • Individuals with income levels that fall below 80% of AMI
  • Nonprofit developers of affordable housing, both multi-family and for-sale
  • Technical assistance providers

Strategies

  • Fund organizations that develop affordable housing (including rentals)
  • Fund organizations that provide a “holistic” approach (including home retention/foreclosure prevention education)
  • Full-cycle ownership training from pre to post ownership
  • Providing other resources such as child care and parenting
  • Financial literacy and other resources that will improve the quality of life
  • Form collaborative partnerships between nonprofits in order to leverage resources
  • Fund organizations that revitalize/stabilize neighborhoods
  • Fund organizations that develop/design environmentally-friendly homes and are using green technology
  • Continue and expand Cornerstone Awards Program

Funding Categories

  • For Sale Housing
  • Rental Housing
  • Special Needs Housing, including shelters for domestic violence
  • Senior Housing
  • Transitional Living Facilities
  • Emergency/Homeless Shelter
  • Youth Housing
  • Self Help Housing
  • Farm Worker Housing
  • Predevelopment funding to nonprofit developers
  • Capacity building for non profit housing organizations—Cornerstone Awards

Outcomes

  • Increase the supply of for-sale and rental housing available to the LMI communities
  • Increase the number of people receiving home ownership training

Community Economic Development

Challenges:

  • Public safety has been severely compromised in many urban communities, resulting in private sector disinvestment
  • Low income populations have become increasingly concentrated in blighted areas, as more affluent residents move out to seek healthy communities
  • Public infrastructure has been neglected in low income communities and is decaying
  • Educational opportunities are limited for residents of low income communities due to poorly funded public schools
  • Job opportunities and projected job growth is concentrated in low-wage sectors

Assumptions:

  • Economic growth occurs through business retention, business expansion, business creation, and business attraction
  • There are four fundamental drivers to economic growth:
  • Fair and stable business environments;
  • Investment in people;
  • A clear focus key industry sectors important to regional and state economies; and
  • Building infrastructure.
  • Cross-cutting economic development issues impacting economic growth include:
  • Promotion of entrepreneurial enterprises;
  • Small business support; and
  • Preparing young people to be skilled workers of the future.
  • Economic development is not just about jobs; it’s about building communities physically, economically, and culturally

Target Groups:

  • Entrepreneurs and small business in low and moderate-income communities
  • Entrepreneurs and small business in distressed rural communities
  • Low and moderate-income individuals (youth and adults)
  • Technical assistance providers

Strategies:

  • Fund Community Development Corporations, SmallBusinessDevelopmentCenters, Economic Development Corporations, micro-lending programs, and related programs that support entrepreneurs and small business development
  • Fund workforce development initiatives, including job training, internships, and apprenticeship programs
  • Fund initiatives designed to increase growth of regional industry clusters
  • Fund wealth building and asset building initiatives
  • Fund financial education programs (including life skills, credit counseling)
  • Advocate community-based initiatives that engage residents
  • Establish a “Cornerstone Award” program to provide capacity building support for promising non profit organizations that are particularly effective in reaching our targeted population

Funding Categories:

Small Business Development

  • Micro enterprise development and support
  • Technical Assistance/Entrepreneurial Training
  • Organizations that promote access to capital for business or farms that meet SBA criteria
  • Job Creation

Individual Development

oJob Training/Apprenticeship

oWelfare to Work

oWealth Accumulation/Asset Building

oLife Skills Training

oFinancial Literacy/Credit Counseling

oMortgage Credit Counseling

oBusiness Education

oIntervention/Prevention Programs for at Risk Youth

Neighborhood Development

  • Youth prevention/intervention programs
  • Gang prevention/gang intervention programs
  • Community organizing to engage, inform and empower citizenry
  • Crime prevention
  • Dispute resolution/mediation/violence prevention
  • Reduction of liquor outlets
  • Improved quality of food in local markets
  • Community forums/festivals/resource fairs
  • Childcare and daycare facilities
  • Drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs; independent living programs

Organizational CapacityBuilding

oFunding for operating/administrative expenses

  • Expand “Cornerstone” concept

Outcomes:

  • Employment measures
  • Earnings and income measures
  • Social and cultural conditions
  • Intraregional disparities

Education

Challenges

  • Low number of students in LMI communities that enter college and graduate
  • Public school system is overcrowded and lacks resources to address educational needs of its students
  • High school drop out rate for black and brown students is high and increasing
  • Less than 50% graduate at some LA area high schools
  • College counselors are overloaded and lack resources to even help academically prepared students make informed career decisions
  • 750 students per counselor in LAUSD
  • High poverty rate for public school students
  • 76% of LAUSD students are eligible for free or subsidized lunch programs
  • Lack of financial resources
  • Not enough teachers
  • Class sizes too large
  • Deferred facility maintenance
  • Lack of exposure for LMI youth to opportunities taken for granted by other segments of society
  • Lack of parental involvement
  • Physical environment provides few enrichment opportunities for LMI students
  • Arts and extra curricular activities have been cut from public schools
  • Few opportunities to observe and interact with positive role models, especially males

Assumptions

  • A college education dramatically increases/improves the lifetime earning power of the recipient
  • Small changes in a student’s environment (i.e. enrichment opportunities) during the critical teen years can have a ripple effect, transforming their lives
  • Healthy communities require residents with a variety of levels of educational attainment and income levels
  • Voters will continue to be tax averse

Target Groups

  • Junior high and senior high school aged youth in LMI communities
  • Community college level students with limited resources
  • Parents

Strategies

  • Fund organizations that mentor/tutor at risk youth
  • Fund organizations that provide college scholarships to LMI youth
  • Fund organizations that build the knowledge and awareness of parents regarding resources available to support and prepare their children
  • Literacy
  • College readiness
  • Provide opportunities for Union Bank of California employees to volunteer with organizations we fund through the PALS program
  • Actively recruit students involved in programs that we fund for summer intern positions within the bank
  • Fund outreach programs of visual and performing arts organizations that focus on our targeted population
  • Partner with community college districts to support LMI students
  • Establish a “Cornerstone Award” program to provide capacity building support for promising non profit organizations that are particularly effective in reaching our targeted population

Funding Categories

  • Scholarship programs
  • Tutoring programs
  • GED preparation
  • ESL programs
  • Computer education
  • Support for the teaching profession
  • Teacher training
  • LATMAP
  • Literacy programs
  • Outreach programs of visual and performing arts organizations targeted to LMI populations
  • Enrichment programs targeted to LMI populations
  • Capacity building for non profit organizations
  • Matching gifts to employee contributions

Outcomes:

  • Require organizations that we fund to track graduation rates from high school, acceptance rates into college, and graduation rates from college

Environment

Challenges:

  • Green initiatives are costly to implement
  • Tension between environmental activists and the needs of a growing population
  • Due to long term disinvestment, LMI communities are disproportionately the sites of brown fields
  • Toxic sites have adverse effects on the health of LMI populations, especially children
  • There is limited green space in LMI communities; fewer parks and recreational outlets for LMI populations
  • Older housing stock with inefficient use of energy; use of toxic building materials such as asbestos
  • Limited knowledge in LMI communities on environmental issues, such as the health effects of toxic products commonly used in the home

Assumptions:

  • Smart growth and green building techniques in urban infill projects can produce a healthier environment for LMI populations
  • An educated community can make a difference in how we treat the environment
  • Implementing environmental policies at the corporate level will impact personal perceptions and lifestyles at home
  • Safer, cleaner physical environment will help to attract private capital to LMI neighborhoods

Target Groups:

  • Non profit groups focused on environmental issues
  • Individuals, especially residents of LMI communities

Strategies:

  • Fund groups that promote green building and sustainable community development
  • Fund environmental groups focused on clean up and elimination of brown fields in urban neighborhoods
  • Fund groups seeking to add green space such as parks and recreational facilities to low income neighborhoods
  • Fund community based organizations engaged in neighborhood clean up and rehabilitation projects
  • Fund organizations that promote energy efficiency upgrades and techniques to conserve energy; access to rebate programs
  • Fund groups that provide consumer education on environmental issues and good practice
  • Fund advocacy groups that focus on environmental justice for LMI communities
  • Fund the convening of activist groups and other stakeholders to discuss environmental issues
  • Fund outreach programs at all levels, including educational institutions and centers of learning, that instill within our community the importance of sustaining and preserving our environment

Funding Categories:

  • Brown field remediation
  • Green building
  • Energy upgrade and conservation
  • Rehabilitation and clean up
  • Coastal/Creek and Reserve clean up and preservation
  • Urban green space projects
  • Environmental Advocacy
  • Environmental Education
  • Aquarium & Museums
  • State Parks, NatureCenters, ConservancyCenters, Botanical Gardens, WildlifeCenters
  • Ecology & Recycling Centers

Outcomes:

  • Measure the increase of green space developments within LMI communities
  • Track the rate of new businesses generated within LMI communities as well as the upgrades of existing businesses
  • Monitor the decrease in health risks of individuals living within LMI communities
  • Monitor levels of air quality in targeted communities
  • Measure the increase of civic government initiated or sponsored improvements
  • Increased conscious awareness, practice, and involvement of individuals within our communities, relating to environmental issues

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