Financial Education and Capability 

in Native Communities

Financial Literacy and Education Commission Public Meeting 

US Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 

February 14, 2017 

Miriam Jorgensen, Research Director 

Native Nations Institute, The University of Arizona 
30K

20K

10K

40K

Exhibit 1.3: Projected Real Per Capita Income Growth (reservations other than Navajo)

$12,142

1990 2000 2006-10 2054

If the incomes in 

the US and in 

these Indian areas 

grow steadily at 

the rates they 

each experienced 

from 1990 through 

2010, in about 

2054, the per 

capita incomes 

would converge

Per Capita Income US (overall)

Per Capita Income Reservations (excluding Navajo)

$26,893

Financial Capability in Native Communities: 

Why Does it Matter? 

Source:	Akee	and	Taylor,	Databook,	2014.	
CDFI Development Services 

ACCESS TO CAPITAL AND CREDIT IN NATIVE COMMUNITIES: A DATA REVIEW

20%

10%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Homeownership Counseling

Business Technical Assistance

Credit Counseling

Financial Education

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Exhibit 23. Native CDFI Development Services

Note: The number of Native CDFIs reporting on development service activities ranges from 24 to 32. 

Sources: CDFI Fund Institution Level Reports 2006-2011.

of the six years evaluated at least 70 percent of reporting Native CDFIs provided 

programing in these areas. Homeownership counseling and business TA are not far 

behind—half or more of the reporting Native CDFIs offered these services over the years 

2006 to 2011. Approximately 40 percent of the reporting Native CDFIs offered housing 

Source:	CDFI	Fund	Ins<tu<on	Level	Reports.	
Expansion & Specialization 

• In 2000, most tribes and tribal organizations surveyed for 

the Native American Lending Study said there was NO 

financial education available in their community 

o To the extent that anything was available, it was 

homebuyer education 

o Credit counseling was identified as a particular need 

• By 2014, 62% of 226 surveyed tribes and Native 

organizations offered financial education 

o Products like Building Native Communities have been 

critical 

o “Relevant” products have been critical 
Three highlights 

• Business start-up and 

expansion education & 

coaching 

• Credit counseling and 

homeownership 

• Managing large payouts 

from settlements or 

distributions 

marketing campaign, technology upgrade, fnancial 

management training, or other one-of operating 

expenses. All services are ofered as a complement to 

Four Bands’ business lending program, helping create 

the circumstances in which each business can succeed 

and each loan can be repaid. In 2014 alone, Four Bands 

graduated 102 clients from its credit-builder program, 28 

clients from CREATE, and made 43 business loans (Four 

Bands Community Fund 2014).34

156 C

fnan

2014, 

“

Opp

Today

hund

to a v

respo

the is

and d

wealt

and t

These 

challe

which 

comm

Photo Credit: Native Nations Institute (2012)

Photo	credit:	Na<ve	Na<ons	Ins<tute	
Need: More Native Entrepreneurs 

Native business owners, and their businesses would 

generate signifcantly higher revenues.

NUMBER OF BUSINESSES

GROSS RECEIPTS

SELF- EMPLOYMENT

258,000

438,600

$261.8 Billion

$38.5 Billion

138,472

247,792

Exhibit 3.1: Native Americans’ Actual 

Participation in the Private Sector vs. Native 

Americans’ Estimated Proportional Participation

ACTUAL VALUE

ESTIMATED VALUE

ACTUAL VALUE

ESTIMATED VALUE

ACTUAL VALUE

ESTIMATED VALUE

Notes: Proportionality is with respect to Native Americans’ 

representation in the U.S. population. Data are for all 

Native Americans (rural and urban, inside and outside 

Native Communities). Sources: Census Bureau (2012 a, 

2012b); Layne (2013); Humes, Jones, and Ramirez (2011).

entrepreneurship 

multipliers, incre

improves the qua

Entrepreneurship 

also have the pot

revenues and to 

Entrepreneurshi

“There [are

entrepreneu

Some believ

but more of

family.”

–Christ

fairs, U.

Small businesses

entrepreneurial a

in the United Sta

with fewer than 

million American

employees. Whe

businesses accou

economyIn ma

(quoted 

Note:	Propor<onality	is	with	respect	to	Na<ve	Americans’	representa<on	in	the	U.S.	popula<on.	

Source:	U.S.	Census	2007	Survey	of	Business	Owners.	
Photo	credit:	Four	Bands	

Community	Fund	

Four	Bands	Community	Fund	demonstrates	the	

power	in	coaching	to	enhance	business-oriented	

financial	capability	
Need: Progress on Homeownership 

Photo	credit:	Na<ve	Na<ons	

Ins<tute	&	Honoring	Na<ons	

Photo	credit:	Na<ve	Na<ons	Ins<tute		
gy (g, , p, g, g) 

FIGURE 12

Credit Scores of Four Directions Clients Over Time

movement from frst credit score assessment to most recent

(FDDC course-of-business fles)

Four Directions’ success at helping clients improve their credit is yet another 

measure of its success at helping them build assets. This is because good credit is 

itself an asset: an individual can use it to leverage one asset into another, it can put 

an individual on an upward path of wealth accumulationand losing it can have 

strong

good

acceptable

weak

negative

550

600

650

725

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

average trend over

all 30 individuals

The impact of 

credit counseling 

Source:	Four	Direc<ons	Development	Corpora<on	course	of	business	files.	
Need: Financial education 

concerning one-time payouts 

“Cobell Settlement Checks to be Distributed Next Week” 

(Native News Online, Sept. 12, 2014) 

Keepseagle claimants to receive additional $21,275

(Native Sun News, May 25, 2016) 

Cashing In: Tribe Teaches Teens to Get 

Smart with Casino Windfall 

(Smoky Mountain News, February 2, 2011) 
Challenges and Opportunities 

concerning large payouts 

• “What works” information is limited 

• Innovation and experimentation are welcome: 

doing something is better than doing nothing 

• Learning efforts may generate important learning 

for other settings 
For more information: 

Access to Capital and Credit in Native Communities (Report) 

Access to Capital and Credit in Native Communities: Data Review 

http://nni.arizona.edu/publications-resources/publications/papers 

Miriam Jorgensen, Research Director, Native Nations Institute 

mjorgens@u.arizona.edu 

520-626-0664