Pay It Forward Funds

Co-authored by Kyle Doran, a Director at Social Finance.

In any given state across the country, individuals trying to improve their own economic wellbeing face a complex workforce training and licensure system. Imagine Andy, a person who wants to become a licensed heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) contractor, for example. Based on an average of the requirements across 35 states, in order to work as an HVAC contractor, he must first gain over 1,000 cumulative days of experience and training, pay almost $400 in fees and pass two exams. This is a busy time for Andy, and in part due to his participation in this HVAC training, his income is much lower than prior to the program. Without full-time employment and the wages that come with it, transportation, childcare and other expenses become even more of a hardship, and he’s faced with the difficult decision of weighing the cost of a training program and expenses for these core necessities against the ultimate benefit of a more promising career.