The Urban League of Greater Atlanta celebrated its centennial two years ago. This year they celebrate in person at their upcoming gala on Friday, December 9th, at the Woodruff Arts Center. The Urban League of Greater Atlanta was founded in 1920. The organization assisted large numbers of African American families migrating from rural communities to claim the city of Atlanta as home. It still assists today, providing classes for home ownership, technical certifications, entrepreneurship, workforce development, and more. Nancy Flake Johnson leads the organization and is here to speak with us.
We recently learned about the Wells Fargo WORTH grant and the collaborative program coming from the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta. The Urban League of Greater Atlanta has conducted home-buying classes for some time. I asked Johnson how this new program differs from the programs they’ve previously done. Johnson shares that this is a unique collaboration of more than fifty organizations. One of the missions is to increase the inventory of affordable homes available. They will work to fund developers by providing access to capital. Additionally, the Urban League has been tasked with developing a platform where all of the resources can be accessed in one place.
Since its inception, the Urban League has also had a policy arm. I ask Johnson her thoughts about the voting challenges. She speaks about the fact that every aspect of our daily lives is affected by the laws and policies that are put in place. She speaks about the emergency funds that were made available during the pandemic allowing them to provide emergency assistance for rental and utility bills. Without private dollars and government funds, the organization wouldn’t have been able to assist those in need.
The Urban League also has a focus on workforce development. Johnson calls it “income upscaling.” They will offer an orientation the first week in December regarding all of the classes that will be offered in Q1 2023. Career expansion in Film, Healthcare, IT training, Television, and Transportation classes are offered.
For information about the Urban League’s December 9th Gala
For information on The Urban League Classes
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