National Education and Resource Center on Women and Retirement Planning
Authorizing Legislation: Title IV, Section 215 of the Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended.
The Purpose of the Program and How it Works
The National Education and Resource Center On Women and Retirement Planning was established through a cooperative agreement between the Administration on Aging (AoA) and the Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement (WISER).
The goal of the Center is to provide women with access to a one-stop gateway that integrates financial information and resources on retirement, health, and planning for long-term care into ongoing programs such as Older Americans Act Nutrition and Supportive Services Programs.
Through the Center WISER is making user friendly financial education and retirement planning tools available to traditionally hard-to-reach women, including average and low income women, women of color and women with limited English speaking proficiency, rural and other “under served” women.
WISER’s strategy for reaching these women and their families is to enlist the assistance of strategic public-private coalitions as volunteers and trainers. WISER’s “Aging Network Advisory Council,” which is composed of representatives of 15 organizations from across the country promotes nationwide outreach on financial education and retirement planning through the formation of strategic partnerships. Coalition memberships include national and local women’s organizations, local government agencies, representatives of the business and financial sectors and the National Network on Aging.
Through these diverse coalitions, the Center is providing women with needed access to financial expertise. Information is offered through financial and retirement planning programs such as model programs, and workshops tailored to meet their special needs, and publications in hard copy and Web based formats. Materials include booklets such as “Financial Steps for Caregivers,” and fact sheets such as “How to Start Saving” available in English, Spanish and Korean.
This one stop gateway is helping women nationwide to access comprehensive, culturally competent financial and retirement planning information. Ultimately, the efforts of WISER and AoA are enabling women to attain information that can lead to secure retirements.
Data Highlight Extensive Services Provided to Seniors
The Center has provided financial and retirement planning information through the following:
- Workshops: Over the course of its operation, the Center has conducted more than 20,000 workshops on strategies to access financial and retirement planning information for women. In the past three months alone, WISER has presented 150 workshops that reached approximately 3,000 women nationwide.
- Newsletter: During the same period, through their newsletter, WISER disseminated over 10,000 pieces of financial and retirement planning information tailored to the specific needs of hard-to-reach women.
- Web Site: The WISER Web site contains information of importance to women in categories ranging from money basics, investments, pensions and social security to health, caregiving and long-term care.
- Publications: Several publications including a monthly newsletter, 72 fact sheets, materials available in Spanish, Portuguese, Korean and Vietnamese, present concise, easy-to-understand information on important financial topics.
Funding History
| FY 2005 |
$248,376 |
| FY 2006 |
$248,376 |
| FY 2007 |
$245,520 |
| FY 2008 |
$241,470 |
Resources and Useful Links
To find out more about the Center and how it can help you and the women in your family plan for a more secure future, visit the WISER Web site.
Coming Attractions! Watch for WISER’s new “Ask the Expert” feature. It will be online soon. Leading financial experts will be available in monthly Q and A sessions to answer questions about finances, health care and retirement planning. Have a question? Send it in to info@wiserwomen.org.
| Last Modified: 7/16/2009 8:52:46 AM |
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