I like this guide a lot because it gives incarcerated people a new vision of how, when and where to start building financial income. This is important because after incarceration, everyone wants to succeed in life. Level has helped me in so many ways. There is no doubt in my mind - I will succeed after I am released.
Financial literacy training for people in prison
Contribute to Level's financial education program for people in prison so they can thrive after release and break the destructive cycle of incarceration.
The opportunity
Financial knowledge to change lives
Budget: $108,750
Raised: $25,000
Budget
$108,750 Raised
$25,000
$108,750 Raised
$25,000
Today, financial literacy is the #1 most highly requested educational topic among people in prison that we do not currently offer programming for. To meet this need, Level is creating a five-part financial education literacy series created specifically for people in prison who are preparing for a successful release. Long-term objectives and goals of this project include building a foundation of essential financial knowledge, establishing access to credit, and improving opportunities through capital markets to increase economic stability and mobility after incarceration. The first module in this series has already been completed and published and the second is in development. We’re continuing to fundraise for the third, fourth and fifth modules as well as distribution to people in prison across the country.
The $108,750 project budget includes curriculum development of the five-part financial literacy program and costs related to distributing this curriculum to the first 1,000 incarcerated learners. $61,250 (56%) will be used for curriculum development including guidance from formerly incarcerated team members and $47,500 (44%) will be used for distribution to incarcerated learners at more than 1,000 prisons in all 50 states.
Contributors to this project
We thank our communities of support
We are thankful to Next Gen Personal Finance for providing the generous lead funding for this project. We continue to fundraise with corporate giving programs, private foundations and individual philanthropists.
Have questions about funding this project?
We've included answers to some general questions below. Please get in touch with any additional questions. Thank you!
Level is a popular, independent, nonprofit prison education program that offers education, career training and personal development for people in prison and connects with family members and supporters on the outside. Our unique approach can reach nearly any person at any prison, even those in high security or solitary confinement. 6,545 people in prison have spent 89,430 hours using the Level program inside 1,044 prisons across the country.
Level sends printed educational modules - we call them guides - to people in prison across the country. Our guides are designed to pass the stringent restrictions applied to incoming mail at correctional facilities. People in prison can use our guides in their cells or in common areas. Each of our guides is designed to be a 10 hour study program about one topic. People complete our program at their own pace.
When a learner finishes a guide, they transfer their quiz answers onto a Completion Form and send it back to us. Our system registers their completion of that guide, creates a Certificate of Achievement, and then we send a new guide.
We send updates by text or email to family members and supporters on the outside each time a new guide is sent and each time a certificate is earned. These updates help create connections and break isolation.
People in prison don't have access to computers or the internet, so they can't access existing educational and job training and content in the same ways that people on the outside can. Most prisons don't even have educational and job training programs that are easily accessed.
Level is a unique lifeline for many people in prison who want to prepare for a brighter future. We take the time to custom create popular educational programs that are specifically written for people in prison. We often partner with formerly incarcerated subject matter experts to ensure that our content is created by people who have walked in the shoes of our learners.
Yes, absolutely! We don't put all that on this page because it's a lot! We are happy to send you detailed project, timeline, budget, measurement and impact information. Please reach out using this contact form and let us know what you'd like to see.
A Donor Advised Fund (DAF) is a charitable investment account that allows you to contribute money and receive an immediate tax deduction. The funds can be invested to grow tax-free. You can then use the funds in this account to make donations to your favorite nonprofits (like Level) anytime.
If you have a Donor Advised Fund (DAF), you can use it to donate to Level directly on our website. Level incorporates DAF Pay, an express checkout option for Donor Advised Funds. Using this feature, you can securely log into your Donor Advised Fund right from Level's website, check your balance and donate to Level with your DAF account in 3 clicks - faster than a credit card! Look for the button at the top of our donate pages that says DAF Pay.
Don't worry, we don't see any of your DAF account login or account information - that is all securely transmitted to your DAF account and not viewed or stored by Level. Check the DAF Pay website for more information.
Yes! Level is a 501c3 nonprofit, EIN 84-2956557. Let us know if you need a specific receipt or acknowledgement of your donation.