Center on Assets, Education, and Inclusion

Special Issue

This issue advances a more expansive financial capability framework that integrates policies that help people develop their financial capability: the combination of personal and governmental capabilities, including equitable access to financial institutions, income, and wealth-building resources. Five policy tools are used: Child Development Accounts, Guaranteed Income, Free College, Baby Bonds, and comprehensive financial education. Ultimately, the issue invites policymakers and scholars to imagine—and demand—a revolution in social welfare policy that aligns with the American ideal of the right to the pursuit of financial happiness. 

• Paper 1: American Social Welfare Policy from a Financial Capability Perspective
  • Audio Summaries
    • Video Overview (about 6 minutes)
    • Audio Overview (about 20 minutes)
• Paper 2: Timing Wealth Building to Maximize Return on Degree
  • Research Brief
  • Infographic
  • Audio Summaries
    • Video Overview (about 6 minutes)
    • Audio Overview (about 20 minutes)
• Paper 3: Redesigning Social Welfare: Presenting a New Asset Poverty Measure
  • Research Brief
  • Infographic
  • Audio Summaries
    • Video Overview (about 6 minutes)
    • Audio Overview (about 20 minutes)
• Paper 4: Testing a Social Welfare Theory of Financial Capability: Personal and Governmental
  Capabilities
  • Research Brief
  • Infographic
  • Audio Summaries
    • Video Overview (about 6 minutes)
    • Audio Overview (about 20 minutes)
• Paper 5: Ensuring Financial Happiness through an Integrated Social Welfare System
  • Policy Brief
  • Audio Summaries
    • Video Overview (about 6 minutes)
    • Audio Overview (about 20 minutes)

Acknowledgment:

In the preparation of the research briefs and audio files, Google's NotebookLM was used as an AI assistant to help synthesize information from the provided research articles and structure key concepts.

This special issue and accompanying materials could not have been done without the generous support of Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. These organizations are not responsible for the quality or accuracy of this special issue or its associated products, which are the sole responsibility of the authors, nor do they necessarily agree with any or all the report’s content.