Yolo Food Bank Volunteers hand out food donations. Photo courtesy of Bank of America

SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - Celebrating its 20th year, Bank of America’s Neighborhood Builders program continues to be one of the nation’s largest philanthropic investments into nonprofit leadership development while providing multiyear flexible grant funding annually to high-impact nonprofits in nearly 100 communities nationwide.

In Sacramento, Bank of America has named Junior Achievement and Yolo Food Bank as its latest Neighborhood Builders.

Through the program, each nonprofit organization is awarded a $200,000 grant, comprehensive leadership training for each of the organization’s executive directors and an emerging leader, along with access to a national network of nonprofit organization peers.

Since its inception in 2004, 35 nonprofit organizations have been selected as Neighborhood Builders in the Greater Sacramento region, with the bank investing $7 million into these local Neighborhood Builder nonprofit organizations.  

“Neighborhood Builders has invested into the region’s nonprofit leaders for 20 years. It’s a truly unique program for a critical segment of our community,” said CP Parmar, president of the Bank of America Greater Sacramento. “Over the past two decades, it has been an honor to invest into the capacity of organizations like Junior Achievement and Yolo Food Bank, nonprofits that work tirelessly to help all our neighbors find stable footing to succeed.” 

Junior Achievement has served the Sacramento region since 1961, empowering youth by providing lessons in financial literacy, work and career readiness and entrepreneurship, with programs combining hands-on learning experiences with real-world insights from business and community volunteers. Recent economic reports reflect the struggle for working families to attain economic well-being and self-sufficiency, and programs offered by Junior Achievement help equip more youth with the knowledge and confidence to make informed financial decisions, explore career pathways and launch their own ventures. With the Neighborhood Builders grant, Junior Achievement will expand its reach by hiring additional staff, strengthening volunteer engagement and implementing new program models, ensuring that an additional 1,000 students have access to their tools. 

“Junior Achievement of Sacramento is honored to be selected as a Bank of America Neighborhood Builder. This transformational support will enable us to amplify our impact stories, build a robust communications strategy and deepen our connection with the community,” said Susan Nelson, president of the Junior Achievement of Sacramento. “Together with Bank of America, we are building a foundation that empowers more young people to break cycles of poverty and achieve economic mobility, not just for today but for generations to come.”

Located in Yolo County, where the poverty rate is 25% higher than the state average and one in three households experience food insecurity, Yolo Food Bank operates nearly 20 public food distribution locations across its vast rural geography and dozens more that serve specific populations such as low-income seniors, agricultural workers and students.

Yolo Food Bank serves more than 30,000 households each month and distributes nearly 10-million pounds of food annually. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, demand has continued to grow and this grant will help the food bank keep up with the increased demand by hiring staff, subsidizing rising food supply and delivery costs, and supplementing aid that will be impacted by federal program cuts.

“Yolo Food Bank is honored to receive the Bank of America Neighborhood Builders grant, which will enable us to better meet the growing needs of our community," said Yolo Food Bank Executive Director Karen Baker. "This generous support allows us to focus on strategic planning efforts that will enhance our ability to serve a diverse and evolving population.”

The Neighborhood Builders invitation-only program is highly competitive and honorees are selected by a committee comprised of community leaders and past Neighborhood Builders awardees. Nationwide since 2004, Bank of America has invested more than $346 million into nearly 2,000 nonprofit organizations and helped more than 4,000 nonprofit leaders strengthen their leadership skills through the Neighborhood Builders program.