Faith and Futures: Exploring Church-Based Support for Child

Savings Accounts in Detroit

Background

Detroit is the largest majority-Black city in the United States, with approximately 77% of

residents identifying as Black or African American. The city faces persistent economic

inequities:

● 31.5% of Detroit residents live below the federal poverty line, nearly three times the

national average.

● Over 43% of children in Detroit live in poverty, with financial insecurity shaping

access to education, health, and opportunity.

● Nearly 60% of households with children are headed by single women, a reflection

of structural barriers and social conditions that disproportionately burden Black mothers

and caregivers.

The neighborhoods surrounding Historic King Solomon Baptist Church (6100 14th Street,

Detroit, MI 48208) and Bethel East Baptist Church (5715 Holcomb, Detroit, MI 48213) rank

among Detroit’s most socially vulnerable, according to the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index

(SVI). These neighborhoods contend with concentrated poverty, unemployment, underbanking,

and underinvestment—but they also contain assets of trust, community, and spiritual leadership.

This project addresses the NAACFRC research priority of economic self-sufficiency by

exploring the role of church-based promotion and community outreach in increasing Child

Savings Account (CSA) participation. CSAs have been shown to improve educational

aspirations, college attendance, and long-term wealth-building. Yet uptake remains low in

Detroit’s most underserved communities due to a lack of culturally relevant outreach and

longstanding mistrust of financial institutions.

While church members may participate, our primary target audience is community residents

who engage with these churches for food, support, and services—even if they are not

formal members. We believe churches can serve as credible and accessible partners in

economic empowerment for the wider community.

This pilot study offers an opportunity to test a culturally grounded approach to CSA

engagement by leveraging the social trust and community outreach infrastructure of Black

churches in high-SVI neighborhoods.