Page 17 - Investment Advisor - November 2023

Community Impact

LPL Financial cation features with industry and national firms, peer networking,
Last year, the LPL Financial free weekly marketing coaching calls, referrals and microgrant
Charitable Foundation committed a grant to LISC (Local Initiatives opportunities. Newly added programships focus on male allies,
Support Corporation) to aid small businesses in San Diego. The LGBTQ+, fintech, Latinx and RIAs. The network aims to support
grant reinvigorated two local farmers’ market initiatives in North professionals in place, build better practices for the future, and
County and Linda Vista, which were experiencing major road- showcase women in the finance profession.
blocks because of a lack of economic savvy and the bureaucratic
know-how needed to grow amid economic hurdles. The founda- Financial Alliance for racial equity
tion and LISC partnered to improve the local businesses’ financial The Financial Alliance for Racial
stability, offer the technical resources they needed to thrive and Equity, launched in September 2020 by
improve their ability to grow and prosper. Funding helped remove leading financial services organizations, industry associations and
the barriers to securing the prerequisites needed to launch. Historically Black Colleges and Universities, hosted the FARE &
HBCU CONNECT Educational Series in October 2022. Executive
Consulting Firms speakers shared their firms’ culture, mission, values and commit-
ment to diversity, equity and inclusion. Current industry profession-
republic Capital Group als offered their perspectives on their journeys into the industry,
Republic Capital is committed challenges they overcame and paths to success. FARE provided
to enabling the next generation HBCU students and young professionals with resume and LinkedIn
of students aspiring to careers in wealth management. The firm profile reviews, created an organic space for Black students to net-
is a founding member of the Wealth Management Center at the work with senior executives and conducted interviews for intern-
Texas McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas ship and full-time opportunities across FARE-member firms.
Austin. Two of the firm’s partners created The John and Candace
Langston Fellowship for Wealth Management with the McCombs Financial Planning Association
School to support students pursuing careers in wealth manage- In 2022, FPA chapters and members
ment. The Langstons have initially endowed the fellowship with increased the number of consumers
$300,000. Republic Capital also invested in the Innovation Lab attending financial wellness/literacy workshops by 212% year
at Binghamton University, and supports Fordham University’s over year. The workshops offered by FPA chapters and mem-
Gabelli Center for Global Security Analysis. bers cover budgeting, investing, retirement planning and other
important financial subjects. They provide attendees with prac-
Continuing education organizations/Foundations tical and actionable advice, enabling them to improve their
financial well-being. In 2022, FPA chapters reported providing
Certified Financial Planner Board of standards 4,424 consumers with 11,506 hours of pro bono financial plan-
The nonprofit CFP Board Center for Financial ning services by 962 individual FPA members. FPA chapters also
Planning aims to make measurable strides to conducted 230 financial wellness workshops in 2022, attracting
foster a more diverse workforce. The center 17,302 consumers.
developed and administers programs to raise
awareness of financial planning careers among underrepresented schwab Charitable
populations and support them in their careers, especially those Schwab Charitable launched a national
working toward the CFP certification. These programs include the awareness campaign focused on a series of
Women’s Initiative, annual Diversity Summits, CFP Board Mentor videos — Stories of Impact — featuring advisors, donors and their
Program, and reports and research. Several scholarship programs meaningful stories of charitable impact. The campaign’s goal is
also provide diverse individuals with financial assistance for the to highlight how strategic giving can help increase clients’ giving
education requirements for CFP certification, which also helps power while showcasing meaningful relationships between advi-
prepare them for the CFP exam. sors, their clients and their communities. The campaign, which is
promoted across a variety of media channels and Schwab internal
Females and Finance channels, has been watched more than 621,000 times.
In just four years, Females and Finance
has grown into a support network dedi- the American College of Financial services
cated to hiring, training, mentoring and advancing opportuni- The American College Center for Military and
ties for women in financial services and financial technology. It Veterans Affairs works to empower deserving
provides group medical plans for members, speaker’s bureau, active duty, guard, reserve members, veterans
marketing workshops, speaking opportunities, writing and publi- and their families with financial knowledge and

November 2023 Investment AdvIsor 15