JACKSON — The Magnolia Mother's Trust launched a new cohort of its guaranteed income program for low-income Black mothers in Jackson, Mississippi, in May 2024. The program provides participating mothers with $1,000 a month for 12 months with no strings attached.

The Magnolia Mother's Trust is an initiative from Springboard to Opportunities and targets extremely low-income families headed by Black mothers in Jackson. The organization also opens 529 accounts for the children of mothers participating in the program. Aisha Nyandoro, CEO of Springboard to Opportunities, defined guaranteed income as "Guaranteed income is a specific amount of money given to a specific population for a set amount of time."

Nyandoro co-founded Springboard to Opportunities in 2013. The organization works directly with families who live in federally supported affordable housing in Jackson. "That's really where we started thinking about what it would look like if we just gave families that we work with the financial support that they need to actualize the goals that they have for themselves and their families," Nyandoro said. The Magnolia Mother's Trust first launched in 2018, with Springboard to Opportunities launching the first cohort of 20 mothers in December 2018. "The response to that first year, when moms realized that they had been selected, was pure joy," Nyandoro said.

Amaya Jones, one participant in the program, experienced homelessness while pregnant. Jones described a period where she went from full-time to part-time employment and was barely making ends meet. "I went from full-time to part-time to barely making ends meet," Jones said. After joining the program, she said, "It was a sigh of relief." Jones added, "I was actually able to take my kids out of town, stuff I wouldn't be able to do."

Another participant, Kenja Patton, used funds from the program to take her son to Disney World for his kindergarten graduation. "It's given me more freedom," Patton said. She added, "If something happens with him or if I need to go to the school, it makes a big difference." According to Nyandoro, "This year, the moms are probably a little more stressed than in previous years, because of the affordability crisis and because of the impact on the social safety net."