CSD is a leading academic center for theory and research on asset-building strategies for low-income individuals and families.
Central to this work has been the design and testing of assisted savings plans in the form of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) and Child Development Accounts (CDAs). Asset-building policies encourage people to acquire assets, such as a home, a business, an education, or savings for retirement. Asset-based policies are well-established in the United States. Common examples include the home mortgage tax deduction, 401(k) plans, and IRAs. These policies, however, often do not benefit low-income individuals and families. CSD focuses on developing asset-building policies that benefit the whole population.
CSD’s asset-building research and policy initiatives include:
Inclusive 529 Savings Policy work centers on college savings plan research and policy reforms at the state and national levels. CSD has expanded this effort through the College Savings Initiative, a collaboration with the New America Foundation.
Native Assets, a collaboration with the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies that focuses on asset building in native communities
Savings for Education, Entrepreneurship, and Downpayment (SEED), a policy and practice initiative that studies CDAs in the United States
SEED for Oklahoma Kids (SEED OK), an experiment that tests the idea of giving every child a CDA at birth
State Assets Policy Project (SAPP), a policy project that researches approaches to asset building at the state level
The vision of this work is to create an approach that allows all members of society to realize their own potential and participate in the social and economic productivity of the nation.