How can an Individual Training Account or Individual Development Account be used to fund a customized employment outcome?
Individual Training Accounts (ITAs) are available through One Stop Career Centers to provide funding for educational or vocational training. Individual Development Accounts (IDA) are a potential funding resource that many people do not know much about. They are special savings accounts designed to assist low-income people on their path toward asset ownership through matched savings and financial education. Our program has utilized IDAs to support employment for about five individuals in their businesses such as child care, an on-line shoe retail business, a home inspection business, and an IT repair and retail business. IDAs are a matched-funding financial option, so an individual who is going to access an IDA must have some funds to use for the match requirement. In Georgia, the IDAs were funded under United Way and now are under our micro enterprise center called the Edge Connection. Some Banks and Credit Unions also offer this option. More information is available about IDAs at the
