Atlantic City Responds to Bank Research

October 21, 2009

For immediate release
Contact: Katherine Dibling , senior media representative, (215) 574-4119

Philadelphia, Pa. - The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's Community Affairs Department recently received an award from the City of Atlantic City for its "outstanding efforts and commitment to address socioeconomic issues in Atlantic City."

The award recognizes the Bank report "Atlantic City: Past as Prologue" (4.01 MB, 67 pages) for demonstrating a pronounced need for services to help residents in Atlantic City, which has a high rate of poverty. The report was written by Harriet Newburger and John Wackes, both from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, and Anita Sands, ARI Planning & Research Inc.

The Bank's presentation on the report's findings to Atlantic City community leaders last spring prompted discussions between Mayor Lorenzo T. Langford and Wells Fargo's Wachovia's Social Responsibility Group about the need for financial education in the city. As a result, Wells Fargo's Wachovia chose Atlantic City as the location for the East Coast debut of its financial education program, Hands on Banking.

The award presentation and the debut of Hands on Banking took place recently at the All Wars Memorial Building in Atlantic City. More than 100 Atlantic City high school students and their teachers were introduced to Hands on Banking at the event. Wachovia is planning to train teachers to assist their students to use the online resources.

"Atlantic City: Past as Prologue" is an in-depth look at the growth and decline of Atlantic City and the conditions in the city since casino gambling was legalized in 1978. The report expands on a case study of several of Atlantic City's census tracts with high levels of poverty. The case study was published as part of "The Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty in America: Case Studies from Communities Across the U.S.," a report published by the Federal Reserve System and the Brookings Institution.

The Community Affairs Department supports the Federal Reserve System's economic growth objectives by promoting community development in low- and moderate-income communities and fair and impartial access to credit in underserved markets. The department works closely with financial institutions, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies on public-private partnerships that result in increased affordable housing and community and economic development. The department assists financial institutions to understand their responsibilities under the federal Community Reinvestment Act (CRA).

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia helps formulate and implement monetary policy, supervises banks and bank holding companies, and provides financial services to depository institutions and the federal government. One of the 12 regional Reserve Banks that, together with the Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., make up the Federal Reserve System, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank serves eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware.

Atlantic City Responds to Bank Research

E-Mail Notification

Media Contacts