Community Capital of Vermont - Final Evaluation Report

I conducted a 3-year evaluation of process and outcome measures to determine best practices, the impact of services, and the development of a replicable model for the Community Capital of Vermont (CCV). This final evaluation report presents cumulative data collected from staff, key project partners, stakeholders, and borrowers from October 1, 2005 to September 30, 2008, with inclusion of key data collected through the one year extension period through September 30, 2009. This report initially reviews process evaluation results in discussing the CCV project implementation, including loan financing and post-loan TA provided over the course of the grant. Project outcomes are measured through borrower focus groups, follow-up telephone surveys conducted with borrowers six months to two and a half years post loan closing, and borrower data collected by Loan Officers during the application process and at the end of the grant. For more information about this study or to request additional copies of this report, please contact Michele Cranwell Schmidt, Evaluation Coordinator, at mschmidt@uvm.edu, call (802) 656-0256 or visit www.uvm.edu/crs/.

Community Capital of Vermont (CCV), a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) making micro and small business loans in the central Vermont region since 1997, proposed to expand its loan and post-loan technical assistance (TA) services statewide over a three year period. This strategic decision was made by CCV in light of two primary concerns: 1) the longevity of the State's statewide micro-credit program, the Vermont Job Start Loan Fund, was in question following an in-depth assessment of its re-capitalization and staffing needs, and 2) CCV's desire to implement its mission to support micro and small business development on a wider scale and thereby improving its own program sustainability. Statewide expansion was achieved due in part to a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Community Services (OCS) grant #90EE0715 to Central Vermont Community Action Council (CVCAC) of which CCV was a sub-grantee.

By 2008, CCV had transitioned its organizational infrastructure and service delivery from a regional to statewide focus and acquired the assets of the Vermont Job Start Loan Fund. All activities were undertaken in partnership with a wide variety of statewide and regional partners including CVCAC and the other Community Action Agencies (CAAs) operating in Vermont.

For the period of October 1, 2005 to September 30, 2008, CCV had the overall goal of lending $1,470,000 in loans to 96 micro and small businesses that in turn create 144 jobs, of which 60% will be filled by low income individuals whose household income and family size places them at or below 150% of the federal poverty level guidelines. At the end of OCS grant following a one year extension through September 30, 2009, CCV had in fact made loans totaling $1,864,721 to 93 micro and small businesses owned by 120 people. Of the 93 businesses, 57% (53) were owned by a low-income owner. Including owner jobs and employees, these businesses created 165 FTE jobs and retained 149 FTE jobs for a total of 314 FTE positions created and/or retained.