MEMPHIS, Tenn., Oct. 6, 2026 — Urban Strategies, Inc. (USI) announced they received a $1.5 million grant from Truist Foundation. USI is a national institution advancing people-centered, place-based strategies that strengthen families, build community wealth, and transform neighborhoods nationwide.
The grant will support the expansion of the USI Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), creating stronger bridges to capital, business growth, and wealth creation for emerging entrepreneurs in Memphis, TN; Fort Worth, TX; Houston, TX; Jacksonville, FL; and Philadelphia, PA.
The new grant builds on a $1.5 million grant Truist Foundation awarded to USI in 2023 to advance similar work in Norfolk, VA; Baltimore, MD; and Fort Myers, FL.
Together, USI and Truist Foundation are working to change more than who has access to capital; they are helping change the systems that determine who have the opportunity to build, own, grow, and create wealth.
The grant funding will allow the USI CDFI to expand its loan fund, business support infrastructure, and application system to reach entrepreneurs who have faced barriers to traditional sources of capital. Business owners will have access not only to financing, but also to credit-building tools, technical assistance, knowledge, networks, and resources necessary to start, sustain, and grow thriving enterprises.
“Economic growth begins with opportunity. When entrepreneurs have access to the capital, support, and resources needed to bring their vision to life, the impact extends far beyond a single business,” said Don Terrell, Truist market president. “Through this work, Truist Foundation is supporting the people and communities that drive local economies forward. We are honored to be a part of this initiative that expands opportunity, encourages business growth, and helps create lasting prosperity in Memphis and communities across the country.”
Terrell joined USI Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Donovan Duncan to formally announce the grant during a community celebration and launch event at Epicenter in Memphis.
“We are deeply grateful to Truist Foundation for continuing this journey with us. This work is about more than access to capital; it is about ownership, economic power, and creating the conditions for people and communities to build wealth on their own terms,” said Duncan. “Entrepreneurs are not simply beneficiaries of neighborhood revitalization; they are builders, employers, innovators, and essential drivers of it. This investment allows us to put capital and infrastructure behind their ideas and aspirations. What we are launching in Memphis and these additional communities is part of a much larger movement toward community ownership and shared prosperity. And we believe this is only the beginning.”
For nearly five decades, USI has worked alongside families and communities to confront the systems and conditions that perpetuate poverty. Its work recognizes that neighborhood transformation cannot be measured solely by new buildings or physical investment. Lasting transformation requires families to be stable, residents to have economic power, entrepreneurs to have access to capital, and communities to participate in and benefit from the wealth being created around them.
Through this work, USI is investing in that broader vision: communities where residents are not displaced from opportunity but positioned to own, lead, build, and prosper.
About Urban Strategies, Inc.
Urban Strategies, Inc. (USI) is a national nonprofit with nearly five decades of experience sparking transformation in communities too often left behind. Founded in 1978 in St. Louis, Missouri, USI has grown into a trusted partner advancing people-centered, place-based solutions that bridge individual resilience with systemic change.
USI leads with care and conviction, designing, managing, and implementing bold strategies that dismantle poverty and expand access to opportunity. The organization is active in 63 communities across 19 states and two territories, partnering with more than 100,000 individuals and 30,000 families, and a network of more than 1,000 partner organizations. Learn more at www.usi-inc.org
About Urban Strategies CDFI
Since 2018, USI’s Community Developed Financial Institution (CDFI) has raised and deployed nearly $12 million of financing affordable housing development and economic growth. These investments have contributed to the creation of 3,820 jobs and the preservation of nearly 2,315 units of housing nationwide. In addition, USI has supported more than 100 entrepreneurs through technical assistance and deployed nearly $1.4 million in capital to emerging businesses. Learn more at www.usi-cdfi.org
