Sima Thakkar, Author at Raza Development Fund

Sima Thakkar: Reflections from a Caren S. Franzini Fellow

In 2021, I was grateful to participate in the Caren S. Franzini Fellowship, established by the Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA). For six months, I worked with a cohort of fellow development finance professionals and learned from industry leaders as we worked together to further our impact in the community development finance field. The Fellowship was an amazing ride and like 2021, filled with excitement, hope, and amped-up optimism, mixed with exhaustion and uncertainty. It gave me a chance to get to know and learn from some incredible women leaders who I’m so proud to be in community with. …

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Raza Development Fund (RDF) is the largest national, Latino-focused nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Driven by a mission to close wealth and opportunity gaps in Latino and other under-resourced communities across the United States, RDF provides responsible and attainable financial solutions to community-based organizations focused on health, education, affordable housing, climate resilience, homeownership, and entrepreneurship. RDF was founded in 1999 as a support organization to UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Hispanic civil rights and advocacy nonprofit, formerly known as the National Council of La Raza. As a testament to its exceptional financial strength and impact, RDF stands out as one of the few CDFIs with a prestigious AA- S&P rating. Since its inception, RDF has invested more than $1.3 billion across 38 states, leveraging over $6 billion in additional capital.

In accordance with federal law and U.S. Department of the Treasury policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. Submit a complaint of discrimination, by mail to U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Civil Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity , 1500 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20220, (202) 622-1160 (phone), (202) 622-0367 (fax), or email crcomplaints@treasury.gov (email).