Newton's two-year experiment pairing lower-income families with financial coaches and monthly cash payments ended in March, and the final numbers show real gains but missed targets. There is no funding to keep it going.

EMPath, the Boston-based nonprofit that ran the program called Newton Thrive, presented its final report at the July 28 meeting of the Newton Fair and Affordable Housing Partnership. The program was designed to serve up to 50 Newton families with children who earned at or below 50% of the area median income, pairing each household with a "Mobility Mentor" for individualized coaching and providing $251 per month in cash assistance.

Former Mayor Ruthanne Fuller launched Newton Thrive in February 2023, directing more than $1.5 million of the city's $63.5 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to EMPath. The city's ARPA program page lists $1.75 million allocated for the initiative; the difference has not been publicly explained. Services began in September 2023 and wrapped in March 2026.

What the numbers show

At intake, 63% of participants faced at least one significant barrier to stability: 47% owed back utilities, 40% had physical or mental health challenges, 31% owed back rent and 39% lacked adequate childcare.

By program's end, employment rose from 53% to 71%, and the share of participants with savings climbed from 47% to 68%. Eighty-two percent repaid debt during the program. On a 0-to-10 well-being scale, the average score rose from 5 at intake to 7 at exit. Seventy-two percent enrolled in an education or technical program.

Participants set 1,247 goals across five domains, according to EMPath's final report. Of those, 55% were completed, 25% remained in progress, 16% were never started and 4% were discontinued. Financial goals had the highest completion rate at 60%; health and well-being goals the lowest at 48%.

Where it fell short

The program's savings target was 80% of participants holding savings by the end. The actual figure, 68%, missed that mark.

Christina Citino, the Newton Thrive project manager and a researcher at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute, told the Partnership meeting that the shortfall reflected how deep participants' struggles ran at the outset.

"In a community that's fairly affluent, you're starting with people who really are struggling," Citino said July 28. "I think the assumption with some of the economic mobility goals and expected outcomes is that the participants would be in somewhat better shape than they actually were when they started. … Some of the employment goals and the savings goals and the increased income goals would have been better if we had started with a population that maybe was a little bit more stable to begin with."

EMPath representative Gamuchirai Madzima described the challenge of teaching budgeting to families already underwater on bills, noting that once participants saw their full financial picture, even when it was "in the red," savings and debt reduction followed.

What comes next

Partnership Chair Marva Serotkin told Fig City News in an Aug. 13 statement that no funds are available to continue Newton Thrive under Mayor Marc Laredo's administration.

Serotkin suggested future paths include Newton nonprofits collaborating, affordable-housing developers' resident service coordinators adopting program strategies, and coordination with the City Council and Planning Department.

EMPath representative Ashley Winning said at the July 28 meeting that pairing cash assistance with coaching may produce longer-lasting results than cash alone, because participants leave with skills and credentials rather than just temporary income.

Citino echoed that point, saying participants who completed certifications or degrees are best positioned to sustain gains because "they now have a resource that they didn't have when the program started."

The Newton Fair and Affordable Housing Partnership's next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 22, at 5 p.m.