The Opportunity Finance Network recently announced the three winners of the NEXT Opportunity Awards. These recipients - Clearinghouse CDFI, Corporation for Supportive Housing and Primary Care Development Corporation - will split up an $8.25 million pool to improve Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) coverage in underprivileged communities.

The Opportunity Awards are support by the Wells Fargo NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance that will benefit low-wealth, low-income and disadvantaged communities. The competitive awards program was launched in 2007 to support promising CDFIs with funding from Wells Fargo, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and The Kresge Foundation.

"Wells Fargo has a strong commitment to investing in our communities and enabling people to succeed financially," said Lesley Eckstein, executive vice president and head of Community Lending and Investment at Wells Fargo. "We are proud to be a part of this program and support the important work these CDFIs are doing."

Rip Rapson, The Kresge Foundation president, explains that funding CDFIs is an important endeavor for the organization as a way to bring investment advice to low-income communities with the aim of improving overall financial health.

Organizations that present awards more than once a year may find they benefit from fund accounting programs such as grant management software to track incoming and outgoing funds.