Operation HOPE, a national nonprofit dedicated to helping low and moderate-income Americans thrive in an ever-changing economy, proudly honored Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens today for his outstanding leadership and commitment to building brighter financial futures for the city’s youth. The recognition comes on the final day of Financial Literacy Month and Green Socks Day, a national celebration promoting financial literacy and empowerment.
Operation HOPE commends Mayor Dickens for his pivotal role in expanding the Atlanta Public Schools (APS) Child Savings Account Program, a partnership between the City of Atlanta and Operation HOPE, which recently celebrated a major milestone: the opening of more than 10,000 new child savings accounts for APS kindergarten students. This citywide initiative ensures every child entering APS has the opportunity to begin their educational journey with a foundation for long-term financial security. The program, originally championed by former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and approved by the Atlanta City Council in 2021, provides qualifying APS kindergarteners with free savings accounts and a one-time deposit of $50.
The program was offically launched in 2022, and was reaffirmed in 2023 with a further commitment from Mayor Dickens as part of his “Year of the Youth” - a comprehensive initiative designed to uplift and invest in the next generation of Atlantans. The program includes increased support for early childhood education, expanded youth recreation opportunities, workforce development through youth employment initiatives, scholarships for higher education, and continued growth of the APS Child Savings Account Program. As of April 30, 2025, 10,596 accounts have been opened, with 2,387 opened so far this year, and representing more than $500,000 in deposits supporting educational opportunities for Atlanta’s students.
“Mayor Dickens has shown what it means to lead with vision and heart,” said Operation HOPE Founder, Chairman and CEO John Hope Bryant. “By investing in financial literacy and real-world resources for Atlanta’s youngest residents, he’s laying the groundwork for generational opportunity and economic mobility.”
For more details about the Atlanta CSA, click here.
About Operation HOPE, Inc.
Since 1992, Operation HOPE has been moving America from civil rights to "silver rights" with the mission of making free enterprise and capitalism work for the underserved—disrupting poverty for millions of low and moderate-income youth and adults across the nation. Through its community uplift model, HOPE Inside, which received the 2016 Innovator of the Year recognition by American Banker magazine, Operation HOPE has served more than 4 million individuals and directed more than $3.2 billion in economic activity into disenfranchised communities—turning check-cashing customers into banking customers, renters into homeowners, small business dreamers into small business owners, minimum wage workers into living wage consumers, and uncertain disaster victims into financially empowered disaster survivors. For more information: OperationHOPE.org. Follow the HOPE conversation on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn.
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Contacts
Operation HOPE Contact:
Sarah Troutt, Mendel Communications
sarah@mendelcommunications.com
