Jenny Hutchinson believes one of the best ways to create opportunities for children is to create opportunities for their parents first.
“What we’ve found is that the parent is often the most influential person in a young person’s life,” Hutchinson said. “When that parent is pursuing education, exploring a career opportunity or building a business, the child sees that. They’re exposed to those possibilities in a way that can influence their own future.”
That’s the idea behind Sistahs Reachin’ Out (SRO), a northwest Detroit nonprofit that helps underserved and under-resourced households access education, workforce training, digital skills and financial resources.
More than 20 years ago, Hutchinson, then a college student, and a childhood friend noticed something missing in their northwest Detroit neighborhood: young people without access to after-school opportunities or structured support. By talking directly with students and families in their community, they began to understand the gaps and started an organization focused on tutoring and academic support.
“We’ve always tried to respond to what the community told us it needed,” Hutchinson said.
Following the pandemic, many families faced barriers that went beyond academics, including limited access to technology, broadband internet, digital workforce training and career pathways.
“We have to meet people where they are,” Hutchinson said. “A lot of times, we’re meeting families who are dealing with immediate financial needs or other barriers. For us, it is often necessary that we work to address those issues first before we can begin to talk about SRO’s digital skilling and workforce development opportunities.”
As SRO continued listening to residents and analyzing community data, one population in Detroit consistently emerged as facing significant barriers: low-income single-parent households. To ensure that workforce development programming meets the unique needs of this target group, SRO intentionally added low-income single parents, who were active in the community, to its board.
“The research consistently points to three distinct pathways that can change a family’s economic trajectory: post-secondary education, transformative employment opportunities and entrepreneurship,” Hutchinson said. “Everything we do is designed to increase access to one or more of those pathways for residents in our served community.”
Community input paired with published research continues to shape SRO’s focus and its programming. Through initiatives like its Pathfinder program, which provides workforce development for low-income single parents, and its College and Career Access Center, a community technology hub focused on career and college readiness, SRO connects Detroit residents to free, year-round workforce training, industry-recognized certifications, educational workshops and seminars, and digital skilling.
Creating opportunities for economic mobility for Detroit families requires more than one organization; it requires partners and a committed community. Through collaboration with educational institutions, community organizations and corporate partners, SRO brings additional resources directly to Detroit families.
For example, in partnership with Huntington Bank, SRO hosts financial literacy and financial education workshops throughout the year, as well as an annual, citywide effort called Family Financial Fitness Fair (Fin Fair) on MLK day. This event aims to spark better financial outcomes for metro Detroit residents by connecting them to tools and resources that aid in saving for college, investing, real estate planning, credit repair, credit monitoring, buying a home, budgeting and so much more.
“For years, we’ve wanted to launch Fin Fair to increase the footprint and impact of SRO’s financial education programming,” Hutchinson said. “We are so grateful that, with Huntington’s support, we were finally able to do that in 2026, and we are looking forward to continued community support for Fin Fair 2027.”
In addition to serving as sponsor, Huntington volunteers spent the day meeting with residents, answering questions and sharing financial guidance and resources as part of Huntington’s African American Business Resource Group’s Martin Luther King’s Days of Service effort.
“We were proud to be part of an effort that puts our expertise to work for the community,” said Ericka Milton, regional lead, Southeast Michigan & Northwest Ohio, for the bank’s African American Business Resource Group. “People appreciated seeing that we’re here in the city, actively engaged and committed to helping Detroit families succeed. Whether someone wanted to learn more about budgeting, banking, homeownership or planning for the future, we were able to meet them where they were and have meaningful conversations about their goals.”
“I liked the variety of information available,” said Aiseha Brown, a participant at Fin Fair. “I gained knowledge on things I wasn’t even aware of.” Another attendee, DeJaun Taylor, added: “I think this is a great thing SRO is doing for the community.”
Feedback from participants reflects the broader goal of SRO’s work and aligns with the organization’s mission: effectuate economic equality for underserved, under-resourced residents and families.
Located on Detroit’s northwest side, SRO’s programming supports as many as 2,000 students within walking distance of its site on any given day. As the organization continues to grow and scale, its focus remains grounded in the same purpose that guided its founding.
“We started by trying to create opportunities for kids in our community, and that is still at the heart of everything we do,” added Hutchinson. “Now, we’re building pathways that support entire families, so those opportunities can grow and last for generations.”
