Mary Usategui has always gone the extra mile. Whether it be with her career, education or being the voice for those in need, she has never shied away from an opportunity to better herself or her community. With extensive experience in both the banking industry and non-profit realm, Mary Usategui has, and will continue to, change the lives of those around her.

Mary is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Florida and holds two master’s degrees – one in accounting from the University of Miami and the other in finance from Florida International University. She began her career in the banking industry at 18-years-old, where she first served as a bank teller. She then went on to work at the Coconut Grove Bank for over seven years and took on various roles that eventually landed her the position of Senior Financial Officer. Now, Mary is the Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer at Professional Bank where she is responsible for the oversight of finance, accounting, banking operations and human resources.

Aside from her career, Mary has always had a passion for wanting to help those less-privileged. This devotion led her to the AAA Scholarship Foundation where she is now a Bank Advisory Board Member, and has been for over two years. Along with these responsibilities, she assists and mentors young individuals within her community and is adamant about teaching them the importance, and value, of an education.

Mary has a love for helping not only people, but animals as well. It had gotten to the point where Mary felt obligated to take in every stray dog she found, and at dog number four, her husband asked her to stop. Mary then became involved with the Everglades Angels Dog Rescue. This organization is an all-volunteer non-profit that puts every dollar earned towards vetting, boarding, feeding and other direct expenses for the benefit of the dogs they rescue. If Mary is ever late to anything, her co-workers won’t even blink an eye. Nine out of ten times she is helping a stray dog find its home, or convincing her husband that adding one more dog to the family is doable.

When asking Mary Usategui what advice she would give to those considering donating to the AAA Scholarship Foundation, she says “If you’re able to redirect your taxes, the AAA Scholarship Foundation is a great organization to partner with. It’s a wonderful way to help others in your community, while also earning CRA credits. To me it’s a win-win!”

Click here for a pdf of this blog post.

 

 

2018-2019 Scholarship Application Meetings Scheduled for Arizona Parents

Join AAA Scholarship Foundation for our upcoming informational meetings for the parents of potential 2018-19 income-based scholarship recipients.

Parents will receive information about our scholarships, a paper application, tips & tricks on how best to complete the application and a raffle ticket to participate in a free raffle.

All meetings will include both English and Spanish sessions. Adults only, please – no child care will be provided.

• PHOENIX MEETINGS: Monday, March 5th at 6:30 pm – OR – Tuesday, March 6th at 6:30 pm
• TUCSON MEETINGS: Thursday, March 8th at 6:30 pm

Please RSVP no later than Thursday, March 1st:

Call: 888-707-2465 ext. 735 – OR – Email: rsvpAZ@aaascholarships.org
Include your name, meeting date, number attending (maximum 2 people per household) and contact information.

Once your RSVP is received, our staff will call or email you to provide the address of the meeting.

The folks over at American Federation for Children, EdChoice and ExcelinEd have put together a memo to answer questions on how the 2017 tax law changes have provided families the opportunity to use their children’s 529 Savings Plans to help pay for qualifying k-12 education expenses.

Not all expenses qualify and not all states participate so it’s important to talk to your tax adviser to be sure you understand the law before making any decisions.

We hope this information is helpful! Click here to access a pdf of the memo.

Fifth Third Redirects $5.4 Million of Corporate Income Tax Dollars  to AAA Scholarship Foundation

Hundreds of Eligible Students in Florida Benefit

 

Tampa – Fifth Third Bank is proud to announce a $5.4 million investment to AAA Scholarship Foundation (AAA) by redirecting Florida corporate income tax dollars to the organization. The money is funding 860 educational scholarships for Kindergarten through 12th grade students in Florida during the 2017-2018 school year.

AAA is a state approved Scholarship Funding Organization (SFO) that exclusively serves eligible low-income, disabled and/or displaced children. The scholarships empower parents to choose the best learning environment for their child. The typical AAA Scholarship student is an ethnic minority living with a struggling single parent/caregiver in a high crime community. More than 85 percent of AAA scholarships are distributed to children at or below 185 percent of poverty. Many children are either below grade level, failing at their previous school or both when they receive a scholarship.

“Fifth Third’s significant contribution will ensure children all over the state of Florida have access to quality education tailored to their needs,” said Kim Dyson, President and CEO of AAA Scholarship Foundation. “On behalf of those children – thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“This investment is further proof of Fifth Third’s commitment to the communities we serve,” said David Call, Florida region president for Fifth Third. “Our goal is to provide children with the opportunity to help build a better future for themselves and their communities.”

Fifth Third’s investment in AAA is made possible through the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program which allows any company that pays Florida corporate income tax to redirect up to 100 percent of its tax liability to AAA.

Florida Governor Rick Scott said, “We must all work together to make sure our students have the support they need to succeed in the classroom and in their future careers. I look forward to celebrating the hundreds of opportunities that will be created for our students through these scholarships.”

About Fifth Third

Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. As of Dec. 31, 2017, the Company had $142 billion in assets and operated 1,154 full-service Banking Centers and 2,469 ATMs with Fifth Third branding in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina. In total, Fifth Third provides its customers with access to more than 54,000 fee-free ATMs across the United States. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending and Wealth & Asset Management. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of Dec. 31, 2017, had $362 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $37 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations through its Trust and Registered Investment Advisory businesses. Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Fifth Third’s common stock is traded on the Nasdaq® Global Select Market under the symbol “FITB.” Fifth Third Bank was established in 1858. Member FDIC.

 About the AAA Scholarship Foundation

AAA Scholarships are funded in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada and Pennsylvania by corporations that redirect a portion of their state tax liability to the AAA Scholarship Foundation in exchange for a tax credit (dollar-for-dollar in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia and Nevada, and up to 90 percent in Pennsylvania). For banks there is an added benefit, as examiners at the bank regulatory agencies have approved dollars transferred to fund scholarships through this program to qualify for positive consideration under the CRA investment test. The AAA Scholarship Foundation is one of the only approved Scholarship 501(c)(3) nonprofit scholarship organizations exclusively serving qualifying low-income, disabled and/or displaced students through these tax credit scholarship programs. AAA Scholarship Foundation provides companies with the convenience and efficiency of a single-solution for participating in multiple state tax credit scholarship programs. For more information or to learn how your corporation can participate in the programs, visit www.AAAScholarships.org,or contact Kerri Vaughan at kerri@aaascholarships.org or 888 707-2465 ext. 730.

Click here for a pdf of this press release.

Recent newspaper articles have claimed that the growth of Arizona’s successful and effective Low-Income Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program is unsustainable at its current growth rate. Below we discuss the four main claims and provide the facts that prove that they are unfounded.

Claim #1) Unless capped, the allowable credits will exceed the amount of taxes owed by corporations.

Fact: The credits are approved by the Arizona Department of Revenue based on the taxes owed by corporations. The approved credits can only be taken against the amount of taxes actually owed subsequently, they can never exceed the amount of taxes owed by corporations.

Claim #2) Income taxes are the only corporate tax against which the credits may be applied.

Fact: The credits may also be taken against insurance premium taxes. The Joint Legislative Budget Committee estimates over $504 million in insurance premium taxes were collected into the General Fund during 2017.

Claim #3) Credits will “swallow up” all of the eligible corporate taxes in the year 2027 unless the 20 percent annual increase is capped.

Fact: Even if one assumes no increase in the amount of tax liability due to economic growth, the maximum credits that can be approved for the year 2027 will represent less than 44 percent of all eligible corporate taxes (income and insurance premium taxes). The credits approved for the current fiscal year represent less than 9 percent of eligible corporate taxes.

Claim #4) Corporations may have reached the limit (“natural water level”) of what they’re willing to take in credits.

Fact: All of the available credits were taken within 6 months of becoming available – half the time allotted for the process. There are many reasons that corporations may not participate immediately once credits become available, including:

• Given the option, many corporations choose to strategically time their remittances to correspond with their normally required estimated tax payments. Corporations must remit their funds to a Student Tuition Organization within 20-days of having their application approved. Now that sufficient credits are available after the opening day of the cap, corporations will naturally take advantage of this timing opportunity and apply for credits when it best matches their cash flow needs.
• The due diligence process for large corporations is lengthy, multi-layered, and crosses many departments (tax, public affairs, government affairs, foundations, community engagement, etc.) subsequently, it takes time for corporations to participate the first time.

The unwavering support of the Arizona Low-Income Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program from corporations proves that there is great demand from the business community for these credits. They see the Program as a viable solution for providing real educational opportunities to an underserved population who will one day lead their companies, work in their stores and factories and be consumers of the goods and services they provide.

The Program was designed to save taxpayer dollars by limiting the maximum cost of educating a student benefiting from it to an amount less than the cost of educating that same student in a public school. Instead of limiting the growth of a Program that saves taxpayers money, we encourage Arizona legislators to grow it at an even faster rate by adding additional types of taxes to the eligibility pool.

Scholarship stacking is the unregulated practice of allowing students to receive multiple tax credit scholarships from different scholarship organizations so that the resulting benefit to the student is greater than the maximum scholarship value set by law.

The Arizona Department of Revenue has confirmed to us that they believe the intention of Arizona legislators in including a maximum scholarship limit for the Arizona Low-Income Corporate Tax Credit Scholarship Program was to “save” taxpayer money by setting the cost of educating a student in the Program to something less than the cost of educating the same student in a public school (the 2017-2018 maximum value of a scholarship is $6,600 for students in grades 9 – 12 and $5,300 for students in grades k – 8).

This intent is not unusual. Legislative supporters of tax credit scholarship programs in the other states have successfully used the same argument to pass similar laws – they save taxpayer money. Unfortunately, the Arizona law was written in a way that leaves the administration of these scholarship limits open to interpretation.

It is our belief that scholarship stacking puts this successful and effective Program (and the tens of thousands of students who benefit from it) at risk unnecessarily by allowing those who oppose it to point to stacking as a waste of taxpayer dollars. Subsequently, it is our policy to interpret the law in the same spirit that the Arizona Department of Revenue has told us it was passed – the maximum scholarship value in the law is the maximum per student per year.

It is our mission to provide access to students with economic disadvantages to the best educational setting for their learning needs and we believe that the best way to do that it to strengthen the program – not weaken it. To that end, we encourage the Arizona legislature to raise the annual scholarship value per student, allow it to be used for required books and fees at eligible schools (along with tuition as it is today) and to either regulate the practice of scholarship stacking or prohibit it altogether.

The future of this Program – and all the students who rely on it – is bright. Let’s keep that light shining for them and for the great state of Arizona!

When asked for a Pearl of Wisdom, Nancy L. Merolla shares, “If you ever run into someone who isn’t smiling, give them one of yours. It will make a difference.” Nancy has been doing just that her entire life –giving a smile and making a difference.

Nancy is an accomplished leader with a proven record of success in administering both public and private non-profit organizations serving the community’s needs. With over 30 years in the banking industry, she’s held such diverse positions as Vice President CRA Manager for Comerica Bank; Vice President, Branch Management for Glendale Federal; and Vice President, Statewide Non-Profit Relationship Manager for BankAtlantic.

Her work with non-profits includes serving as President and CEO of Broward Housing Solutions, working with the Broward Partnership for the Homeless and The Starting Place, Inc., and in 2009, she was appointed Circuit Administrator of the Florida Department of Children and Families for Broward County by Secretary George Sheldon.

Since 2012, Nancy has served as Vice President, Community Reinvestment Officer of Florida Community Bank (FCB), focusing on the Bank’s community reinvestment activities throughout Florida.

Because of her leadership, passion, performance and innovation, Nancy was named as one of the South Florida Business Journal’s Influential Business Women of 2017. “I was humbled to be nominated by Florida Community Bank and truly honored to be the recipient of this award,” she says. “Florida Community Bank continues to support our communities and gives employees a chance to contribute both personally and professionally. I currently serve on twelve boards and advisory councils as part of my community commitment through my role as CRA Officer for Florida Community Bank.”

In 2017, Nancy became a founding member of the AAA Scholarship Foundation Bank Advisory Board. FCB also participates with AAA Scholarship Foundation (AAA) through the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program. FCB’s contributions to AAA over the past two years have provided close to 75 educational scholarships to low-income Florida children.

“It’s always been a true passion of mine to work with nonprofits. The AAA Scholarship Foundation understood the importance of supporting the communities around us, and this partnership was all-in-all a ‘win-win’ for me.”

For banks there is an added benefit to participating in the tax credit scholarship program through the AAA Scholarship Foundation, as examiners at the bank regulatory agencies have approved dollars transferred to fund scholarships through this program to qualify for positive consideration under the CRA investment test.

Each of our financial institutions that has enrolled in the tax credit scholarship program, and has been examined, has received positive consideration under the CRA investment test. This qualified investment would be considered as a “charitable contribution.” The regulation states that a “qualified investment is not disqualified because an institution receives favorable treatment for it (for example, as a tax deduction or credit)…”

In addition, bank contributions can be allocated to the bank’s specific assessment area(s) to insure that the bank’s investment is serving their geographic footprint.

Since the community development purpose of this program is to serve low-income children (only those that qualify for the national free or reduced lunch program), below are the demographics of the children served (this information is updated every quarter):

Average Family Size: 4

Average Family Income: $23,559*

Single Parent Home: 60%

*This income needs to be compared to the area median income (“AMI”) of the specific county to determine whether it’s at or below 30% (extremely low), 50% (low) or 80% (moderate) of the AMI to insure qualifying as a CRA investment.

For additional information please contact Kerri Vaughan, Managing Director • AAA Scholarship Foundation • www.aaascholarships.org • Cell: 786-367-0823   • Office: 888-707-2465 ext 730 • kerri@aaascholarships.org

Click here for a printable version of this document.

Georgia Income-based Scholarship

For more than 15 years, the AAA Scholarship Foundation staff has been working in the school choice movement to help eligible low-income students afford to attend the schools that best fit their learning needs. Our belief always has been, and will continue to be that “access to quality education should not be dependent on a family’s zip code.” AAA is a customer-service driven, student-focused organization. We work to maximize the dollars available for scholarships by keeping our overhead low and focusing our efforts on our core mission, helping students succeed.

In 2010, the AAA Scholarship Foundation started administering tax credit scholarships in Georgia specifically for low and middle income families with higher accountability requirements than required by law. In order to prove their eligibility, households must complete AAA’s online application and provide supporting documentation. Each household must meet both the state and AAA’s requirements. The application for this scholarship is available as soon as March 2016.

Despite efforts, elementary education throughout the United States has plateaued in the past several years instead of progressing. Average reading and math scores are not steadily increasing the way they have in the past, and Georgia specifically has been performing below the rest of the nation when it comes to reading and math proficiency. With the help of AAA Scholarships, we believe that parents know their children best and we trust they can decide on the best school choice to benefit their kids.

For AAA Scholarship Foundation, making academic achievement accessible for low-income families is our goal and we do this by passionately advocating for the under-served, under-represented and academically disadvantaged members of our communities.

For more information on how our scholarship foundation is helping low-income families and those with children experiencing learning disabilities, or physical disabilities in Florida, Georgia, Arizona, Alabama, Pennsylvania and Nevada, visit our website.