Hidden Gems: Meet Alexandra Arrington of Money Magnets Club

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexandra Arrington.

Hi Alexandra, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I was a kid that was always asking “why” and trying to see if there was a different, better or more efficient way to do something. Much to the chagrin of most of the adults in my life, I started exhibiting the “entrepreneurial mindset” from as young as 8 years old. My mother was a single parent and a career banker and taught us two things when it came to money: save and be generous to others in need. Growing up in the church, we often saw how that community rallied around us when we had need, and we would do our best to give back when others were in need, also. Among other things, this led me to train my own children to understand the fundamentals of money, as the tool it is, to meet needs and to support the future one envisions for themselves. Around 2016, I wondered how many parents had one like mine, who was a wealth of knowledge and did her best to show us the path to financial freedom, but struggled so much with her own financial experiences, that she didn’t have time to sit us down and walk us through lessons, but rather demonstrated them for us. As a quasi-entrepreneur myself at that time, I very much appreciated a regular paycheck and the ability to make extra money using my talents and gifts on the side. I was doing workshops at the local library near us and there was a lot of attention on Charlotte, NC and this phenomenon called upward mobility or economic mobility. A Harvard economist, Dr. Raj Chetty, led a study that ranked Charlotte, NC 50th out of 50 major metros when it came to one’s ability to move out of poverty by the time they reached adulthood if they were born in Charlotte, NC. With all the surrounding controversy, shock and awe among the powers that be and the “what else is new?” sentiments among many residents living the experience, I resolved to do what I could where I was with what I had. That meant offering financial literacy and entrepreneurship exploration workshops for youth at the local library. Over the last seven years, it has grown into a full-fledged nonprofit that serves hundreds of students and families each year in and around low to moderate income communities within the Charlotte Metropolitan Area, especially the West Side.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I have been surprised about how much has unfolded in this undertaking just by me committing to doing the work, building relationships, and having a personal connection and a conviction about the importance of the work. There have been many more positive developments and amazing opportunities than challenges along the way. I guess, because I started doing the work without a solid plan, no detailed vision, nor any kind of budget, the fact that we are a registered nonprofit that’s growing in influence, impact, and interconnectedness with the fabric of Charlotte is amazing. The one thing I’ve always had was a strong belief in the importance of this work generationally, and that continues to carry us despite the challenges in the nonprofit funding environment, the current political climate, and other indicators that might give many leaders in the nonprofit sector pause.

As you know, we’re big fans of Money Magnets Club. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Money Magnets Club serves as a community that fosters financial literacy and encourages entrepreneurship among elementary schoolers and their responsible adults to build generational wealth. Through our comprehensive programming, Money Magnets Club supports young minds to build a strong foundation for developmentally appropriate and culturally relevant understanding of financial health and literacy, as well as related habits. By providing education, exposure, and tangible resources, we aim to cultivate a community where navigating the complex modern economy can be done earlier in life.

Our brand has grown, but has continued to be community-based and relationship-centered, and we have engendered a wide variety of champions in the community, corporate, and municipal sectors that have made significant investments in us as we invest in the youth in our areas of service. We offer primarily in-person programs in the Charlotte, NC metropolitan area, but are expanding offerings to include an opportunity for people to institute a Money Magnets Club experience in their area that is relevant to who they serve. Stay tuned!

We are positioning our organization to be ecosystem conveners in Charlotte with respect to financial health as a local priority and working with a wide cross-section of groups and sectors to support youth as early as possible and systemically in attaining financial wellness. The work we do cannot be done in isolation or with a “savior complex.” It must be collective, human-centered work, rooted in understanding the complex historical phenomena that have brought us to where we are, and encouraged by the futuristic notions where growth and development co-occur with community wellness, not leaving underinvested subsets of our community behind.

What were you like growing up?
I had the best of both worlds coming up that led me to be as comfortable with a CEO of a large multinational company as I was with the maintenance staff in the break room of a blue collar small business. The cultural fluency I developed in life came from experiencing dual realities. I attended Title 1 public schools as the child of a single parent making too much money for public assistance, but too little money to have all of the needs of the household met regularly. I also spent a lot of time with my paternal grandparents that lived in an economically affluent suburb of Washington D.C. They emphasized education and fiscal astuteness that served me well in addition to allowing me to serve others in the communities where I lived and worked.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://moneymagnetsclub.org
• Instagram: instragram.com/moneymagnetsclubnc
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/moneymagnetsclub
• LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/money-magnets-club
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@moneymagnetsclubtv