This report explores the feasibility of launching a baby bonds pilot in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Through a review of baby bonds and related wealth-building pilots across the country, an analysis of local economic and demographic data, and interviews with community stakeholders, we examine how a Tulsa pilot could be designed, implemented, and evaluated. We focus on five priority zip codes in North and East Tulsa identified by local stakeholders as communities with both significant economic challenges and strong momentum for investment and revitalization.

Baby bonds are gaining attention across the United States as a strategy to increase economic opportunity and address persistent wealth disparities. These publicly or philanthropically funded trust accounts are established for children, typically at birth, and grow until recipients can use the funds for wealth-building purposes such as homeownership, education, entrepreneurship, and retirement. As cities and states experiment with different baby bonds models, local leaders are increasingly asking whether these programs can be adapted to meet communities’ needs.

Why This Matters

Wealth helps families weather financial shocks, invest in education and homeownership, start businesses, and pass opportunities to future generations. Yet many families in North and East Tulsa continue to face barriers to wealth building rooted in historical and contemporary inequities. The five priority zip codes examined in this study account for approximately 2,500 births a year and experience high rates of poverty, low educational attainment, barriers to financial services, and lower rates of homeownership among Black and Latino residents. Understanding whether and how a baby bonds pilot could address these challenges is important for funders, community leaders, policymakers, and practitioners seeking strategies to support long-term economic mobility.

Key Takeaways

• Multiple wealth-building pathways emerged as priorities. Homeownership, postsecondary education, workforce development, business ownership, and entrepreneurship consistently appeared in both quantitative data and stakeholder interviews as important goals for families in North and East Tulsa.
• Pilot scale, investment size, and evaluation goals are closely connected. Smaller pilots may allow funders to test implementation and build community trust before expanding, while larger pilots may serve more families and create stronger conditions for rigorous evaluation. Decisions about account size, participant numbers, and evaluation design should be made in relation to one another rather than independently.
• Implementation partnerships and community trust are critical. Stakeholders emphasized the importance of trusted messengers, community-based organizations, and financial institutions that can support enrollment, participant engagement, financial coaching, and long-term relationships with families. The study also highlights the importance of addressing barriers to financial inclusion as part of program design.
• Additional supports may strengthen outcomes. Examples from other states suggest that pairing baby bonds with financial coaching, cash assistance, material supports, and other services may help families address immediate needs while building wealth over the long term. Stakeholders identified several complementary supports that may be relevant in Tulsa, including financial coaching and expanded access to banking and financial products.

How We Did It

This study combines three sources of information: a landscape scan of baby bonds, child development account, and related wealth-building pilots across the United States; quantitative analysis of demographic, economic, housing, and birth data for five priority zip codes in North and East Tulsa; and interviews with local stakeholders and community leaders. The research team also incorporated findings from Tulsa's Evaluate the 918 Survey to better understand residents' priorities related to economic mobility, housing, and investments in children and families.