Habitat for Humanity nonprofit leader joins the Obama Foundation Leaders Program
By Bryn Dippold
Dustin Fuller, the financial opportunity center manager at Habitat for Humanity of Findlay/Hancock County, was recently chosen to be a part of the Obama Foundation Leaders Program.
Fuller was chosen among 100 other people in the United States to participate and will train in leadership development, civic engagement and skill building to scale work across public, private and nonprofit sectors. The six-month leaders program includes weekly virtual meetings with the other participants chosen.
Outside of the U.S., the Leaders Program also has members in Africa, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. According to its website, the Obama Foundation’s Leaders Program aims to inspire, empower and connect regional cohorts of changemakers to accelerate positive and lasting change in their communities and throughout their region and across the world.
The program was launched in Africa in 2018, expanded to the Asia-Pacific region in 2019, Europe in 2020 and only began in the U.S. last year.
“We recognize the power that lies in bringing together diverse cohorts of leaders from many regions of the world, each with their own approach and focus and a commitment to joining a global network of changemakers,” the website says.
As the financial opportunity center manager, Fuller works to provide long-term employment and financial coaching to increase the financial health of vulnerable populations in Findlay/Hancock County. He led the launch of the Financial Opportunity Center, which is the only Habitat affiliate that serves a rural community in the country, according to the Obama Foundation’s website. Fuller has also launched a program that pairs families with access to laptops, tablets and digital literacy courses.
Since launching the center and the digital navigation and coaching program, more than 260 families in Hancock County have benefited from the resources.
Before joining Habitat for Humanity, Fuller worked as the financial opportunity center manager for the Northwestern Ohio Community Action Commission.
“For me, as a conservative Christian, being appointed to this program is both an honor and an opportunity,” Fuller says. “It’s an honor to be selected and to be surrounded by changemakers from all over the country. It is also an opportunity to prove that the art of discourse in this country is not dead. We may not agree on everything, but we can still treat people with kindness, dignity and respect. The beauty of this country is that we have the freedom to disagree and still fulfill our duty to work together to make this country better. I’m excited to learn and grow throughout this experience.”
The Financial Opportunity Center at the Habitat for Humanity of Findlay/Hancock County has no income requirements, timelines or obligations to meet with a coach. The Findlay-Hancock Community Foundation helped to fund this program and close a necessary gap to stabilize families.