Staff retreat! Do you know Indiana legislators well enough to play Guess Who? #TeamInstitute does!

The legislative session may be over, but our work doesn't stop when the General Assembly heads home! #TeamInstitute is at the 2026 Hoosiers Vote Summit to hear about the voting landscape in Indiana and learn how we can help more Hoosiers "Get IN-VOLVED" in civic engagement.

Refueling. #TeamInstitute

Indiana House committee hears bill aimed at electric bill affordability House Bill 1002 offers multiple solutions to rising electricity bills, including budget billing and disconnection guidelines.

We asked, you are answering: UTILITIES are coming in as the top need on this year’s needs assessment.

Olivia Smith, #TeamInstitute, shared this with committee members & joined others in offering suggestions to improve access & affordability.

www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/13/h...

Can we be in three places at once? Yes, we can! #TeamInstitute is testifying on:
💡 Utilities
💸 Health care payment plans and financial assistance
💳 Medical debt credit reporting

...in three different committees at 10:30am today. Sign up for our email newsletters to learn how it goes!

You helped #TeamInstitute achieve so much in the 2025 session. What will 2026 hold? #advocacy #financialwellbeing #onward

🤗 Welcome policy fellows!! 🤗

Yesterday, our prior fellows Roshawn Neal and Sarah Conrad joined us to tell our new policy fellows about their experiences and how to make the most of their time as members of #TeamInstitute.

Erin, #TeamInstitute, was delighted to join Chris from Weatherization and Terrance and Pam from Community Action of Greater Indianapolis on Dr. Jessica B’s new WISH TV show, At The Table.

🎉 Olivia Smith just reached the one year mark on #TeamInstitute! We are so incredibly grateful to have a tax and budget expert on our team. She has already made her mark by:

-equipping individuals and organizations with tax and budget navigation skills,

Less than a week remains to apply as a 2025-26 Policy Fellow with #TeamInstitute. For anyone from a background of financial hardship with a drive to create change, this position is a unique opportunity to join us on staff for ten months! Learn more: institute.incap.org/policy-fellows

Don't forget to apply to be a #PolicyFellow with #TeamInstitute as we are in the #hiring process for three local changemakers with backgrounds of financial hardship to join us for the next ten months. Learn more and apply at institute.incap.org/policy-fellows

#TeamInstitute is represented at the Voices for Healthy Kids annual convening this week.

Takeaways from the opening session:
1. How are we equipping community members to advocate for themselves?
2. Getting to do policy work is a privilege, even on the hard days.

#Onward

We all want babies to thrive. Without comprehensive policy supports like #paidleave & #childcare, welcoming a new baby can feel like a board game with #winners & #losers. #TeamInstitute presented this idea - through an actual board game - at the IPHA conference last week.

👀 Look who is at today’s Indiana Public Health Association conference! Come find #TeamInstitute talking about our collective #newborn #taxcredit and #paidleave advocacy.

#TeamInstitute is #hiring Policy Fellows in a part-time, flexible 10-month paid work experience (from October 2025 to August 2026). Fellows will build momentum on their policy idea(s) by developing advocacy, research and outreach skills. Learn more/apply: institute.incap.org/policy-fellows

Healthcare Headlines:Link Between Employment and Well-Being The authors of a study discuss Link Between Employment and Well-Being: Hoosiers' Experiences of Job Loss and the Case for Modernizing WARN

"Hoosiers struggled financially after job loss...and there were longer-term domino effects. One respondent shared, 'Had to move, lost everything. Now family is falling apart.'" --Zia Saylor, #TeamInstitute

www.wvpe.org/2025-08-21/h...

Time for Strategic Planning! #TeamInstitute convened this week to strategize for the coming years. Interested in learning more about our strategic planning or collaborating to make a strategic plan for you and your organization? Learn more about our offerings at institute.incap.org/have-a-proje...

ICYMI: There are lots of changes happening right now in Indiana around Medicaid, child care vouchers, and many other programs. Join #TeamInstitute Policy Analyst Olivia Smith for a day at the Indiana Government Center as she breaks down the FSSA's quarterly financial update!

Which legislators are 'Champions of Economic Opportunity?' At the Indiana Community Action Association annual conference last week, #TeamInstitute staff presented awards to four outstanding state legislators. Be sure to follow us this week to learn about who we selected and why they were chosen!

#TeamInstitute stayed busy today:
-Planning a summer Get IN-VOLVED series
-Setting up #garnishment interviews
-Answering reporter questions about Buy Now Pay Later products
-Writing questions for a legislator panel at our state conference
-Sending invites to a virtual session on dads & #paidleave

Group eats lunch at work

What did #TeamInstitute do today?
-Worked w/ partners on #paidfamilyleave advocacy plans
-Prepped a #strategicplanning session for a local #CommunityActionAgency
-Wrote a sign on letter re harmful adult ed funding freeze
-Finalized our #medicaldebt trainings

& Olivia brought strawberry shortcake.

Last week, our Policy Analyst Lauren Murfree presented at the Indiana League of Women Voters Convention on a women’s health panel with our medical debt efforts. Go #TeamInstitute!

Almost a week ago, #TeamInstitute analyst Ashley Phillips attended the bill signing for SB 409, which gives parents job-protected leave to attend IEP and truancy meetings. Huge thanks to State Senator Rodney Pol Jr. for championing this bill.

Lauren Murfree and Zia Saylor: State can do more to help with unexpected job loss - Indianapolis Business Journal Large-scale job losses depress economies, make workers more likely to undertake large moves and induce young people to reconsider career trajectories.

#TeamInstitute made the news this week with an op-ed in the Indiana Business Journal on the importance of increasing state-level protections available to Hoosiers experiencing job loss. Read the article: www.ibj.com/articles/lau...

“Hoosiers recognize the importance of putting family first, and want the next generation to have opportunities to prosper.” Check out commentary on state child tax credit options from Olivia & Zia, #TeamInstitute, in today’s @indianacapitalchronicle.com.

🔔 Statehouse Update 🔔

On Thursday, Dr. Lauren Murfree, #TeamInstitute, testified in opposition to SB 2, which would set arbitrary caps and time limits on participation in the Healthy Indiana Plan while also adding more paperwork burdens.

Happy New Year from #TeamInstitute! Be sure to check out our policy priorities for 2025 on our website at https://buff.ly/4emm7d2 and stay tuned for progress and ways to get involved by signing up for our email list: https://buff.ly/40BramM

#TeamInstitute is joining Blue Sky! Find us there at https://buff.ly/3ZiYI6N

From improved maternal health outcomes to increased employee morale and retention, allowing employees to bring children to work is a wonderful practice. Ashley Phillips from #TeamInstitute shares her experience with an in-office baby at https://buff.ly/3V9kk4k