Zoila Jennings // Impact Investment Lead at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Investing in Impact | Impact Investing

In Episode 70 of the Investing in Impact podcast, I speak with Zoila Jennings, Impact Investment Lead at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, on poverty alleviation and systems change through targeted community financing.

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Sound Bites

• "The limit does not exist in philanthropy. I think with banks, they're highly regulated, and it does limit what they can do in terms of flexible financing."
• "We're a systems level investor. So I don't say, oh, I'm focused on housing or small business. On the community development side, I say, where is the capital now going and where are places that we should really pilot, test, bring in other investors to join."

About Zoila

Zoila Jennings joined the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 2021, bringing her career focus on social justice and poverty alleviation—through targeted community financing—to her role as an impact investments officer. Prior to this, Zoila served as a senior relationship manager with U.S. Bank, the fifth largest commercial bank in the United States, as part of its Community Development Corporation.

In this position, she sourced, structured, and underwrote loans and equity investments for Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). She also developed and executed investment initiatives aimed at addressing racial inequities, including a $25 million fund to support women of color microbusiness owners and the first CDFI-issued racial equity bond for targeted investments in underserved communities of color.

Before joining U.S. Bank, Zoila spent a decade at JPMorgan Chase in New York, taking on various roles, including vice president for Community Development-New Markets Tax Credits.

Here, she utilized tax equity to structure community development transactions. As a credit underwriter, she managed a credit portfolio that encompassed lending, from small working capital lines to large syndicated tax-exempt debt obligations, to nonprofit hospitals, higher education institutions, and social services agencies.

In other roles, she founded a consulting firm specializing in credit underwriting, loan structuring, and financial due diligence for loans and investments benefiting low-income communities.

Zoila holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management and a BS in Business Economics with a concentration in Catholic Studies from Fordham University.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is a force in the realm of philanthropy, employing a multifaceted approach that includes grantmaking, policy change, and impact investing to dismantle barriers to health and wellbeing.

At the heart of RWJF's mission is the belief that everyone in the U.S. should have the opportunity to live their healthiest life possible. Achieving this goal requires equitable capital flow to communities historically deprived of investment due to generations of racist policies and structural racism.

About RWJF Impact Investments

RWJF stands as a national leader in philanthropy, committed to transforming health across the nation within our lifetime. Through impact investments—which encompass deposits, loans, equity investments, and guarantees—RWJF collaborates with both public and private sector investors to channel more capital into underinvested communities.

The foundation's vision encompasses flourishing communities where clean, safe drinking water and stable housing are accessible to all, jobs pay a living wage, and everyone has a fair chance to thrive.

Since 2010, RWJF has allocated $625 million to impact investments, addressing structural barriers that perpetuate health inequities.

These barriers include historical and ongoing disinvestment in housing, jobs, water infrastructure, and other critical community conditions. RWJF's investments target improving health and economic opportunities for communities, small business owners, and households that have historically faced a lack of investment, such as rural communities, communities of color, and low-income communities.

RWJF aims to attract or "leverage" $1 billion from other investors—including banks, commercial lenders, insurance companies, and private investors—by 2025 to further this mission.