May Loan Closings: Arc Health, Franklin Cummings Tech, New Orleans Career Center

Loan A: $1 million acquisition loan (April 2024), Loan B: $460,000 term loan (April 2024), Loan C: $500,000 line of credit (April 2024)

In designated HPSAs (health professional shortage areas), less than 50% of the medical staffing needs are being met. In eight of the twelve states Arc Health operates, that number is less than 40%. Guided by principles of health equity and social justice, Arc Health is a medical staffing agency that connects quality healthcare clinicians and physicians to rural, underserved, and tribal communities that have traditionally faced barriers to accessing healthcare due to social and historical structures. In 2023 Arc providers worked 56,255 clinical hours and saw over 100,000 patients – an increase of nearly 75% from 2022. The organization serves 200,000 people annually through its services.

NFF’s loans, totaling $2 million, will provide the capital for Arc Health to acquire Lux Travel Nurse and provide additional working capital for the newly combined entity. Lux Travel Nurse connects travel nurses to facilities in rural locations, primarily in the Midwest. This expansion will add an important piece of high-quality care to Arc Health’s offerings by giving it the ability to broaden much-needed service offerings to include nursing and related services.

“The funding provided by NFF was the primary funding instrument to cement the Arc Health acquisition of Lux Travel Nurse. There is a severe shortage of talented nurses in rural areas, just like there is a shortage of doctors. Given the vital role that nurses play to ensure high quality medical care and Arc Health's ability to deliver these services through its Lux Nursing arm, this financing will continue to support our ongoing mission of providing the best medical care in underserved rural communities.”

Dave Shaffer, CEO, Arc Health

$8 million participation in a $38.5 million debt financing structure (March 2024) 

Franklin Cummings Tech (FC Tech) is one of New England’s oldest engineering and industrial technology colleges. FC Tech’s vision is to develop diverse tech talent and support graduates in building generational wealth through their careers. FC Tech has been remarkably successful in accomplishing this: 73% of its students are people of color, 46% are first-generation college students, and while the average household income for incoming students is $33,000, the average salary for graduates just one year after graduation is $51,700.

FC Tech’s current three-building campus, built in 1908, is in the South End, an affluent, majority-white neighborhood of Boston, MA. To best prepare students for modern technology careers, FCT is selling its existing campus and embarking on the construction of a new LEED Gold certified, 68,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility in Roxbury’s Nubian Square, a neighborhood that has long been the center of Black culture in Boston.

The building itself will become a teaching tool featuring visible building systems with exposed structure, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and sprinkler systems to support project-based learning curriculums in sustainable building and construction management. It will also include a renewable energy rooftop learning lab, with solar electric panels and roof-mounted wind turbines, a ground-level automotive shop, and a walk-in optical shop to support student hands-on learning.

NFF’s $8 million loan is part of a $38.5 million debt financing structure that includes five additional lenders: The Property and Casualty Initiative, The Life Initiative, Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation, Low Income Investment Fund, and Cambridge Savings Bank. In addition to the debt financing, there is also New Markets Tax Credit financing, funding from private foundations, a grant from the City of Boston, and FC Tech equity.

"We needed a creative and innovative financing solution to build our new campus in Nubian Square. NFF and   our partner organizations met this challenge and helped us build a unique capital stack that allowed us to move forward and break ground on our new campus last March. We are excited to move to our new building in 2025 and are grateful to each of these organizations and our other partners for making this possible."

Dr. Aisha Francis, President and CEO, Franklin Cummings Tech

This financing will support Franklin Cummings Tech as it continues cultivating a diverse and supportive learning environment for current and future generations of scholars. 

Read more about how FC Tech is investing in historically underserved Boston communities.

$500,000 bridge loan (March 2024) 

New Orleans Career Center (NOCC) serves as a beacon of opportunity in the heart of New Orleans. NOCC provides high-quality technical education and training for both high school and adult students. They do this by equipping students with the technical skills and training necessary to earn IBCs (industry-based credentials) in high-wage, high-demand healthcare, hospitality, and engineering careers. Since opening in 2017, the NOCC has prepared more than 850 high school students for college and careers. More than 120 adults have earned their PCT (patient care technician) certification and gained immediate employment.

Supported by the Hilton Foundation, NFF’s zero-interest $500,000 bridge loan will help NOCC navigate delays in government funding reimbursements so it can continue investing in programs that foster the educational journeys of even more students.

Learn more about NFF’s loan products on the financing page of our website.