March 27, 2024
The MAD Initiative: Notre Dame School of Milwaukee
Through the Making a Difference (MAD) Initiative, MLG Capital is able to support the Notre Dame School of Milwaukee (NDSM), a K3-8 Catholic school sponsored by the School Sisters of Notre Dame. NDSM’s mission is to challenge students to reach their full potential, while empowering them to use their God-given gifts to transform the community. This mission is reinforced through their three guiding principles of respect, responsibility, and regalo or gift. The history of this school started in 1996 when the School Sisters of Notre Dame created an all-girls middle school, focusing on giving educational opportunities to young girls in an expanding Latino community. To this day, their efforts are based on the needs of the community, while their focus stays on faith. After 17 years of growth and success, Notre Dame School of Milwaukee was able to open a primary school. Given the increase in quality education options in the area, the school soon began expanding quickly, going from 26 students in its inaugural year to 200 students in 2012. Over time, the community requested a middle school for boys, and Notre Dame School of Milwaukee was able to address this need. In 2018, they opened an all-boys middle...
August 23, 2023
The MAD Initiative: St. Marcus School
MLG Capital is proud to support St. Marcus School as one of the beneficiaries of the MAD Initiative. St. Marcus School has three campuses in the Milwaukee area, serving approximately 1200 students in K3 through 8th grade. Through the MAD program, we share the opportunity to support St. Marcus with their goal of community transformation and educational reform in the city of Milwaukee. Founded in 1875, St Marcus School has remained an anchor in its ever-changing neighborhood. The school held fast through the tumultuous years of the Civil Rights Movement and into the present, staying the course of racial integration even as much of the city’s population fled to the suburbs. When St. Marcus joined the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) in 1997, it became clear that the demand for high-quality, Christian education in the city was great and that St. Marcus was positioned for tremendous growth. Today, 97% of the students enrolled at St. Marcus are part of the MPCP program. St. Marcus is one of ninety-six, 80/80 schools in Milwaukee, in which at least 80% of the students are black and at least 80% of the students are low-income. Among 80/80 schools, St. Marcus is a shining star...
May 18, 2023
The MAD Initiative: War Memorial Center
Milwaukee County War Memorial, Inc. is the newest addition to our organization partnerships for the MAD Initiative. The War Memorial Organization is focused on and committed to their mission: “Honor the Dead. Serve the Living.” The Milwaukee County War Memorial supports over 50,000 Veterans on an annual basis. Some of the different ways they support these veterans include programs that spread awareness about suicide among veterans, provide support for mental health care among veterans, informational sessions on new Acts being implemented, and workshops to grow and heal with other veterans. The Milwaukee County War Memorial was originally dedicated on Veteran’s Day in 1957. In 1974, 17 years later, it was declared a Landmark in Milwaukee. The beautiful War Memorial Center located right on Lake Michigan was designed by architect Eero Saarinen. Mr. Saarinen has a long resume of outstanding work, but his most well-known work includes the St. Louis Gateway Arch, New York’s JFK Airport, and Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport. The War Memorial Center has become a staple of downtown Milwaukee located right next to other museums that are popular and educational attractions in Wisconsin. With support from the community, the Milwaukee County War Memorial can accomplish great things....
March 14, 2023
The MAD Initiative: SecureFutures
Our CEO, Tim Wallen, often says that education is the foundational element to helping the youth get ahead in life; and with 75% of American teens stating that they lack confidence in their knowledge of personal finance1, SecureFutures is tackling education through the lens of financial literacy and mentorship. The organization was established in 2006 as Make a Difference Wisconsin by Lloyd Levin, a noted Milwaukee philanthropist with over 40 years of experience as an entrepreneur in industrial, commercial, and residential real estate. Despite the name change to SecureFutures, the goal has always remained the same: to equip teens with money management skills, tools and mentoring so they can achieve financial capability, reach their goals, and strengthen their communities. 16 years later, SecureFutures has received several recognitions, including the Governor’s Financial Literacy award (twice!) and Brenda Campbell, President and CEO, is a member of the Governor’s Council on Financial literacy and Capability since 2020. Even more notable is the recently achieved milestone of having served over 100,000 students across Wisconsin. SecureFutures offers three programs: Money Sense, Money Coach and Money Path. Money Sense teaches students the essentials of money management, like banking and creating a savings plan, and is typically...
October 4, 2022
The MAD Initiative: St. Augustine Preparatory Academy
The Making a Difference (MAD) Initiative was established to bridge the gap between our business strategy and our philanthropic goals. The concept was originally tested with a limited number of investors in benefit of Lifesong for Orphans, of which our CEO, Tim Wallen, serves on the board of. Since 2017, the MAD Initiative has generated over $120,000 to Lifesong and we decided to expand our efforts to benefit organizations in our local community. Our additional six organization partners are faith-based and/or focus on youth education and were selected based on our employee engagement within them. St. Augustine Preparatory Academy (Aug Prep) is a K4-12 nondenominational Christian school with a mission to develop their students to be leaders known by their strength, character, courage, intellect, impactful contributions, and their faith. Aug Prep was founded by the Ramirez family, who committed to investing in high-quality education on the southside of Milwaukee. Launched in 2017 with 590 students, Aug Prep has grown to serve more than 1,500 students today, with waitlists in almost every grade. Currently, 96% of Aug Prep students are Hispanic or black, coming from 42 zip codes across the City of Milwaukee. 87% come from low-income backgrounds and 99% are eligible for...
July 20, 2022
The Math of the MAD Initiative: Part 2
Now that we’ve provided a high-level overview of the Making a Difference (MAD) Initiative, let’s take a deeper dive into how we’ve structured this investment. There aren’t many investments out there that generate a positive return on your investment while targeting to create incredible tax-efficiency for investors. The driving force behind the creation of the MAD Initiative was not to create a tax haven but to foster rippling social impact. Needless to say, the tax benefits are indeed a bonus of the investment. At MLG, we are value-add investors. This means we are hunting for, and investing in, assets with existing inefficiencies. We do so with the plan to resolve issues and streamline efficiencies, ultimately aiming to increase the net income the asset produces. MLG generally targets an 11-15% IRR return to investors. This is comprised of an annual 8% cumulative preferred return and share of appreciation over time. The standard share of profit is 70/30 (investor/MLG). So, how does the math work out for an investment in the MAD Initiative? There are two main components driving the tax efficiency within the MAD Initiative. The first stems from the passive losses generated for investors through bonus depreciation from our private real estate investments....
February 22, 2022
The ‘MAD’ Initiative: Part 1
When you think of MLG Capital, you’re likely considering us through the lens of alternative investments, specifically in private real estate. While this is true, and our core focus is on investing in deals with believable and achievable assumptions, we also have a heart for investing in our community. One of our core philosophies is “making a difference, while making a living”. Within this foundational principal, employees are encouraged to participate alongside our corporate philanthropic strategies. In our pursuit of this mission, we’ve implemented a unique opportunity for our family of investors to participate in our Making a Difference, or MAD, Initiative. Launched in 2017, the MAD Initiative allows MLG investors to invest in our Private Funds, while making an impact at a charitable organization by donating a portion of their distributions to the charity. When the initiative first began, the selected organization was Lifesong for Orphans, a nonprofit in which our CEO, Tim Wallen is still an active board member. As of October 2020, we have expanded this effort to include 5 additional organizations, all of which have a focus on youth education within the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin: SecureFutures, St. Marcus School, Augustine Preparatory Academy, Milwaukee College Prep and Howard Fuller Collegiate Academy. Collectively, these organizations passionately served...
