Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan
Joan and Sanford Weill HallThe Poverty Solutions Engagement Series tackles poverty-related topics by bringing faculty, students, and communities together to explore ideas, strategies, and potential solutions to some of the most pressing challenges of our time.
Learn more and view our past events.
Rates of upward economic mobility have fallen since the mid-20th century. More and more children are growing up to earn less than their parents, and the lack of opportunity is exacerbated by rising inequality, increased wage disparities, and limitations within our education system. This event explored the future of work and the workforce. It examined the issue from multiple viewpoints, including the private sector and public sector, and encouraged participants to explore what the future looks like and how we can promote equity and economic mobility as the nature of work changes.
Shamar Herron, deputy director of Michigan Works! Southeast, leads a discussion with providers and participants on the front lines of workforce development about what works and what doesn’t. Panelists included Jonathan Gonzalez, Arielle Johnson, Coy Mosley, and Beulah Walker.
Jeff Donofrio, then executive director of Workforce Development for the City of Detroit, leads a discussion about current workforce development strategies and future directions of work and Michigan’s workforce. Panelists included Jim Jacobs, president emeritus of Macomb Community College; Jeannine LaPrad, senior fellow at Corporation for a Skilled Workforce; and Sharon Miller, a certified change management profession and Michigan talent architect at Consumers Energy HR/Learning and Development.
I have come to believe our country is best seen not on a spreadsheet, or understood in averages, but as a collection of neighborhoods.
The relationship between transportation and economic mobility seems obvious: if people can’t get where they need to go – whether it’s school, work, healthcare, or an office for social services – they’ll be worse off. Indeed, evidence corroborates this claim, suggesting a strong link between economic mobility and transportation. Investments in housing do not affect employment unless coupled with access to transportation, as demonstrated by the evaluation of the Moving to Opportunity Program. In a study by the Rudin Center for Transportation, researchers found areas with the least access to public transportation also had the lowest incomes and highest rates of unemployment.
This symposium drew from Poverty Solutions’ interdisciplinary approach to solving deeply entrenched social problems. We included voices tackling rural, suburban, and urban challenges as well as the local, state, and federal levels of government.
Our breakout sessions featured a multidisciplinary set of scholars and practitioners tackling rural, suburban, and urban challenges, as well as the local, state, and federal government approaches. Learn more about each panel discussion in this briefing (PDF)
Pictured here: Professor Joe Grengs, Teresa Gillotti, Kristin Blagg, and Ryan Buck. Moderated by Joshua Rivera.
Panelist and professor Tierra Bills from Michigan Engineering examines how transportation could help alleviate poverty in Benton Harbor. Read the story and watch the video.
We have to understand that when we build transportation systems, we are actually building communities.
The first Poverty Solutions Engagement Series session, Making Housing More Affordable, took place on April 7, 2017, at the U-M School of Social Work. It featured keynote speaker, Arthur Jemison, the director of housing and revitalization for the City of Detroit and interactive breakout sessions led by faculty and community experts discussing a variety of approaches to providing more affordable housing.
The event included breakout sessions (PDF) where attendees tackled issues related to affordable housing, including, homelessness in Washtenaw County, property tax exemption, and supportive services for low-income housing.
Arthur Jemison, former executive director for planning, housing and development at the City of Detroit and now Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Community Planning & Development at U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development delivered the keynote address.