Poverty measures

Faculty Directors

Kristin Seefeldt

Faculty Director of Poverty Solutions; Associate Professor of Social Work; Associate Professor of Public Policy; Faculty Associate, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research

Kristin S. Seefeldt’s primary research interests lie in exploring how low-income individuals understand their situations, particularly around issues related to work and economic well-being. Her most recent book, "Abandoned Families: Social Isolation ...

Faculty Affiliates

Alexander Adames

Assistant Professor of Sociology

Alexander Adames is an assistant professor of sociology and faculty associate at The Stone Center for Inequality Dynamics. He is a sociologist and social demographer who primarily examines the drivers and consequences of economic stratification withi...

Faculty Affiliates

Noura Insolera

Assistant Research Scientist at Institute for Social Research, Assistant Director of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics

Noura Insolera is an assistant research scientist at the Institute for Social Research and assistant director of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. Insolera's research focuses on health, educational, and socioeconomic outcomes of income inequality a...

Faculty Affiliates

Robert Manduca

Assistant Professor of Sociology; Faculty Associate, Population Studies Center; Faculty Associate, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research

Robert Manduca is an assistant professor in U-M's Department of Sociology. His research asks why some people and some places are more economically prosperous than others. His recent work examines the role that national policy decisions play in determ...

Faculty Affiliates

Katherine Michelmore

Associate Professor of Public Policy; Faculty Associate, Population Studies Center, Institute for Social Research

[email protected]

Katherine Michelmore is an associate professor of public policy at the University of Michigan's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. Michelmore is a leading scholar and educator on the social safety net, education policy, labor economics, and econ...

Staff

Amanda Nothaft

Director of Data & Analysis

[email protected]

Amanda Nothaft has extensive experience in data analysis and policy evaluation and has worked across multiple levels of government and a wide variety of policy stakeholders. Prior to joining Poverty Solutions, Nothaft worked on projects as diverse as...

In the Media

Americans' incomes hit a record high in 2025. Now for the bad news.

Sep 15, 2026 CBS News

American households earned a record median income of $87,460 last year, according to new Census Bureau data. The catch? That figure is only slightly above the previous peak set in 2019.

News Release

About 4 in 10 Michiganders struggle to afford basic needs, same as last year

Aug 4, 2026

Nearly 40% of Michiganders are struggling to afford basic needs, according to a new analysis from Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan. This includes about 13% of residents whose income is below the federal poverty line and more than 26% o...

News Release

Poverty Solutions updates Washtenaw County’s Opportunity Index to pinpoint disparities in access to opportunity

Mar 12, 2026

Washtenaw County’s Office of Community and Economic Development has released an updated Opportunity Index, with technical support from Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan.

A map of Washtenaw County that shows the Opportunity Index.

News Release

Rich cities, broke neighbors: U-M study exposes metro-level wealth divide

Dec 3, 2025

A new University of Michigan study shows how the patchwork of city boundaries and economic segregation combine to create a “tax base fragmentation.”

A map of tax base fragmentation that shows fiscal capacity ratio

Policy Briefs

How Much Did Child Poverty Fall Between 1993 And 2019? How Does That Compare To What Happened Between 2019-2021?

October 28, 2022

H. Luke Shaefer, Patrick Cooney

Trends in the Economic Well-Being of Households with Children (presentation) Download full PDF essay Download data (excel spreadsheet) IntroductionIn a recent story in the New York Times, Jason DeParle wrote about a new report by the research cente...

How do we measure poverty?

Jul 26, 2023 0:02:37

Watch Amanda Nothaft, director of data & analysis at Poverty Solutions, speak about measures of poverty and how we use this data in our work.