Explore solutions that are increasing opportunities for upward economic mobility. The COVID-19 pandemic has made it even more difficult for people who are struggling financially to achieve greater economic stability for themselves and their families. In order to tackle poverty, a wide range of social issues need to be addressed. Which policies, programs and initiatives are providing the resources and creating the right set of circumstances for families to move up the economic ladder? These stories highlight reporting that departs from traditional narratives of poverty, by exploring promising responses that address needs like housing, transportation, racism, access to education and family care.
https://www.montereycountyweekly.com/news/cover/an-unprecedented-state-program-is-already-fulfilling-its-promise-to-house-the-most-vulnerable/article_3d13ca0e-216d-11ec-a84e-87e4ca2384e6.html
Pam Marino
Monterey County Weekly
1 October 2021
Text / Over 3000 Words
Over 120 hotels and motels have been converted into affordable housing developments in California, housing 8,260 people who were previously experiencing homelessness. Known as Homekey, The state-funded program was initially meant to quickly house vulnerable populations in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Funding for the next two years has already been approved for what advocates are calling “Homekey 2.0.”
https://grist.org/housing/paris-shows-how-to-make-public-housing-greener-and-more-habitable-at-the-same-time
Colin Kinniburgh
Grist
29 September 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Old and neglected housing contribute to climate change because they run on fossil fuels. In New York, outdated heating systems waste two-thirds of energy. The New York City Housing Authority is not only trying to create better, safer, livable affordable housing, but also cleaner and more sustainable housing. While the city is just beginning to explore how to do that, other cities like Paris who've already begun the work of updating old buildings that are used for affordable housing can offer a model for American cities.
https://nextcity.org/urban-news/entry/atlanta-housing-police-in-disinvested-black-communities-increase-trust
Adina Solomon
Next City
29 September 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
The Secure Neighborhoods program lets select police officers buy houses at subsidized prices if they move into a mostly Black, historically disinvested neighborhood. The aim of the program is to make police officers part of a community, build community trust, and discourage crime. While violence and auto theft in the chosen neighborhood have dropped, and some community members say the program improved relations, others complain that the gesture has been fairly superficial and just adds to gentrification pressures.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/09/worker-co-ops-photos-labor-democracy-communitarian-no-boss
Alissa Quart
Mother Jones
September - October 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
The cooperative business model has boomed in the aftermath of the pandemic. Worker cooperatives allow employees to run and own a business, giving them more control as well as a share of profits. Co-ops not only have a higher success rate, they also pay their workers higher, on average. Worker-owned co-ops have increased by 36 percent since 2013.
https://www.iowawatch.org/2021/08/17/how-a-handful-of-iowa-towns-thrive-rise-above-rural-decline
Lyle Muller
Pat Kinney
IowaWatch
17 August 2021
Text / Over 3000 Words
A few small towns in Iowa have seen an increase in their populations despite the opposite trend across the state. An investigation by IowaWatch of 58 towns showed the services and amenities that were common in those towns: vibrant arts scene, health care, child care, infrastructure for reliable internet access as well as roads, strong schools, safety, and a sense of community, among other factors.
https://www.governing.com/community/big-ideas-for-small-town-revival
David Kidd
Governing
12 August 2021
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Small towns in Ohio are turning to a developer to revitalize their main streets in order to bring residents and businesses back. Small Nation is the brainchild of a local developer who put his struggling town back on the map as a tourist attraction. The company is taking its methods to more than a dozen towns that are benefitting from his expertise.
https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/college-beat-higher-education/2021/08/california-tribal-colleges
Charlotte West
Emma Hall
CalMatters
5 August 2021
Text / Over 3000 Words
Indigenous students find a sense of community and belonging at new tribal colleges in California. As the racial group with the lowest rates of college attendance, indigenous students face a long list of obstacles. Having an alternative to mainstream universities gives more tribal members an opportunity to pursue higher education.
https://www.nola.com/gambit/news/the_latest/article_4cbf18a2-ef07-11eb-8b70-5b232e32a667.html
Jake Clapp
Gambit
2 August 2021
Text / Over 3000 Words
Tenants are banding together for housing rights in different cities. From collective bargaining to advancing tenant issues, the struggle for safe and affordable housing has been carried out through the efforts of grassroots tenant organizers. One such group is the New Orleans Renters Rights Assembly, which educates tenants about their rights. Others have led strikes resulting in renovations and tenant-friendly policy changes.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/equity-lab/article253074088.html
Jeong Park
Cameron Clark
Sacramento Bee
27 July 2021
Video / 5-15 Minutes
Employment programs that provide extra benefits such as paid training, books, childcare, and rent incentives allow people to switch to jobs in fields that pay living wages. Sacramento’s Digital UpSkill and Jobs Plus are two examples of programs that provide opportunities for those who need the extra support.
https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/tribaja
Courtney Duchene
The Philadelphia Citizen
27 July 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Tribaja connects a diverse pool of qualified candidates to tech companies that have cultivated supportive work environments for people of color in an industry that has famously lacked inclusion. Tech companies have attempted to draw a more diverse population into their workforce but have met with little success. "Tribaja has helped about 100 people find jobs this past year."
https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/news/2021-07-20/vail-pays-property-owners-to-keep-housing-for-local-workers-could-it-work-in-idaho
Rachel D. Cohen
Boise State Public Radio (KBSX)
20 July 2021
Multi-Media / Under 3 Minutes
An affordable housing initiative in Vail, Colorado is paying owners to reserve rentals for those who live in the area year-round, instead of selling to part-time residents. The success of the program is inspiring Ketchum, Idaho, a community on the search for affordable-housing solutions.
https://www.nola.com/gambit/news/the_latest/article_f60b9d06-e4ec-11eb-a936-0b6db8159fd2.html
Sarah Ravits
Gambit
19 July 2021
Text / Over 3000 Words
Home by Hand is a nonprofit that’s working to mitigate the effects of climate change on home ownership. Storm damage, high utility bills due to extreme weather, and the loss of housing stock due to Hurricane Katrina have all added to climate-change related “cost burdens” that keep economically disadvantaged people from purchasing homes. The nonprofit is building homes that are environmentally friendly to push down utility costs as well as the costs of potential repairs in the event of inevitable storms and hurricanes.
https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/1452180/what-can-lithuania-learn-from-dutch-universities
Dovilė Lisauskaitė
Lithuanian Radio and Television (LRT)
19 July 2021
Text / 800-1500 Words
University students in the Netherlands are able to qualify for stipends, loans, and employment regardless of their country of origin. Students can claim a subsidy of 413 euros as long as their family's combined income doesn't exceed 40,000 euros, and they can also request loans of up to 500 euros per month. The loan doesn't have to be paid until two years following graduation.
https://www.100daysinappalachia.com/2021/07/in-southwest-virginia-establishing-a-rural-hospital-system-requires-rebuilding-trust
Taylor Sisk
100 Days in Appalachia
8 July 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
When two hospital systems merged to create Ballad Health, agreements ensured all hospitals would stay open for at least five years and essential services in each of the rural and poorly served counties would be maintained. Enforceable price controls lowered patient costs and, in an effort to rebuild community trust and improve overall health, $308 million was committed to community-based care. The community health programs are based on the missions of organizations like Health Wagon, which serves its rural patients by forming personal relationships, being easily accessible, and understanding their needs.
https://www.hcn.org/issues/53.8/south-growth-sustainability-could-backyard-cottages-and-casitas-help-prevent-displacement
Jessica Kutz
High Country News
8 July 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Casitas, also known as accessory dwelling units (ADUs), are being legalized and promoted by several western states. Arizona is the latest to legalize ADUs in a bid to ease the shortage of affordable housing. An ADU pilot in Denver is helping moderate-income homeowners build units in rapidly gentrifying areas. They are incentivized to rent these ADUs at affordable rates, providing a benefit to homeowners as well as future renters.
https://thediscourse.ca/west-shore/langford-density-my-belmont
Shalu Mehta
The Discourse
2 July 2021
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A new rent-to-own development is providing an affordable housing option. Known as My Belmont, the new solution is combining affordability with walkability as well as access to public transportation - a combination that is hard to find. Although the new project offers limited spots, it’s being highlighted as the type of mixed-used housing developments that can help alleviate the issue of affordable housing and provide a better quality of life.
https://thebeacon.media/stories/2021/06/28/vacant-dangerous-buildings-rehab-kc-missouri-abandoned-housing-act
Celisa Calacal
The Kansas City Beacon
28 June 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
A neighborhood association is renovating dilapidated and neglected houses into livable homes that have transformed the look and feel of neighborhoods in Kansas City. The Lykins Neighborhood Association is able to assume ownership over houses slated for demolition by using Missouri’s Abandoned Housing act. “The result: A neglected house becomes a livable home.”
https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/fs-investments-nationwide
Jessica Blatt Press
The Philadelphia Citizen
21 June 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Philadelphia Financial Scholars is bringing financial literacy to students and their families as well. Students are taught about credit scores, bank accounts, and budgets, as well as entrepreneurial skills through an experience that could culminate in a $1,000 prize and help starting a business if it wins. Adults are invited to come in on weekends and weeknights to learn the same curriculum. Local companies have financed the program which strives to take the first steps towards bridging the racial wealth gap.
https://reckonsouth.com/what-most-kids-need-how-one-school-community-got-smart-when-its-rural-hospital-closed
Anna Claire Vollers
Reckon
21 June 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
School Health Model for Academics Reaching All and Transforming Lives (SMART) clinics are school-based clinics that fill in rural healthcare gaps. SMART clinics are fully funded for three years and then must be self-sustaining. Nurse practitioners and physicians provide routine medical care, like checkups and treating minor illnesses and injuries. Licensed social workers assess the needs of each student and provide onsite counseling, which has reduced the stigma of seeking mental health treatments. Care is free to all students, while community members who use the clinic are billed a co-pay.
https://prismreports.org/2021/06/16/how-teens-are-using-online-platforms-to-call-out-racism-in-high-school
Umme Hoque
Prism
16 June 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
All over the country, students are using the internet to call out racism. Young people are publishing open letters, creating Change.org petitions and Google Docs “with lists of racist people in their classes, and using online platforms to organize protests.” In Boston, teens from the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center wrote an open letter asking school officials to address the wave of anti-asian hate crimes. After the letter, officials issued a resolution. Although, in some instances these actions do result in change, sometimes it can result in censorship towards students of color.
https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/utah-stem-action-centers-to-learn-kit-program-tackles-early-math-education
Sydney Glenn
KSTU-TV
16 June 2021
Broadcast TV News / Under 3 Minutes
Utah Stem Action Center’s Innovation Hub has partnered with schools in order to make learning about math and science more enjoyable for students. During the pandemic the organization made and delivered around 500 To-Learn kits to students. The kit program focused on math skills for early childhood education and included activities like origami, slingshots and other hands-on activities.
https://calmatters.org/education/higher-education/2021/06/california-community-college-enrollment
Charlotte West
CalMatters
16 June 2021
Text / Over 3000 Words
Riverside County launched College Comeback to address the COVID-19 related decline in graduating high school students going to college. Six counselors each spend 25 hours a week reaching out to the high school class of 2020 and holding one-on-one appointments to help students navigate application deadlines, financial aid, and California Dream Act forms, as well as provide information about technical programs and military service. Counselors’ stipends come from money previously allotted for travel, and since they are also trained mental health professionals, counselors provide emotional support as well.
https://thecounter.org/delivery-apps-grubhub-doordash-charge-restaurants-commission-fees-delivery-co-ops
Vivienne Machi
The Counter
15 June 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Delivery cooperatives are being formed as alternatives by drivers who are pooling their money and charging customers a one-time fee in a subscription-based model. Customers and restaurants alike pay a set monthly fee for delivery services without any extra or hidden costs. Drivers are full-time employees that are eligible for benefits such as medical insurance and profit-sharing options. Restaurants are able to avoid exorbitant commission fees while drivers avoid predatory business practices.
https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/local-platforms-for-online-food-delivery-are-eating-the-big-guys-lunch
Oscar Perry Abello
Next City
15 June 2021
Text / 1500-3000 Words
Locally owned restaurant delivery platforms charge lower commissions than national giants like GrubHub, allow customers to order food on smart-phone apps, and have found ways to be profitable while also keeping money in local economies. While platforms differ by locale, cooperative models are increasingly popular. For example, Delivery Co-op in Lexington, KY provides customers with unlimited deliveries for a monthly fee, charges participating restaurants a flat monthly fee, and pays drivers a base salary plus tips, with benefits kicking after three months of full-time work and profit-sharing after one year.
https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/michigan/michigans-free-tuition-program-is-showing-early-success
Aaron Parseghian
WXMI-TV
14 June 2021
Broadcast TV News / Under 3 Minutes
A new initiative in Michigan is helping locals over the age of 25 attending community college free of charge. The Reconnect program helps those who have yet to complete a post-secondary degree by covering all the costs of either starting or finishing community college degrees. So far, the program has helped enroll over 70,000 people in the state.
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