Mary Geissler, Family Living Educator

UW-Madison Cooperative Extension – Chippewa County

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Target Populations - underserved families. Current programming includes:• Children of incarcerated parents• Probation and Parole clientele (budgeting)• Drug Court participants (budgeting/parenting)• Co-Parenting Classes for divorcing parents

(mandated)• Jail populations (women: Fetal

Alcohol/Parenting/Employability Skills)• Financial outreaches schools, housing,

economic support

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jobs for the highly educated are still plentiful in many parts of the country

low-income jobs for the uneducated are also increasing – service based, no benefits, etc.

fewer jobs for middle-income workers 3

oil prices/ commodities impact every sector of our society (fuel, food and transportation)

immediate price increases - and they rarely return to “normal”

IMPACT RIPPLE:• food prices increase• utility bills increase• employers lay off• housing costs• business reluctant to

expand • expect more work for

less pay, longer hours• consumers delay

spending

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Brookings economists studied three main social-non-economic components that contribute to generational poverty

*Economic Mobility: Children and Families by Ron Haskins and Isabel Sawmill; Brookings Institution Press 2009, cc 300pp

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1. Lack of education: no high school diploma

2. having a baby (or two or three – often multiple partners?) without financial or relational stability

3. Job: few prospects for moving up the vocational ladder from minimum wage

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*Brookings Institute Research, con’t.

*County Factors Relating to Wisconsin Poverty: UW-Extension Applied Population Laboratories; Curtis & O’Donnell; August 2010

Research indicates links to these areas:• increased

unemployment• increased

involvement with legal systems

• poor health outcomes

• *Journal of Social Sciences Issues, Winter, Vol. 44, Issue 4, pp. 69-85; on-line publication April, 2010

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1. Expensive –tuition never goes down – significant debt at graduation

2. Shrinking saving/contributions to apply toward tuition*

3. Lack of academic preparedness

*actual contributions may increase but can they keep pace with tuition increases and reduction in state subsidies?

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Students graduating with unmanageable debts

Parents unable to live up to co-signing obligations

Most college students remain blissfully optimistic about their future

*Project Student Debt 2010: An Initiative of the Institute for College Access and Success - “Keeping College Within Reach 2010” 9

length of employment impacts credit report and credit score

multiple short-term jobs indicate instability

keeping a job means much more to a family than paycheck

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Birth(s) to young women who have little education, few family supports and dim employment prospects * often lead to years of economic dependency*

*Early Motherhood and Subsequent Life Outcomes: J. Boden, Fergusson DM, John Horwood; Child Psychiatry 2009 Feb;49(2): 141-60.

*Impact of Early First Birth on Young Women’s Educational Attainment, The: Waite, Linda Moore, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 56 Soc.F 845

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Negative: lack of family structure, relationship with father, mental illness, support from community

Positive: for poor teens: provides some financial support, contact with services that may intervene, a higher social “status” in culture. *

Provides motivation to reduce alcohol/drug use…

*www.miller-mccune.com/culture-society: The Upside of Teen Pregnancy-26870

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We’ve done a great job making our communities aware of needs

Moving Upstream is essential with better tools to reach younger audiences

Knowledge is Power: People can make better choices 13

1. keep aware of the issues….we don’t have all the answers!

2. understand the unique financial climate under which we will be working for a long time to come

3. go further UPSTREAM to provide families with solid tools/resources to make better choices

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