Voices For Action:
A Campaign to Reduce Poverty in Michigan

In November 2008, the statewide Voices for Action Poverty Summit gathered over 5,000 communit leaders and low-income residents from around the state to address the barriers that prevent Michigan’s low-income residents from achieving self-sufficiency.

In collaboration with Western Michigan University’s Lewis Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations, the PRI has been appointed to coordinate regional poverty reduction planning for Region VI (Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Cass, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, Van Buren).

After the Summit, Governor Granholm joined with the Director of the Department of Human Services and Michigan Community Action Agency Association’s Board of Directors to direct all local Community Action Agencies and Departments of Human Service to participate in local and regional planning activities.

Being selected to coordinate our region’s poverty reduction planning, the PRI has been convening a regional coalition that represents human service organizations, government agencies, local faith-based and community organizations, non-profits, and businesses from around the nine counties of our region.

This regional gathering of human service providers and residents engages diverse partners from our many communities and, in itself, delivers one part of our regional agenda- collaboration and comprehensive planning. In a time when city and township budgets are diminishing, and county and state funds are unable to meet the many needs of those struggling in Michigan, collaboration is one resource which remains intact. Collaboration is the cornerstone of our regional poverty reduction efforts, and an essential component of our region’s ability to provide comprehensive planning for our low-income residents. By gathering state agencies with local government departments, faith-based organizations with non-profits, human service organizations with neighborhood associations, and all of these with community members, we look to provide resources and support to the many programs southwest Michigan operates for those in need.

As our local Community Action Agencies and Departments of Human Services work together with existing community organizations, it is the task of the PRI and WMU Walker Institute to coordinate this regional planning, and help facilitate and develop comprehensive plans for each community in our region. After reviewing proposals, the post-summit Region VI Coalition voted that the PRI and WMU Walker Institute develop a Community Indicators System, which will serve as an informational resource to all human service efforts in a community. The goal of the Community Indicators System is to provide a community with a complete view of the programs it is currently offering, and compare this in contrast to the needs its residents currently have. This Community Indicators System would allow the many organizations of our community to evaluate their programs more accurately, and help all organizations coordinate their programs to make sure they best meet the most pressing needs of our community.

Poverty Summit Coalition Partners for Region VI:

Calhoun County Department of Human Services
Kalamazoo County Department of Human Services
South Central Michigan Community Action Agency Region VI
South West Michigan Community Action Agency
Kalamazoo Community Action Agency

Kalamazoo County Human Services
Van Buren Community Mental Health
Greater Kalamazoo United Way
Legal Services of South Central Michigan
Allegan County Head Start

Western Michigan University
Upjohn Institute
St. Joseph County Human Services Commission
Child and Family Services of Southwest Michigan
Michigan Prisoner Reentry Initiative

University of Michigan
Kalamazoo County Commission
Kalamazoo County Transportation Authority
Olivet College
Branch Area Chamber of Commerce

Open Door Ministries
Allegan Emergency Food Assistance Program
Tri-County Head Start
 

Leadership Team

Katie Hoese, Berrien County
Carrie Kray, Berrien County
Mona Borowicz, Berrien County
Jeff Kyles, Benton Harbor
Tammi Williams, Niles
Michele Smith, Niles
Miguel Rodriguez, Kalamazoo Community Action
Robert Argue SW, Michigan Community Action
Cathy Farnsworth, Allegan
Adrienn Glover, Cass
Stan Parker, Van Buren
Regina Badger, Allegan/Kalamazoo
Denise Hartsough, Kalamazoo/United Way

Regional Coordinators:

Sherry Thomas-Cloud: Kalamazoo
Nancy Macfarlane: Barry, Branch, Calhoun, St. Joseph

Consultants:

Jeffrey H Brown: Executive Director Kalamazoo County Poverty Reduction Initiative
Dr. Timothy Ready: Director Lewis Walker Institute for Race and Ethnic Relations WMU