Development Blogs.com

A

A

A

...

Much like the Millennium Development Goals, a county in Virginia has made a goal to cut poverty in half. The Board of Supervisors of Loudoun County passed a resolution to support the goal of cutting poverty in half by 2017. The story only received a brief mention in the Washington Post. To see more details of the plan, you can go to the county's website, which has an eight step plan that was developed last year....

from the Richmond Times DispatchStudy: Growth has helped top earners the most By GREG EDWARDSTIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITERThe highest paid Virginians earned $10.58 more an hour in 2006 than in 1979.The lowest paid made a dime more an hour than they did in 1979.The Commonwealth Institute, a research organization created by Virginia social-services groups, says the well-publicized growth in the state's economy since the 1990s has failed to benefit lower wage earners.When 20 percent of workers in Virginia earn wages that place them below the poverty line, the state has significant challenges ahead, said Michael Cassidy, the institute's executive director.Virginia's economic successes have been well publicized. CNBC, the business news network, and Forbes magazine have ranked Virginia as the...

from The Lynchburg News and AdvanceBy Dave ThompsonSupply is down and demand is up. Economics dictates that this is a good situation for the seller, and a bad one for the buyer.But when the good being offered is free and as critical as food, low supply creates a bad situation.“A lot of the areas surrounding Lynchburg and in Lynchburg … have a higher percentage of poverty than the state average,” said Ruth Jones, with the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank Network.“This is one area where we’re really focusing to try to help more people.”According to Jones, the demand for food has jumped 56 percent between the months of July and November since 2006.She said that Campbell County and Lynchburg could be the two most critical areas for food distribution.According to the U.S. Census Bureau,...

from Leesburg TodayThe county's human services agencies, the Loudoun Department of Family Services and the Town of Leesburg have an ambitious goal: to cut the county's poverty rate in half over the next decade.To that end, they will join the Loudoun County Community Action Advisory Board, the Social Services Board and the Loudoun Human Services Network in mounting a poverty symposium from 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24 at the Ida Lee Recreation Center."We are the second wealthiest county in the country," said Susan Jane Stack in a recent interview. But Loudoun still has a poverty rate of 2.9 percent, while the national rate currently is 2.3 percent.To be below the poverty rate means earning $20,000 or less, but the rate needed to be self-sufficient in Virginia has been...

from The Roanoke TimesUnited Way of Roanoke Valley wanted to inspire empathy in people.By Jessica MarcyDeb Chappell stood in front of a group of professionals who were about to experience poverty."Some of your profiles look a little grim," she said to the 49 participants Tuesday morning. As part of a poverty simulation exercise, they had just received packets detailing their employment status, family condition, income, assets and budgets.Then, Chappell added, "Your task this month is to keep your family alive."Instead of their annual retreat, board members of United Way of Roanoke Valley decided to participate in a poverty simulation exercise with other community leaders. They hoped the exercise would help them better understand how the poor struggle.During the exercise, participants...

from the Charlottesville Daily ProgressArea workers seek solutionsBy Rob SealA report measuring the welfare of children in the United States touched on some of the toughest challenges facing local youngsters, area child service workers say.A UNICEF study published last month quantifies 40 factors in the lives of children, including poverty, health and safety, education and domestic life. It ranked the United States 20th out of 21 of the world’s richest countries, citing poverty and poor health among children. The United Kingdom was last.Though some question the methodology used to develop the report, local service workers say it identifies some of the biggest obstacles area children face.“These issues [outlined in the report] are all things that we try to address locally,” said Erin...

from The Richmond RegisterBryan MarshallRegister News WriterA 35-year veteran in education, Rita Pierson does not like the term “at-risk students” because “We’re all at risk for something.”“If I gain one more pound, it won’t be pretty. I’m at risk of explosion,” she said Thursday to a large group of educators at Eastern Kentucky University’s Perkins Building. “Some of you are at risk of losing one more hair and being bald. Empty your mind of all that junk because you’ll go to school believing it. When you believe that, you lower your expectations for children.”Pierson, of Houston, Texas, led a one-day “A Framework for Understanding Poverty” workshop, sponsored by EKU’s College of Education, about how individuals from poverty think and act differently from...

from The Daily ProgressDukes resigns after 13 monthsAfter only 13 months on the job, the executive director of Central Virginia’s top anti-poverty agency has stepped down.Phillip E. Dukes resigned Thursday as leader of the nonprofit Monticello Area Community Action Agency.Dukes, who commuted to Charlottesville from his Woodbridge home, declined to comment on his departure.Connie Jorgensen, MACAA’s spokesperson, said she could not divulge details of the situation because it was a personnel matter.“All I can really say is that it was a decision between him and the board of directors,” she said.MACAA assisted 2,600 low-income residents of the greater Charlottesville region in 2006. Its programs are aimed at eliminating the causes and conditions of poverty.The organization’s board...

from The Cavalier DailyEvent aims at informing MBA students on how to "affect change" globally, locally through business resourcesChristina Brown, Cavalier Daily Associate EditorThe Darden School held a symposium on poverty yesterday aimed at informing MBA students about the issue and discussing how they can affect change.Sponsored by several organizations, including the Boston Consulting Group and the Darden Student Association, the event was open to both students and community members.The symposium opened with a video and discussion informing the attendees the state of poverty, both locally and globally. Attendees were challenged to think of how they could responsibly use their skills and resources in a world where half the population lives on less than two dollars a day."As MBAs, our...