Pastor-entrepreneur builds Edison neighborhood business center

In Kalamazoo's Edison Neighborhood, new ideas are coming together for ways to spur economic development. Pastor Carrie Bertrand's Believers Business Center is one such idea to revive the neighborhood and provide opportunities for businesses and employment.

The believers Business Center would host seven proposed businesses and provide a place for the community to come together and for people to make business connections and help other businesses grow. From Southwest Michigan's Second Wave Magazine:

Eventually, the 22,000-square-foot building at 1301 Cameron St. will be the home of a business incubator, a 4,700-square-foot expo and event center, an office share space, conference rooms, classrooms, a health and wellness center and more.

Rental rates are intentionally set low to make the space affordable. Paws Advocacy Network, a nonprofit that helps low-income pet owners feed their animals, has already set up business there.

Twenty five people have signed up to be members of the business center. For $99 a year members have access to the site and its networking capabilities promoted through connection meetings each month. Classes begin in September.

Bertrand's already reaching out to folks in the neighborhood. Garage sales that bring in a little revenue are also just as much about meeting the neighbors, who are among the people she's hoping to reach.

Edison, the largest of Kalamazoo's neighborhoods by population also has the highest unemployment, and Bertrand's mission is to offer training and advice that can restore hope in people battered by today's economic conditions.

Read the full article: http://swmichigan.secondwavemedia.com/features/believers0826.aspx

Unemployment hits single mothers, minority women hardest

A recent federal report demonstrated that single mothers and minority women have been hit hardest by recent unemployment. According to its report, unemployment for single mothers jumped to 13.4 percent in July from 12.1 percent in June and unemployment among African-American women climbed from 11.8 percent in June to 12.9 percent in July. In contrast, the national unemployment rate is 9.5 and the unemployment rate for black men dropped from 17.4 percent to 16.7 percent.

For Hispanic women, the unemployment rate rose from 1.1 percent to 12.1 percent in July while for Hispanic men the rate fell from 11.3 percent in June to 10.2 percent in July.

The condition of women could significantly worsen due to government cutbacks and a lack of resources made available by charities.

It's possible that the decline in the employment rate for men could be lower in July versus June because of seasonal jobs which require high amounts of manual labor. Even though women have a lower unemployment rate overall (with the exception being Hispanic women), they also on average earn less than men nationally and often have to raise families on their own.

One personal story was highlighted by the Grand Rapids Press:

Karrie Quay needs no reminder this economy is tough on single mothers.

Eight months ago, Quay took leave from her job as manager of a fast food chain near Flint to tend to her dying mother in Montcalm County.

Two months later, her employer informed her they could no longer hold the job open. Two months after that, her mother and "best friend" died from cancer after lapsing into a coma.

Quay, 27, got a job on a farm near Sparta. The 130-pound Quay earned anywhere from $20 to $50 a day pitching 70-pound hay bales onto a wagon. The mother to two was so sore the first week, "I could barely move."

But after wearing out her welcome at her sister's house and that of a friend, she was out of options. Earlier this month, she and her daughters, Ariana, 9, and Lillian, 6, moved into the family shelter at Mel Trotter Ministries.

"The only thing that keeps me going is my kids, and I told my mother I would never give up," Quay said.

Read the full article: http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2010/08/unemployment_hits_single_mothe.html

Kalamazoo Literacy Council hires new director

The Kalamazoo Literacy Council has a full-time director whose goal is to strengthen adult literacy services in Kalamazoo County.

Michael Evans, 41, was named Director of Literacy Services earlier this month and is charged with bringing area adult literacy programs together to better coordinate services for adults wanting to learn how to read or improve their literacy skills. He also plans to raise awareness of adult literacy issues in the community and gather more support to this cause.

“I look forward to expanding the reach of the Kalamazoo Literacy Council in the community,” Evans said. “There are thousands of adults in the county who need help in improving their literacy skills to better prepare them for the workplace or to live more independently.”

The new position is the result of a collaboration between the Council and Goodwill Industries of Southwest Michigan to strengthen the adult literacy services provided in the area. The Council has also established an office in the Goodwill Industries building at 420 E. Alcott Street to provide a central location for its services and to coordinate activities with Goodwill’s Family Literacy Program. The collaboration is funded in part by the Kalamazoo Community Foundation.

“Hiring a director is the next step to broadening and improving literacy education for adults in Kalamazoo County,” Board President Paula Aldridge said. “We are confident that Michael will move the Council forward in its plans.”

Before coming to the Council, Evans worked for 14 years in the nonprofit sector in Battle Creek with several organizations including Community Inclusive Recreation, Summit Pointe, New Level Sports among others. He was Executive Director of Heritage Battle Creek and the Sojourner Truth Institute of Battle Creek and served on many statewide boards including the Michigan Humanities Council, the Michigan Freedom Trail Commission, and the Michigan Association of Community Arts Agencies. Prior to entering the nonprofit sector, he was a staff writer for the Kalamazoo Gazette. He earned his bachelor’s degree at Western Michigan University where he majored in English and Communications.

The Kalamazoo Literacy Council has been helping adults learn to read since 1974. For more than 36 years it has operated as a volunteer organization, providing free tutor training in the Laubach Method, one-on-one services to adults, and literacy education materials.

Fulfilling the Council’s mission of having a fully literate community is more critical now than ever. In Kalamazoo County, over 31,000 people or 13% cannot read a simple story to a child, an intersection on a map, a prescription label, or total purchases from an order form. Additionally, children whose parents are functionally illiterate are twice as likely as their peers to be functionally illiterate. Helping adults improve their basic literacy skills has a direct and measurable impact on both the education and quality of life of their children. Moreover, for families to take full advantage of the Kalamazoo Promise or more confidently support their children’s education, they must be able to model reading and literacy in the home. Parent’s who value their own educational attainment make a great difference in their children’s success. That is why the Council is committed to quality literacy education to eliminate these problems and enhance the lives of adults through programs that increase reading, writing and spelling skills.

For more information about the Council, please call (269) 382-0490 EXT. 222 or visit the organization’s website at www.kalamazooliteracy.org.

St. Joseph County United Way Moves into New Facilities

"The St. Joseph County United Way moved to new offices in Centreville, and celebrated with a ribbon cutting (last week).

United Way Executive Director Kelly Hostetler turned the event into an open house for the new facility by inviting agencies which receive funding through United Way and the community that supports the efforts.

Mendon Boy Scout Troop 427 and Venture Crew color guard opened the celebration. Aaron Moore of the Sturgis Police Department gave a K-9 presentation with German shepard, Dasti."

www.sturgisjournal.com/news/x2023281294/United-Way-kicks-off-season-with-new-location

90 Reasons that Segregating Poor Children into Poor Schools Does Not Help Their Academic Achievement

Recently, the Michigan Department of Education released a list of the 92 schools in Michigan which have had the lowest academic achievement of all schools in the state over the past several years. 90 of these schools have more than the state average percentage of free/reduced lunch children. These schools are at-risk in that the federal No Child Left Behind law requires they be closed, restructured, firing the principal and most of the staff, etc.

Tough stuff. Perhaps, some would argue tough love. We need to have high expectations for all children in all of our schools in Michigan. Teachers and principals, counselors and social workers, central office administrators and school board members need to be held accountable. I would not argue that point and I don't think too many would argue that point. (Did I mention parents or guardians? I should have.)

On the other hand, we need also to bring to light some of the problems that these schools have. They are predominantly poor schools in poor areas of our state and serve predominantly poor children.

Here are some statistics that bring this point home. The data is from the fall 2009 student count data that is maintained by CEPI (the Center for Educational Performance Information) in Lansing:

Total schools in Michigan: 3,751

Number of students in those schools: 1,632,622

Number of students eligible for free/reduced price lunch: 744,786

State wide percentage of students eligible for free/reduced: 45.87%

Number of schools who were identified as worst performers: 92

Number of students who attended the 92 schools in fall 2009: 67,108

Number of students in those 92 schools eligible for free/reduced price lunch: 50,313

Number of the 92 schools with higher than state average free/reduced eligibility: 90 (or 97.83% of the 92 schools)

Percentage of students in the 92 schools eligible for free/reduced price lunch: 74.97%

Number of schools not identified in the group of 92: 3,659

Number of students who attended school in the 3,659 schools: 1,556,514

Number of students in the 3,659 schools eligible for free/reduced price lunch: 694,473

Percentage of students in 3,659 schools eligible for free/reduced price lunch: 44.62%

Percentage of schools in the 3,659 with more than state average of free/reduced price lunch: 54.3%

True, there are schools that do quite well on standard test scores that are schools predominantly made up of poor children. But as the statistics show, the odds are that much more difficult for these children to succeed when they are segregated from their middle and upper class peers.

The 92 schools should be held accountable for their poor performances. However, who is going to hold accountable the State of Michigan, Michigan Department of Education, the State legislature and Governor, school boards and central office administrators throughout the state? (Don't forget the parents and guardians.)

The 45.87% of our children in Michigan who are eligible for free/reduced price lunch deserve to know.

My point is this. We do not help our poor children by segregating them in poor schools.

As the former Budget Director for the Grand Rapids Schools, I always used an example:

Sigsbee Elementary in Grand Rapids used to have more than 90% of its children who qualified for free/reduced price lunch. Sigsbee also had terrible results on MEAP scores. One of the lowest in the city.

Just a little over one mile down the road was an elementary school called, I kid you not, Wealthy Elementary. Wealthy is in East Grand Rapids. Wealthy has always had very few poor children and some of the highest MEAP test scores in Michigan.

Michigan Works Scrambles & Finds Summer Employment for Berrien County Youth

"With state and federal funding evaporating, the people at Michigan Works in March expected to place only 80 young people in its Summer Youth Employment Program. Most years they had been able to employ 200 workers. In 2009 they placed more than 800 in jobs with federal stimulus dollars.

"We had consistent funding for six years," said Candace Elders, director of communications for the local Michigan Works Association branch, the job placement and training program serving Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.

But with an economy that continues to struggle and dwindling government revenue, that pool had vanished.

That left Michigan Works scrambling to find new funding sources to get area youths out of the house, off the streets and into jobs. They tapped into nine funding sources and succeeded in placing 350 youth with 75 companies and organizations, including the Michigan Department of Transportation, the Berrien County Department of Human Services, Michigan Rehabilitation Services and Harbor Shores."

www.heraldpalladium.com/articles/2010/08/14/local_news/1717016.txt

Do Government Anti-Fraud Programs Make It Too Difficult for the Poor to Receive Assistance?

Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, a national PBS program, asks some important questions in this week's edition:

Are anti-fraud programs making it too difficult for honest, poor people who need assistance to get that assistance? Or are anti-fraud programs necessary to protect tax payers' money?

One person who volunteers with the poor thinks that such anti-fraud programs are "... terrible. I think it’s a way of criminalizing poverty, and it is a way of making people feel ashamed of asking for help."

A county administrator in San Diego, California who runs such an anti-fraud program thinks that such programs: "... provide an integrity component to the public aid that goes out to those people in need, and without that integrity program then there is no way to insure that the monies go out to the people that are actually eligible, deserving, and actually have the need."

Another professor who is an advocate for the poor says: "For us it’s not the issue that you’re checking for fraud. We think that’s a reasonable thing to do, because you've got to protect the public dollar. It’s when you create a program that is, makes it difficult to get the benefit and then doesn’t demonstrate any benefit to the county or the state or the taxpayer. So we’re paying for a program that no one can prove has any impact."

The full report which centers on a controversial and aggressive anti-fraud welfare program in San Diego County California may be viewed or read at:

www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/episodes/august-13-2010/cutbacks-and-the-poor/6782/

Homeless suffer oil effects in Battle Creek

Environmental disasters often affect those the most who do not have the means to escape them. Those without financial resources are left to endure the harmful affects of their environment, while those with more means are better equipped to weather adversity. During Hurricane Katrina, we saw how the low-income population had less resources to leave New Orleans before and after the Hurricane hit. They were left to suffer the consequences of the disaster.

In Battle Creek, the homeless population who live near the river are becoming ill from inhaling the fumes from the recent oil spill. From the Battle Creek Enquirer:

Two homeless men stood in a forgotten patch of woods under an M-66 bridge, just a stone's throw away from the oil-infested Kalamazoo River.

"It's hurt my breathing," said Greg Knight, one of the men who stores his belongings and sleeps under the bridge. "All day long, I smell this ... It's hurting my chest. I can't deal with this."

Around them, cloth, bedding and household items were strewn about the camp in an incomprehensible mess. The smell of oil hung in the air. Above them, drivers passing in and out of Battle Creek likely were oblivious to the men's plight.

--

"We've been getting sick a couple days," said Ed, one of the men who live under M-66. "We went to the shelter because we couldn't take it anymore."

Ed, who preferred not to give his last name, said he's been sick to his stomach. Knight said he has experienced nausea and trouble breathing, and others have been throwing up for days. After noting Knight's bad cough and frail body, Artis asked the two men to check into the shelter.

When considering who to reimburse for the damaging effects of the oil spill, all members of our population should be considered. This includes the homeless population who will need health care to combat the health effects associated with inhaling fumes. We need to talk care of our entire population, and especially those who do not have financial means.

Read the full article: http://www.mlive.com/business/west-michigan/index.ssf/2010/08/follow_the_money_links_teens_f.html

Kent County Residents Camp Out Hoping to get a Chance to Get a Pre-Application to Get on Section 8 Housing Waiting List

Hundreds of Kent County Residents are camping out in Kentwood on the grounds of a church, some since Monday, in the hopes of being able to complete a pre-application to get on a waiting list for Section 8 housing.

EduJobs Bill is Partially Paid for with $12 Billion in Food Stamp Cuts

An editorial opinion:

As a past president of the Michigan School Business Officials and a chief financial officer for a school district in SW Michigan, I look forward to finding out how the EduJobs bill that President Obama signed yesterday will impact K-12 education in Michigan. Many of my colleagues at schools throughout Michigan have reduced teaching and support staff through layoffs, early retirement incentives, outsourcing, and more.

Having just over $300 million in additional dollars to support K-12 education in Michigan is, in my humble opinion, a good thing. Many of our urban and rural districts have struggled during a decade of tight funding and budget cuts. The children in Kalamazoo, Benton Harbor, Hartford, Niles, Allegan, and many other school systems in SW Michigan will benefit.

(If the $300 million is allocated purely on a per student basis, then districts may receive nearly $200 additional per student. There are nearly 1.6 million students in Michigan's public schools. How the funds will be allocated remains to be decided in Lansing and schools may not find out for some time, probably not until well after school starts at Labor Day.)

I am also saddened at the same time by this bill's "borrowing from Peter to pay Paul." Obviously, there is a huge debate at the federal and state level about fiscal responsibility. Many people of good will are concerned about deficits at the federal level and the legacy that these may leave for our children and grand children. I share these concerns.

However, I remain frustrated that part of the funding for the EduJobs bill comes from a $12 billion reduction in federal food stamps. Our children, all children need full bellies in order to learn.

Woodrow Wilson once said:

"Hunger does not breed reform; it breeds madness and all the ugly distempers that make an ordered life impossible."

I am appreciative of additional funding for K-12 education. We need to have a dialogue about solving the long term financial problems of our country, a serious and earnest dialogue. In the meantime, I wish we would learn other ways to balance our budgets and reduce spending than cutting food assistance for our neediest citizens.

More information on the EduJobs bill can be found at:

www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2010/08/10/01jobs.h30.html?tkn=RORFvVlS8tONuC+dO3Gyk/+BQVyhsgTZbmXx&cmp=clp-edweek