Welcome to Poverty
Pop. 36,500,00
Danielle Olson
Issue date: 3/6/08 Section: News
|
With those words from Karen Fritz, a University of Wisconsin Extension educator, and little more information, a bell rang signaling week one of the poverty simulation.
The program, brought to the University of Wisconsin-Stout by Dr. Jeanne Rothaupt’s Family Resource Management Class, attempts to educate the public about poverty by putting volunteers into a low income family’s situation for a month.
“The object of the program is to sensitize us to people in the situation where there is a limited income,” said Fritz.
Volunteers were mostly students from UW-Stout and were put in chairs surrounding each other representing houses. The “parents” were given a packet with their names, their children’s names, money and information on the family’s situation.
Four weeks were represented by fifteen minute cycles where each month the family had to pay their bills, drop their kids off at school and feed the family. Once the month was up, the families and agencies which the families used to get through the month got together for a discussion.
“Let’s see how you did…,”reflects Fritz. “Only one parent fed their family every week.”
As volunteers discuss how they felt during the experience, she reminds the audience of the simulation’s reality.
“The family situations in this simulation are based on the average income for those in poverty; there are some people who earn even less. Most have parents who both work full time jobs, but are getting paid too little. With minimum wage at $6.50 an hour, the yearly income is $13,000, which would barely cover costs of a house, let alone food for an entire family. We also see a lot of families that once earned a good income, but their spouse died or they got divorced and are dealing with half of the income they once had.”
“The system seems to be designed for people willing to shuffle around, and wait,” commented Dr. Bob Horan, an English and Philosophy professor.
As the discussion wraps up, Fritz encourages the volunteers to take their experience and make a difference.
“There are numerous ways to help the poor in the community,” said Fritz. “We are hoping by conducting the simulation, we will be enabling people to help out more.”
Dr. Rothaupt brought the program to UW-Stout because “our Human Development and Family Studies graduates will be working with individuals and families across the economic spectrum, and many students will work with people who live in poverty.”
She hopes that her students will understand the situations of those in poverty better from the experience.
“The simulation helps bring to life information studied in the classroom,” said Fritz. “But unfortuantely, this is not a game for 36.5 million who are in poverty.”
DONATE your clothes to Goodwill. Goodwill industries provides employment and training services for people with disadvantages such as welfare dependency and homelessness.
EDUCATE yourself by attending an informational session on “The changing face of hunger” on Monday March 10 in the Ally center. Showings at 11:30 a.m., 4:40 and 9 p.m. Or, A panel on hunger and homeless in Dunn County from 6 p.m. in Ballrooms A and B of the Memorial Student Center.
BUY A BOWL filled with homemade soup and bread at “Empty Bowls”. The Menomonie Middle School is hosting this event on Saturday March 8 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and all proceeds go to the Interfaith Food Pantry and Menomonie Area Bread for the World to benefit local people in need.
Be the first to comment on this story