PROGRAM
10:00 - 10:15 AM
10:15 - 11:30 AM
11:40 AM - 12:50 PM
12:50 - 1:10 PM
1:10 - 1:40 PM
1:50 - 3:00 PM
3:05 - 4:15 PM
4:15 - 6:00 PM
Opening Remarks: David Ellwood, Director of the Malcolm Weiner Center for Social Policy
Opening Plenary Panel: Poverty & Inequality in the U.S.: Where Are We and How Did We Get Here?
CHOICE: The Promise of Housing Policy in Combating Poverty & Inequality Panel OR Mitigating Human Impacts of Poverty Panel
CHOICE: Back to Work: Innovative Ideas for Addressing Joblessness and Extreme Poverty in America Panel OR Tackling Poverty Through Education Policy Panel
Changing the Conversation Panel
Closing Remarks & Reception
According to the United States Census Bureau, in 2015 there were 43.1 million Americans in poverty, 13.5% of the population. Studies from the Economic Policy Institute claim that inequality has increased in every American state since 1970. The top 1 percent in the income distribution, composed by 1.6 million families, captured 85.1 percent of total income growth from 2009 to 2013. On average, the top 1 percent made 25.3 times as much as the 161 million families in the bottom 99 percent. What are the underlying causes behind these facts? What is driving the sharp increase in inequality? Exploring different approaches, this panel attempts to illustrate the dynamics leading to poverty and inequality in the US. The diverse group of speakers will share their perspectives on how labor, education, social capital, race, macroeconomics and politics have influenced the current poverty rate and income inequality in the US.
Keynote Address: Dennis Kucinich, Progressive Advocate, Former Eight-Term US Congressman, Former Cleveland Mayor, and Two-Time Candidate in the Democratic Presidential Primary
Lunch
The Promise of Housing Policy in Combating Poverty & Inequality
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Affordable housing is one of the major policy interventions to combat poverty in urban areas. While some cities have seen their affordable housing stock disappear, others have been able to develop innovative solutions to generate opportunity through affordable housing. This panel is intended to provide an overview of the most pressing questions and important players in this field. Specifically, panelists will focus on three key questions: (1) Why does housing policy matter for combating poverty and inequality?; (2) What are the political challenges involved in increasing access to affordable housing?; and (3) What have federal, state, and local actors done successfully to support affordable housing development? Panelists will provide context on the housing policy landscape in Massachusetts and elsewhere and offer insight on opportunities for Harvard students as rising policy makers to get involved in this issue.
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Mitigating Life-Long Impacts of Poverty
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Youth raised in poverty experience temporary and permanent changes in their psychology and biology. These changes manifest in a variety of ways: From increased risk of cardiovascular attack and mental illnesses to reduced attention and cognitive ability. Simply put, poverty leaves a scar. The economic growth under President Trump and Congress will hopefully reduce the number of children living in poverty. But how can President Trump, Congress, and State and Local governments intervene to leverage children's resilience and mitigate the consequences of poverty on the developing brain? This panel examines how poverty impacts our youth and ways that successful interventions can alleviate the adverse effects of poverty across the lifespan.
Back to Work: Innovative Ideas for Addressing Joblessness and Extreme Poverty in America
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The election of President Donald Trump gave voice to the frustrations of at least 60 million Americans who feel left behind in the emerging economy. The election made clear what jobless Americans understand so intimately: unemployment and the poverty that results are matters of individual, regional, and national concern. This begs the question: who is jobless in America? What policies and programs, economic circumstances, and social conditions make it so hard for Americans to get back to work? Across the country, what are the bright spots in workforce development and income support for families? And how can policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels lead the way in addressing the economic discontent that drove so many voters to the polls last November? This panel includes experts from the federal government, academia, a think tank, and a direct service provider. These diverse speakers will describe the size and complexity of extreme poverty and joblessness in the United States, offer fresh perspectives from across the country, and lift up innovative programs and policy ideas for getting Americans back to work.
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Tackling Poverty Through Education Policy
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In the last 35 years, federal spending on primary, secondary, and technical education has increased by 145 percent (in inflation-adjusted dollars). However, over this same period, math and reading scores for 17 year-olds on the National Assessment for Educational Progress have made only incremental gains. Today, achievement gaps remain pervasive in urban cities and rural communities, and top-down efforts to close these gaps have been meet with fierce resistance and underwhelming progress, particularly for low-income and minority students. Under President Donald Trump, it is likely that education reform will be anchored in school choice and competition. Rebuking past federal education policies, President Trump’s vision for K-12 education reflects a fundamental belief in state and local control over education policy. As state and local policymakers consider school choice, they will also need to consider the extent to which accountability measures - like common standards and aligned assessments – should be used as vehicles for reform. With a focus on school choice and accountability, this panel addresses how states can and should use any new resources and decision-making powers in order to improve educational outcomes for students in poverty.
Economic inequality was a guiding feature of the 2016 presidential election. Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders galvanized millions of followers based on a pledge to reduce inequality and many analysts believe president-elect Donald Trump’s victory was due to the economic anxiety of the white working class. While the veracity of this latter claim is still being debated, the growing economic inequality in the United States and stagnating wages for the middle class has been well-documented and must be addressed over the next four years of the Trump presidency. In the wake of an election that brought these issues to the forefront more than ever, this panel will explore how to address economic inequality and poverty within the context of the Trump presidency. While the white working class has been the focus of the post-election collective debrief, it is crucial to also remember that race plays a significant role in economic inequality, with black people suffering from higher unemployment, lower incomes, lower wealth, and higher rates of poverty than their white counterparts. This panel will attempt to shed light on an inclusive strategy for addressing poverty and inequality in the future. The panel will feature voices and proposed solutions from both the political Left and the Right. From the Left, the panel will focus on how Democrats can advance their agenda on poverty and inequality in the context of a Trump presidency and Republican-led Congress. From the Right, the panel will focus on conservative approaches to addressing inequality and poverty and how well these align with the Trump policy platforms. The panel will also discuss bipartisanship opportunities on this issue. Ultimately, panel attendees will leave better informed about the opportunities for solving these critical challenges during the next four years.