1,000 Out of Poverty -

1,000 Out of Poverty

1000outOfPoverty
1,000 Out of Poverty will disrupt how nonprofit and government agencies address poverty by focusing on the results of unemployed, employable adults moving out of poverty through multi-agency interdisciplinary services using common outcome metrics. The disruptive innovation is that it combines for the first time is a strategy that has 1) simple, clear, objective measures of self-sufficiency across all five key measures tracked on a single database; 2) client-focused strategies directed by the participant’s own self sufficiency plan, which are 3) supported by a client advocate and a collaborative system of support among diverse agencies; 4) guided by a local council of nonprofit, corporate, government and academic leaders; 5) evaluated by multiple university researchers (Notre Dame, Santa Clara, San Jose State); 6) includes application for government funding waivers and positions it for a market-driven component through social impact financing; and 7) is directed to influence anti-poverty policy changes at the local, state and federal levels. It is based on the new effort led by Catholic Charities USA with Santa Clara County as an anti-poverty innovation site.

To read more about 1,000 Out of Poverty’s programmatic design, click here.

THE GOAL

To move 1,000 people out of poverty.

THE STRATEGY

The committed organizations will use their existing strategies to both alleviate and reduce poverty for 1,000 clients. Organizations will assist one another with services needed by each other’s clients.

THE DIFFERENCE

Outputs are typically based on the amount of services received. This movement measures how many clients get out of poverty.

A COMMON MEASURE

The self-sufficiency scale will be used. This tool focuses on food, housing, health care, education, and income growth.

The 1,000 Out of Poverty Movement is a coalition of over nine agencies, and growing, throughout Santa Clara County committed to moving 1,000 people out of poverty. The focus is not only on poverty alleviation, but on poverty reduction, and the collation will test the best strategies to reach our goal. Each organization will utilize the strategies they believe work best for the populations they serve, e.g., job development, benefits assistance, client advocacy, education and training, self-help networks, micro-enterprises, social enterprises, asset development, and self-sufficiency planning. These organizations will use a common tool to measure their results. This tool, called the Step Up Self-Sufficiency Measure, focuses on food, housing, healthcare, education, and income growth. Agencies will measure the cost of interventions and the frequency and type of contacts. An evaluator will analyze the process and the results to determine what is most efficient, effective, scalable, or replicable,