As region rallies, borders fall away

The following editorial by Michael J. Brennan, president and CEO of United Way for Southeastern Michigan, appeared in the January 21, 2007, edition of the Detroit Free Press.

When 4-year-old Sarah enters kindergarten next year, she will not be prepared to succeed in school. She won't be ready academically, socially or emotionally.

As a result, Sarah -- and nearly 8,000 other students like her across the tri-county area -- will fail to read at grade level by third grade. If she manages to make it through high school, there's only a 2% chance that Sarah will ever earn a four-year college degree. But odds are, Sarah will drop out before earning a high school diploma, as two in 10 young people who struggle to read at grade level do each year.

We all share the cost of their collective failure, and it's enormous.

For every dollar that we don't spend getting children ready for school by age 6, we spend $17 caring for them later in life -- in support programs, incarceration, lost productivity, etc.

Whether it's education, transportation or safety, metro Detroiters worry about the same things. And we should, because social issues are seldom contained by geography. Today, so many Americans are struggling that -- for the first time in our nation's history -- the number of suburbanites living in poverty is greater than the number of poor living in urban cores. The same is true for our region.

Over the past five years, the number of individuals living in poverty in tri-county suburbs rose by 35% to more than 270,000, and 35% of them are children.

During that same time period, the number of Macomb County residents living in poverty grew by 60% and in Oakland County, poverty rose 20%. Wayne County saw poverty climb 35% in outlying areas, and 7% in Detroit.

We must reverse the tide, and I am confident the region is prepared to do just that.

During the course of our research at United Way for Southeastern Michigan, we collected more than 20,000 comments from 7,000 residents, and one theme reverberated consistently: This region aspires to be a place where all people have the educational and economic opportunities needed to succeed and to thrive.

Put simply, tri-county residents want the necessary tools and resources to help themselves.

We used the results of our outreach work to develop a blueprint we call our Agenda for Change, which targets three key areas -- educational preparedness, economic stability and basic needs.

Metro Detroiters told us they want to see children enter school prepared to learn and graduate ready for success. They want to be able to acquire assets, like a home or education, which will allow them to build a life. They also want to make sure that their basic needs are met and help is available in times of crisis.

At United Way, we recognize that the historic racial divide, turf issues, and other barriers have stalled regional initiatives in the past. But our outreach revealed a strong desire to see regional leaders come together in a collective, focused and collaborative way, and a belief that it can and will happen.

We have already taken steps toward that end, through recently formed partnerships like ONE D: Transforming Regional Detroit. United Way teamed up with five leading area organizations to explore synergies and share resources needed to tackle regional problems.

Internally, we are making progress with services like United Way 2-1-1, the 24-hour helpline that over 100,000 callers used last year to get help or give help. Rather than navigating a maze of 800 numbers, people who dialed 2-1-1 were able to easily connect to more than 6,000 health and human service resources and volunteer opportunities.

In coming months, we'll share additional details on our Agenda for Change and new direction, and we welcome your input and involvement.

As famed anthropologist Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small band of committed people can change the world. Indeed, nothing else ever has."

I hope that you will join us in improving the condition of our community.

MICHAEL J. BRENNAN is president and CEO of United Way for Southeastern Michigan. Contact him by e-mail at ceo@uwsem.org. Find out how you can get involved in helping your community, or get more information on the United Way Agenda for Change process, at www.uwsem.org.

The Poverty Shift --- The Urbanization of Suburbs

Do you know what I think?

I think it matters that we care about what happens next door to us as well as 30 miles from us and 3,000 miles from us. It is all connected.

For the first time in American history, the number of those living in poverty in suburbs outnumbers those living in the urban cores of America.

Fact: There are more individuals and families in America living in poverty in the suburbs now than in the central cities.

Fact: What is true for America is also true here in Southeastern Michigan.

Fact: More residents in the suburbs in the tri-county area ---- Oakland, Macomb and Wayne County ---- live at or below the poverty level than in the City of Detroit.

Fact: Over the past five years, the number of individuals living in poverty in the suburbs in Southeastern Michigan has grown by 35% ---- now over 270,000 residents.

Fact: During that time period, Macomb County has experienced 60% growth. Oakland---one of the wealthiest suburbs in America---20% growth. Out-Wayne county 35%.

Fact: Over that same time period, the number of individuals in poverty in the City of Detroit grew by 7% --- 261,000.

Fact: The number of residents in the tri-county area living in poverty would fill the "Big House" at U of M nearly five times. Of those residents in poverty, 35% are children.

As noted in a recent article in the Oakland Press:

"Economies are regional now," said Alan Berube, who co-wrote the report for the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank. "Where you see increases in city poverty, in almost every metropolitan area, you also see increases in suburban poverty."

Kurt Metzger, research director for the United Way of Southeastern Michigan and a longtime advocate of regional economic development planning, said the findings come as no surprise, given Michigan's struggling economy.

"This is a clarion call to show people that we are all in this together. The suburbs are not going to survive if the cities do not survive," he said. "We either have to come back as a region or we're not going to come back at all."

Marc H. Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, said social and economic problems such as struggling schools, rising crime and lowpaying jobs deserve the same attention in suburbs as they receive in cities.

"I call it the urbanization of the suburbs," he said. "I hope this says to people that the way to confront poverty is not to wall it off and concentrate it. You really need policies to eliminate it."

What are some of the driving forces:

Berube, research director at the Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy Program, said several factors are contributing to the trend:

1. Faster total population growth in suburbs than in cities.
2. Increasing presence of low-wage jobs in suburbs.
3. Growing presence of low-income immigrants in suburbs.

"Traditionally, cities have been viewed as home to poor populations, surrounded by middle- and upper-income suburbs," the report said. "This 'tipping' of poor populations to the suburbs represents a signal development that upends historical notions about who lives in cities and suburbs."

"Looking back at the 1970s, you would have seen cities suffering and suburbs staying the same," Berube said. "But the story is different today."

This is precisely why the direction the United Way Board adopted in December to focus on Financial Stability for families, Educational Preparedness of children and getting to the root cause of what is keeping individuals and families living in the safety net of society.

This is precisely why six key civic organizations formed One D to develop a regional capacity to address the complex issues facing and us ------ and to move from process to results.

No silver bullets are present, but with bold steps, clear goals and dedicated leadership, progress is possible. The continual trend described here ought not be our legacy to our children.

Rather, it ought to be how this generation turned the trend line. I believe its possible.

Thanks for reading. Pass it on.