Minn. Nonprofit Boosts Single Mothers From Poverty

A new model in the antipoverty fight seeks to move single mothers and their children up the socioeconomic ladder by replacing the patchwork of government and nonprofit services, like food stamps and child care subsidies, with a comprehensive package of support, reports The New York Times.

One example is the Jeremiah Program, founded in the mid-1990s through a partnership of religious, business, educational, philanthropic, and government entities in the Minneapolis area. In the program’s highly subsidized dormitory-style housing, families share living accommodations and support in a structured environment. Mothers must be employed and enrolled full-time in college, and the children must attend a high-quality early education program. The community is run by a small group of professionals, hundreds of volunteers, and the families themselves.

Jeremiah has shown the approach can work, the article notes, but in the face of financial constraints, the organization has focused its investments on those families most likely to succeed. The program’s plans to expand into other cities, including Austin, Tex., Fargo, N.D., and Moorhead, Minn., will test whether the model can replicate its success more widely.