THE ONE LESS FOUNDATION

Lifting each out of poverty until there is one less.

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Celebrating the 2nd Annual Run Germantown Race

Saturday, September 10th marked the day of the second annual Run Germantown race. Local sponsors combined forces to support The One Less Foundation and our non-profit partners, True Way Youth Empowerment Foundation and the Historic Johnson House, to raise money for these three great organizations.

The morning of the race was beautifully sunny and made for comfortable running weather. The race itself winded through the historic Germantown district and allowed residents and visitors alike to enjoy the scenic architecture and urban environment as the miles passed. There were also games and a relay race to keep the kids entertained.

Congratulations go out to our 5K winners:

Fastest Overall Male: Marc Hem Lee

Fastest Overall Female: C.C. Tellez

Fastest Team: MLK High School

Thank you to everyone for making this year's race another successful day! The One Less Foundation has fielded feedback from the day and has plans to change up the course map and street closures for the third annual Germantown Run. Next year's race has already been scheduled for September 9, 2017 so mark your calendars!

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Half of Americans Losing Sleep Over Finances

According to Money magazine, about half of Americans over the age of 35 report losing sleep due to worries about their finances. It is by far the biggest worry, surpassing relationship, health, or career concerns. Most of those hours are spent worrying about short-term money troubles such as paying this month’s bills or covering an expense in the event of an emergency. These worries can be debilitating and have real impacts on the health of an individual as well as their relationships and career, yet money management is rarely considered to be a necessary topic for school curricula.

So how do we solve this problem? Financial literacy plays a key role in financial security. When an individual has the tools to manage their finances effectively, they’re more likely to have funds saved in the event of an emergency. The One Less Foundation is committed to providing individuals with the knowledge they need to help manage their finances and advocates for mandatory financial literacy education in Pennsylvania schools.

It’s time to advance financial education and empower individuals to escape a life fraught with financial worries and stress.

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A Life in Poverty is a Life of Hard Choices

With millions in poverty in the United States, it’s worth understanding exactly what these individuals face on a daily basis. These are typically individuals and families that have never known stability. They live in constant fear of falling short on money, and are often forced to make tough decisions between feeding themselves and their children or paying rent. Single mothers have to decide whether to stay home with a sick child and miss out on a day of pay from their employer that could put them in financial turmoil. These are financially fragile families that are struggling to get by every day.

The thought of finishing high school or completing a GED program is overwhelming at best, and higher education is a rare possibility. Imagine living in this unrelenting world where even the slightest misfortune can unravel whatever financial security you might have. Imagine the fear that comes with ensuring your children can survive in this environment while always wanting more for them, but feeling that it will always be just out of your reach. This is a terrifying reality for nearly half of Americans that struggle with these tough choices everyday.

At The One Less Foundation, we know that no one chooses to be in poverty or stay in poverty, but often the choices necessary to lift oneself out of poverty are exponentially harder than those that keep them trapped in poverty. By providing resources and education to those willing to fight for a better future, The One Less Foundation hopes to shepherd individuals out of poverty one by one. For more information on our programs or to make a donation, please visit www.theonelessfoundation.org.

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TOLF Attends Preview of “All the Difference”

On August 25th, the One Less Foundation attended a preview of “All the Difference” presented by WHYY at their Philadelphia studio. The documentary follows two African-American teens from the South Side of Chicago as they graduate from high school and pursue their dream to graduate college. Their journey brings to light several issue ranging from the emotional and academic support available to these individuals, to the financial challenges associated with attending a four year college.

As part of the event, there was also a panel discussion that addressed current issues with our educational system in the United States and possible paths to address these widespread barriers that can inhibit students from reaching their full potential. In particular, college affordability was addressed at some length. Dr. Kathleen Shaw, the Executive Director of the Research for Action organization, urged that as a nation, we have to do a better job of educating our students as to the cost of their degree. Most students entering college do not understand how much their degree will cost them, and when these payments will start. By leaving these conversations until after graduation, students are often left with a mountain of debt and no way to dig out from underneath it. This is especially problematic for those students that attend some college, but are unable to complete their degrees.

Additionally, Wes Moore, the founder and CEO of BridgeEdU spoke to the millions of dollars of financial aid left on the table because FAFSA forms were incorrectly filled out and submitted. The One Less Foundation is proud to offer courses for college readiness that helps students navigate through these unclear issues. If you or someone you know is looking for resources regarding these issues, please visit our site at www.theonelessfoundation.org/rise.html.

“All the Difference” premiers September 12th at 10PM EST on your local PBS station. We hope you will tune in to support this great film and the spotlight it shines on issues that must be addressed within our national and local education systems.

[theonelessfoundation]

The Shocking Cost of Payday Lending

We talk a lot about payday lending and the danger it poses to consumers. The One Less Foundation spends time and resources to fight against such predatory lending practices through legislative action, but just how damaging is this practice? Courtesy of the Filene Research Institute here are three shocking stats you should know about payday lending:

1. “If it were a country, the "Empire of Payday Lending" would be the 104th largest economy in the world.”

2. “Every 90 seconds, $67,000 in payday debt is issued.”

3. In certain states the maximum finance charge and APR for a loan can potentially be limitless.

At The One Less Foundation, we regularly meet individuals trying to dig themselves out of payday loans with interest rates upwards of 300%. These are individuals that didn’t have the money to cover unexpected expenses in the first place, let alone the interest and finance charges associated with these loans.

Together we can help bring and end to payday lending through our advocacy efforts and a wide-reaching financial education program.

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The Growing Wealth Gap Between Races

It’s no secret that inequality between the impoverished and the wealthiest Americans is a stark reality, but there appears to be no end in sight. A recent study by the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) found that the wealth gap between races is growing exponentially. In fact, if the current trend continues, by the year 2043, the average wealth gap between white families and Latino and black families will be about $1 million.

So what’s causing this gap to widen? Researches attribute the divide to a combination of the advantages that seem to benefit white families as well as the disadvantages that black and Latino families seem to regularly encounter. White families tend to benefit from a better financial starting point that allows them to pursue higher education, homeownership, investments, and tax incentives. Meanwhile Latino and black families struggle with lower levels of educational attainment, significantly higher unemployment, and overall financial fragility that precludes them from participating in wealth building endeavors.

We can start to make a change by chipping away at the sources of this inequality. By providing better educational systems for these underserved communities coupled with financial literacy education and advocacy efforts, we can begin to close this gap. Join The One Less Foundation on our mission to alleviate poverty and created equal opportunities for all by volunteering or donating at www.theonelessfoundation.org.

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The Understated Epidemic of Poverty

For years, the poverty level has been measured based on a family’s income as compared to a national annual income amount predetermined by the U.S. government. If an individual or family fell below that amount, they were considered to be living in poverty. Unfortunately, the poverty line does not seem to be representative of just how widespread financial fragility really is.

In 2015, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that 14.8% of the U.S. population lived in poverty, yet a study conducted by the FINRA Foundation found that 50% of Americans had difficulty covering their monthly expenses. Whether from lack of income or lack of financial understanding, the U.S. population is suffering. Financial education and a living minimum wage are crucial to a sound financial future for all Americans.

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The Quest to Stop Predatory Lending

When Ingrid Shepard, the Executive Director of The One Less Foundation, was asked what the one thing she hoped she could accomplish in the quest to eradicate poverty, she emphatically replied that she would work to outlaw predatory lending and payday loans. These practices have been growing in recent years, and they can have dire consequences for those individuals that are already in a financially fragile position. In a 2013 study conducted by the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center at George Washington University, it was noted that one in four people had engaged in some form of high-cost borrowing in the past five years, while 34% of young individuals (ages 18-34) had used such instruments. The study determined that the availability of such alternative financing options was problematic, but a general lack of financial literacy among the American population compounded the problem.

Being that the issue of predatory lending is twofold, the solution must also be twofold. The One Less Foundation works both to advocate at the state and national level to ban certain predatory practices as well as providing community programs for students and adults seeking an education in financial literacy. Together these programs aim to promote better financial practices and consumer awareness. Go to www.stoppaydaypredators.org/TOLF to show your support for The One Less Foundation’s work to #StopPinklining.

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The disparity between those with a higher education and those without has never been greater and racial divisions have grown increasingly stark. How can we expect students to achieve a college degree if our government struggles to provide even a basic education? Education should be a right and not a privilege, and students should feel safe and supported in their classrooms. Without a proper education, individuals are struggling to survive and save for a better future.

The One Less Foundation is committed to supporting college bound youths and providing GED educational programs to help prepare pupils of all ages for the workforce. Join us in our work to end poverty by providing the skills and education that should be available to every American citizen by volunteering or donating at www.theonelessfoundation.org.

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Get Involved. Make a Difference. Volunteer with THE ONE LESS FOUNDATION and help end poverty. Many of our volunteer opportunities can be done in one hour and last from a one time opportunity to a long-term commitment. Find out more about our volunteer program and how you can get involved: https://www.theonelessfoundation.org/volunteer.html Join our team and help 'lift each out of poverty until there is one less'

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Financial Education Shouldn’t Be a Choice

Unless you were taught how to manage your finances by your parents, there is a good chance that you may never have received a financial education. Even the basics of budgeting can be a game changing skill for the average person, but these skills are seldom taught in school. According to the 2015 National Financial Capability Study conducted by FINRA, “59% of Americans have never been offered a financial education course and only 44% were taught how to manage their finances by their parents.” This leaves the majority of the American population overwhelmed by the prospect of managing their money.

As of 2014 only 17 states in the US required that high school students take a course in personal finance, and Pennsylvania was not one of them (Council for Economic Education). Without any financial education provided, individuals are left to fend for themselves with often disastrous consequences. Payday lending and other check cashing services are causing a dangerous spiral that can become hard to curtail, and debt is on the rise. Without this fundamental element of education, we are setting our friends, neighbors, and children up for failure. It’s time for financial education to become a priority in our communities. Everyone wins when we work together to provide this necessary life skill.

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Women, Poverty and the Need for a Living Wage

During the 2016 Democratic National Convention which took place in Philadelphia, PA there were several forums organized by local and national advocates to highlight issues and bring attention to, in an effort to get politicians to move them to the front burner of conversations. I spoke at one such forum, that focused on women speaking about issues that impact women, their lives and their families. At the Women Speak Out forum on July 26, I gave the following speech: "80%. I want you to remember that number. My name is Ingrid Shepard and I’m the Executive Director at The One Less Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Philadelphia. Our mission is to alleviate poverty and we do that through financial literacy and capability programs, supplemental education programs, one-on-one mentoring, and programs provided to schools. One of the things we see on a daily basis as we’re working with people, and most often seen in mothers with children, is that even if we can teach them how to make a dollar out of 15 cents, there is still a gap in the resources needed to lift them out of poverty and that gap is financial stability. Women and primarily single mothers find themselves starting out each month already in the hole due to jobs that pay a wage so low, they have to rely on government programs to cover such basic needs like food, housing and childcare. They start in a hole that never allows them to create a financial cushion or safety net for themselves and their families. They start in a hole that never allows them to become self-sustaining. We must increase the federal minimum wage and it must be increased to $15.00 an hour, if we are going to expect women who make up 2/3 of minimum wage workers to become financially independent. There is not one metro area in any state in the country, where a person can afford to sustain themselves independently on one minimum wage income as it currently stands at the federal level. We are here today in Philadelphia, the largest city in the state of Pennsylvania, and the economic driver of the state. The minimum wage in Philadelphia is $7.25, the minimum wage in Pennsylvania is $7.25, and the minimum wage of the country is $7.25. We are telling people 3 times, once at the federal level, once at the state level and once at the local level that we do not think they should be able to take care of themselves and their families. We are telling them that they are undeserving of the security that comes from being able to financially support themselves and families. Philadelphia is a city that is home to me, it is also the largest city in the nation with the highest rate of deep poverty. Philadelphia is the birthplace of freedom, it is home to the first movements that fought for freedom, it’s where the first anti-slavery protest took place in the Germantown neighborhood in 1688, let this great city also be the place where financial freedom is born in 2016. When mothers aren’t able to support their children with their income we fail our children. When mothers have to work 3 jobs in order to afford a roof over head, transportation and still can’t afford to take a day off from work to care for a sick child - we fail our children. When mothers work 40+ hours a week and still need SNAP to feed their children and LIHEAP to keep them warm - we fail our children. Ensuring that mothers make a wage that allows them to care for their children and their needs, means we are caring for our children; we are caring for our future. The statement that is always made is ‘we can’t afford to raise the minimum wage to $15/hr, I say today, we can’t afford NOT to raise the minimum wage or we will continue to lose women, families and children to an unyielding cycle of poverty. I mentioned earlier 80%. Of the approximately 12 million single parent families– 80% of them are headed by single mothers, that’s 9.6 million families and 45% of them are living under the poverty line. Let us raise the wage and give these women and mothers an opportunity to lift themselves and their families out of poverty." ~ Ingrid R. Shepard, Executive Director The One Less Foundation

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[massmedear]

America is built on systematic oppression and  inequality of people of colour

[knowledgeequalsblackpower]

White women make more than Black men too. That’s why it’s always kind of weird to me when they talk about the gender gap and leave that whole racism thing out. 

[danielle-mertina]

That’s what I always say: the racial pay gap is more significant than the gender pay gap but it’s literally never talked about.

[theonelessfoundation]

On average women make $0.77 to every dollar a man does, for African-American woman,it's $0.64 to every dollar. The pay gap isn't just gender based, it's also race based.

[theonelessfoundation]

What is your definition of Poverty? #WhatPovertyTaughtMe

[theonelessfoundation]

...let us not treat those in poverty like criminals

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Investing in our Children

As a high school English teacher, I sometimes become so focused on teaching writing or getting my students to understand a Frost poem that I forget that there are 100 students or so that pass through my classroom, each with their own unique set of skills and challenges. I don't do this because I lack empathy, but sometimes the sheer amount of needs that I am presented with is overwhelming. Pair this with a lack of resources and a not-so-subtle socio-cultural war on public schools, I often feel powerless. Last school year I had a student who reminded me not only of my own limitations within the system, but of the unequal access to resources and opportunities that is a blight upon our country. I teach College Prep and Honors English at a virtual school, and I have a fairly diverse group of students. There is, however, one commonality among all of my students: they want to do well. Their reasons why vary, but they all have bought into the idea that academic success is a vital component to a brighter future. When you don’t have to cajole your students into caring or even believing in themselves enough to envision any future, your job is much easier. But then there was Letisha. Ambitious, intelligent and articulate, she at first didn’t seem different from any of my other students. She did all of her work, and she did it well. So, I was quite surprised when she started failing the course. She had expressed to me her love of science and a desire to go into the medical field, so why would she stop working so suddenly? I called her to find out. I was saddened to learn that she and her mother were evicted from their apartment and had become homeless. Her mom had serious health issues and her family had fallen into the cycle of poverty. Letisha had to help care for her mother and navigate life in a shelter, and all of her hopes and dreams were set aside so she could deal with daily survival. The two were embarrassed about their situation and internalized their circumstances as some sort of personal flaw. Letisha tried to remain upbeat and told me that she would catch up in the course and apologized profusely for her lack of work. I was struck with the stark contrast between many of my other students and her. While some of my students have their own laptops, tutors, European vacations and are worried about their next ballet recital, Letisha didn’t even have a place to do her school-work. The shelter had spotty Wi-Fi access. She lacked proper clothes and toiletries. What could I do to ameliorate the situation? I really wish I could say that I helped her, but I am haunted by my own ineffectuality. I sent her a care package, for which she was grateful. I excluded her from assignments. I told her she could have as much time as she needed. I offered her extra academic help. I contacted her guidance counselor. I put her family in touch with people who said they could help. But, none of it was enough. She did not pass my class, and as of today, is still living in a homeless shelter. I am worried that she now has given up on going to college. What could I have done differently? How can teachers help their students who live in poverty and unstable environments? How can educators fight a system that allows students like Letisha to fail? None of these problems have easy remedies, because the problem of deep socio-economic inequality cannot be solved by educators alone. We live and breathe the inequality every day. We complain about it and try to fix problems that it invariably causes, but every solution is a mere Band-Aid. I am convinced that only significant societal change will help students like Letisha—and there are a lot of them out there. We spend a lot of time jabbering about how children are the future and such platitudes, but that means nothing if we don’t invest vision, time and money into our children, particularly our children who live in poverty and for reasons out of their control, have limited opportunities. Our future as a civilized country depends upon it. Nicole Jacobson, TOLF Volunteer Social Media Coordinator