wcpc

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AFFILIATE NEWS

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Pivotal Tuesdays: Four Presidential Elections That Made History During the final month of Election 2012, Margaret O'Mara, Associate Professor of History, is the speaker for the UW History Lecture Series that looks back at four game-changing presidential contests of the last century. Talks Oct 9, 16, 23 & 30. More info here.

Marieka Klawitter, Associate Professor of Public Affairs, is interviewed by Voice of Russia radio regarding new poverty data. Listen to the interview here.

Mark Long, Associate Professor of Public Affairs, has two articles accepted for publication: (1) "Jockeying for Position: High School Student Mobility and Texas' Top-Ten Percent Rule" and (2) "Effects of High School Course-Taking on Secondary and Post-Secondary Success". He also received a $2.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation for the project "Evaluation of the Sustainability and Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Advanced Placement Science Courses: Evidence from an In-Depth Formative Evaluation & Randomized Controlled Study".

The Northwest Census Research Data Center (NWCRDC) at the UW and directed by Mark Ellis, Professor of Geography, officially opens September 24.
See a quote from Mark Ellis here.
See more information here.

Official U.S. poverty rate remains high, middle class incomes decline

Data released by the U.S. Census Bureau today show that, after increasing since 2008, the poverty rate for the U.S. remained stable at 15 percent between 2010 and 2011. During that time, poverty rates were statistically unchanged for most groups, but decreased among some subgroups, including Hispanics and males. Although the overall poverty rate did not increase, it continues to be well above pre-recession levels. "Since it usually reflects unemployment, the poverty rate won't decrease until after unemployment drops significantly," said WCPC Affiliate Marieka Klawitter. In addition, median annual household income declined for the second year in a row, to $50,054, down 1.5 percent from 2010.

In 2011, a family of two working-age adults and two children was considered poor if its annual income fell below $22,811. Poverty is greatest among children (21.9 percent), compared with seniors (8.7 percent) and working-age adults (13.7 percent).

"The poverty rate is useful for comparing trends over time, but it doesn't do a good job of setting a bar for how much money families need to get by," said WCPC Director Jennifer Romich. Among other issues, the poverty line does not take into account geographic variation in the cost of living or the value of government benefits like food stamps. "In spite of its imperfections, what the poverty measure does tell us is that over 46 million people are living with incomes below a very low threshold."

The Census Bureau will release more accurate state-level estimates and estimates for large cities and counties on Sept. 20, followed by a report in November that will include a more complete picture of income, expenses and the cost of living. More information about the various poverty estimates and trends over time is available here. Additional information about poverty in Washington and the Northwest area states is available here.

Listen to KPLU's radio show with Marieka Klawitter, Associate Professor of Public Affairs.
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RECESSION IMPACT ON MARRIED MOMS

Former WCPC Dissertation Fellowship awardee, Michelle Maroto, presented the findings of her co-authored report at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in Denver, Colorado in August. The report discusses the impact of the recession on married moms in their search for a new job -- longer search and less likely to find a job -- and their salary -- lower -- compared to married dads.
See more information here.