Based on 2019 data, the ALICE In Focus: Children Report found 44% of kids statewide fall below the ALICE Threshold for Financial Survival, with 17% living in poverty and 27% living above the Federal Poverty Line but not in financially stable households. The results for children of color were even more troubling: 71% of Black children and 58% of Hispanic children in Michigan live below the ALICE Threshold, compared to 36% of White children.

Nationwide, nearly half (49%) of all children live below the ALICE Threshold.

ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed—households that earn income but struggle to afford housing, childcare, food, transportation, health care and other essentials.

The findings come from the latest analysis of the ALICE population, which makes up 40% of all Michigan households, and the first one spotlighting children. The new report comes from the Michigan Association of United Ways (MAUW) and research partner United For ALICE. Consumers Energy Foundation funded this and four comprehensive ALICE reports released by MAUW since 2014, most recently last year.

“Our new ALICE In Focus series will help us further understand how we can best address today’s critical issues surrounding ALICE children,” said Mike Larson, President and CEO of MAUW.

The report noted that many ALICE families earn too much to qualify for public assistance despite struggling to meet basic needs. Among the resources that ALICE children lack:

• Stable housing – 52% of children in renter households below the ALICE Threshold were paying more than 35% of household income on rent in 2019.
• Education – 37% of preschool-age children below the ALICE Threshold were enrolled in preschool, compared to 58% of kids above the ALICE Threshold. More than 8,050 Michigan children ages 15-17 didn’t attend school in 2019; more than half of them lived in ALICE households.
• Health insurance – 4% of children in families below the ALICE Threshold didn’t have insurance coverage. Of those who did, 61% relied on public insurance. Of children above the ALICE Threshold, 88% had private insurance.
• Home internet – Nearly 300,000 children below the ALICE Threshold in Michigan did not have access to high-speed internet at home in 2019, which affected their access to education, learning support programs and work.

Among other key findings, 23% of Michigan children in households with two adults in the labor force were still below the ALICE Threshold in 2019, meaning having working parents or guardians isn’t a guarantee of financial stability. Also, children with a disability were more likely to live in households below the ALICE Threshold (62%) than those without a disability (43%).

United Way of South Central Michigan, along with other United Ways and key partners, is committed to serving ALICE families by collaborating on effective, equitable programs and advocating for public policies that improve the health, education and financial stability for all people.

Click here to download the ALICE In Focus fact sheet with more Michigan results. An online dashboard is available here. You can also watch a short video on the report. Future reports in the series will look at individuals with disabilities and those who are veterans. ALICE In Focus is a national research series using the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Samples (PUMS) with ALICE measures applied, including the Household Survival Budget and the ALICE Threshold. National results and study methodology can be found at UnitedForALICE.org.

A blog by Nikkia Hurlbert

In Jackson, we saw a student homelessness rate of over 20% in some school districts, our homeless shelters were full, affordable housing became more out of reach to a growing population of residents, and the overall cost of living greatly increased. Working parents were left helpless without childcare, and daycares and schools were conflicted with tough choices for the children and students in their care.

With all of the hardships we faced, Jackson is a resilient county and has a strong sense of community responsibility. There’s still work to be done, but I’m proud to look back on 2021 and report that our Labor Community stepped up to support initiatives in Jackson that addressed some of the greatest needs in our community. 

For example, we hear a lot about the need for clean, dry socks during the coldest months of the year, something many of us may take for granted. So United with Labor, we prioritized an initiative that addressed that need. Last year United Way and our Labor partners were able to donate 1,681 pairs of socks, gloves, hats, and scarves to homeless students, their families (many live in their car), and one of our local homeless shelters. A testament to the impact we can have, working together.

I have many stories like this from last year. So to highlight the contributions our Labor community, in partnership with United Way, made in 2021, we’ve created an impact report that showcases what we were able to contribute to Jackson, together. 

Looking forward to 2022, we’re excited to take our AFL-CIO and United Way 80-year partnership even further and expand our relationships to the more than 70 unions located in Jackson County alone. Because great things are accomplished when we work United. 

Nikkia Hurlbert is the AFL-CIO Community Services Labor Liaison for United Way of Jackson County.

An 18-year-old was struggling with many issues, including lack of stable housing. A grandparent was willing to help but had concerns about safety and behavioral issues. Therapy with the young adult focused on past trauma and other factors. This therapy, along with a stable environment, began the process of healing and recovery. Without United Way funding, this young adult would not have been able to access the services needed to be able to make these changes.

In another case, a teenager with extensive past trauma was connected to crucial treatments tackling post-traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and depression. After extensive treatment, the teen saw a decline in panic attacks, fewer symptoms of depression, improved school performance, and now has a steady job and is studying to earn a Certified Nursing Assistant license with the goal of going on to nursing school.

Your investment in United Way is having a powerful, positive effect on people in Jackson County. Please continue to support our work.

A distribution client said that the Food Bank’s provision had given her financial freedom to pay bills and afford other necessities. “Things we don’t have or can’t acquire on our own, you guys are providing, and we just appreciate it. You take care of and are prepared for a lot of things, but this is just an overwhelming experience! We just thank you!”

Making sure there’s food on the table feeds the family—and brings hope for a successful life. When you support United Way, you help summon that hope for all of Jackson County! Please invest in this crucial work.

“In April 2021, Partial to Girls was able to help a 19-year-old pregnant woman who had a 3-year-old son from sleeping in her car for almost three weeks straight. She also hadn’t had any prenatal care in over three months and was seven months into this pregnancy. We were able to help this family by getting her settled into a hotel for a short time, and assisting her and her son with food and basic necessities that they both needed so badly. Through other community partners, we were able to get this young woman case management, even got her healthcare and a longer hotel stay.

“This story sticks out to me because without my partnership with UW I wouldn’t be able to be the one to help with these types of situations initially. Yes, I always have to call on other community partners to help with these bigger problems like this. However, the end result is always these families are getting off the street and getting the help they need when they call on us to help. When you call Partial to Girls, you are calling United Way and many other organizations in Jackson.”

When you give a financial gift to United Way, you’re part of a powerful movement that’s transforming Jackson County.

She’s worked with the South Michigan Food Bank, operated a food pantry, served on the Yes we can! initiative through the Battle Creek Community Foundation, chaired the board for what is now Grace Health, and served multiple terms on the Battle Creek Public Schools Board of Education. She’s volunteered through Women’s Co-Op and Haven of Rest Ministries, served on a residential advisory group for W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and she has worked with veterans and in home health care.

“I’ve always been into helping. I love helping,” she said. “I’ve always tried to do things that would help.”

Miller loves Battle Creek and its people. She’s especially eager to help those who struggle to make ends meet. Rossie understands their plight most of all—she’s among the 47% of households in Battle Creek that are Asset Limited, Income Constrained and Employed (ALICE).

Journey to ALICE

Born in Camden, Miss., Miller came from a family of 22 children. At age 60, she’s one of six siblings still living. Miller arrived in Michigan as a child, attending schools in Battle Creek and Albion before graduating from Battle Creek Central. She earned her associate degree in Liberal Arts at Kellogg Community College, her bachelor’s degree in Human Services Administration from Siena Heights University, and is currently studying for her master’s degree through Walden University.

Miller fell in love with her husband, a Vietnam War veteran, and together they created a blended family with six children. She held solid jobs in health care and food relief, in addition to her volunteer work on boards and committees. By every measure, Rossie Miller and her family expected a financially stable life.

“When I was working in home health care, that’s when things started getting really rough for us because my husband started having a lot of medical issues,” Miller said.

Unable to add him to her health care plan, Miller watched as their finances dwindled between medical costs plus a mortgage, utilities, insurance and other household expenses. Then a car accident took out their vehicle. By then Miller was working just nine hours a week.

“When you’ve been used to helping people, it becomes hard to think that you have been working, that you thought you had your head just above water, and then you find yourself back in that place again,” said Miller.

Challenges and Misconceptions

A lot of programs available to help ALICE have either/or income limits. Miller points to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly called food stamps, as an example. Earn even a dollar over the limit, and you get nothing—which happened to Miller and her husband.

“Our system is broken,” said Miller. “True social work looks not at the person being the problem, but it looks at the strength of the person and builds on that.

“If we look and say, ‘What is that person’s strength? How can I accentuate that strength?’ and then help them make some accomplishments. That would be powerful.”

Getting there is a shared effort, she added—one that rejects the biases and misconceptions that too many people embrace when considering ALICE.

“I’m not going to say everybody’s perfect and nobody’s going to try to overcome the system,” she added. “You can have 20 people, and maybe that one will do it. And instead of saying, ‘Look at the good those 20 are doing!’ we look and focus on the one—and then we penalize the 20.”

A better way is to tap the strengths of ALICE to help everyone, she said. “It’s a win-win that way. It’s not me trying to get over your system or trying to beat it because that’s the only way I’m going to be able to get resources. It’s, ‘This is what I have, this is what I bring to the table, this is what I need.’”

Miller still engages with the Women’s Co-Op, using it as an example of a strength-based, collaborative way.

“If there’s a woman in the Women’s Co-Op that does not have child care and needs to go to a job interview or something, if there’s one of us that can watch that child or children while they go do that, we do that. If there’s one of us that has a washing machine that can allow that family to come wash a couple of loads of clothes, we let them come do that. If there’s some of us that can get together because a family needs a basket of food, and maybe each one of us may only have two cans of something, or maybe we might have some meat, we put all our stuff together, and then we go help that family.”

Food, transportation, child care and financial management skills are among the many, diverse needs for ALICE families—needs that require a thoughtful, collaborative, “hand-up” approach.

“Hear us. Don’t always assume you have our answers,” she said. “You don’t have our answers. We are the experts of our experience. I just want you to hear me first.”

Hope for the Future

Miller has a better job now, one with the chance to grow. She also has a side gig with her husband making breads, puddings and cakes. And her church family, including co-pastors Fred and Shannon Sweet, are helping where they can. However, Rossie’s husband still struggles with health issues. Plus, two sons recently had to move back home.

The financial challenges are there—but none of that dims Rossie Miller’s desire to make a difference.

“What I don’t want to come across as is whiny or complaining about something,” she said. “In this journey I’m on, I have run into so many people who have so many things happen to them and have lost so many loved ones in this pandemic and stuff. So I don’t want to stop helping people. “Absolutely, there’s hope. Every day you’re breathing, there’s hope. And if you take your time and help someone, each one teaches one, and I give you a hand up, not a handout, there’s always hope.”

She’s currently in the 21^st year of her career as a medical assistant, overseeing remote learning for her 5- and 7-year-old, and actively searching for that new property with space for a garden. She’s been a homeowner for 14 years, and knows her way around managing a household budget.

Still, the single mother of four – with two kids at home, and two older children including one with special needs – has at times found it difficult to make ends meet. Child care alone is a huge expense for Parker, one that was unplanned and necessary thanks to the pandemic.

“I feel like I’m in limbo because I make too much to qualify for daycare assistance or food stamps, but don’t make enough money to sustain all of that,” she said. “It’s like we get lost in the shuffle.”

The government’s response to COVID-19 also introduced some new dynamics when it enhanced unemployment benefits, leaving some essential workers feeling even further left behind.

“I try not to get bitter,” Parker said.

She’s far from alone.

ALICE Report Shows Families Still Struggling

The 2021 ALICE Report, released in March, shows that 39% of the region’s 157,023 households don’t earn enough to exceed the ALICE threshold – the income needed to be financially stable. ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. ALICE represents the growing number of households in communities nationwide that do not earn enough to afford household necessities – child care, food, transportation, internet, etc.

According to the new report, 26% of Calhoun County’s 53,827 households are ALICE, the same as in the 2019 report, while the percentage of households in poverty declined to 13% (vs. 19% in the 2019 report). In Kalamazoo County, the number of ALICE households decreased to 24% of 103,196 households (vs. 26% in the 2019 report), but the percentage of households in poverty rose to 15% (vs. 13% in the 2019 report.)

Many of these families and individuals find themselves living paycheck to paycheck, losing sleep over the knowledge that just one small crisis – a transportation issue, a health scare – could devastate their finances. Part of United Way’s work is to ensure that a community safety net is in place for those times when the worst happens.

“There’s times when I sit here and come up with a plan, and come up with a budget, and something happens,” Parker said.

A Safety Net and More

One of those “somethings” a few years back was the unexpected expense of a broken picture window.

Parker got in touch with Community Homeworks, a United Way funded partner that works to create stable and sustainable home environments. She was able to get the repairs done by attending classes that gave her credit toward those repairs and others, and gave her valuable skills.

“I learned how to fix toilets, create a raised garden, create a rain barrel,” Parker said. “And then they had one where you could go and learn how to use different power tools. I learned a lot from them, and it was good for just being a homeowner, but also good knowledge being a female. There’s not really places women can go to try to figure things out. I really appreciate what they did.”

Parker also has at times in her life turned to other organizations like Salvation Army and Loaves and Fishes – again part of that community safety net.

While critical for keeping ALICE households from sliding into poverty, a safety net alone won’t be enough to create the upward mobility needed to push more households above the ALICE threshold. That will take all of us – nonprofits, public officials, community members, employers – working together to create lasting change, said United Way Associate Director of Community Impact Laurel Clark.

ALICE are people working incredibly hard that have faced barriers every step of the way,” said Laurel Clark said. “It’s critical that we work together as a community to remove those barriers, to advocate for better policy, to address racial inequities that contribute to the issues, and to understand that ALICE is interwoven with the social and economic strength of our community.  It’s vital that we realize that when ALICE succeeds, we all succeed.”

Learn more about the 2021 ALICE Report at www.changethestory.org/alice, and watch the virtual launch of the report here, featuring speakers including Mike Larson, President & CEO of the Michigan Association of United Ways and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.