• Insight Center is celebrating 40 years of building economically healthy communities. Dinner and awards presentation. November 12, 2009. Washington, D.C.
• 2009 NNSP National Conference. November 10-13. Washington, D.C. Rooted in Success, Reaching for Change

Elder Economic Dignity Act of 2009 (AB 324) would require state and local aging agencies to use the Elder Index to craft more effective programs and policies for California’s growing population. The bill, sponsored by the Insight Center, passed Senate Human Services Committee with bipartisan support. Next stop: Senate Appropriations on August 17, 2009.

The Insight Center played a leadership role in the development of The Child Care Facilities Financing Act of 2009 (H.R. 1685) which will improve the lives of low income children. The bill is sponsored by Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) and has been referred to the House Education and Labor Committee.

Insight Center’s National Network of Sector Partners (NNSP) advised the Louisiana Workforce Commission on the state’s proposed 2009-10 Workforce Investment Plan and on its American Recovery and Reinvestment Act plan. The NNSP recommendations have led to strong support of sector initiatives in Louisiana and all over the country.

At the Color of Wealth 2009 Policy Summit in Washington DC, over 75 asset-building members of the Experts of Color Network engaged with leaders of the Obama Administration’s economic team and Congressional leadership, including the Majority Leader, and the chairs of the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Asian and Pacific American Caucus, to share the latest research and analysis of the racial wealth gap, and propose federal policies to close it and strengthen the American economy. The Initiative’s recently released report, "Laying the Foundation for National Prosperity. The Imperative of Closing the Racial Wealth Gap," authored by Initiative Director Meizhu Lui, was a catalyst for this discussion. Since then, the Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative has hosted briefings for US Senate and House staff, and met with individual members of Administration and Congress on various issues related to the racial wealth gap.

Building Economic Security in Mississippi
The Insight Center is working with organizations in Mississippi, including Enterprise Corporation of the Delta and Children's Defense Fund, and the national FESS partner, Wider Opportunities for Women, to build a diverse, statewide coalition of stakeholders dedicated to advancing family economic security. Using the Mississippi version of the Family Economic Self-Sufficiency Standard, the coalition will shape programs and policies to increase the capacity of state and local organizations to help children succeed.

Creating Spaces for Children: High Quality ECE Facilities
The Insight Center plays a lead role in supporting ECE facilities development and financing in California through our involvement in the Building Child Care Collaborative. We have recently received a grant from the Kellogg foundation to expand and replicate this work in Mississippi and New Orleans. The Insight Center will partner with local leaders to develop data-based policy recommendations that will improve the quality and supply of ECE facilities for low-income children.

New Funding Model for Workforce Services
The Insight Center has developed a new model for drawing down Food Stamp Employment & Training (FSET) dollars, with policy guidance from the California Department of Social Services and USDA. FSET funds community colleges, adult schools and community-based organizations to help low-income people gain the skills they need to succeed in the labor market. Three community college pilot projects have now received state and federal approval to implement this new model for the first time in California, and the potential for it to grow in California and other states is tremendous. For more information contact Aimee Chitayat, Program Director.

“Half A Million Older Californians Living Alone Unable to Make Ends Meet.” The Federal Poverty Line grossly underestimates the number of families, and elders, living in poverty. This policy brief provides data on the staggering number of California seniors who are unable to cover the cost of their most basic needs. The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the Insight Center have used the Elder Index to quantify for the first time, how many seniors are struggling in each California county, as well as who is struggling most by age, race, gender, and housing type.

"Laying the Foundation for National Prosperity. The Imperative of Closing the Racial Wealth Gap." Policy paper and Executive Summary provides an overview of the causes of the racial wealth divide, and recommendations on how to close it.

Our president, Roger A. Clay Jr. was presented with the Michael S. Scher Award, recognizing his outstanding service and commitment to affordable housing and community development law. He is also the co-editor of a just-released book, entitled, “Building Healthy Communities: A Guide to Community Economic Development for Advocates, Lawyers and Policymakers.”

The release of the Elder Economic Security Index demographic detail, and the Color of Wealth Policy Summit in DC garnered a great deal of media attention. Click on the links to see our complete coverage.