Rhode Island College Foundation 
Roberts Hall 
Providence, RI   02908-1991 
(401) 456-8105
www.ric.edu 

Dr. Marguerite Brown
Executive Director

Grant: $135,000                    

Strategy:  PASR 
Region Served:  Rhode Island

PROJECT TITLE:  The Poverty Institute

WHY THIS GRANT:
This eighth-year grant funds continuation of The Poverty Institute (TPI) at Rhode Island College’s policy and advocacy work on behalf of low-and moderate-income Rhode Islanders.  In the past year The Poverty Institute:

• continued its work with the One Rhode Island Coalition,
• worked to improve the effectiveness of the state’s workforce development and child support enforcement systems,
• organized to protect and strengthen entitlement and discretionary programs for low-income residents such as Medicaid, TANF/FIP, and child care,
• continued its participation in the coalition working on justice reinvestment,
• provided analyses of and public commentaries on state and federal tax reform and budget proposals,
• worked to close corporate tax loopholes,
• published an issue brief on Rhode Island’s structural deficit,
• published an analysis of the Governor’s proposed FY 07 budget, and
• monitored the work of the legislative committee reviewing K-12 education financing.

In 2007, the Poverty Institute will:

• conduct research and analysis to advance policies and programs that are proven to be effective in lifting families out of poverty and moving toward economic security,
• improve the public systems responsible for helping people achieve economic security and increase coordination between public systems and private sector providers,
• ensure the tax structure is fair to low- and modest-income households and provides adequate revenue to fund public services that benefit all Rhode Islanders, and
• collaborate with community groups, state agencies, and convene, as necessary, coalitions like One RI, to make systemic changes.

The Foundation’s grant will partially fund personnel, general program and administrative expenses, and consultant costs.  The Foundation will evaluate this grant by monitoring The Poverty Institute’s ability to:

• raise awareness about poverty in RI and government programs that help low-income people meet their basic needs,
• improve the effectiveness and efficiency of government systems responsible for lifting people out of poverty
• raise funds from coalition members in support of One Rhode Island,
• continue the successful launch of its bequest program,  and
• continue to increase the involvement of Board members in the development work of the Institute.

From 2004 summary:

The Poverty Institute’s founding director, Nancy Gewirtz, was one of Rhode Island’s most passionate and dedicated social justice advocates.  Her recent death makes this a particularly important time for the Institute and for the Foundation’s investment in its work.  The Institute is in good hands under the leadership of its new Director, Kate Brewster, and long-standing Policy Director, Linda Katz.  Rhode Island College and the larger community of advocates are determined to continue the Institute’s programs as a living tribute to Nancy’s work and life. 

As Rhode Island’s economy climbs out of recession, it is still unclear how the new administration will address the over-$200 million structural deficit in the state’s budget.  As questions of continued public investments in income, child care, and health insurance supports are debated, The Poverty Institute (TPI) is a unique source of reliable data and policy analysis about their impact on low income families.  TPI’s research supports a variety of advocacy efforts which culminated this past year in the One Rhode Island Coalition.  Developed and coordinated by TPI, this legislative platform, endorsed by 130 groups and organizations, was able to maintain $270 million in public investments in health care and child care for low-income families.

Most recently, TPI’s work has focused on the income side of the equation for these investments to insure that Rhode Island’s tax and budget policies are equitable, produce adequate revenue to finance the state’s basic services, and support economic development that creates jobs offering career advancement.  In 2003, TPI was successful in advocating for the passage of legislation that will improve the accountability of the Tax Expenditure Reporting system.

In addition to their ongoing work with the One Rhode Island Coalition and with tax and budget analyses, TPI staff will continue to:

• Chair the Welfare Implementation Task Force at the Rhode Island Department of Human Services, as well as monitor the reauthorization of federal and state welfare reform policies
• Assist and monitor the Governor’s efforts to create an expanded, accountable, high-quality adult education system
• Produce an analysis of the current system for supporting public education in Rhode Island, a report on which is to be submitted to the Governor’s Commission on Education Funding
• Serve as a clearinghouse for information for policymakers, media, advocates, and the public through its website, list-serves and publications. 

The Foundation’s grant this year will continue to support the positions of the Institute’s Policy Director and the recently-hired tax and budget policy analyst.  Also, part of this year’s grant will support the position of Director of the Institute.

Over the next year, the Institute’s work will be evaluated in terms of the quality and reach of its products, the results of its legislative advocacy, the success of the transition to the new Director, and its success in developing new sources of support for its operations.

RELEVANT PRIOR FUNDING OVER PAST 3 YEARS:
2005    $135,000 for The Poverty Institute.
2005      $8,300 for Strenghtening the Family Independence program
2005     $25,000 for One Rhode Island 
2004    $135,000 for The Poverty Institute
2004     $10,000 for “Making the Child Support System Work”
2004      $5,000 for the Education/Property Tax Research Agenda
2004     $15,000 for the One Rhode Island Campaign