Poverty

State of Poverty in Rabun County

The Rabun County Cooperative Extension office hosted a Welcome to the State of Poverty simulation for 9-12 grade teachers. A poverty simulation is used to sensitize individuals to the obstacles low income families have to face on a daily basis. Participants were placed into “families” and challenged to survive for one month, four 15-minute “weeks” with limited resources. During this month, the family must cover all their basic needs and handle unexpected emergencies. In this time, the participants must maintain secure shelter, utilities, feed their families, make loan payments, meet living expenses such as transportation, handle unexpected emergencies, access local support services and keep their children in school — all while subsisting at or below the poverty level. The “Welcome to the State of Poverty” simulation is designed to allow participants to experience a little bit of the frustration and problems that arise among families who are living in poverty. A desired outcome for the simulation is that participants develop more positive attitudes towards people living in poverty. In Rabun County, the county agents received feedback from 48 participants. As a result of the simulation, over one-third of the respondents reported they increased their confidence to identify key issues contributing to poverty, their ability to make a positive impact on the poor in their communities and increased their understanding of obstacles faced by families living in poverty. About 43 percent of the participants developed a higher positive attitude towards those in poverty after conducting the simulation. About 89 percent said they were more likely to view people living in poverty differently to better serve their needs and 72 percent said they are more likely to seek out resources to assist families facing poverty. (2008)

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