This blog shares insights from these conversations about how living in poverty can create a sense of survival mode, where a person is forced to focus nearly all of their efforts to help them and their family subsist and tackle the immediate roadblocks in their path.

Meeting with workforce participants, and the organizations that support them, to understand their experience pursuing postsecondary education and seeking living-wage career paths was a core focus of MemWorks.

Living-wage jobs can be a reliable path out of poverty. An overwhelming theme from our primary research is that even for those with postsecondary degrees and credentials, living-wage jobs are hard for Memphians experiencing poverty to access.

Not all living-wage jobs are equally accessible. MemWorks researched employment opportunities in Memphis to help identify which living-wage career paths might be most accessible for Memphians experiencing poverty.

While Memphis has many components of a workforce development ecosystem, these components struggle to operate as a system.

Half of Memphians experiencing poverty are employed or looking for work. Unfortunately for many, even full-time employment is not necessarily a pathway out of poverty.

MemWorks research found that incidental financial barriers, such as transportation or groceries, prevent a large number of students experiencing poverty from completing career & technical education programs. The Collective Blueprint

MemWorks research found that trying to access the services from the over 130 workforce development organizations in Memphis can be insurmountable given gaps that exist in the services provided and the the inability to access available services due to their location.

MemWorks research found that 25 percent of people experiencing poverty in Memphis lack a high school diploma or equivalent. The Excel Center offers adults of all ages childcare, transportation assistance, and flexibility to go back and pursue their high school diploma.