Save the Date: 25th Annual Economic Self-Sufficiency Graduation is 4/20/22
Save the Date: 25th Annual Economic Self-Sufficiency Graduation is 4/20/22
Bucks County Opportunity Council’s 25th Annual Economic Self-Sufficiency Graduation will be held on April 20, 2022 at 6 p.m. at Warrington Country Club.
To date, 359 families who were on or eligible for welfare have graduated from the program since it was established in 1997, and 68 graduates are homeowners. Every graduate has employment that pays a family-sustaining wage, a balanced budget, reliable transportation, affordable housing, a health plan for the entire family, acceptable credit or an approved credit repair plan, and basic employability skills.
Each participant completes a comprehensive assessment and develops a strengths-based goal plan in partnership with a Self-Sufficiency Coach. Every plan centers on attaining the education and training necessary to secure employment in a high-demand sector that pays a family-sustaining wage. Participants work with a Self-Sufficiency Coach for up to five years to implement, regularly evaluate and revise the plan as necessary.
In the mid-1990s, our Board of Directors initiated a comprehensive study of the long-term, measurable impact of our programs. The results showed that many of the individuals and families we assisted temporarily improved their circumstances but did not permanently leave poverty. They frequently came back for help as soon as they were eligible.
In response to the findings, we developed the Economic Self-Sufficiency Program in 1997. Our approach addresses the root causes that keep low-income people in poverty. We help participants acquire the education, skills and employment to permanently leave poverty as opposed to merely cope in it. The program transforms lives and often ends a cycle of poverty that existed for generations.
Learn more about the economic self-sufficiency program.
