Sofia Romero Campbell

Connections 2017
Senior Seminar Plan

For years, food benefits like food stamps have been the go to assistance for people living

in poverty. However, many families have trouble getting out of this cycle when they rise above

the federal poverty level because they begin to lose eligibility for tax credits, childcare

subsidies, health care coverage and food stamps even though they are not yet self-sufficient

(The Women's Foundation of Colorado). This phenomena is common all across the country and

affects vulnerable populations including women, the elderly, and the disabled. Beginning in the

1960s, the standard for qualifying for federal assistance under the poverty level never considered

various family structures or economic environments. Today in Colorado there is currently 11.5%

of the population living under the poverty line ($24,250 for a family of four) in 2015. (US

Census). Colorado is ranked 14th, however the potential to improve is very high. There are

various organizations that are influencing the way the government addresses poverty in order to

benefit the general population.

This presentation will mainly cover two domains. This includes investigating the world

and recognizing perspectives. First, students will recognize what the face of poverty looks like

today and how communities around them struggle with getting out of cycles of poverty. Second,

students will also investigate how this issue has been perpetuated through policies that have not

been updated to fit the needs of people in the the 21st century. These two aspects are what make

this presentation much needed in at DCIS. There is both a connection to local communities in

poverty that can be analyzed to understand how large scale poverty continues around the world.

Additionally, this presentation is relatable across cultures because the issues of poverty is
universal. Furthermore, with this presentation DCIS students will be more knowledgeable about

a current topic that affects other issues they might be interested in solving.

I plan to bring in Ms. Tracey Stewart in to present for my senior seminar. Currently she

works as the investment director of family economic security for Gary Community Investments

at The Piton Foundation. As an educator and researcher, Tracey speaks with state leaders and

communities on the importance of helping Coloradans on the road to economic self-sufficiency

provides research to inform Colorado businesses, governments and communities on the progress

Colorado is making in its poverty-reduction efforts. Before joining the The Piton Foundation,

Stewart worked with the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, where she was the project

manager for the Colorado Homeless Management Information System. Before her career in the

nonprofit world, Stewart was a network consultant and software application specialist. She holds

a bachelors degree from Dartmouth College and a masters degree from the School of Education

at the University of Denver.

Proposed Questions for Speaker:

How has the face of poverty changed over time? Has it always been the same
people?
Do you think the current political climate will setback the progress made by non-
profits to curb the prevalence of poverty?
What is the main reason why someone ends up in the cycle of poverty?
What can I as a student do about poverty in my own community?

Learning objectives will include an improved understanding of the cycle of poverty and

how someone might find themselves in poverty. Also, students will be able to describe the cliff

effect and explain its impacts. Lastly, students will be able to connect this issue across cultures

and identify populations that are most affected by poverty in the United States. To check that
students understand the material I plan to hold a pre-test to asses the current knowledge of

students on this topic and then a post-test to see what theyve learned. Additionally, I will have

the presenter do a simulation of the problems that arise when they find themselves in a situation

people in poverty commonly experience.

This seminar will be conducted on March 24th during Mr. Munozs Raza Studies class. I

chose this class to present to because I wanted the audience to be high school students in order to

understand poverty on a deeper social political level. Also, I wanted a social studies class

because I think its important for the class to be actively interested in issues that affect different

populations. On that note, because this is a Raza Studies class I am excited to see how they will

use what theyve learned in the class to analyze how poverty has/is influencing communities of

color.

1. The Women's Foundation of Colorado , 2016. Accessed 30 Jan. 2017.

2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2015

Reflection

For my senior seminar I brought in Tracey Stewart as my guest to speak on poverty and
the cliff effect on a statewide and national scale. My seminar was presented to Mr. Munozs Raza
studies class. Because the class consisted of mostly upperclassmen I briefly explained what a
senior seminar was and then proceed to introduce Tracey as the speaker. For this senior
presentation Tracey didnt use any visuals for her presentation and instead took the seminar as an
opportunity to have a conversation with the students. The class was fairly small because many
students were absent for spring break activities, however the students that were there stayed
engaged the whole time.
As I had briefed Tracey before on what the class was already learning Tracey made sure
to connect the documentary they were watching about a Mexican revolutionary to her
presentation. This included a discussion about changing the system in order to fight for a cause
and making sure all groups are taken into account when coming up with solutions for problems.
Although the class was small, the students jumped right in and Tracey told me later that sh was
even surprised by the awareness they had for social and economic issues going on in their
community.
Overall I think my senior seminar was very successful. At first I was a little apprehensive
about participation since the class was so small but in fact the low number of students allowed
for more discussion. Additionally, the presentation gave students new insight into the face of
poverty and how it has changed over time. This exploration into the topic also lead into a further
discussion about fighting systems of power which I was not expecting. Tracey left the students
with a new perspective about an issue that a DCIS student is often taught about, but she did it in
a different way. It was easy to see that the students enjoyed this and their engagement really
showed through to me and Tracey.