Kalamazoo County Poverty Reduction Initiative - Community Indicators

Community Indicators

The Community Indicators System is a resource that will allow local government, businesses, non-profit organizations, human service agencies, faith-based initiatives, and other programs to access comprehensive information on indicators of well-being for Kalamazoo's children and families, and view program information on a complete listing of activities that operate in Kalamazoo and resources available to individuals in need.

The Community Indicators System is being developed by the Lewis Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations and the Poverty Reduction Initiative, with financial support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Kalamazoo Community Development Block Grants, the W.E. Upjohn Institute, and Western Michigan University.

Better Data Equals Better Decision Making
By providing a resource that allows our local government, area administrators, and community leaders the ability to identify the most pressing needs of our residents alongside gaps in existing service provision, the Community Indicators System will help organizations in our area best meet the needs of our community.

The Community Indicators System has been selected by the Voices for Action Region 6 Poverty Summit Coalition, as the project they endorse to lead their poverty reduction efforts in the nine counties of southwest Michigan. There are three components:

Information System - An information system that monitors trends in: 1) poverty and poverty-related quality of life indicators, 2) supply and demand for various poverty-related resources and services (eg., food security, energy assistance, access to adequate healthcare, housing assistance), and 3) utilization of those services.
University Research - Evaluation research by social scientists at Western Michigan University assessing how adequately community resources and services are working (individually and collectively) in their respective communities to reduce poverty. Integration of the University research with the departments of City government, community non-profit organizations, and human service agencies.
Community Information Campaign - Publishing key indicators in: Poverty Measurement, Human Services, Education, Housing, and Health, allowing residents to gain an overview of the more detailed data in the Information System used by the community service providers. The PRI and WMU Walker Institute published a Trend Report from the 4th Quarter of 2009 with benchmark indicators.

For information on the Community Indicators System, please email Dr. Timothy Ready, Director of the Lewis Walker Institute at WMU.

Looking for national
economic indicators and state comparisons?
Check out Half in Ten's
indicators page.