Simulating Poverty

by Kory Plockmeyer

As part of the new Service Learning course, first-year M.Div students had a unique opportunity to participate in a Poverty Simulation Workshop, presented by ACCESS of West Michigan.

The event consisted of three parts. First, participants were placed into “family groups” and given a packet of information detailing the family’s makeup, income, and possessions. The next hour was divided into four 15-minute “weeks,” during which participants were expected to visit the various businesses and services located around the room. Some CTS students were assigned a family role as a small child, others as a single mother, still others as elderly retirees. Each participant had to maintain the role of his/her character – i.e., a 6-year old could not visit the pawn shop or seek employment. At the end of each “week,” the facilitators asked questions, such as “Did you purchase food for the week?” “Did you read to your children this week?” or “Do you find that you have the same set of morals now that you had when you began the evening?”

The second half of the evening, the facilitators divided participants into discussion groups, where students shared their experiences in the simulation. Many expressed frustration at the overwhelming difficulties in doing simple tasks such as purchasing food or cashing a paycheck. Some expressed surprise at the relative ease with which families could slip into illegal means of survival, such as theft or drug sales.

Finally, the volunteers in charge of the evening shared their own stories and experiences with poverty, including moving testimonies by individuals still struggling to escape the cycle of poverty.

For more information on ACCESS of West Michigan and Poverty Simulation Workshops, visit www.accessofwestmichigan.org.

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