WI is planning for the future

On June 14, the Women's Initiative Steering Committee and some of our Champions came together at the Birmingham Community House to plan for the group's future. The session was facilitated by Dan Moscone, and the group spent a full day planning, making wish lists, and looking toward a synergized initiative. We continue to be focused on tackling early childhood literacy and focusing our efforts to ensure children in our region enter school ready to learn. After a full day of strategizing, the room was energized with new ideas and plans.

Ideas percolated throughout the room - and adhesive easel pad sheets with ideas and thoughts covered the walls! We chose to focus our efforts on some specific topics, including our communications plan, volunteerism, and community reach and fundraising efforts. All of these areas were looked at with an eye toward mobilization; we know that we must continue to engage more and more people if we are going to make progress on our work. To look at each area more closely, ad hoc committees were developed to look at new processes that can be implemented and move forward with renewed motivation and direction.

Our next next Steering Committee Meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 28, at 6 p.m. It will be hosted by our new Chair, Rhonda Saunders, senior vice president, Fifth Third Bank. Mike Tenbusch, senior director, Educational Preparedness, United Way, will be on hand to discuss United Way's work in Educational Preparedness and how the Women's Initiative's work coincides with other programs underway.

To learn more, contact Ruth Mossock Johnston.

Lend your voice, cast your vote

The unemployment rate is at a high, foreclosures are on the rise, and more and more people are struggling to meet their basic needs. You may feel like you don't have the power to change conditions this region faces. But you do.

Advocacy is an important element to provoking change in your community. By using your voice and speaking out about issues that are important to you, you can influence others to share a stake in what you believe. One form of advocacy is to simply cast your vote.

This year's election offers an excellent time to speak out and take a stand on issues. The presidential race is in the forefront, but there are also 264 candidates running for 55 positions at the federal and state level across Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, and those individuals have even more power to make changes to this region than the person who is elected president.

Through our research, we've learned the issues that are important to you and formed our Agenda for Change based on those issues. We know you want people to have an education that leads to a steady job, an income that can support a family, and access to basic needs in times of crisis. We urge you to think about those important issues when considering who you want to serve as your elected representatives.

Now is a great time to become educated on the candidates seeking election in your community, and if necessary, contact them to learn their thoughts about the issues that matter to you. A little investigative work will go a long way in helping you make an informed decision during the primary on August 5 and the general election on November 4.

Below is a list of questions you can use when communicating with candidates. These are based on the three issues you told us are most important to a thriving region: Education, Income and Basic Needs. To find a list of people running for office in your community, as well as their contact information, click here and enter your ZIP code.

1. If elected, what would you do to help ensure long-term financial stability for all Americans?
2. What would you do to enhance job growth and opportunities in Michigan?
3. If elected, what would you do to increase the chances of all children graduating from high school?
4. What attempts would you make to improve public education?
5. What would you do, if elected, to ensure quality, affordable, accessible healthcare for all?
6. If elected, what would you do to help ensure that all families can meet their basic needs of food, heat, and shelter?

Volunteer Spotlight
WI volunteer goes extra mile

Gail Duncan has been committed to the success of the Women's Initiative from its start. Whether she's helping to develop the direction of the group or driving miles upon miles across the region to deliver books to local nonprofits, she's been up front and behind the scenes contributing to the initiative's success.

Her work with the Women's Initiative began in 2003, before it was even conceived. Nick Scheele, who was the United Way campaign chair at the time and president and COO of Ford Motor Co, approached Duncan and asked her to work with United Way for Southeastern Michigan to start a Women's Initiative similar to other groups popping up at United Ways across the nation.

She took up the challenge and proceeded to meet with other women in the local community; these women eventually formed the initiative's first steering committee. This work coincided with the beginnings of United Way's move toward becoming a Community Impact organization - moving away from being just a fundraiser and toward a model that seeks to make long-term change in the community.

"I knew then that I wasn't just here to fulfill a request by Nick Scheele," said Duncan. "I knew United Way was going to be changing direction in a way that would touch my heart."

During the end of 2003 and through the Spring of 2004, Duncan continued to work with the newly formed steering committee as they finalized the work the initiative would be focusing on: improving early literacy opportunities for children birth through age three.

As the Women's Initiative advanced its work, Duncan served a variety of roles, including co-chair of the Steering Committee, co-chair of the Community Impact Committee, and co-chair of the Volunteer Committee.

Her work has included more than just leadership positions, however. She's volunteered with the group at several nonprofits, reading and interacting with children. Currently, she's the behind the scenes champion, visiting nonprofit partners and delivering children's books collected by the initiative.

"Gail has been one of those quintessential volunteers who is ready to pitch in and do anything asked of her in order to get the job done," said Ruth Mossok Johnston, manager, United Way Women's Initiative.

"I find the work we're doing incredibly rewarding," said Duncan. "The early literacy program is about prevention and creating long-term change, which is at the heart of United Way's mission."

She continued: "A professional evaluator is monitoring results and his findings are telling us that the children and their families are improving and changing their behaviors and habits when it comes to reading. And that behavioral change is what's most important."

Upcoming Events
Vote this primary season

On August 5, many cities in our region will have primary elections for federal and state government. At United Way, we believe public policy is a necessary tool to creating lasting change in our region. That policy starts with our elected officials.

The upcoming primary season is an important opportunity to cast a vote for the representatives you believe can make a difference in our community. To learn about the candidates running in your district and to locate your polling place, click here and enter your ZIP code.

If you aren't registered to vote and are over the age of 18, now is a great time to do so. With the general election just a few short months away, you have the opportunity to impact the future of our region, state, and the entire nation simply by casting your vote. United Way can help you register by clicking here and clicking on "Register to Vote".

Kurt's Corner
Who's deciding our elections? Voter turnout by the numbers

According to a report recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 96 million people voted in the 2006 congressional elections, an increase of 7 million from 2002. About 48 percent of voting-age citizens cast a ballot in 2006, the highest since 1994 when the Census Bureau first began collecting this data. The voting rate in the Midwest was higher at 53 percent than any other region.

These data are based on responses to the November 2006 Current Population Survey - Voting and Registration Supplement. The report examines the levels of voting and registration, characteristics of citizens who either registered or voted, and the reasons why people who were registered did not vote. Voting and registration rates are historically lower in years with congressional elections than in presidential election years, and therefore data are only compared with previous "off-year" elections.

Among citizens of voting age, 68 percent were registered to vote in 2006, compared with 67 percent who were registered in 2002. Overall, 136 million people were registered in 2006, an increase of approximately 8 million over 2002. Michigan ranked at No. 10, tied with Kentucky, with a registration rate of 73.4 percent. This represented an increase over 2002's registration rate of 72.2 percent, when Michigan also ranked tied with Iowa for the No. 10 spot. The highest rate of citizen registration was in North Dakota - 83.6 percent, followed by Maine at 79.3 percent. On the low end were Hawaii (55.2 percent) and Nevada (56.2 percent).

While registration is necessary before one can vote, it does not guarantee that the registrant will actually vote. Among registered voters, just 71 percent reported voting in 2006, compared with 69 percent in 2002. Michigan did quite a bit better than the national average with a 77.8 percent voting rate, and considerably improved upon its 2002 share of 69.6 percent. Nevertheless, this was only good enough for 12th place, as Montana took the lead with an 85.0 percent rate, and Louisiana came in last at 55.1 percent. Michigan's rate in 2002 was only 69.6 percent

Among those who did not vote, about four out of 10 cited conflicting schedules or illness as reasons. About two in 10 were either not interested in voting or did not like the candidates. Other reasons for not voting included being out of town, forgetting to vote, registration problems, inconvenient polling locations, transportation issues, and bad weather. None of this detail was made available at the state level, though the general themes are probably relatively consistent across states.

The Census study provides the only data (with the exception of limited exit polling) on the demographic characteristics of voters and non-voters. Among their findings:

• Non-Hispanic white citizens had the highest level of voter turnout in the November 2006 election at 52 percent, followed by black citizens at 41 percent, and both Hispanics and Asians at 32 percent. While Michigan followed this order, each group's voting percentage was higher than national averages. In fact, there was no difference between whites and blacks (57.6 percent and 57.4 percent respectively), while Hispanics were significantly higher than the nation (47.4 percent).
• In terms of Michigan's registration rates in 2006, non-Hispanic whites had the highest registration rate (74 percent), followed by blacks (71 percent), Hispanics (66 percent) and Asians (57 percent). Each easily surpassed the national rate.
• While slightly trailing Mississippi, Alabama and the District of Columbia in the percent of African Americans who registered, Michigan led all other states in the overall percent of African Americans who voted in 2006 - 57.4 percent, as well as the percent of registered voters who turned out to vote - 81.0 percent. The closest states in these two categories were Maryland (52.8%) and Massachusetts (79.5%).
• Michigan also came out at, or near, the top for Hispanic registration and voting rates. 65.8 percent of Michigan Hispanic citizens registered to vote, placing it in a tie with Ohio for the No. 1 rank. Michigan ranked fourth, at 47.4 percent, for the percent of its Hispanic residents who voted, behind New Mexico, Missouri and Maryland. When only registered voters are taken into account, Michigan's voting rate of 72.3 percent places it in eighth place. Hispanics in Maryland had the highest voting rate - 85.5 percent.
• In 2006, 22 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds voted compared with 63 percent of people 55 and older.
• Although 18- to 24-year-olds had the lowest voting and registration rates (22 percent and 46 percent), they increased their registration and voting rates by roughly three percentage points between the 2002 and 2006 elections.
• Among the general voting-age population, 69 percent of women and 66 percent of men registered to vote in the 2006 congressional elections. In Michigan the rates were 72.4 and 74.3 percent, respectively.
• While Michigan women overall were slightly more likely to vote than men (57.4 percent compared with 56.7 percent), a higher percentage of registered men turned out to vote (78.4 percent) than did registered women (77.2 percent).
• In 2006, 93 percent of voting-age citizens were native-born citizens. Of the estimated 221 million people of voting age, 34 million were not citizens at birth. Of those, 14 million (42 percent) were naturalized citizens.
• In 2006, a larger percentage of native-born citizens (69 percent) registered than naturalized citizens (54 percent). Native citizens also had a higher voting turnout rate (49 percent compared with 37 percent).
• Married people had higher rates of both registration (75 percent) and voting (56 percent) in 2006 than non-married people.
• Divorced women had higher registration rates (67 percent compared with 60 percent) and voting rates (45 percent compared with 41 percent) than divorced men.
• The registration and voting rates of citizens with bachelor's degrees (78 percent and 61 percent, respectively) were higher than those of citizens who had not received a high school diploma (48 percent and 27 percent).
• The voting rate of citizens living in families with annual incomes less than $20,000 was 31 percent, which is lower than the rate among families with incomes of $50,000 or more (59 percent).

Table 1. Reported Voting and Registration of the Voting-Age Population, by Sex, Race and Hispanic Origin, for Michigan: November 2006

Local Trends Since 2000

August 5 is the date of Michigan's primary election. This is the time when voters will go to the polls to determine the finalists - for state Senate, state House, county Commissions, and more - from each party who will run in November. Years of redistricting have shown that most districts tend to skew either heavily Democratic or Republican. As a result, primaries have been shown to be the determinant of the ultimate victor in November. In other words, if a state Senate District has shown a preponderance of Democratic representation over time, it is almost assured that the person who wins the Democratic Primary will win the General Election. Why then is voter turnout so low in our primaries?

Figure 1 illustrates the percentage of eligible voters, at the state level, who have turned out for primary and general elections every two years since 1984. Two findings are clear from the data:

• A higher share of eligible voters turn out in presidential election years than in "off-year" elections, even though we vote for governor and a host of other offices in those years. The average turnout in presidential years is 59 percent, while only 43 percent show up to vote in off-year elections.
• Primary turnout tends to be abysmal, whether it is during a Presidential cycle or not. In fact, the 18.1 percent turnout in a presidential year is actually less than the 18.7 percent in an off year.

Figure 1. Percent of Eligible Voters Who Voted in Primary and General Elections, 1984 – 2006

Click here to view a full-sized version of this graph.

These results show that, on average, less than 18 percent¹ of the electorate is truly responsible for electing our representatives. How can we complain about politicians and the legislation they pass, or don’t pass, when we are not willing to spend the brief amount of time it takes to participate in our democratic process?

Figure 2 provides a slightly different look at voting patterns in Southeast Michigan. Due to the fact that primary results are not available separately for Detroit, we are looking at total voter turnout during the last four November elections. It is readily apparent that off-year elections turn out fewer voters in each of the four areas. In fact, the share of off-year to presidential year voter turnout ranges from a low of 71 percent in Detroit to a “high” of 79 percent in Oakland County.

Figure 2. Voter Turnout in Southeast Michigan, 2000 – 2006

Click here to view a full-sized version of this graph.

On August 5, Michigan residents will once again have the opportunity to participate in one of the most important activities there is - voting. This decade has been an extremely difficult one for our state and region. Whatever your situation in life, YOUR VOTE DOES COUNT! While our primary will not determine the presidential contenders, it will determine many other state and local office holders, and they are the individuals that have the power to create the most change right here in our community. Show your support by casting your vote on August 5.

¹The 18 percent of the electorate that shows up for a primary does represent Democratic, Republican and other votes. As a result, the eventual winner in November got there with less than 18 percent of voters supporting him/her.

Take Action Now
Speak out for financial literacy

On May 13, Michigan Senate Bill 834 passed unanimously (38-0) and was referred to the Michigan House of Representatives Education Committee for consideration. This bill seeks to ensure all high school students have access to a course in financial literacy before graduation. If the bill passes the House of Representatives, it will become the first step toward that goal. The Department of Education, financial institutions, and people who recognize the value of financial literacy and fiscal responsibility support the bill.

"This bill promotes and permits, but does not mandate, that financial literacy be among the options of courses eligible to fulfill the math requirements under the revised curriculum standards," said state Sen. Mike Switalski, (D-Mich. 10) who introduced the bill in October 2007. "Financial literacy would be both a valuable and a popular course for students."

The current level of bankruptcies, foreclosures, and savings rates speak to just how necessary it is to equip individuals with financial literacy training early on. Also, a recent survey of high school seniors showed that many of them still have a lot to learn about important financial concepts. Among the findings:

• Less than half knew that a credit card holder only paying the minimum amount on monthly card balances will pay more in annual finance charges
• Only 17% knew that stocks are likely to yield higher returns than savings bonds, savings accounts and checking accounts
• Only 40% knew they could lose their health insurance if their parents become unemployed
• Only 36% knew that a house financed with a fixed-rate mortgage is a good hedge against a sudden increase in inflation

No further action has been taken on this bill since it was referred to the Michigan House of Representatives on May 13. In order to draw attention to this important bill and provoke action, we need to contact our state representatives and urge them to support the bill and ensure its quick passage. To do so, click here.