Empower Missouri

Empower Missouri Executive Director Mallory Rusch will be one of the speakers at the 2024 Policy and Equity Summit hosted by the WashU Brown School on October 18th and 19th. 'Policy And Equity: Collaborative Frameworks for Inclusive Change' will feature addresses from keynote speaker Brittany Packnett Cunningham as well as plenary speaker Jason Purnell, hands-on workshops, a policy expert panel, and more. This event is perfect for policy professionals, social and public health workers, and nonprofit and community organizers. All participants will receive a Brown School Certificate, and CE/CPH units are available for those requesting continuing education units. Learn more and register: PolicySummit.wustl.edu Image description: white text reading "Brown School Professional Development Summit" over a maroon background with the details above and photos of speakers Brittany Packnett Cunningham & Jason Purnell, as well as a photo of an audience listening to a presentation #Missouri #StLouis #STL #Collaboration #PolicyChange #Advocacy #Event

Empower Missouri is hiring a second Criminal Justice Policy Manager! https://lnkd.in/gqsXkRdu Position Summary: The Criminal Justice Policy Manager, under the direction of the Chief of Policy Staff, oversees a portfolio of criminal justice-related policy research and legislative advocacy for the organization. The Policy Manager also co-leads our Community Justice Coalition, composed of organizations working to reform our criminal legal system, which includes recruiting, training, and maintaining relationships with coalition members. If this role is not the right fit for you, please help us spread the word! You can also reach out to us at [email protected] if you have any questions. Image description: blue text reading, "We are hiring - open position: Criminal Justice Policy Manager" with a blue megaphone illustration #EmpowerMO #Hiring #Missouri #Nonprofit #Advocacy

You can find additional background info about Proposition A here: https://lnkd.in/g9-hg3mw Image description: "Minimum wage will be on the ballot this November: Proposition A would raise Missouri’s minimum wage to $13.75 beginning in January 2025 and $15 in 2026, with annual cost-of-living increases. It would also set the minimum paid sick leave to 1 hour per 30 hours worked, and paid sick leave would extend to caring for family members." #Missouri #Voting

Without effective storytelling, the push for change could not be grounded in the reality of lived experiences. To that end, journalist Andrea Elliott published a series of five articles for the New York Times in 2013 that provided a window into the life of Dasani Coates, a child attending middle school while living in the city-run Auburn Family Residence shelter with her mother Chanel, her stepfather Supreme, and her siblings. Elliott then expanded the project into the book Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival & Hope in an American City, which follows Dasani over the span of eight years. Many readers may find their beliefs about U.S. poverty to be radically challenged by Elliott’s portrait of Dasani. Read more in our newest Weekly Perspective blog post here: https://lnkd.in/gyrBm6ga Register for an Early Bird Ticket to join us at the 2024 Anti-Poverty Advocates Summit, which will feature Andrea Elliott as one of our Keynote Speakers: EmpowerMissouri.org/summit Image description: blue text reading "New Weekly Perspective on the Blog! Storytelling for Change: A Review of Invisible Child by Andrea Elliott" with a photo of the book cover #EmpowerMO #WeeklyPerspective #Blog #Books #Reading #Advocacy #Storytelling #Change

The next Housing Justice Fellowship cohort will begin soon, in collaboration with Empower Missouri and Springfield Tenants Unite (STUN)! In 2024 we are expanding to include leaders from more communities around the state, with a focus on the Rolla, Columbia, and Springfield areas.   The Fellowship is a six-month program designed to teach you how to organize or strengthen a tenant union. Through eight training sessions and a variety of outreach activities and events, Fellows will learn about the politics of housing, build their communication skills with peers and decision-makers, identify issues and solutions in their buildings and neighborhoods, and build capacity to organize tenant power in their communities.   Visit https://lnkd.in/gf4vh96f to learn more, complete an initial Interest Form, and sign up to receive more information. If the program is not a good fit for you, we hope you will spread the word to your networks. Image description: "Learn & organize with the 24-25 Housing Justice Fellowship: Let's build tenant power together" with a photo of a person holding a megaphone #EmpowerMO #Missouri #Advocacy #Housing #HousingIsAHumanRight #Community

Join us on Zoom for a meaningful discussion next Thursday! RSVP at: https://lnkd.in/gHKynGxt to explore the ideas in the novel 'Chain-Gang All-Stars' by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. You can choose between an afternoon session and an evening session on August 29th, and feel free to invite a friend! (As always, you are more than welcome whether you get a chance to finish the book or not.) A Finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction, "Chain-Gang All-Stars" is described as "a tale of survival and resistance in an unfair prison system." Image description: Empower Missouri Advocates Book Club graphic with "Join us for a virtual discussion!" and the Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah quote "Remember that just because something is, doesn’t mean it can’t change, and just because you haven’t seen something before, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.” #EmpowerMO #Community #BookClub #Reading #Books #Novel #Event