About the Show:
In this podcast episode, we sit down with Christina Williams, the Executive Director of CirclesNWA. CirclesNWA is a poverty reduction initiative of the nonprofit Innovative Poverty Solutions. The program helps people achieve upward mobility from poverty.
Christina shared her story about her passion for sociology and people and her experience growing up in a diverse community in Hong Kong. Then a trip to India with her husband encouraged her to find a way to help those who cannot always help themselves.
CirclesNWA has helped connect individuals in our Northwest Arkansas community to help move out of poverty. The individuals, known as Circle Leaders, are working to escape poverty. The Circle Allies, middle to upper-income volunteers, walk alongside the Circle Leaders throughout the 18-Month program. The program shows the participants how to leverage social capital.
Finally, one of the biggest challenges that the program undertakes is to help participants avoid the Cliff Effect.
“The Cliff Effect is one of the biggest yet hidden barriers keeping people in poverty. While a pay raise or new job should be a cause for celebration, too often for low-income households, earning more is a risky move that can result in having less. The Cliff Effect disincentivizes economic growth, a strong workforce, and job retention.”
CirclesNWA is working hard to help local families reduce poverty and avoid the Cliff Effect. If you know someone locally that could benefit from hearing this episode, please consider sharing it with them.
We are ALL in this together.
All this and much more are on this episode of the I am Northwest Arkansas podcast.
Important Links and Mentions on the Show*:
This episode is sponsored by*:
Signature Bank was founded here in Northwest Arkansas in 2005 and focuses on personal and community banking. When you bank with a community bank, you’re investing in local businesses, local entrepreneurs, local charities, and causes close to home. They have worked hard to earn their tagline, “Community Banking at its Best.”
You may ask why bank at Signature?
Because they focus on the customer instead of having a branch on every corner, you can have your questions answered by a real person, whether you’re reaching out to the call center or your banker’s cell phone. You can access any ATM in the country without fear of a fee. They will refund all of those fees at the end of every month. Finally, they are constantly improving their digital offerings to ensure you can access the best financial tools from your laptop, phone, or tablet 24 hours a day.
Signature Bank of Arkansas is a full-service bank offering traditional checking and savings accounts, investment accounts, business and personal loans, and mortgages.
Give the folks at Signature Bank a call (479-684-4700) or visit their website Signature.Bank and let them know you heard about them on the I am Northwest Arkansas Podcast.
Signature Bank of Arkansas is a Member of the FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender.
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*Note: some of the resources mentioned may be affiliate links. This means we get paid a commission (at no extra cost to you) if you use that link to make a purchase.
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