Workshop
Poverty Simulation
The CESA 6 Poverty Simulation is a half day immersive experience. Participants are assigned to “families” with an accompanying “family story.” Families will be challenged to navigate work, school, and community and social systems with the resources they have been given while managing unexpected events along the way. The experience provides participants with the opportunity to live one month in the life of a human experiencing poverty. Facilitated opportunities to process the experience and consider the implications in your school community will follow.

Who might benefit from participating?
- Schools
- Community Members
Structure/Schedule
- Schools and other groups can host a poverty simulation in their community.
- Attendees are assigned to participate as either a member of a family or a worker at agency with an accompanying story and role. Participants will be challenged to navigate work, school, community, and social systems with the resources they have been given while managing unexpected events along the way. This experience provides the opportunity to interactively role play one month in the life of a human experiencing poverty. Facilitated opportunities to process the experience and consider the implications in your school community will follow.
- Host will provide space that will support the simulation and access to presentation technology.
Outcomes/Deliverables
- Increase knowledge of structures, policies, processes, and practices that contribute to system barriers
- Build empathy, understanding, and responsibility that individuals can take to remove barriers
- Encourage participants to be agents of change personally, and professionally, within systems, and communities