Changing their minds, and their lives: A way out of poverty in Philadelphia


The MindSet program adopts 30 people per year for a five-year "mobility mentoring" program, coaching people living in poverty to set clear goals and helping them save toward economic independence. Run by the nonprofit Episcopal Community Services and modeled on Boston's EMPath (Economic Mobility Pathways), MindSet rejects traditional case management and approaches that merely maintain people's lifestyle, focusing instead on plotting a path to a better future. More testing is needed on its effectiveness, but EMPath participants increased their annual income from $16,000 to $47,000.

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