ALICE is a complex term for a population we know too well. It stands for Asset Limited, Income-Constrained, Employed. ALICE is working hard, but barely surviving and definitely not thriving. ALICE is part of our economic engine but ALICE is struggling. ALICE may be a college student, working and going to school hoping for a better life or a senior citizen making a difficult choice between food, housing and prescriptions. ALICE could be a working dad, with childcare, transportation and housing costs that leave very little to provide shoes for his children. ALICE is many of us.

ACROSS OUR REGION, 38% OF HOUSEHOLDS STRUGGLE TO AFFORD THE BASIC NECESSITIES OF HOUSING, CHILD CARE, FOOD, TECHNOLOGY, HEALTH CARE AND TRANSPORTATION.

Over 40 percent of U.S. households earn below the ALICE Threshold, which means that millions of families are forced to make difficult choices and risky trade-offs every day.

This report below highlights how choices in one area invariably affect choices in other areas. The problems are complicated and interwoven. With this clear documentation of the issues and how they are interconnected, community stakeholders can start to build solutions for their neighborhoods, towns and cities, counties, and states. For solutions to be effective, they must be comprehensive and interconnected to address as many areas of struggle as possible.

If you’d like to have United Way of Northwest Michigan present more about ALICE to your group, please reach out! Contact Rebeca Otto, Director of Regional Community Impact – CharEm Region, at rebeca@unitedwaynwmi.org.