Op-Ed: Brandi Cagle, SVP Charlotte 

37% of households in Mecklenburg County can’t afford the basics. Only 11% are officially poor.

In an op-ed, Brandi Cagle of SVP Charlotte explains the gap. Many of those households are ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed): working and earning above the poverty line, yet still unable to afford basic costs where they live.

Brandi’s point is that a family can move out of poverty on paper without ever reaching economic security. A raise, a new job, or moving off assistance are all worth celebrating, but if household costs still outpace income, the work isn’t finished. She invites those of us in philanthropy and nonprofit service to ask whether our measures capture stability or just the absence of poverty.

Brandi’s piece is part of a series of op-eds from SVP network leaders, developed through SVPI’s sessions with The OpEd Project. Since publishing, she shared with us: “I am finding new life in writing, and it has been incredibly fulfilling!”

Read Brandi’s full piece: https://svpcharlotte.org/what-alice-reveals-about-economic-mobility-in-charlotte/