More CSEM News
Working toward healthy food for all
Triad City Beat
For many, summertime means easy access to fresh tomatoes, peaches, squash, string beans, cucumbers, butterbeans, watermelons and other goodies. For others, including those living in urban food deserts, access to fresh fruits and vegetables is a luxury.
CSEM research shows leaving crime-ridden neighborhoods part of economic rise
The Chronicle
Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) has long recognized the relationship between crime and upward economic mobility, and is confronting the issues with its partner groups and its research.
Communal living housing can raise economic hopes
The Winston-Salem Journal
I saw how the community’s living conditions forced people to make tough choices, to sometimes live and behave unethically
CSEM-supported program is turning Lives around, one cut at a time
The Chronicle
Donald Weaks teaches barbering to Shica Shell as she cuts her son Jayden's hair.
CSEM-supported group brings the power of art to youth
The Chronicle
Royal Curtain Drama Guild Director Stephanie Hurt and her son, guild choreographer Joel Hurt, work with youth in a Freedom School at Calvary Hill Church of Greater Deliverance.
Gun violence is a big barrier to economic mobility
The Winston-Salem Journal
Each new gun injury and death makes the point all the more painfully clear...
Graduate of CSEM-supported program improves her community
The Chronicle
Kimberlee McNeil wakes up every morning thinking of how she might bring economic improvement to her East Winston neighborhood, Castle Heights.
As pandemic clears, CSEM-supported groups weigh lessons
The Chronicle
They dug in and worked all the harder, seeing the inequities they had long battled aggravated by COVID-19.
Craig J. Richardson: The minimum wage paradox
The Winston-Salem Journal
The tool, which we call the Social Benefits Calculator, enables anyone to go online and experience for themselves what it is like to be receiving social benefits and experience a monthly wage increase.
CSEM research on first-time homebuyers’ program highlighted on local NPR radio station
WFDD
Newly released data show that a long-time program that helps Black Forsyth County renters become homeowners is bearing fruit.
CSEM-supported group confronts terrible tide of gun violence
The Winston-Salem Journal
Te'ore Terry comes to his mother in dreams. Three months after he was fatally shot in Winston-Salem, on Valentine's Day...
CSEM-supported group underscores new mode of community mobilization
The Chronicle
Michael Banner and Marcus Hill have been chipping away at food insecurity in East Winston, forming a nonprofit, Island CultureZ, to increase land and market access for economically marginalized communities...
Against backdrop of “rigged” education systems, WSSU stands out
The Chronicle
The documentary spotlights Winston-Salem State University as one of just three colleges nationwide whose innovative efforts are reversing education inequities.
CSEM research keeps this millennial in Winston-Salem
The Winston-Salem Journal
For years, Winston-Salem leaders have talked about the need to keep native millennials here while also attracting new ones.
From Struggling Single Mom to Determined CEO Helping Women Break the Cycle of Poverty
Center For Advancing Opportunity
Meet Rasheeda Shankle, a Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) graduate and founder, president and CEO of Honorable Youth, Inc.
Women’s stories underscore importance of CSEM research
The Chronicle
As Black women with physical challenges, Green and Powell welcome a study by Research Fellows from Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM).
CSEM profiled in national documentary on equity and innovation in education
CSEM News
RIGGED Documentary - Let's Get Real about the American Dream
Graduate of CSEM-supported program spreads success to HBCUs
The Winston-Salem Journal
CSEM Fellows’ research could open doors for vulnerable residents, employers
CSEM News
The work of CSEM’s 2019-20 class of Research Fellows shares one important factor...
CSEM research shows county program is working for the people
The Winston-Salem Journal
The research found that the program has been a significant force for economic mobility in the county.
Richardson: Three surprising challenges faced by those at the bottom of the income ladder
Center For Advancing Opportunity
We know that residents of fragile communities experience immense barriers to opportunities, such as unemployment, lack of quality education options, criminal injustice..
CSEM-backed program produces graduates for changing business world
The Chronicle
Lash and three cohorts are making their own new way, thanks to a program Tate Consulting of Winston-Salem has created called “Maestro, the Playbook 2.0!”
WSSU’s $30 million gift underscores commitment by CSEM, others to underserved communities
CSEM News
The award speaks directly to the University’s continued commitment to elevating underrepresented communities through efforts like the Center for the Study of Economic Mobility and a strategic plan that emphasizes social justice and equity.
CSEM and Tate Consulting go big with transformative academy
CSEM News
Research sparked idea for leadership training.
CSEM is happy to support this program that rolls out the mighty tide of the arts
Yes Weekly
Joel Hurt and his sister Kaila Gillespie grew up in East Winston, finding hope where some might not typically see it, thanks to their mother’s arts organiza
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CSEM’s empirical study finds success with county’s first-time homebuyer program
The Winston-Salem Journal
There is a little-known program in our county that, over two decades, has helped more than 800 residents move from renting to home ownership.
Circle of strength supported by CSEM especially important in pandemic days
WFDD
In 2018, eleven Black women volunteered to come together over eight weeks to share, learn, support one another, and to find out more about how systemic poverty has impacted their lives.
Student interns set stage for future
The Chronicle
They describe their work as transformative. They are interns for Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM).
New initiative to help at-risk youth takes off in East Winston
Yes Weekly
Project M.O.O.R. E., the second word standing for Mentoring Our Own and Rejuvenating the Environment, has transformed an old frame house just off Martin Luther King Drive into a spot where youth can gather, learn and dream...
The 2020 CSEM Community Scholars: ‘Just look for the hope. It’s out there.’
The Chronicle
The Community Scholars’ designation was created in combination with Economic Mobility Opportunity Awards, in recognition of the value of knowledge obtained by individuals...
Alvin Atkinson Honoring King's "Beloved Community"
The Winston-Salem Journal
At the dawn of this new year, and in recognition of the celebration of the life and legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., I now write to excite and invite all of us to look within ourselves...
Searching for the local reasons the American Dream remains so elusive
Triad City Beat
Studies have also found that some areas of the country offer less mobility than most other developed countries. One of these places may just be Winston-Salem/Forsyth County.
East Winston man continues giving back with new program
Yes Weekly
CSEM, Forsyth Tech joint study reveals high cost of transportation challenges
The Chronicle
Groundbreaking research by Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM), initiated by Forsyth Technical Community College (FTCC), reveals that transportation challenges are taking a heavy toll on the college’s student productivity.
We’ve got enough municipalities – and too much segregation
The Winston-Salem Journal
Lately, it seems like the one thing Americans can agree on is that we are deeply divided.
Woman helps clients achieve dream of home ownership
The Chronicle
In almost 20 years of working for the county of Forsyth, almost 15 of those as the loan officer for county’s Homeownership Program, Bianca Green has helped hundreds of local residents buy their homes...
CSEM highlighted in article on transportation in fragile communities
Center For Advancing Opportunity
People living in fragile communities face many barriers to upward social mobility, including poverty, crime, low-performing schools, inequities in law enforcement, and limited economic opportunities.
CSEM supports push to overcome food insecurity
The Winston-Salem Journal
The innovative work of Island CultureZ fits with Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM), which encourages upward economic mobility. CSEM presented Island CultureZ with an Economic Mob
A CSEM regional economist warns against panic buying
WXII News 12
As we move into the winter months, an economics professor said it’s important for people to not start buying up and hoarding everyday
CSEM supports revitalizing roundtable in Boston-Thurmond
The Chronicle
The proximity of the Boston-Thurmond neighborhood to WSSU, combined with the active participation of WSSU staff, created an opportunity for WSSU’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) to present the roundtable with an Economic Mobility award.
Meet Craig Richardson
Western Carolina University-Center for the Study of Free Enterprise
CSFE Content Marketing Specialist, Allie Todd, talked with Craig Richardson. As Director of the Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) and the BB&T Distinguished Professor of Economics at Winston-Salem State U
CSEM's research on class sizes could help drive public dialogue
The Chronicle
A surprising initial finding by researchers from Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility could help drive that public dialogue, especially in these pa
Students make voices heard on life in a food desert
CSEM News
They are too young to experience the food hardships they do, and they are speaking out so that their children will not have to live through those hardship
CSEM needs more community input on study of economic mobility hurdles faced by Black women with disabilities
CSEM News
A study on the hurdles to economic mobility for African American women with physical and mental health disabilities in Forsyth County has made two significant findings....
CSEM charges ahead with two new positions
CSEM News
CSEM has named two tenured WSSU professors to new research positions, expanding its outreach into the community on crucial issues of economic mobility.
Here's your chance to use CSEM's data
CSEM News
Since Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility launched three years ago, one of our bedrocks has been putting our research before the public. We continue that mission with our new data hub page.
CSEM is three-years-old!
CSEM News
Sept. 17, 2020 marks CSEM’s third birthday. We have made strong progress in bringing to light the challenges facing economic mobility in our city and c
CSEM & a local group team up to support the arts
The Winston-Salem Journal
Leaders in Winston-Salem and Forsyth County have long supported the power of the arts, but not as much in East Winston as in other areas. Hurt brings that needed focus. Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) supports her work.
What Now Winston-Salem? A New Answer
The Winston-Salem Journal
Our community, along with others across America, is in the midst of a terrible storm brought about by the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic on our economic and health ecosystems.
In pandemic days, East Winston women find strength in CSEM program begun in 2018
The Chronicle
In the summer of 2018, in that long-ago time before the pandemic, several black women from East Winston came together in a research project.
New Venture will bridge East Winston to power structures
The Chronicle
It’s six miles from East Winston to the sprawling Graylyn International Conference Center on Reynolda Road. At first blush to some, the distance might seem much more, that from blight to bright.
Increasingly refined data can pave way for upward economic mobility
The Chronicle
At Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM), data is one of our bedrocks.
CSEM receives award
CSEM News
Winston-Salem State University has recognized CSEM with a special honor.
CSEM researchers included in crucial grant to study pandemic’s economic effects
CSEM News
Winston-Salem State University announced a grant of $1 million from the UNC Board of Governors and the N.C. Policy Collaboratory at UNC-Chapel Hill to combat COVID-19...
Study on housing loss reveals few surprises for urban core
The Chronicle
Last month representatives from New America, a think tank that focuses on a range of public policy issues, revealed findings from a study that took a closer look at evictions and mortgage foreclosures in Forsyth County.
CSEM-loaded student busts the barriers
Yes Weekly
Tyler Chisolm, a Winston-Salem State University senior majoring in psychology, is bright and driven.
CSEM joins county in win-win study of home ownership
The Chronicle
Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) and the county of Forsyth have come together to study the county’s Home ownership Program.
New study analyzes soaring home displacement rates in Forsyth County
WFDD
Over the past decade, Forsyth County has made some unflattering national news. A 2015 Harvard University study revealed its status as having the third-worst economic mobility in the U
Craig Richardson and Tim Robustelli: Forsyth needs long-term solutions to housing loss
Winston-Salem Journal
Last week, protesters in Winston-Salem called for reinstatement of North Carolina’s eviction moratorium amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
WSTA suspends two-bag limit
CSEM News
The Winston-Salem Transit Authority has suspended its rule limiting passengers to just two bags of groceries, and a local high school student played a big role in its decision.
CSEM research finds city and/or businesses might benefit by subsidizing Uber use
The Chronicle
New research on the city bus system from Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) finds that female riders commuting to work pay a higher overall economic price than their male counterparts.
CSEM supports problem-solving spatial justice research
Winston-Salem Journal
The old saying is true: Geography is destiny.
Local high school student connects with CSEM and charges ahead
CSEM News
Sarina Horner works on reform of city bus system.
CSEM Research Fellow says people in poverty want some joy, too
The Chronicle
For Winston-Salem State University psychology professor Michele Lewis, two recent news stories were jarring...
Program helps East Winston students confront problems aggravated by the pandemic
The Chronicle
Student Intern Ladarian Eaton helps the YouthRise class participants define their concerns. Photo by John Railey
Released offenders welcome research to ease transition
WRAL
They come out blinking at the free world, nervous, anxious, and although most will not admit it,
How public transit affects African-Americans' upward mobility
Spectrum News
He doesn't have access to a car. Goodman, 19, has to start his day hours before his shift to catch the #87 bus at the city's Transportation Center...
Aligning to give vulnerable students the gifted teachers they need
The Chronicle
The challenge of how to get the best teachers in the lowest-performing schools in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools system is one that has confounded educators for years...
Hear these young people (speak on structural racism)
Winston-Salem Journal
A rising senior at an East Winston High School, spoke to researchers from Winston-Salem State University’s Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) about the fear he feels from others as an African-American male...
Pandemic heightens concerns for bus rider
CSEM News
Subject of documentary film rises to new challenges
Exploring the reasons behind the high rates of Hispanic evictions in pandemic
Triad City Beat
Vanessa Reyes of Winston-Salem has come a long way in her 19 years, and a big part of her journey from Mexico has been the road to speaking out, trying to explain to the public the reasons her fellow Latinx residents face high eviction rates...
WSSU grad works with CSEM, Tate Consulting on economic mobility
The Chronicle
For Quinton Benson, it all started that day he saw the boy in the grocery store...
CSEM intern Sierra Chesnutt charges ahead
CSEM News
Corona virus restrictions challenge this intern, but won’t stop her work.
Graduates of entrepreneurial class are future of East Winston
The Chronicle
Graduates of the inaugural class of the East Winston version of the “Playbook for Entrepreneurial Excellence” took their virtual graduation, the new normal now...
Hispanics in Forsyth County may face higher risk of eviction from COVID-19
Winston-Salem Journal
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office recently announced a halt to evictions as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the United States. Delinquent renters can now remain in their homes
CSEM research could open doors for African American women with disabilities
The Chronicle
The pandemic underscores the need for this study.
How COVID-19 may amplify education inequities
WRAL
CSEM Fellow explores what could be a transformative time
Forsyth Tech, WSSU center join to put students on ‘wheels’ to success
The Chronicle
Schools take on longstanding transportation challenges
John Railey: Helping offenders rebuild their lives
Winston-Salem Journal
CSEM Fellow brings life experience to innovative research.
CSEM research could spur dialogue on helping low-performing schools
Yes Weekly
Research from CSEM’s Zach Blizard provides some answers on how the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County system can improve its low-performing schools.
John Railey: Wake Forest, Winston-Salem State united on residents' property rights
WRAL
Educators from Wake Forest University’s Environmental Law and Policy Clinic and CSEM join forces to confront our high rate of evictions and other issues
Our work is now all the more important
CSEM Staff Report
CSEM's work researching the causes and effects of generational poverty wont be slowed by the Corona virus pandemic. The effort is too important, and our momentum is growing.
CSEM to be featured as higher ed innovator in the forthcoming documentary Rigged- April 2020.
CSEM News
RIGGED examines how the long prevailing value system in U.S. higher education erodes individual opportunity and undermines U.S. democracy. The Center for the Study of Economic Mobility at WSSU is featured as one of the innovators that will reverse this trend and that will ultimately transform colleges and universities into pathways for student engagement and social mobility. Interviews with staff members, faculty and top administrators at WSSU each provide perspective on how the University creates success for its students.
CSEM’s new partnership could be explosive in a good way
CSEM News
Can you imagine being in college and having a great business idea or an individual who has been working for over 20 years in a job unfulfilled because it did not align with your passion? If you said yes, there is a program designed to help you achieve your goals.
In February, the Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) and Tate Consulting began the Playbook for Entrepreneurial Excellence, an eight-week program designed to arm individuals with CEO leadership competencies and skills to give you the confidence to be your boss.
Commentary: Equality, equity: Leveling the playing field for black students
WS Chronicle
Dr. Charity Griffin, a 2018-2019 CSEM fellow, puts a thought-provoking context on the principal reassignments in our local school system
CSEM scholars give a presentation at Wake Forest University on transportation and inequity
Triad City Beat
There is a needed symmetry developing in the local push to reduce poverty, and Winston-Salem State and Wake Forest universities continued that alignment with a panel discussion this week at Wake Forest: “Transportation and Inequity in Winston-Salem."
Professors Russ Smith and Craig Richardson presented the challenges posed by both the geography and the growing concentration of poverty.
WFDD radio interview: Profs. Smith and Richardson reveal transportation’s role in economic mobility
WFDD radio
Winston-Salem State University geography professor Russell Smith and economics professor Craig Richardson were recently interviewed by WFDD's David Ford. The WSSU professors discussed transportation and inequity in Forsyth County and its special challenges.
CSEM announces 2019-20 Faculty Research Fellows
WSSU News
Three WSSU faculty members have been selected as the 2019-20 Center for the Study of Economic Mobility Faculty Research Fellows.
CSEM research referenced in The Washington Post
The Washington Post
Gentrification in the D.C. area phase been found to push people from homes and away from transit.
The Center for the Study of Economic Mobility in Winston-Salem, N.C. found that city bus commuters spent on average 8.6 extra hours per week riding the bus compared with how much time it would take to drive to work, making life even more difficult for those located in "transportation deserts."
Inclusion in documentary of WSSU's CSEM underscores its national prominence
The Chronicle
The Center for the Study of Economic Mobility gains national prominence for its innovative platform in solving economic mobility. Its profile in Rigged, a new documentary, will feature WSSU faculty, staff, and students aligned with CSEM's mission.
Washington, D.C.-based think tank New America announces partnership with CSEM and others to study property loss in the United States.
New America: Future of Property Rights Press Release
CSEM is working in an advisory capacity with New America based in Washington, DC. The goal is to map home and land loss across the country and conduct on-the-ground research in Arizona, Indiana and North Carolina. CSEM will be playing a special role in Forsyth County along with Wake Forest Law School.
Craig J. Richardson and Russell Smith: ‘Spreading the wealth’ in the East Ward
Winston-Salem Journal
Several years of planning and community conversation led to a plan to help invigorate the East End area, also known as the East End Master Plan. Now, it seems those plans are up for debate. As some city council members are mulling over whether to allow those funds to be spread across the entire East Ward to spread the wealth.
Local economist assesses New York Times’ take on Winston-Salem
WFDD radio
A recent article in the New York Times, Why Midsize Cities Struggle to Catch Up to Superstar Cities, has put Winston-Salem in the national spotlight. But based on the reaction it’s received thus far from local residents and an increasingly vocal group of public officials, some are wondering whether the story got it right.
Craig J. Richardson: Innovation in transportation: Can it happen here?
Winston-Salem Journal
Since our founding in September 2017, the Center for the Study of Economic Mobility (CSEM) has generated academic research with the aim of spurring beneficial public debate. Housed at Winston-Salem State University, CSEM has been at the vanguard of empirical research around our local public transportation system, along with a host of other research initiatives.
