Southwestern College, in conjunction with the Mid Kansas Action Program Inc., is sponsoring a poverty symposium Saturday, March 28, at the Evangelical Free Church at 3725 E. 9th in Winfield from 1-3:30 p.m.  Brae Johnson and Trista Wilson, Americorp VISTAs (Volunteers in Service to America) at Southwestern College, are planning the event.
     According to Johnson and Wilson, the symposium is a journey into the life of low income Kansans. The symposium is a realistic tool that promotes understanding about living in poverty, such as difficulty achieving self-sufficiency, inadequate money, and the stress that living in poverty causes. During the simulation, participants role play the lives of low-income families, from single parents trying to care for their children to senior citizens trying to maintain their self sufficiency on Social Security. The task of each family is to provide food, shelter, and other basic necessities during the simulation while interacting with various resources.
     “The word poverty evokes many different emotions, ideas and even stereotypes from many people,” says Johnson.  “The poverty symposium, in an important first step, gives people the awareness to best use those evoked emotions, ideas and stereotypes to tackle such a problem as poverty.”
     The symposium is offered free of charge.  Participants must be at least 18 years of age or a high school senior.  Childcare will be available. 
The primary focus of the Americorp VISTA program is to alleviate poverty. 
     “The poverty symposium is a great way for people to get a deeper understanding of what it is really like to live in poverty,” says Wilson.
       Contact Johnson or Wilson in the Southwestern College VISTA office to sign up to participate in the symposium at (620) 229-6252. You can also reach them by emailing brae.wood@sckans.edu or trista.wilson@sckans.edu.