News & Views Martha O’Bryan Center National Coalition unveils policy solutions to help families overcome benefits cliff November 17, 2025 The Martha O’Bryan Center (MOBC) is convening a national network of practitioners focused on increasing opportunities for families across the country. With the recent expansion of their national Beyond the Cliff coalition to 27 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, more than 70 organizations are now collaborating to eliminate a…
Resource Beyond the Cliff: The Challenge of Benefits Cliffs and How to Fix Them November 17, 2025 Benefits cliffs are a critical challenge in America’s public benefits system, including programs like SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), Medicaid, housing assistance and childcare subsidies. These programs help families with low incomes meet basic needs, but rigid eligibility rules often penalize work and advancement. As earnings rise even slightly, families…
Resource The Free College Handbook: A Practitioner’s Guide to Promise Research (Revised and expanded 2025) November 12, 2025 State and local leaders considering tuition-free college programs have an updated resource: The Free College Handbook: A Practitioner’s Guide to Promise Research, a practical guide to designing and implementing place-based scholarship programs, produced by the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. Designed for mayors, state officials, college administrators, nonprofit leaders, philanthropists…
News & Views Fresno is building an economy that works for everyone as Fresno DRIVE celebrates five years November 5, 2025 Frenso, California is a young American city, both demographically and historically, and uniquely positioned to drive transformational change. With a mix of emerging talent, dedicated community members and concentrated resources, Fresno can be a powerful engine for advancing equity and opportunity. As California’s fifth largest city and the largest in…
News & Views Detroit students and HBCUs: A pathway to opportunity and economic growth October 28, 2025 A new research report, Detroit Export, HBCU Import: Detroit Students on the Yard and Back Home Again, underscores the crucial role Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) play in shaping brighter futures for Detroit students, and implications for the city’s economy. Sponsored by The Kresge Foundation, the 18-month study examined how…
Resource Detroit Export, HBCU Import: Detroit Students on the Yard and Back Home Again October 28, 2025 “Detroit Export, HBCU Import: Detroit Students on the Yard and Back Home Again,” is a groundbreaking 18-month study examining how Detroit students can successfully enroll in, graduate from, and return home after attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). This comprehensive research reveals that when Detroit students leave Michigan for…
News & Views Kresge launches next phase of Climate Change, Health & Equity Initiative with $18.6M investment October 22, 2025
Resource Making Broken Systems Work: A case study of the California College Guidance Initiative October 15, 2025 Making Broken Systems Work: A Story About Repair and Innovation is a case study of the California College Guidance Initiative (CCGI). It traces CCGI’s origins to a 2012 administrative error in which 114 students were erroneously denied admission to California State Universities because of a 10th-grade Spanish credit mis-evaluation. That…
News & Views Honoring the gifts of American cities: Emerging themes for equitable community development October 9, 2025 A little over a year ago, I addressed 300 partners, peers and friends at Kresge’s Our Urban Future conference, the last of several events marking the Kresge Foundation’s Centennial. I told the group: “Let’s use our time together to fire our imagination to conceive of a bolder, more equitable urban…