Workshop 4

Local Strategies to Advance Economic Mobility for Residents: Affordable Housing, Income Stability and Financial Empowerment


Mayors and local leaders have multiple levers they can pull to enhance economic mobility for their residents. Which local policy and program levers will create the most meaningful and sustained impact for residents? How can the consistent use of high quality data and evidence help accelerate impact? Learn from representatives in five cities participating in the What Works Cities Economic Mobility initiative around the strategies being implemented in the areas of affordable housing, income stability and financial empowerment.

City presenters from Newark, NJ; Detroit, MI; Rochester, NY; and Lansing, MI will each share the main policy challenge their local team is working to address through this initiative, including the short- and long-term outcomes they seek to impact, the specific project they will be implementing, and the evidence base underpinning their project. Participants will walk away with an understanding of the ways that local communities are working to improve economic mobility outcomes for their residents.

Speakers

  • Opening Remarks: Jeff Edmondson, Executive Director, Community Mobilization, Ballmer Group (Bio)
  • Andi Crawford, Chief Innovation Officer, Director of Neighborhoods + Citizen Engagement, City of Lansing (Bio)
  • Keegan Mahoney, Program Director, Housing and Revitalization Department, City of Detroit 
  • Natasha Rogers, Chief Operating Officer, City of Newark 
  • Brad Willows, Financial Empowerment Initiatives Coordinator, Mayor’s Office of Community Wealth Building, City of Rochester 
  • Moderator: Zachary Markovits, Director of City Progress at What Works Cities, Results for America (Bio)

Resources

What Works Cities Economic Mobility Initiative One-Pager
Project Summaries – Detroit, Lansing, Newark and Rochester