presents the

SEEKING SOLUTIONS SYMPOSIUM

for issues facing St. Louis women & girls

SEEKING SOLUTIONS SYMPOSIUM

for issues facing St. Louis women & girls

Welcome Pat Rich, Founder and Past President Womens Foundation

SEEKING SOLUTIONS SYMPOSIUM

for issues facing St. Louis women & girls

State of Women & Girls Janelle Gibson, Adjunct Professor Chair, Research Committee Womens Foundation

When Women Thrive

Intersectionality Theory: gender, class, race, age and sexuality work in concert to create inequality Indicators of Well Being Health Care and Service Access Personal Safety Educational Access and Attainment Economic Empowerment Community Capacity Building

Status of Women and Girls in MO

Women face more obstacles than men when trying to access health care services, which often leads to poorer health outcomes While women have reached near parity with men in higher education, the number of girls graduating from high school is declining. Women with college and graduate degrees earn approximately 90% of what men earn. Women are more likely to live in poverty than men and this gap grows with age.

Healthcare Access
Nearly one third of women with a household income less than 200% of the poverty level reported not having access to health insurance in 2008. Women are more likely than men to be employed in parttime jobs that fail to provide health insurance. Women who lack consistent insurance coverage are more likely to go without preventative, basic, and even acute care. While women tend to live longer than men, aging women are more likely to live alone, be frailer, and live in poverty. Higher rates of deaths by chronic disease and cancer occur in areas with limited access to affordable care service

Healthcare Outcomes
Access (financially and geographically) to preventive care correlates directly with:
Infant mortality Deaths from Breast Cancer Preventable hospitalizations Unintended births

Personal Safety
Missouri Coalition Against Domestic Violence 2012

Nearly 19,000 turned away from full shelters in 2012 42,484 adults, youth and children received domestic violence services 25,016 requests for services were unmet due to a lack of resources
Lack of beds or money for hotels (2:1 ratio) Lack of staff Lack of program funding Limited specialized services Lack of bilingual services/translators

Human Trafficking
Polaris Project National Human Trafficking Resource Center 2012

The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Sex or Labor Trafficking In 2012, 255 hotline calls for Missouri, with 35 potential victims identified.
Of those high risk calls, half were for suspected sex trafficking Most originated from St. Louis, Kansas City and Branson areas

Workforce and Education

Overall, approximately 62% of Missouris women, age 16 and older, are working full- or part-time in Missouri.
This represents an increase of 15.3% since 2000

Women in Missouri have essentially achieved parity with men in terms of holding two-year and four-year college and graduate degrees. However, the number of young women completing high school has been declining in comparison to young men.

Economic Justice
36% of Missouri women live below 200% poverty threshold of $35, 136 (FPL for family of 3 = $17, 568) Lack of support systems and structures keep people in poverty
Housing: In 2008, 80% of Missouri households receiving any HUD assistance were headed by women Child support: 42% of parents required to pay support, did not Child Care Subsidies: Higher rates of child care support leads to higher levels of employment for women. Graduation rates: Women who do not graduate from high school have higher rates of poverty Teen Parenting: Teen mothers are more likely to drop out of school, remain unmarried, live in poverty and rely on public assistance.

Community Capacity Building

Priority Needs
Funding: ongoing unrestricted operational support Staffing: professional development Infrastructure: technology and HR support Advocacy: funding and coordination Collaboration: funding and support

Future Needs and Trends

More policy and funding advocacy efforts More back office and benefit collaboration Improved leadership development in the sector to improve succession planning Leveraging of social media Improved business management processes

Identifying the Gaps: Health and Safety

Access to affordable and accessible care outside the urban core
Preventative services Chronic disease management Outreach to women over 65

Access and education regarding reproductive health decision making Bilingual service and outreach Shared referral sources for co-morbid health issues such as mental health or substance abuse Identification and services for trafficking victims

Identifying the Gaps: Education and Economic Opportunity

Continued advocacy for pay equity. Funding for safety net services to keep women working such as affordable housing, child care subsidies, health care Supportive services to keep girls and young women working toward diploma/degree completion Support for STEM programs for girls Financial literacy training for women and girls

Safety Net for Women and Girls

Basic Needs Supports

Strong Community Organizations

Success for Women

Educational Opportunities

Personal Safety

Economic Opportunities

Strengthening Our Safety Net

With snap shot of current well being indicators and identified gaps in service delivery: Are their immediate/priority needs to be addressed in these identified indicators?
Identification, Intervention, After Care?

What resources will be required to more adequately address current service gaps?
Advocacy, funding, staffing, infrastructure

How can we better utilize existing community resources to address the needs of women and girls?
Collaboration, research, partnerships