ADVISORY/Experts Available to Discuss Increased Poverty Rate.

Business Editors

ADVISORY...

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

TOPIC: A report from the Census Bureau showed an increase in the poverty rate and a decline in income levels for 2002, according to an article by The Associated Press. The report says the poverty rate rose from 11.7 percent in 2001 to 12.1 percent in 2002, while the median income level decreased 1.1 percent between 2001 and 2002. Approximately 34.6 million people lived in poverty in 2002, which was an increase of 1.7 million more people than in 2001.

EXPERTS: ExpertSource can offer several highly qualified experts to comment on this story:

Dr. Rajeev Dhawan is director of the Economic Forecasting Center at Georgia State University's Robinson College of Business. As director of the Center, Dhawan develops U.S., Southeast regional and local metro economy forecasts. Dhawan also serves as an advisor to educational institutions and local and state government agencies. As a business consultant, he has been commissioned to prepare economic impact reports, home price forecast models, and suggest public policy recommendations. 404-651-3291, [e-mail]

Joel John Roberts became the executive director of P.A.T.H. (People Assisting The Homeless) in 1996, when it was a single-site agency in West Los Angeles. It has since become a region-wide agency serving homeless people throughout Los Angeles, Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Hollywood and the Antelope Valley. He serves as chair of the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Advisory Board, chair of the Spa 4 Metro West Coalition, executive board member of the Westside Hunger and Shelter Coalition, advisory board member of the Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team and a Fellow of the Zero Divide Initiative. While attending California State University, Long Beach, he traveled throughout Asia and Africa witnessing poverty and hunger in many countries, unforgettable images that steered him to serving the poor. P.A.T.H. was founded in 1984 in West Los Angeles through a coalition of churches, temples, businesses and community leaders who sought a solution to help homeless people. Rather than establish a soup kitchen or food giveaway program, this group created P.A.T.H., a program to offer homeless people a hand up, not a hand out. Today a multitude of programs help homeless people find work, save money, secure housing, and empower their lives. 323-644-2209, [e-mail]

Professor Marcus Alexis, of Northwestern University, is an expert regarding urban microeconomics of race and poverty. 847-467-1318, 847-491-3741 (University PR Phone)

ExpertSource cannot guarantee the immediate availability of these experts or their familiarity with this specific issue.

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