Carrollton community members gathered on Thursday at the University of West Georgia for the second annual State of the Community, which is an effort to collaborate on how to lessen local poverty rates.
According to statistics gathered by Dr. Winston Tripp, the number of children living in poverty in Carroll County rose significantly over the past year. Tripp stated that as of 2016, 34 percent of children in Carroll County are living in poverty, as opposed to the state average of 26 percent.
“This is a terrific community, and we have lots of opportunities to become even more terrific,” said Dr. Jane McCandless, Dean of the College of Social Sciences. “I’ve lived in our community for 28 years, and I think there’s no better community than this. We do have our challenges, but we know how to address these challenges. That’s what we’re doing here today.”
The UWG College of Social Sciences began the program last year with the goal of making the community aware of various services that are available to those struggling with poverty in Carroll County.
McCandless said the event is aimed at bringing local organizations together to form more cohesive solutions for alleviating poverty.
“We’re here today to address the issue of poverty,” said McCandless. “We’re forming lots of new connections within our community, and with those connections, we are forming lots of new ideas which can help us do more to help others in poverty.”
The event featured a number of speakers and panelist discussions, as well as networking sessions. McCandless said this year’s State of the Community was a resounding success, as it also drew a significantly greater crowd than the previous year.
“I hope people in our community reach out to our organization in the community and find out what they can do to help their community,” said McCandless.
To find out more about local efforts to address poverty and how you can get involved, visit www.westga.edu/academics/coss.
