Wisconsin Poverty

One of WISCAP's four focus areas is research. WISCAP joins with local, state and national institutions to study the realities of poverty and the impact of legislation and policy on local communities. Two examples of this include our partnership with the United Way of Wisconsin and our partnership with the Institute for Research on Poverty. Examples of their data and research can be found on the Statewide Research page.

In addition, we aggregate and publish data that illustrates the statewide picture of poverty. We do so by supporting our member agencies in developing community needs assessments and identifying opportunities to collect and disseminate collective findings. A Community Needs Assessment is a process conducted by all Community Action Agencies every three years to determine the underlying causes and conditions of poverty within the community they serve and identify the available resources to address the unmet needs of the community’s most vulnerable residents. 

Learn more about what poverty looks like in Wisconsin by visiting the following pages:

Statewide Research

Nationwide Research