Hello everyone, I am GP Worley. I am excited to be joining the Empower Missouri team as the inaugural Charles Ellwood Graduate Fellow! As I start my position, I am wrapping up my Master of Social Work program at the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis, where I cultivated my...Lee mas

Last year, when Empower’s staff and board began discussions on how we wanted to mark our quasquicentennial (isn’t that a fun word?!) this year, there was one thing that I knew for sure– I wanted our celebrations to be deeply steeped in Empower’s history. One of the true joys of working at Empower is consistently...Lee mas

By now you might have already heard the news – Missouri has become the 14th state to pass Clean Slate legislation! SB 1421, an omnibus criminal justice bill, passed during the final weeks of the 2026 legislative session and is waiting on the Governor’s signature to officially become law. While only applicable to drug offenses,...Lee mas

Key housing programs are facing cuts as part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) budget process. The House Appropriations subcommittee released its HUD spending bill for fiscal year 2027 on May 20th and like last year, the committee adopted many of the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to housing programs while rejecting...Lee mas

As the Missouri legislative session ends, attention is turning back to Washington D.C., where decisions made this year could dramatically reshape how Missouri fights hunger and poverty. One of the biggest federal debates underway is the next Farm Bill. The Farm Bill, which is traditionally renewed every five years, is often described as the nation’s...Lee mas

The 2026 Missouri Legislative Session ended with drama – this time in a good way. Three key policies entered the final week as almost-passed…but not quite. Clean Slate, land banks improvements, and Food is Medicine legislation were all passed by at least one chamber by the end of April but had not yet fully cleared...Lee mas

This is part of an ongoing series looking at the impact of missed court appearances in Missouri. Check out part one in this series, Mass Incarceration in Your Backyard, and part two, Court Reminders Should Be Accessible for All, for additional context about the issue.  We need innovative solutions to the problems in our communities,...Lee mas

Steve has long wrestled with the harsh realities of being a renter in America. Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2000 and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis even earlier, Steve has been on disability for much of his life. Originally from California, his journey as a tenant began in Texas after high school, where he encountered his first...Lee mas