Education a Way Out of Welfare, Poverty

* Re “Beyond Welfare-to-Work,” Oct. 16: I am the single mother of one child, Caucasian and from a typical middle-class background. Several years ago I was abandoned by my husband, who pays us no child support, and was laid off from a supposedly secure banking job. After three years of unstable, low-paying temporary jobs without benefits, I decided to move back home with my mother (at 40) and go back to school to obtain a bachelor’s degree. The only way I was able to do this was to apply for, and receive, welfare.

During this same time, the welfare system was in the throes of reform. Although I found that there was some confusion amid the social service workers regarding implementation of the GAIN (welfare-to-work) program where school was concerned, most were willing to investigate the policies regarding education. They all saw the long-term benefits of a degree and agreed that by returning to the classroom in order to update my skills and make myself more employable, I was indeed setting a goal that would ultimately pay back the system tenfold.

I will graduate in May 2001 with a BFA degree in product design which, when employed, will guarantee me a minimum income of approximately $35,000 a year. The taxes that the state will receive from this income will ultimately pay back all that I “borrowed” from the welfare system. Education is the only way the system will work in getting women off the dole and out of the minimum-wage poverty cycle permanently.

LIZ INGERSOLL

Pacific Palisades

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Regarding your article and photo, it is beyond my comprehension why the “face” of welfare is consistently pictured (and depicted) as a never-married minority woman, specifically an African American woman. An evenhanded approach would be welcomed from your newspaper, as many other individuals fit this mold. As a divorced, middle-class, 44-year-old African American mother of one (who receives no child support), with an MBA and not on welfare, I believe your depiction only fuels the fires of racial hatred. The implication is that all single mothers need/expect financial assistance. I am offended by this characterization.

KERRI L. EVERETT

San Diego