The Cost of Poverty Experience: College Edition

An immersive training that is designed to give faith-based communities a glimpse into the lives of low-income individuals and their families that are living in poverty.

For Faith Communities and  Non-Profit Ministries

One in five children in America lives at or below the poverty line.

The church is commissioned by God to bring healing to wounded lives, restoration to broken systems and relationships, and economic security where there is hardship. However, so often churches in America struggle to support families impacted by poverty in ways that are relational, holistic, and lasting. 

The Cost of Poverty Experience: Faith Edition is a 3-hour experiential training that is designed to give participants a glimpse into the lives of low-income persons living in your community and participating in your ministries.

COPE is a tool that will help your church:

  • Deepen its understanding and urgency around poverty in America.

  • Develop practices and approaches that have a lasting impact on poverty.

  • Engage in meaningful ways to bring about restoration to your community.

What’s so powerful about the COPE is that it’s intense and it offers an emotional taste of the weight of poverty. And there’s something about that that opens up our willingness to understand poverty differently, to consider, ‘Maybe I’ve been thinking wrongly about this, or not thoroughly enough about this,’ that’s really powerful. When you feel it, suddenly you might be willing to rethink it... I can’t tell you how many times we’ve referenced back to COPE as we’ve talked about how we’re going to engage with poverty in our community
— Gabe Coyle, Campus Pastor, Christ Community Church-Downtown (Kansas City, MO)

Want to know more about our College COPE?

An Experience For Everyone.

The Cost of Poverty Experience has been adapted to reflect the experience of poverty in various contexts. Please click on one of the sectors below that best describes the organization that you are affiliated with to find out how COPE can help you have greater impact.