The University of Pennsylvania study found the extra money to low-income St. Paul families improved positive outlooks as well as cash flow. By Katie Galioto. In a home on the edge of St. Paul's Payne-Phalen neighborhood, presents sat neatly wrapped under the Christmas tree as 3-year-old Amary Lockridge climbed onto Damara Clark's lap for a hug.
Clark, a year-old mother of three adult children and grandmother of 10, agreed to be Amary's foster mom in When she took full legal custody of the child about a year later, Clark quit work to care for Amary, who was born with spina bifida and required dozens of medical appointments.
Then Clark received a flyer from St. No strings attached. Paul was the first U. In the months that followed, dozens of local governments across the country including Minneapolis, whose two-year guaranteed income program will wrap up in June followed suit, unconditionally distributing cash in hopes of providing relief to residents β and trying to make the case for new state and federal policies by challenging narratives of poverty and welfare.
Now a new study by the University of Pennsylvania, of 95 families who completed St. Paul's month pilot, has found that participants reported improvements to their financial and mental well-being. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said in an interview. People don't understand that," Clark said.
Instead of being like, 'Oh my God, oh my God, what am I going to do? Using surveys and interviews, Penn's Center for Guaranteed Income Research looked at how monthly cash payments affected St. Paul families' experiences and well-being. Recipients were randomly selected from a list of families enrolled in St. The Penn team now is conducting research on pilots run by local nonprofits focused on artists and refugees. Lucille O'Quinn, a school bus driver, saw her work halt in the early days of the pandemic.
