Voices of Welfare

100 Campus Dr.

Elon, NC 27244
631-766-1740
Dear Media Representative:
Today, there are more people in the country on welfare than at any other time in the history of the
United States. Voices of Welfare understands that there is more coverage on welfare in the media
which has led to various stereotypes and misunderstandings regarding the program. Voices of
Welfare was created by students at Elon University and has been overseen by Professor Mould.
The organization works to raise awareness of welfare and help to reduce the negative stigma that
often surrounds individuals who use it.
Many individuals are blind to stereotypes that often surround welfare, and often participate in
these stereotypes without noticing. According to Tom Mould, the professor who heads Voices of
Welfare, the project began as a way to get students involved and to raise awareness of the issue,
and although the primary goal of Voices of Welfare have been reached, there is still a lot of work
to be done.
The presence of Voices of Welfare in Alamance County is a very important in changing the
stigma in regards to welfare. The platform used on an Elon blog, allows for their content to reach
thousands of studentsand eventually individuals in the publicthat can help change a serious
negative perception of a government program. This communication has the potential to be
extremely beneficial in changing common views about individuals whom rely on the welfare
program.
Voices of Welfare, although not yet highly recognized, is one of the only organizations that aims
to change stigmas regarding stereotypes and idealizations that surround welfare. Voices of
Welfare is currently in the process of raising public awareness of their cause and will be rebranding in order to gain a larger following in order to make an impact in the local community
and eventually nationally.
Enclosed is a media kit, comprised of a Voices of Welfare fact sheet, bio sketches of the CEO,
president and vice president, a current news release for an upcoming event, an organizational
backgrounder and a 30-second radio ad that will could be produced in the future.
Please help us raise awareness of The Voices of Welfare project and that work that is being done
to promote stigma reducing behaviors in the public. Please contact Tom Mould at
tmould@elon.edu for more information.

Voices of Welfare Organization Fact Sheet

Voices of Welfare is a non-profit project that aims to raise awareness of the negative stigma and
often prejudice perceptions that surround individuals involved in the welfare system in the
United States. It was created as part of a Program for Ethnographic Research and Community
Studies (PERCS) project which aims to foster the understanding of issues that are present in our
society.
Mission
Welfare is a hot button issue for many in the U.S. But untangling fiction from truth and
perception from reality can be difficult. To help create a more accurate picture of welfare today,
our project: relies on data and statistics to explore the complex truths about welfare and shares
the stories of welfare recipients to hear firsthand the challenges of living close to the poverty line
What's in the name?
The name Voices of Welfare stems from our organizations goal to raise awareness of the stigma
surrounding social welfare by sharing the success stories of individuals who are a part of our
countrys welfare system. By allowing these individuals to be heard, there is a far greater chance
for change to be made in views of the system.
Headquarters
Elon, North Carolina, on the campus of Elon University.
Founders
Students from Elon University founded Voices of Welfare with the help of Professor Tom Mould.
The partnership was created through a Program for Ethnographic Research and Community
Studies (PERCS) project.

About Us
In order to create a deeper understanding about issues related to poverty both in
Alamance County, North Carolina and around the country, Elon Universitys Program for
Ethnographic Research and Community Studies (PERCS) has partnered with community
agencies to launch a multi-year, collaborative ethnographic research project to examine
perceptions and realities surrounding the welfare system. Our goal is to help ensure that policies
and perceptions related to public assistance are based on a more complete understanding of the
lived realities of people living near or below the poverty line.
Publications, Exhibits & Documentaries

The Welfare Legend Tradition in On and Offline Contexts. 2016. Tom Mould. Journal
of American Folklore, 129 (514).

Portraits of Hope. Photo exhibit at Elon University. Co-sponsored by Allied Churches

and PERCS. December 14, 2015 March 11, 2016.

Collaborative-Based Research in a Service-Learning Course: Reconceiving Research as

Service. 2014. Tom Mould. Partnerships: A Journal of Service-Learning and Civic
Engagement, 5(1):1-21. A journal article describing the creation, challenges and
successes of developing an undergraduate service-learning course around a collaborative
research project. Available online: https://libjournal.uncg.edu/index.php/prt

The Faces of Welfare. Documentary film. 2012. Heather Cassano, Elon Student. A brief
documentary film on the origins and initial stages of the project. Available online:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSjR6Rm-d1c&feature=youtu.be

Conference Presentations

The Third Truth: The Generalizability of Contemporary Legends. International Society

for Contemporary Legend Research Annual Conference. San Antonio, TX. May 27-31.
Tom Mould.

Welfare Narratives and the Challenges of Contemporary Legend Research. American

Folklore Society Annual Meeting. Providence, Rhode Island. October 16-19. Tom Mould.

Re-imagining service-learning through collaborative research. The 2013 International

Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISSOTL) Conference. Raleigh,
NC. October 4, 2013. Tom Mould and Elon student Gloria So.

Project Development & Consultation Team

Elon University: Tom Mould, Mark Enfield, PERCS Steering Committee
Allied Churches: Kim Crawford
Burlington Housing Authority: Nikki Ratliff
Department of Social Services: Linda Allison, Latawnya Hall, Susan Osborne, Michelle Poole
Housing/Mental Health Advocate: Lynn Inman
Open Door Clinic: Tracy Salisbury
United Way: Heidi Norwick

LISTEN TO THE VOICES

Radio AD:
It is estimated that over $100 billion is spent each year by the government to support welfare
programs in the United States.
However, there a many misconceptions that surround the program that leads to a poor light to be
shone.
Of this $100 billion, a large portion goes to paying for students lunches who may not be able to
afford it. Helping with healthcare to ensure that our fellow man does not fall ill.
We all share the same right to live a healthy and fulfilling life, and welfare allows for just that.
Take the time to learn more about the positives of welfare by visiting
http://blogs.elon.edu/voicesofwelfare/.
It is time to start a conversation and end the negative stigmas that surround a very beneficial
program.

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Voices
Of Welfare
Elon Project Aims to

Reduce Welfare Stigmas

Voice of Welfare currently working on is releasing a brand new season of content, illuminating
the complexity of the human condition that are often neglected by mass media outlets.
ELON, NORTH CAROLINA- This past month, Voices of Welfare hosted a photo exhibit on the
campus of Elon University. The Elon community was invited to view the exhibit, which was cosponsored by Allied Churches and Elon Universitys Program for Ethnographic Research and
Community Studies (PERCS).
In 2012, a group of Elon students generated the idea to reduce the negative perceptions that often
surround individuals who rely on the welfare system to live a better life. With the assistance of
PERCS and Professor Tom Mould, Voices of Welfare was born as a way to raise awareness of the
benefits of welfare and to highlight success stories that have come from the program.
All though Voices of Welfares initial goals are completed, there is still an issue with perception
of welfare recipients in Alamance countyand nationally. To combat this, the next major step
for Voices of Welfare will be a book written titled Overthrowing the Queen: The Real Stories of
Welfare in America.
Mould believes that the project has had tremendous impact reducing stigmas and telling the true
stories of individuals on welfare. However, he also believes that Elon students and people in the
community can make a bigger impact.
We hope that you find a mutual interest in this incredibly important issue that affects so many
people in the world today. By highlighting stigmas surrounding welfare participants it will help
to ensure a more mutually inclusive society that could help to better our world.
Voices of Welfare believes that welfare is a hot button issue for many in the U.S. But untangling
fiction from truth and perception from reality can be difficult. To help create a more accurate
picture of welfare today, the project: relies on data and statistics to explore the complex truths
about welfare shares the stories of welfare recipients to hear firsthand the challenges of living
close to the poverty line.
For more information about the Voices of Welfare Project, please contact Tom Mould at
tmould@elon.edu

Who Is Involved?
Tom Mould
Tom Mould is Professor of Anthropology and Folklore at Elon University and
Director of the Honors Program. He is the author of three booksChoctaw
Prophecy: A Legacy of the Future (2003), Choctaw Tales (2004), and Still, the Small
Voice: Revelation, Personal Narrative and the Mormon Folk Tradition (2011)and
co-author of two moreThe Individual and Tradition (2011) and Latter-day Lore:
Mormon Folklore Studies (2013). His research areas include folklore, oral narrative,
sacred narrative, legend, American Indian studies, Mormon studies, identity,
ethnography and performance theory. He has produced video documentaries for
public television on folk art and culture in Indiana, Kentucky and North Carolina. His
current project examines the impact legends and personal experience narratives
about welfare have on shaping public opinion and policy.

Heidi Norwick
Heidi Norwick became the President of United Way of Alamance County July 1, 2014.
Norwick joined the United Way staff in 2012 to serve as the Director of Community Impact. Prior
to joining United Way, Norwick was the Executive Director of the Womens Resource Center in
Alamance County for 16 years. She most recently was awarded the Founders Award by the
Womens Resource Center for her dedication to mentoring others in leadership and for a
impactful career in nonprofit work.

Norwick also serves on the Alamance County Childrens Executive Oversight

Committee; Healthy Alamance Board of Directors; STRIVE Steering Committee (Education),
Community Oversight Committee (Mental Health) and will be joining the Alamance County Area
Chamber of Commerce Board as of 1/1/16. All of these commitments focus in the key priority
areas of United Way of Health, Education, and Financial Stability.
Norwick has a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from New York Institute of Technology
and a Duke Certificate in Non-profit Management. Norwick was born and raised in Franklin
Square, New York and moved to Burlington, North Carolina in 1993. She has been married to
her husband Howie for 31 years and they have 3 grown children and 2 sweet dogs. In her
spare time she enjoys gardening, cooking and getting to the beach whenever possible.

Kim Crawford
Kim Crawford brings a wealth of experience to the team. She holds a Bachelor of
Science in Business Administration and a Master of Science in Corporate Communication
from Lindenwood College. She also has earned Master of Arts, Religion and Theology from
United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. Kim is a results-driven leader that uses a
hands-on leadership style to bring value to organizations and foster relationship building.
As a change agent, she has utilized her strong business acumen to turnaround
underperforming programs. Prior to her arrival in North Carolina, Kim was the Executive
Director for 5 years of Life House, Inc. a shelter for at risk homeless children between the
ages of 14 and 20 in Duluth, Minnesota. Kim has enjoyed her transition to North Carolina,
especially the mild weather.