33% feared losing benefits.
Only 24% hit a cliff.
In rural Tennessee, fear was the real barrier. Here's what happened when we removed it.
Total Wage Gains
$0.0M
across participating families over 3 years
950+
Families served
1,900+
Children impacted
14
Counties coordinated
40%
Reached 225% FPL
7.1:1
ROI
Why 225%?
At 225% of the Federal Poverty Level (~$55K for a family of three), families have cleared the major benefit cliffs and built enough margin to absorb normal life shocks without falling backward.
It's the difference between escaping poverty and merely pausing it.
The Insight
Here's what the data revealed:
0%
feared losing benefits
0%
actually hit a cliff
The uncertainty alone is enough to keep people stuck. When you're already stretched thin, wondering whether a promotion will cost your child their healthcare makes saying “no thanks” the rational choice.
The government has made dependency more predictable than independence. We changed that equation.
84%
of families who reached 225% FPL successfully navigated the benefits transition with Navigator support.
The Challenge
They had all the pieces. Nobody owned the outcome.
Upper Cumberland spans 5,000 square miles of rural Appalachia—the space between Knoxville, Nashville, and Chattanooga where nothing connects easily.
Before Empower UC, the region had everything: a community action agency, workforce development programs, education partners, employers desperate for workers. Each agency ran good programs. But nobody was responsible for helping families complete the picture.
Families cycled endlessly between crisis and stabilization. 69% were already working—they weren't lacking motivation. The system was designed to manage poverty, not end it.
“We measure the wrong things. I can tell you how many people are on the rolls. What I cannot tell you is the impact of our interventions on those that we serve.”
Commissioner Clarence Carter
Tennessee Department of Human Services
What Changed
One Navigator. One plan. Continuous support until you're set.
Tennessee invested $25 million to try something different. Not more programs—a coordinated system where someone actually owns the outcome.
Navigators Who Own Outcomes
Dedicated guides with manageable caseloads (25 families max). Not clipboard case managers—trusted partners who know your story and stay with you.
Benefits Cliff Navigation
Tools that show exactly what happens at each income level. Families can plan their exit strategically, not fear a raise.
Coordinated System
14 counties, 50+ partners, shared data. When a family needs childcare to accept a promotion, that service arrives through the system, not in spite of it.
“I've got to see social capital in creation, and it's one of those things that's hard to describe, but it's amazing to watch it happen. The confidence level that people gain, the connections they form with each other...”
Mark Farley
Executive Director, UCHRA (Backbone Agency)
“We've watched parents go from barely making ends meet to confidently stepping into careers and leadership roles. These aren't just program outcomes—they're life outcomes.”
Megan Spurgeon
Director, Empower Upper Cumberland
One Family's Journey
“I now help others find their own paths when the world seems dark.”
As a young child, Elizabeth didn't realize her family was poor. Food banks, paper food stamps, and government block cheese seemed normal. After foster care, she continued down the same road because “the opportunity to raise myself never really seemed to be in reach.”
In 2020, after losing both parents, Elizabeth moved to McMinnville, Tennessee. She found Empower through a church connection—and everything changed.
The program provided more than a meal every Tuesday night. It provided planning, connections, and someone who believed in her potential. When she couldn't afford a college course, Empower covered it. When a job listing came through for a position at Empower itself, she applied.
Today, Elizabeth works for Empower—helping others find their own paths. She completed her bachelor's degree in Human Services, graduated on the Honor Roll, and speaks publicly about what's possible.
“Sometimes all it takes is a community, a program, a group of people who believe in change, and that same group believing in you.”
— Elizabeth Bryanna Nelson
What would this look like in your community?
We help regions build the systems that move families from crisis through stabilization to permanent independence—and prove it's working to funders.
Or just reply to this email if you'd rather start there.
What We're Building Next
Based on what we learned, we're building tools that make this replicable—including a Benefits Cliff Navigator that shows families exactly what happens at each income level. Launching 2027.