Princeton Community Housing, Housing Initiatives of Princeton, and the Princeton Housing Board is sponsoring a program on Tuesday, May 16 at 7 p.m. at the Princeton Municipal Building (Witherspoon Hall), 400 Witherspoon Street on ALICE

More than an acronym, ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) represents 25% of NJ residents who struggle to maintain economic stability in our high-cost state.  Living in our town and the surrounding Mercer County area, ALICE leads a life that, while above the federal poverty level, is precarious and fragile.  Any need for extra money, such as family illness, car trouble,  a rent hike, or the necessity to find a new child care provider, can set off an avalanche of  problems that may result in foreclosure or eviction.  ALICE is not some stranger; ALICE is our kids coming out of college, our parents living on Social Security, the people taking care of our parents in nursing homes, and the people taking care of our preschool kids. We all know ALICE and we all need ALICE.

Join us at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 16 in the Princeton Municipal Building on Witherspoon St., to learn more about ALICE and how we can put aside our differences and get to work envisioning solutions to this growing crisis.

Joanne Hala, Senior Leader of Community Impact for United Way of Northern New Jersey, will introduce the 1.2 million New Jersey ALICE households and explain how an ALICE worker manages living day-to-day in New Jersey, one of the most expensive states in the country.   Hala has worked with United Way of Northern New Jersey since 2010 as a leader in workforce development and financial stability education for ALICE.  She serves on the NJ Employment and Training Commission’s Council for Adult Literacy Education Services and on the Executive Committee of the Greater Raritan Workforce Development Board. Hala also works in community-based ESL programs.

Preparation of the first ALICE report was initiated by the United Way of Northern New Jersey ten years ago to start a dialogue about the most important issue in America today:  An ever growing population of hardworking people struggle to achieve the American dream.  Today,  United Ways in 15 states are involved, and the ALICE reports from around the country have enabled a better understanding of just how pervasive this problem is.

Further Information: Princeton Community Housing, Ed Truscelli  609-924-3822