Matt Lawrence

There is no doubt that economic inequality is one of our nation’s most challenging problems. That is the reason it is the focus of my teaching and research. But isolated classrooms and traditional scholarship will not be enough to solve this problem. I am drawn to Privilege & Poverty because I believe addressing the causes and consequences of inequality requires us to engage together - as students, faculty, staff, and partners - in classrooms, across courses, throughout campus and in communities. That’s exactly what our cluster does. We offer something different than a curriculum in poverty studies. We reflect on how privilege and power are implicated in the construction of poverty. We forge deep bonds with each other through our cohort model. And we develop the capacities that will allow us to finally and fairly and fully reduce economic inequality at Middlebury, in Addison County and Vermont, and in whatever communities we may call home in the future.