Beginning in July 2023, families of some CRLS students may be eligible for monthly payments through the $22 million city program Rise Up. Successful applicants to the program will be confirmed on a rolling basis beginning June 1st, and will receive $500 per month and up to a total of $9000 in no-strings-attached cash payments. Current estimates suggest that some 2000 families in Cambridge could qualify for the program. “Programs like this are the most direct way for the government to say ‘we see you, we recognize you could use assistance, and we trust you to figure out how to best use this money,’” Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui told the Register Forum. 

The engineers of the Rise Up program explained their hope that financial assistance for families will promote economic mobility in Cambridge and advance racial and gender equity. “There is a real misconception that just because a family is struggling with poverty, that it means they are lazy or ‘on the take,’” explained City Councilor Marc McGovern. Lida Griffin, who received funds in a pilot version of the program, announced the roll-out of the full Rise Up program at a press conference. “People in poverty do not choose to be there. It is extremely difficult to navigate your way out of poverty without genuine support.”

 “Globally, [Cambridge citizens] are known for elite institutions and innovation, but that does not encompass the city’s diversity, culture, and struggles,” Mayor Siddiqui said. “We have neighbors and community members who desperately need support.”

Although several cities in the US are pioneering similar programs, one aspect of Rise Up remains unprecedented: Cambridge will not use a lottery system to limit the number of beneficiaries. All who qualify will receive funds. “Not restricting access is a real step towards economic justice … it restores a level of dignity to families in poverty,” City Manager Yi-An Huang told the Register Forum.

The unlimited nature of Cambridge’s program provides an additional incentive for community outreach. “In a lottery system, outreach is less important—there’s almost a guarantee that you’ll find enough families,” said Huang. “But because we’re saying that every eligible family in Cambridge can participate, we absolutely do need to act so that every eligible family in Cambridge does participate.” Media outreach has included a widespread media push: flyers sent home in student backpacks, multiple partnerships with nonprofits that work with target populations, multilingual support, and a RISE helpline.

This infrastructure has already been piloted in Cambridge through the RISE program. RISE provided cash payments over the pandemic, and saw an overwhelmingly positive result. “[While involved in RISE] I gained confidence in myself as a human, that I could be a support to others and not a burden,” said Griffin.

Conversations about the future of Rise Up have already begun, as it will be difficult to sustain such an effort. Rise Up is funded through Cambridge’s allotment of funds from the federally issued American Rescue Plan—a COVID-era relief program unlikely to recur. “It’s very difficult when you have one-time funds that people begin to rely on.” McGovern said. “There is no guarantee that this program will continue past this initial round, so folks need to plan and save.”

This article also appears in our May/June 2023 print edition.