May 02, 2019

Federal Reserve System's Community Development Research Conference to focus on challenges faced by the middle class

For release at 3:00 p.m. EDT

The Federal Reserve System's Community Development Research Conference, "Renewing the Promise of the Middle Class," will be held May 9-10, 2019, in Washington, D.C. The conference will feature the latest research on challenges faced by low- and moderate-income families when moving into the middle class, as well as threats to the economic security of middle-class households.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell will deliver brief welcoming remarks at the conference. Governor Lael Brainard and Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans will also speak. The conference will close with a keynote address and conversation with Juan Salgado, the chancellor of City Colleges of Chicago.

Research from the conference will focus on three key areas: emerging labor market and education trends reshaping pathways to the middle class; financial security and wealth building as key building blocks of a middle class lifestyle; and, the role of local communities in economic mobility and security for the middle class. Research from multiple disciplines will be presented to policymakers and community practitioners.

"This year's research zeros in on factors that affect people's ability to move into, and remain in, the middle class," said Eric Belsky, Director of the Division of Consumer and Community Affairs at the Federal Reserve Board. "Our discussions will focus on how the research informs public policy and community development programs that advance economic opportunity and upward mobility."

The conference will be co-hosted by the community development offices of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks and the Federal Reserve Board. The agenda and other details are available on the conference website at www.chicagofed.org/region/community-development/2019-federal-reserve-system-community-development-research-conference. Keynote speeches and plenary sessions will be livestreamed at: www.youtube.com/federalreserve.

For media inquiries, call 202-452-2955