This course investigates the nature, extent, and persistence of poverty and inequality, and examines the effects of program and policy responses. Throughout the course we will look at proposed explanations for the causes of poverty and will observe how underlying values and assumptions have influenced the development of policies aimed at poverty alleviation. While emphasizing poverty and policy responses in the United States, we will examine poverty and related policies in other countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) as points of comparison.