Objective
The objective of this research paper is to examine the challenge of intergenerational poverty in San Antonio and propose a concrete, evidence-based path forward.
By investigating the economic, social, and structural factors that keep families locked in cycles of poverty, you will develop an argumentative paper that proposes a specific, actionable solution to help the San Antonio community reduce or eliminate intergenerational poverty. Your paper should demonstrate an understanding of the problem’s root causes and present a realistic recommendation supported by research, data, and human experience.
Your final draft must be a minimum of 1500 words (not including your Works Cited page) and must include a correctly formatted Works Cited page with a minimum of three sources. At least one of your sources must be an interview — either an in-person interview you conduct yourself or a third-party interview (such as a published interview, podcast, or recorded testimonial).
Background
The problems facing San Antonio’s most vulnerable communities did not appear overnight — and they will not be solved without the sustained engagement of the people who live here.
Intergenerational poverty persists in part because the systems that perpetuate it — inequitable funding, exclusionary housing policies, gaps in workforce access — tend to operate quietly and without significant public scrutiny. When citizens are disengaged from civic life, these conditions go unchallenged. Policies are made without community input. Resources are allocated without community oversight. And the families most affected by poverty are often the least represented in the conversations that shape their futures.
This is where you come in. As college students in San Antonio, you are not outside observers of this problem — you are part of the community it affects. Many of you have firsthand experience with the barriers this paper asks you to investigate: housing instability, food insecurity, lack of affordable childcare, limited access to career pathways. Your perspective is not a limitation; it is an asset. Engaged citizens who understand a problem from the inside are exactly the people best positioned to propose meaningful solutions.
This paper is a step toward that kind of engagement. By researching the root causes of intergenerational poverty, listening to the experiences of people in your community, and developing a concrete proposal, you are doing the work that civic participation demands — not just identifying what is wrong, but arguing for what could be better.
Prerequisites
- Topic: Your paper must propose a specific solution or path forward to help address intergenerational poverty in San Antonio. Papers that don’t meet this requirement will not be accepted. If you’d like to approach the topic from an angle you’re unsure about, get with me to discuss it.
- Interview: At least one of your sources must be an interview. This can be an in-person interview you conduct yourself — with a professor, community leader, family member, fellow student, or anyone with relevant experience or expertise — or a third-party interview such as a published interview, podcast, or recorded testimonial.
- POV: This is a paper and not an essay, so it should be written in third person point of view (he, she, they). Papers not written in third person will receive a zero until corrected and resubmitted.
Requirements
The final draft of your paper must be a minimum of 1500 words (~4 pages) long, not including your Works Cited page, and should include the following structure:
- Introduction Paragraph:
- Hook: Begin with a hook to engage the reader.
- Bridge: Provide some background information about the aspect of intergenerational poverty you are addressing.
- Thesis Statement: End with a clear argumentative thesis statement that proposes a specific solution or path forward. Remember the template: To address [problem related to intergenerational poverty], [responsible party] should [your proposed solution].
- Body Paragraphs:
- Background paragraph(s): Include at least one (1) background paragraph.
- Argumentative paragraphs: Include at least three (3) argumentative paragraphs.
- Paper must include at least three (3) quote structures with correctly formatted ITCs. You may use direct quotes only. No paraphrasing. Note: essays and papers may only contain one long quote structure, no longer than 75 words.
- Example paragraph(s): Include at least one (1) example paragraph.
- Topic Sentences: Focus on establishing a clear topic sentence for each body paragraph.
- Conclusion Paragraph:
- Restatement of Thesis: Restate your thesis statement to remind readers about your claim.
- Summary of Findings: Summarize the work you did in your body. Pay particular attention to the topics you identified in your topic sentences.
- Call To Action: Ask the reader to take some sort of action based on the information in your paper, such as supporting a specific program, advocating for a policy, or getting involved in their community.
- Works Cited Page:
- Correctly formatted Works Cited page.
- Paper must use a minimum of three (3) sources: at least two sources from the NVC Moonshot Research Guide and at least one interview (in-person or third-party). You may include additional external sources beyond these three if desired.
Instructions and Workflow
The steps below walk you through the process of moving from initial research to a finished paper, using one student’s experience as an example.
Step 1 — Explore the Research Overview.
Start by carefully reading the Research Overview: NVC Moonshot — Eliminate Intergenerational Poverty, which provides essential context about intergenerational poverty in San Antonio, NVC’s Moonshot goal, and the kinds of proposals your paper might pursue. For example, one student reads through the Research Overview and is struck by the statistic that many San Antonians are working but not earning enough to escape poverty. That detail sparks an interest in how education connects to better-paying jobs — and a possible paper topic begins to take shape.
Step 2 — Dig Into the Research Guide.
Next, explore the NVC Moonshot Research Guide, built by NVC librarians specifically for this project. It gives you databases, data tools, and curated sources in one place — and remember that at least two of your sources must come from this guide. Our example student explores the Resources page and searches for articles on workforce development and community colleges, finding research on employer partnership programs at other institutions that led to family-sustaining wages in health care fields.
Step 3 — Choose a Focus Area and Narrow Your Research Question.
Using what you’ve found in the Research Overview and Research Guide, identify one specific aspect of intergenerational poverty to address — whether it involves workforce pathways, student support, financial empowerment, housing, K-12 partnerships, health, community engagement, or policy. The Research Overview provides a table of potential directions and example research questions to help you see what a well-scoped question looks like, and your proposal may target NVC, the broader community, or both. Our example student narrows in on how NVC could expand partnerships with local health care employers, arriving at the research question: “How could expanded partnerships between NVC and local employers in health care create more direct pathways from certificate programs to family-sustaining wages?”
Step 4 — Conduct or Find an Interview.
One of your sources must be an interview — either one you conduct in person with a professor, community worker, family member, or fellow student, or a published third-party interview such as a podcast, news interview, or recorded testimonial. Our example student interviews an NVC nursing instructor, who describes gaps between what certificate programs teach and what employers actually need, and mentions that students often lack the connections to get hired after completing their certifications.
Step 5 — Draft a Working Thesis.
Once you have a research question and some sources in hand, draft a preliminary thesis using the template: To address [problem related to intergenerational poverty], [responsible party] should [your proposed solution]. Your thesis will likely evolve as you research and write, and that’s expected. Our example student drafts: “To address the gap between education and employment for low-income students on San Antonio’s Westside, NVC should partner with major health care employers to create a direct-hire pipeline from its health sciences certificate programs, providing students with guaranteed interviews, mentorship, and a clear path to family-sustaining wages.”
Step 6 — Research Solutions.
Continue gathering evidence to support your proposal. Look for programs that have worked elsewhere, data that quantifies the need for your recommendation, expert perspectives, and information about costs, implementation, and feasibility. The strongest proposals anticipate counterarguments and address practical realities.
Step 7 — Write.
Your paper should present the problem, analyze its causes and impacts, and make a compelling argument for your proposed solution, supported by research and evidence. Your paper should be no less than 1500 words.
This workflow is just one example path. Your process will be your own — let your curiosity and your research guide you.
Thesis Statement Criteria
One of the graded items for your Argumentative Paper on Intergenerational Poverty is a thesis statement.
If you review the Lecture Notes: Mastering Thesis Statements page and Lecture Notes: Argumentative Thesis Statements page, you see that there are some basic criteria to remember when constructing your thesis statement.
- Your thesis statement should introduce the main claim of your paper.
- Your thesis statement should come at the end of your introduction paragraph.
- Your thesis statement should be only one sentence long.
- Your thesis statement should be debatable, specific, and concise.
Thesis Statement Template
Your thesis should present a specific proposal for addressing intergenerational poverty in San Antonio. Consider this template:
To address [problem related to intergenerational poverty], [responsible party] should [your proposed solution].
Examples Using The Thesis Statement Template
Here are some examples to get you thinking:
- To address the high dropout rate among student parents at NVC, the college should partner with local nonprofits to establish a subsidized on-campus childcare center that would help single parents complete degrees leading to family-sustaining wages.
- To address the lack of financial knowledge among first-generation college students in San Antonio’s most distressed zip codes, community organizations should implement a financial literacy program designed to help young adults build savings and avoid predatory debt.
- To address the concentration of poverty in San Antonio’s food desert neighborhoods, the city government should partner with local grocery chains to establish a network of nonprofit grocery stores in underserved zip codes, improving residents’ access to affordable nutrition and reducing a key barrier to family health and economic stability.
Conclusion
This assignment is an opportunity to engage deeply with one of San Antonio’s most pressing challenges and to contribute your own thinking to NVC’s Moonshot effort to eliminate intergenerational poverty. Your analysis should demonstrate not only an understanding of the structural forces that perpetuate poverty but also the critical thinking skills needed to propose a realistic, evidence-based solution. By grounding your proposal in research, data, and the lived experiences of real people, you will develop the kind of argumentation and problem-solving skills that matter far beyond the classroom.