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Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity leads research and consulting initiatives that identify and address barriers to economic well-being.
Type
State
Issue
Mercury News, April 03, 2013: Many Bay Area districts fail to adequately educate low-income and minority students, report finds
"An educational advocacy group released its third annual District Report Cards on Wednesday, showing that half the largest unified districts in the Bay Area improved in their efforts to educate low-income students and those who are African-American or Latino."
The Palm Beach Post, April 03, 2013: Impact felt: sequester cuts eliminate meals for elderly poor, buses for Head Start
"County commissioners Tuesday cut a series of federally supported community service programs that feed impoverished seniors and bus children to Head Start centers. The sequester cuts $1.9 million in grants for those programs, leaving seniors without breakfast, poor children without rides and bus drivers without jobs."
Springfield News-Sun, April 03, 2013: Schools face up to $1.3M cuts
"Springfield receives the largest cut of federal funding locally at nearly $8 million, including more than $5 million through Title I. With potential cuts of 5 percent in July and an additional 8 percent in October, Miller said the district stands to lose nearly $1 million in federal funding."
Chattanooga Times Free Press, April 03, 2013: Bill linking welfare to school progress advances
"The measure would cut monthly benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program if a child fails to maintain satisfactory academic progress.' Supporters noted that those cuts could be avoided if parents attend conferences with teachers, take parenting classes or enroll their children in tutoring programs or summer school."
The Indianapolis Star, April 02, 2013: (Editorial) For kids' sake, no time to go slow on preschool
"Last week's vote by the Senate Education and Career Development Committee to approve an early childhood education pilot program - but without the funding included when the House passed the bill 93-6 - could mean that an estimated 1,000 low-income Hoosier children will miss out on a vital start to their schooling."
The Boston Globe, April 02, 2013: (Editorial) Longer school days pay off for kids in struggling cities
"Sandwiched between Governor Patrick's call for major increases in spending for early childhood education and public higher education is a modest bump of $5 million to extend the school day in fiscal year 2014. The money is focused precisely where it belongs middle school students in high-poverty districts."
Tulsa World, March 31, 2013: Study: Read-or-fail law would flunk high percent of Oklahoma 3rd-graders
"The risks of a high rate of failure among Mark Twain's third-graders next year point to what some educators say is a worrisome part of the state's reading act: A disproportionate share of those who fail will likely be poor children. Most could be boys. An Oklahoma Watch analysis of state test data from 2012 found that elementary schools with higher rates of low-income students had greater shares of third-graders who scored poorly on reading."
The Washington Post, March 31, 2013: (Blog) While fixing Prince George's schools, don't mess with successes
"Those debating the Baker plan don't seem to realize that administrators and teachers have increased significantly the number of Prince George's students taking college-level courses like Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate. More students than ever before are passing those exams, written and graded by outside experts."
The Star Tribune, March 31, 2013: (Op-Ed) What Minnesota college students need from lawmakers
"The Legislature has another important task this session: making a much-needed adjustment to the State Grant Program. This program provides funds directly to low-income students to help them pay for their education unmet financial need is one of the main reasons students are unable to attend or complete college."
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, March 30, 2013: (Op-Ed) Texas poised to go backward on education standards
"Low-income and minority students are thriving in the current system, making bigger gains than any other groups in graduating career- and college-ready. Can we do better? Yes, but we should not replace a system that is moving us in the direction we want to go with a system that will throw us in the wrong direction."
The Oklahoman, March 30, 2013: Low-income students likely to be retained at highest rate
"Among thousands of Oklahoma students who could be held back in third grade for failing a state reading test next year, a disproportionate share likely will be low-income children, an Oklahoma Watch analysis of state data found."
Milwaukee Courier, March 30, 2013: Pre-College Enrichment Opportunity Program for Learning Excellence (PEOPLE) at UW-Madison
"PEOPLE is a pre-college pipeline for students of color and low- income students, most of whom are the first in their families to potentially attend college. Their journey prepares them to apply, be successfully admitted and enroll at the University of Wisconsin- Madison."
