Latest Coverage

"Ohio Medicaid costs $18 billion a year in state and federal funds and covers 2.1 million disabled and low-income Ohioans. The Kasich administration reported Tuesday that lower caseloads and other changes led to $535 million less in Medicaid spending last year than anticipated, helping bolster the state coffers."

"The program provides free meals to all students in schools in which 40 percent or more of the students receive food stamps or some other form of public aid. All three schools in Newport easily exceed that percentage. As a district, 86 percent are living at or below the federal poverty level."

"That percentage of black students who used a district-approved waiver is not only high, it is disproportionate even when compared with other demographic groups educators identify as at-risk. For example, one in seven Indiana students who receive free and reduced-price school meals -- a standard measure of poverty -- received waivers. For Hispanic students, it also was one in seven."

"Millions of poor people could still be left without medical insurance under the national health care law if states take an option granted by the Supreme Court and decide not to expand their Medicaid programs, state officials and health policy experts said Friday."

"Gov. Christie signed a $31.7 billion budget bill Friday for the coming fiscal year, but not before he cut $361 million in Democratic-backed initiatives, including measures that would have provided more money for legal services to the poor, aid for low-income students aiming for college, and a tax credit for low-wage earners."

"Three days after the Springfield school board split over whether to absorb or shore up a deep cut in federal Title I funding for low-income students, the point may be moot. On Friday, state education officials announced that Missouri received a 'flexibility waiver' from the No Child Left Behind law. Among other things, it frees up how Title I funding can be spent."

"They represent three different cities, Cleveland, St. Louis and Atlanta. All three are recent high school graduates, have been homeless and now each are heading to three different prestigious colleges."

"Low-income students and students who lag behind academically comprise the largest portion of students enrolled in summer school classes. These students are often hardest hit by scaled-back or eliminated summer-school programs. They may also struggle to make up the for the time lost over the summer, educators say."

"'We all understand that the best ideas don't come from Washington, and moving forward, these states will have increased flexibility with federal funds and relief from NCLB's mandates, allowing them to develop locally tailored solutions to meet their unique educational challenges,' Education Secretary Arne Duncan said."

"The American Federation for Children-the nation's voice for school choice-today expressed disappointment in the North Carolina House Finance Committee, which yesterday failed to advance a sweeping statewide school choice plan that would have granted scholarships to children from low-income families."

"The spending-per-pupil statistic is often used to measure efficiency of school districts across Ohio, so when Chris Pfister saw that his small, low-income, rural district's number was higher than those of other nearby schools, he scratched his head."

"Three days after the Springfield school board split over whether to absorb or shore up a deep cut in federal Title I funding for low-income students, the point may be moot."