Latest Coverage

"Local philanthropic leaders launched the project a year ago, vowing to pump $11 million a year for five years into the struggling schools, which serve mostly African-American and low-income students."

"The foundation is based at Mr. Kass's own school, Infinity Math, Science and Technology High School, one of four high schools that are part of the Little Village Lawndale High School campus. The location makes sense, Mr. Kass said, because public schools were an ideal place to provide legal services to low-income families."

"The findings may be cited in a court battle looming over state-funded pre-kindergarten for low-income children. For months, Democratic Gov. Bev Perdue and Republican leaders in the legislature have been at odds over funding for preschool for 4-year-olds."

"The audit of the state's Office of Early Learning found more than 16,000 cases in which people received both subsidized child care -- meant to help low-income residents afford daycare while they worked -- and state unemployment benefits."

"New District 201 Superintendent Jeff Dosier said Wednesday that one of his top priorities is to close the achievement gap between white and black students. Dosier said a recent slip in the district's state report card scores are in part because of a gap between the achievement levels of its black and white students."

"In Green Bay, 3.3 percent of high school students dropped out in 2009-10, according to the most recently available data from the state Department of Public Instruction. That's higher than the statewide 2.2 percent average."

"One in eight children in Michigan lives in a household grappling with job loss and one in every 20 has had his or her life disrupted by a home foreclosure. This year, as in previous years, creating an economic climate that leads to more jobs remains the top priority for our governor and lawmakers. An emphasis on educating kids and putting their parents back to work is the best weapon for fighting poverty."

"Samantha Garvey, a science whiz kid living in a Long Island homeless shelter, will go to the State of the Union address. Her congressman, Steve Israel, D-N.Y., invited the student to attend the president's speech, offering her his guest ticket."

"Fifteen students who are enrolled in a three-week winter term course will participate in the Blount County point-in-time homeless count, a national data collection effort commissioned by the Department of Housing and Urban Development that asks each community to count its homeless residents on one day. "

"Kids from low-income families who start kindergarten without first attending a quality education program enter school an estimated 18 months behind their peers. Many never catch up, and research shows they are more likely to need special education services and to drop out. Kids in families with higher incomes also can benefit from early education, research shows."

"It's like hiring the fox to guard the henhouse," said David Sciarra, executive director of the Education Law Center in Newark, which litigates on behalf of low-income schoolchildren. "What [New Jersey] seems to be doing is bringing foundations and other organizations that support their particular education reform agenda. I've never seen anything like this before."

"The funding, under the U.S. Department of Education's College Access Challenge Grant, are used to improve college awareness, readiness, and attendance among low-income students. HESC said it will distribute the aid to community groups and other institutions that work directly with at-risk populations that are traditionally underserved."