Pennsylvania

"Programs to help low-income, at-risk families and children in Pennsylvania will get a financial boost over the next four years thanks to a $24.3 million grant from the federal government. The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning announced Tuesday that it received the grant. The federal grant will be paid to the state over the next four and a half years. The money will be used to increase the number of infants and toddlers receiving services from Early Head Start."

"Swarthmore continues to its efforts to support low-income and other disadvantaged students this semester. Shortly before the semester began, the college published a list of administrators, professors, and staff who share experiences that may resonate with these students. The college has also created a summer bridge program for underrepresented students aiming to pursue a degree in STEM fields, and allowed students with extenuating circumstances to remain on campus over break."

"Five schools in Philadelphia made the cut for a 'high progress' designation, based on increases in achievement in math and reading across all student in the schools. Four Philadelphia district schools Lankenau High School, Philadelphia Military Academy at Elverson, Juniata Park Academy and Eliza B. Kirkbride School earned spots along with one charter school, Freire Charter School in Center City. Across the state, 16 schools made the 'high progress' list. School leaders attribute that progress to a variety of factors, from a rebooted school day to getting better equipment."

"The demographics of North Hills School District have changed over the past six years, with increases in the number of students coming from lower-income families and in the number of students with autism. But students continue to perform well on state assessments, Jeff Taylor, assistant superintendent for curriculum, assessment and special programs, told school board members Dec. 2."

"The $32 billion Pell Grant program is the U.S. government's main financial aid for low-income students, benefiting more than one in three undergraduates, or about 10 million total nationwide. Recipients can get up to $5,730 a year. Other area schools with high numbers of Pell-eligible and thus low-income students included Cedar Crest College (43 percent) in Allentown, Penn State Lehigh Valley (36 percent) in Center Valley and Moravian College (30 percent) in Bethlehem, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, a division of the U.S. Department of Education."

"The Children's Scholarship Fund Philadelphia announced Thursday that 2,000 new, four-year scholarships were available to help low-income city families send their children to nonpublic schools for kindergarten through eighth grade. The scholarships begin with the 2015-16 academic year. Established in 1998, Children's Scholarship Fund Philadelphia now provides financial aid to 4,500 city children at 185 nonpublic schools."