Wages below the living wage are poverty wages for many households. For decades, teachers have been clear about the damaging impact poverty has on childhood development in particular, as well as on individuals and communities as a whole. Teachers experience first-hand the impact that poverty has on children, how it leaves children more vulnerable…

In response to the significant and still growing number of college students experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity in California, the State Legislature appropriated $9 million in the 2019-2020 State Budget for ongoing funding to provide housing services to students. Per section 9795 of the statute, colleges, in partnership with local…

Until recently, Indiana was one of only a few states in the nation without a state-funded pre-K program. Recently, however, The Hoosier State has slowly begun to build pre-K offerings by investing in pilot programs in a handful of counties throughout the state. Now, Indiana lawmakers are looking ahead to a 2017 legislative session in which…

"Changing the Course of Family Literacy" re-examines the importance and value of family literacy programming and offers several policy recommendations to focus attention on the four-component model used in Even Start. This paper explores the current status of Family literacy and, after gathering information from 47 states, found that 11…

Studied the implementation of school-based management in 30 of the poorest school districts in New Jersey (the Abbott districts). Findings show that genuine autonomy has been usurped by increased state power and authority, and that state elites allow little opportunity for capacity building at the district level. The level of democratization has…

Because homeless students' problems reflect complex social problems, a multifaceted, collaborative approach is needed to address fundamental issues. This article provides a framework for examining four levels of collaboration, highlighting lessons learned from pursuing educational goals at the state level. Collaboration with professionals from…

The mission of the child support program is undergoing a basic shift from welfare cost recovery to helping parents support their children. However, the child support program's reimbursement policies have interfered with states' ability to implement policies to bolster family support. As states assess their capacity to improve their services to…

"Kids Count in Colorado!" is an annual publication of the Colorado Children's Campaign, which provides the best available state- and county-level data to measure and track the education, health and general well-being of the state's children. "Kids Count in Colorado!" informs policy debates and community discussions, serving as…

This report represents one component of a project to examine how recently or whether enacted federal education reforms, put into place through the reauthorization of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (Improving America's Schools Act of 1994), are being implemented in high poverty schools. The first part of the report…

Defining hunger on the basis of poverty or other nonphysiological criteria is misleading. With nutritional data used by human-service agencies, suggests programs with such conception of hunger hurt the efforts at nutritional change. Uses central Mississippi as an example to propose objective nutritional definition and assessment. (TES)

Noting that a key challenge for policymakers and others who are concerned about the well-being of children and families is how to develop and improve policies that reward work and help low-income working families increase their earnings, this research brief examines the current and potential impact of state earned income credits (EICs) as a means…

This report displays 1990 U.S. census data for Colorado and each of its 63 counties. Selected characteristics include population, English as a Second Language, educational attainment, labor force participation, poverty status, and public assistance income. Data, which may be useful in examining assumptions made concerning those characteristics,…

This report outlines findings and recommendations of a committee study of whether the State of Missouri is in need of welfare reform. The major finding is that Missouri's current welfare system is substantially deficient and requires correction of laws, policies, practices, and resource allocation. Three major themes are the following: (1) welfare…

"Kids Count in Colorado!" is an annual publication of the Colorado Children's Campaign, which provides the best available state- and county-level data to measure and track the education, health and general well-being of the state's children. "Kids Count in Colorado!" informs policy debates and community discussions, serving as…

The Florida State Legislature and the Department of Education have generally addressed the 1997 recommendations of the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA) for improving student performance in high-poverty schools. Recent legislation and department actions have established a stronger foundation for ensuring that…