Using
the Internet to Provide Ethnic and Culturally Diverse Populations
with High-Quality Child Support Information
The Urban Institute partnered
with the One Economy Corporation in applying for a special improvement project
grant from OCSE to develop high-quality online child support information specifically
developed for families in low-income and ethnic and culturally diverse communities.
This grant was awarded and used to prepare three sets of bilingual web pages
(one national and two local) that are now available to millions of Americans
across the country, and can also be used as models for other local and national
sites
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/using_the_inter.html
Opportunities
and Challenges for ECCS Initiatives
The Deficit Reduction Act
of 2005 (DRA) changes to Medicaid affect health access and coverage for children,
starting with those ages birth to 5 years. State policymakers and family
advocates working to develop Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems (ECCS)
and those implementing ECCS plans will need to use their tools and knowledge
wisely to ensure a positive impact from the DRA on young children.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/opportunities_a.html
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New
Report on Meth and Foster Care
A new report chronicling
the harmful effect of methamphetamine (meth) on children, families and our
nation's foster care system was released by Generations United. "This
report describes the important role grandparents and other relatives play
when they step up to care for children in crisis. Because of meth and other
problems, these grand-families are working side-by-side with child welfare
professionals to minimize the impact on children -- they have become lifelines
for so many hurt children," stated Donna Butts, Executive Director of
Generations United.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/new_report_on_m.html
Fewer
High School Students Engage in Health Risk Behaviors
Fewer U.S. high school students are engaging in health risk behaviors
compared to their counterparts from 15 years ago, according to the 2005 National
Youth Risk Behavior Survey released by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. Despite an overall decrease in health risk behaviors among high
school students since 1991, racial and ethnic differences continue to be evident.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/fewer_high_scho.html
Teen
ER Visits Often Involve Alcohol, Other Drugs
A new study finds that about
40 percent of injured teens treated in a hospital emergency room tested positive
for alcohol or other drugs, according to researchers from the University of
Michigan Health System/ "The two major preventable health issues facing
adolescents are injuries that result in death or disability, and lifestyle
choices that have long-term, adverse health consequences."
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/teen_er_visits.html
**Civic Engagement
Hurricane
Readiness Subject of National Coalition on Black Civic Participation Democracy
Symposium
Questions regarding federal,
state, municipal and non-governmental agencies response to this year's predicted
active hurricane season will be the subject of the National Coalition on Black
Civic Participation's (NCBCP) 5th Annual Voices of the Electorate Democracy
Symposium, held on Wednesday, June 7, 2006.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/hurricane_readi.html
**Community Development
HUD
Awards 3,100 Housing Agencies Nationwide $2.2 Billion to Improve Public Housing
Developments
The Department of Housing
and Urban Development awarded more than 3,145 public housing agencies across
the nation $2.2 billion in federal funding. "Just over a million families
rely on local public housing agencies to provide safe, decent housing,"
said HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/hud_awards_3100.html
Katrina
and Rita Impacts on Gulf Coast Populations
Hurricane-impacted areas
of the Gulf Coast sustained both population gains and losses over the last half
of 2005, with the biggest losses experienced by the New Orleans metropolitan area. In the New Orleans metropolitan area, hurricane-induced
loss produced a population that was more white, less poor, and more transitory
than the pre-hurricane population.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/katrina_and_rit.html
Action
Needed to Speed Rebuilding of Affordable Housing in Hurricane-Damaged Mississippi
Tens of thousands of Mississippi
families whose homes were damaged or destroyed by hurricanes last year will
have a hard time finding replacement housing in the state unless leaders in
government and the private sector take action to accelerate the rebuilding
of affordable housing, according to a RAND Corporation study.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/action_needed_t.html
**Economic Security
24
Leaders Join Sector Skills Academy
Academy Interest in sector-oriented
workforce training is growing dramatically, largely because such approaches
hold the potential to improve employment opportunities for low-wage workers,
while also supporting business competitiveness. That potential has prompted
a variety of institutions---including community-based organizations, community
colleges, labor-management partnerships and business associations---to launch
new initiatives.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/24_leaders_join.html
MDRC
Web Site Highlights Research on Welfare Policy and on Barriers to Employment
Millions of Americans face
serious obstacles to steady work. These individuals often become enmeshed
in costly public assistance and enforcement systems, and, just as important,
many find themselves living in poverty, outside the mainstream in a society
that prizes work and self-sufficiency. MDRC has revamped the Welfare &
Barriers to Employment section of its Web site to reflect its evolving welfare
research agenda and to highlight new areas of work, particularly in developing
effective policies and programs for individuals facing barriers to work.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/mdrc_web_site_h.html
Taxes
Paid by Immigrants in the Washington, DC Area
The DC metropolitan area
is relatively affluent and boasts a strong economy that attracts large numbers
of immigrants for jobs at both the high- and low-skilled ends of the labor
market. Although immigrant households on average have lower incomes than native-born
Washington, D.C., area households, they pay nearly the same share of their
incomes in taxes.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/taxes_paid_by_i.html
**Education
The
Costs of Out-of-School-Time Programs: A Review of the Available Evidence
This report reviews a variety
of studies conducted since 1993 in an attempt to gain a broad sense of what
it costs to run out-of-school-time programs. Among the report’s findings:
there is a lack of up-to-date information about program costs; researchers
and practitioners do not have a standard methodology for estimating costs;
selected cost studies suggest wide variation across programs - from $449 to
$7160 per child per year; much of this variation is attributable to differences
in sample size, how costs are calculated and whether in-kind resources are
taken into account
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/the_costs_of_ou.html
Bringing
Attention to Community College Programs for Low-Income Students
The Education Writers Association
recently hosted a two-day meeting for 30 working journalists. The stated purpose
was to give daily reporters an opportunity to learn from experts about community
colleges. The real goal, though, was to persuade the reporters that community
colleges were even worth covering, because most education reporters --- and
editors --- see their work as focused strictly on the K-12 beat --- and, occasionally,
on the four-year college beat.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/bringing_attent.html
**Health
AIDS
Drugs Have Saved 3 Million Years of Life in the US
Since the early 1980s, soon
after the first reports of what we now know as AIDS, NIH has devoted $30 billion
to HIV/AIDS research," says NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D. "This
study clearly shows the dramatic impact that sustained investment in biomedical
research can have in improving the lives of Americans.”
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/aids_drugs_have.html
Texas
Plan to Expand Coverage to More Pregnant Women
More low-income pregnant
women living in Texas will have access to critical prenatal care the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services announced. The State of Texas estimates that 66,916 pregnant women
will receive prenatal health care under this expansion of its State Children's
Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/texas_plan_to_e.html
**Homelessness
New
Campaign Shows Progress for Homeless
Philip F. Mangano has revived
a dormant agency in Washington to run the new program. The "housing first" policy that this
city adopted last year is part of an accelerating national movement that has
reduced the numbers of the chronically homeless --- the single, troubled men
and women who spend years in the streets and shelters --- in more than 20
cities.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/new_campaign_sh.html
**Hunger and Nutrition
Food
Insecurity and Hunger in Los Angeles
A new study published by
the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank reports that 657,000 Los Angeles County
residents seek emergency food assistance from food pantries, soup kitchens
and shelters served by the Foodbank each year. However, the report also reflects
a food shortage and the need for an additional 10.8 million pounds of food
to serve everyone seeking emergency food assistance on an annual basis.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/food_insecurity.html
**Substance Abuse
Study
Predicts Big Increase in Addiction Among Older Americans
A new survey predicts that
the number of Americans age 50 or older who are addicted to alcohol or other
drugs will double by 2020 according to research from the University of Michigan
Medical School. Misuse of alcohol and prescription drugs plays a huge role
in the trend; so is the willingness of Baby Boomers to take a wide range of
drugs to deal with physical and mental health problems.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/study_predicts.html
Older
Men Seeking Treatment for Alcohol
Americans ages 50 and older
are more likely to seek treatment for alcohol dependence than any other drug
addiction, and older men are particularly at risk of problem drinking. Many
of these patients were experiencing their first serious addiction problems:
45 percent were first-time treatment participants
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/05/older_men_seeki.html
Study
Shows Most Treatment Effective Against Alcoholism
A complex study of alcoholism
funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, treatment
medications and counseling has found that most standalone and combined therapies
were effective in promoting short-term abstinence, with only the drug acamprosate
(Campral) proving to be disappointing.
http://webclipper.handsnet.org/mt-static/archives/2006/06/study_shows_mos.html
