Louisiana Awarded $20.9 Million Grant to Assist
Damaged Charter Schools
Louisiana has been awarded a $20.9 million No
Child Left Behind grant through the Charter Schools Program to help reopen
charter schools damaged by the hurricanes, help create 10 new charter schools,
and expand existing charter schools to accommodate students displaced by hurricane
damage, the U.S. Department of Education announced.
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2005/09/09302005.html
Hurricane Victims with
Disabilities Receive Assistance Through Department of Education
President Bush signed into
law on Sept. 30 the Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Affected
by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Act of 2005, granting the U.S. Education Department
authority to permit hurricane-affected Gulf Coast states
access to $25.9 million in federal funds for vocational rehabilitation (VR)
services without the states having to provide matching funds.
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2005/10/10032005.html
Housing Aid Called Too
Much, Too Little
The Federal Emergency Management
Agency's evolving efforts to shelter Hurricane Katrina victims continue to
waste huge amounts of taxpayer dollars and could soon leave many evacuees
short of money and facing eviction, according to renter advocates and housing
industry officials.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/11/AR2005101101645.html?nav=rss_nation
Many Katrina Survivors
Seeking Medicaid In Louisiana Shelters Remain Without Coverage
According to the Center
on Budget and Policy Priorities, while legislation introduced by Senators
Charles Grassley and Max Baucus (S.1716) to provide temporary, fully federally
funded Medicaid coverage to low-income hurricane survivors remains blocked
in the Senate, indigent individuals seeking health care coverage at more than
200 shelters throughout Louisiana continue being denied enrollment in the
Medicaid program. The principal reason: many of these Katrina survivors
do not fit into one of the traditional categories of people that Medicaid
covers - children, pregnant women, parents or caretakers of minor children,
and elderly or seriously disabled people.
http://www.cbpp.org/10-12-05health3.htm
**Children, Youth &
Families
Family Meals, Stories
Boost Child Confidence
Families who regularly share
meals together have children who know more about their family history and
tend to have higher self-esteem, interact better with their peers and show
higher resilience in the face of adversity, according to research by two Emory
psychology professors. In addition, families who openly discuss emotions associated
with negative events, such as the death of a relative or a pet, have children
with higher self-esteem and sense of control.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-10/euhs-fms101105.php
Early Good Parenting
Increases Chances of Good Kids Later
The relationship you've
established with your children when they start kindergarten helps determine
their behavior by the time they finish fourth grade, according to a study
by Wichita State researchers published in the September/October issue of the
journal Child Development. How you interact with your kindergarten children,
by showing warmth and having good communication, serves as an important building
block for knowing where your child is and with whom, or what he or she is
doing outside the home, later in childhood, the study said.
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20051007.144029&time=04%2000%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
Fried Food and Fatter
Kids
New research shows that
adolescents who eat large amounts of fried food away from home are heavier
and more likely to have a poor-quality diet. Among 14,355 children surveyed,
researchers from the Department of Ambulatory Care and Prevention (at Harvard
Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care) found that 9 to 14 year olds
who increased their consumption of fried food away from home over the course
of a year gained weight above the normal rate.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-10/hms-ffa092705.php
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Palo Alto
Medical Foundation Collaborates to Increase Awareness About Domestic Violence
According to a recent national
survey by the Commonwealth Fund, nearly one-third of American women report
being physically or sexually abused by a husband or boyfriend at some time
in their lives. The Palo Alto Medical Foundation, in collaboration with other
Sutter Health medical foundations and hospitals, has partnered with the Family
Violence Prevention Fund to help put an end to violence against women and
children.
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20051003.095404&time=10%2047%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
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Get more information on
these issues at http://www.ecommunityissues.com.
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Human Rights Watch, Amnesty
International Report: Child Life without Parole Sentences on the Rise in the
U.S.
Amnesty International and
Human Rights Watch released the first national report examining the practice
of trying children as adults and sentencing them to life without the possibility
of parole (LWOP). The 157-page report, The Rest of Their Lives: Life without
Parole for Child Offenders in the United States, found that despite a significant
drop in the youth murder rate, the rate at which child offenders are being
sentenced to life without the possibility of parole is rising at an alarming
pace.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=54888
New Mental Health Help
for Juvenile Offenders
Although as many as 65 to75
percent of juvenile offenders have one or more psychiatric disorders, most
juvenile correctional facilities do not have the resources to serve them.
To help address this problem, a new set of guidelines for treating the mental
health needs of incarcerated youth has been published in the October 2005
issue of the journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
(AACAP).
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-10/l-nmh100505.php
**Community Development
Vouchers for evicted
section eight tenants not a fair trade
Federal vouchers are breaking
up communities in order to provide affordable housing. An article published
in the recent issue of WorkingUSA, The Journal of Labor and Society explores
the relationships between labor, community, affordable housing, and federal
practices by focusing on a housing cooperative in New Haven, Conn. The Trade Union Plaza (TUP) was a nonprofit, labor-sponsored
alternative to conventional public housing. More than thirty-five years ago,
it began as a home to single Black mothers and active union members and has
housed families for generations. Once described as an urban residential space
"for working people by working people," the TUP is currently being
transformed by the new owner into luxury homes called "University Village."
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-10/bpl-vfe100605.php
Cost of Crime Estimated
at $428 Billion A Year; New Report Shows Effective Crime Prevention Saves
Money
Crime takes a staggering
financial toll on communities across the country, according to a new report,
Preventing Crime Saves Money, released by the National Crime Prevention Council
(NCPC). Despite record low levels of crime, the report estimates the annual
cost of personal and property crime at $428 billion a year. That is $1.2 billion
per day, far more than the current estimated costs of recovery from Hurricane
Katrina. The report looks at the overall impact of crime and uses cost-benefit
analysis to show that investment in crime prevention is an effective way for
communities to minimize the high price of crime.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=54820
**Economic Security
Low Income Hinders College
Attendance
According to the Economic
Policy Institute, low income students performing at the highest levels
still have less than a one-third chance of completing college. The disparity
of educational attainment according to socioeconomic status is discussed in
this week's Snapshot.
http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/webfeatures_snapshots_20051012
The Work Opportunity and Welfare-to-Work Tax Credits
According to The
Urban Institute, the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) offers subsidies
to firms that hire disadvantage workers, including certain welfare recipients,
food stamp recipients, people with disabilities, and others. The similar Welfare-to-Work
(WtW) tax credit offers firms potentially larger subsidies for hiring long-term
welfare recipients. The tax credits from these programs totaled nearly $500
million in 2003 according to the Office of Management and Budget. This brief
provides policy background on employer subsidies, discusses participation
in the WOTC and WtW, surveys current evidence on the effects of the tax credits
on labor market outcomes, and discusses the costs and benefits of the programs.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9461
Action, not Unnecessary
Atonement, Needed for Million Man March; Community Action Partnership Demands
Poverty Focus
The Community Action Partnership,
the nation's largest anti-poverty network, is challenging the organizations
participating in the 10th anniversary of the Million Man March commemoration
to focus on American poverty. The Community Action Partnership is currently
planning a National Symposium on American Poverty. The goal of the symposium
is to lay the research and ground work for calling for a comprehensive anti-poverty
bill in Congress. "If this march on Saturday does not call for a mandate
for Congress to draft urgent comprehensive legislation to eliminate poverty
then the day will be a laughable lost," warned the national president
of the Community Action Partnership.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=54954
Getting to Know Underbanked
Consumers: A Financial Services Analysis
The Center for Financial
Services Innovation (CFSI) released its latest paper, "Getting to Know
Underbanked Consumers: A Financial Services Analysis." The study, which
was supported by the Fannie Mae Foundation, analyzes a survey of urban lower
and middle income consumers. This groundbreaking research segments these
consumers with the thoroughness and detail traditional market research firms
provide on higher income customers, and reveals sub-segments and financial
behavior patterns that could help financial institutions and companies seeking
to expand their customer base to build lasting, organic growth.
PDF: http://www.cfsinnovation.com/managed_documents/seg.pdf
**Education
How-To Advice for Parents
on Picking a Great School
School choice is a hot political
concept these days. But actually choosing a school can be a daunting chore.
Millions of parents each year face the prospect of making a high-stakes decision
with less-than-perfect information. What's the best way to go? When a child's
educational success is on the line, it's great to have help from some experts.
That's why ConnectforKids.org will be hosting Bryan and Emily Hassel, authors
of "Picky Parent Guide: Choose Your Child's School with Confidence,"
for its next Talktime Live! Online book chat on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 1 p.m. EDT.
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20051010.111450&time=12%2049%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
Morphing Outrage Into
Ideas
Los Angeles Times - In front of a group of student
leaders at Alhambra High School, Assistant Principal Grace Love spoke in February about the
school's recent gains on state tests. That there are gaps in test scores
among racial and ethnic groups is an uncomfortable truth in modern day education.
The achievement gap, as racial disparities in test scores are known in education
circles, exists at schools throughout the nation. It also exists across class
lines. Examining the issue requires traversing a political and cultural minefield.
Every possible explanation is likely to offend, which may be why the subject
rarely provokes the kind of discussion that might eventually lead to change.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/latimests/20051012/ts_latimes/morphingoutrageintoideas
Taunts of 'Acting White'
Not Enough to Prevent Black Students from Trying Hard
Despite a common belief
that peer pressure against high academic achievement is prevalent among black
students, a new study conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill and Duke University shows
that that's not usually true. Generally, the researchers found, black adolescents
are as achievement-oriented as white adolescents, contrary to what some observers,
including academics, have thought. A small percentage of black adolescents
might not try as hard as they could in school for fear of criticism from other
black students, but most are not deterred when others accuse them of "acting
white."
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-10/uonc-sto101105.php
295 U.S. Schools Named Blue Ribbon Schools
Two hundred and ninety-five
schools in the nation have been named No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools
for 2005 by the U.S. Department of Education. In recognition of the progress
these schools have made under No Child Left Behind, each school will receive
an award certificate as part of the Blue Ribbon Schools program.
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2005/09/09232005.html
New Commission on the
Future of Higher Education
U.S. Secretary of Education
announced the formation of the Secretary of Education's Commission on the
Future of Higher Education. The new commission is charged with developing
a comprehensive national strategy for postsecondary education that will meet
the needs of America's diverse
population and also address the economic and workforce needs of the country's
future.
http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2005/09/09192005.html
**Health
Report on District
of Columbia's
Uninsured Focuses Policy Options
A new Urban Institute report
analyzes District of Columbia adults who lack health insurance in an effort to identify where expansions
of coverage would make the most difference. The report shows the District's
uninsurance rate is similar to rates in Virginia and Maryland, slightly better than the national average, and much better
than comparable urban areas. However, 17 percent of residents still face gaps
in health care coverage.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9463
Pharmacies in Minority,
Low-Income Areas Less Likely to Carry Sufficient Pain Medications
Chronic pain is a condition
that affects one in five Americans without regard for their race or finances.
But a new study from the University of Michigan Health
System finds that
minorities and people with low incomes have less access than high-income white
people to the medications that will help them endure their pain.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-10/uomh-pim101005.php
