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"States aren't doing enough to support gifted students, especially those from low-income families that's the message that the Virginia-based Jack Kent Cooke Foundation sent Tuesday with the release of report cards on state policies for academically talented children."

"Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a bill Thursday to fix the 2015 funding deficit, which had disproportionally hurt low-income child care centers. The new law allocates $293 million for early childhood education by taking funding from other services and by cutting government functions 2.25 percent across the board. However, critics say child care centers for low-income families will still face instability until new methods of revenue are proposed."

"In each case, the answer was the same: The presence of a caring adult who took a deep interest in his or her education, and who acted as a cheerleader."

"The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation has awarded more than $1.6 million in grants to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education programs for low-income students."

"School districts that serve the most students in poverty receive an average of $1,200, or 10 percent, less per student in state and local funding than districts with few students in poverty, according to a report released Thursday by The Education Trust (Ed Trust), a group in Washington that advocates for closing economic and racial inequities in schools. The resource gap grows to $2,200 when adjusting to account for an estimated 40 percent higher cost to educate high-poverty students, the report notes."

"Earlier this year, an analysis of federal data found that for the first time in at least 50 years more than half of the public school children in America are living in poverty. In Ohio, the number is only 39 percent, but it still concerns school officials here who know that poor kids come to school carrying extra burdens. In recent years, education officials have been looking to brain research for answers on how to adjust curricula for such students."

"Even if Gibson had Section 8, he might have a hard time finding a spot. For seniors who can afford rents of $3,000 a month, there's plenty of housing available, according to Pamela Hall, an advocate at Oakland's Housing Assistance Center. Those willing to move to Tracy or Modesto can find a place in senior housing for as little as $1,700. The story for affordable housing is very different. 'There's no [affordable] senior housing,' Hall said. 'The waitlists are long. They're running from three to five years.'"

"A report says one-third of West Virginia schoolchildren under age 6 live in poor households and are at risk of falling significantly behind their classmates' achievements.The West Virginia KIDS COUNT's annual report on children's wellbeing says the vocabularies of children as young as 18 months from low-income families are already several months behind their peers, and that continues throughout their educations."

"A new program to ensure the minds of young children get enough stimulation to succeed in the classroom is in the works in Huntsville City Schools. It specifically aims to close the 30-million word gap for children, often in low-income settings, when they start school compared to other children."

"Massachusetts' patent pro bono program is set to officially launch next month and expand its services into four other New England states. The program, run by the Boston Patent Law Association and Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, will formally become the New England regional clearinghouse for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's national pro bono program at an April 30 event at Fish & Richardson PC's South Boston office. It has been operating as a pilot program since November 2013."

"The state's new education funding formula provides extra money for all low-income children, students learning English and foster youth, and contributes more dollars if they make up the bulk of students in a district. But if these 'high-need' kids happen to be concentrated in a few schools within wealthier districts, they get less funding than they would receive in a poor district, a recent study revealed. The report also cautioned that districts' accountability plans lacked the information to determine if the students were receiving the help they needed."

"New research suggests the benefits of a good breakfast extend to the cognitive arena as investigators find a strong connection between good nutrition and good grades. In the study, University of Iowa investigators discovered free school breakfasts help students from low-income families perform better academically."