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"The reasons low-income children sometimes perform worse on exams aren't totally clear, even to administrators and researchers who study the issue, said Pam Ehly, the Iowa City Community School District's instruction director. It's difficult to pinpoint what the reason is - you can look at correlates like if they didn't engage in preschool, that's a factor. If you don't have funds as a family for additional opportunities like going to a museum or having books at home, those factors become compounded and it has an effect,' she said."

"The 11-district cooperative in the Omaha area originally lacked explicit authority for programs targeting children under age 5. State law called for programs aimed at elementary-age children. Nebraska lawmakers this month gave the education cooperative new spending authority and authorized expansion into early childhood education for children in poverty."

"Far from wanting to enroll more low-income students, colleges recruit more affluent ones who will pay full price to attend. A follow-up survey of college business officers found that the most common strategy to deal with financial challenges in the next few years was to raise net tuition revenue.'"

"Currently, 15 of the district's highest-poverty schools offer full-day kindergarten. This decision expands the opportunity to 19 more schools and would mean hiring the equivalent of at least 25 full-time teaching positions and possibly 27 other faculty, such as counselors."

"The debate over a private learning option for poor schoolchildren in North Carolina has a familiar ring to it because Florida faced similar fears a dozen years ago. But a targeted and accountable scholarship can strengthen our commitment to equal educational opportunity by giving more tools to the students who face the greatest odds."

"Poverty has a massive impact on our students, and it is without question an enormous challenge in the work of educators in Memphis. It is critical that states and cities, churches and nonprofit organizations, businesses and civic groups work together with schools and continue to address the underlying causes of poverty."

"More than half of Springfield students straddle the poverty line, and it's higher - three out of every five - at the elementary level. Teachers like Tate know that home-life worries, left unchecked, can disrupt the students' ability to learn."

"Eligible seniors pay for the one-bedroom units based on their income. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provides subsidies when needed. That means a one-bedroom at the building might go for $400 per month instead of an market value topping $1,000 monthly, developers said."

"It can be as much as a three-month loss for kids from low-income families, a month for those in more advantaged situations. The difference? Middle-income families can afford tutors if a child needs such, they may take vacations that stimulate the brain, they may enroll their offspring in camps and other programs that keep them thinking. Head Start families may not be able to afford any of those things."

"The penalties worry some health care experts who say facilities serving low-income communities will be hit the hardest by the new program, part of the 2010 federal health care reform law. Confirming their fears, most of the eight hospitals in California paying the stiffest penalties this year are located in low-income areas, according to the latest numbers released by Medicare in March."

"Eligible seniors must earn no more than $1,862 monthly, or $21,780 annually, to receive an average monthly food stamp allocation of $170. But eligibility is fluid, advocates point out. Medical expenses, after the first $35, are subtracted from the income level and housing or rental costs are factored in. Locally, SNAP advocates point to the "stigma" those eligible might feel in using the benefit."

"While universities prefer race-based programs that assemble generally well-off students of all colors, the end of such programs will likely usher in a more aggressive set of policies that will, at long last, address America's growing economic divide."