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"As part of what he calls a very ambitious education agenda,' Gov. Peter Shumlin wants to boost child-care subsidies for lower-income families."

"Unsurprisingly, this dismal failure in educational achievement across the state correlates to last week's news that Medicaid funded 70 percent of births in New Mexico. By failing to provide our children with a quality education, our residents are stuck in a cycle of poverty, unable to break out."

"The measure would fund a two-year pilot program to measure the effect of preschool experience. Initially, the bill would earmark $7 million for each year to send about 1,000 low-income children to approved preschool programs."

"We are lucky enough to live in a country where we have the latitude to make choices in almost every arena of our lives. Yet when it comes to one of the most important aspects of a child's upbringing -- education -- parents are too often offered frustratingly few choices. Our broken public education system can leave low-income students and parents with no alternatives to find a quality education."

"Under this policy,' Cantor said, the more students a school attracts, the more money that school, its administrators and teachers receive. Low-income students are weighted heavier in the funding formula as are children with disabilities, and those learning English as a second language. So, there's incentive for schools to seek the more vulnerable population, and reasons for schools to differentiate themselves and excel.'"

"There seems to be no end to the number of wacky school reform ideas. Now a Tennessee state senator wants to cut welfare payments to families whose kids get really bad report cards and test scores."

"The past few decades have seen increasing income polarization, with the top 1 percent reaping the vast majority of societal gains, the middle class shrinking, and those at the bottom losing ground. As a result, concentrated poverty is more potent and relevant an issue than ever. Add to that the fact that 2012 marked the 25th anniversary of William Julius Wilson's groundbreaking book, "The Truly Disadvantaged," and we have every reason to reexamine the life realities, impacts, and policy implications of segregation and entrenched, concentrated U.S. poverty."

"The Cheney results show the potential of a high-quality preschool education for low-income students, if it were available. Long-range studies in Chicago and Minnesota have already shown the value, revealing that students with preschool experience are more apt to attend college, make a decent living and stay out of jails and prisons. The estimated return on investment for taxpayers in educating rather than incarcerating is anywhere from $3 to $9 for every dollar spent."

"Deputy Superintendent George Kosmac suggested several changes for the board to consider -- including shifting some students to get a better mix of low-income children in the five schools, as measured by the percentage qualifying for federally subsidized meals."

"State education officials say the number of homeless students continues to rise.More than 27,000 students were reported as homeless in the 2011-12 school year. That number is up about 5 percent from 2010-11 and up nearly 47 percent from the beginning of the recession."

"Read to Succeed Buffalo will receive $495,000 to support its early childhood literacy programs from the John R. Oishei Foundation. The foundation announced the three-year commitment today, aimed at boosting early learning opportunities to help decrease poverty and help individuals become self-sufficient."

"A successful, prosperous future for Lexington is a goal we all share. We will not succeed, however, if fully one quarter of our children are growing up in poverty and lack the economic and social opportunities they need to succeed. Our schools and the early childhood community are making great strides to ensure preschool-age children have a good foundation. But we have done little as a community to ensure pre-teens and teens from households with low-incomes are on a track for success."