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"Premont I.S.D. is one of just two Texas districts facing possible closing this year -- the other is North Forest I.S.D in northeast Houston. Located in Jim Wells County, which has struggled with high teen birth and poverty rates, Premont is a primarily Hispanic town of 2,600 sandwiched between the relative hubs of Alice and Falfurrias on Highway 281. "

"The number of elderly residents living in poverty has increased 42 percent in Central Texas over the past 10 years, according to the U.S. census, and demographers say the city is seeing the first signs of a growing wave that's been dubbed the 'silver tsunami.'"

"The Heritage Area Agency on Aging is one of 13 organizations in Iowa, and one of more than 600 nationwide, that are funded by the federal Older Americans Act established in 1965 to provide anyone older than 60 - primarily low income individuals - with healthy meals through coordinating, advocating and funding community programs."

"Head Start is a tremendous asset to Monterey County. A federally funded early-childhood program, Head Start serves low-income families. But it has been under the microscope since 2007, when Congress passed a law aimed at weeding out Head Start centers that weren't up to par."

"Until recently, Portland Elementary, where most students come from low-income homes, was among the elementary schools with the farthest to go to reach the desegregation goals that Jefferson County Public Schools have followed since 2008."

"'What these results show is really the dramatic differences between kids from high-income homes and low-income homes, and that's the great gap in New York State,' said Martin Cantor of Melville, a private consultant who has advised both county and state officials on economic and educational issues."

"The overwhelming problems contributing to poor school quality in South Carolina are pockets of poverty across our state and school policies and practices that mirror and increase social inequities for children once they enter many schools."

"'From an educational standpoint, much like it is across the country in urban areas, we saw a huge achievement gap in Chattanooga,' he said. Project GRAD -- Graduation Really Achieves Dreams -- provides help to nearly 150,000 low-income students in 22 school districts across the country and Pennsylvania. The education reform model puts an emphasis on high school graduation and college completion."

"Texas has the second-highest birthrate in the nation, and more than 25 percent of those children live in poverty, according to the annual Kids Count survey released Thursday. The number of children in Texas rose by nearly 1 million between 2000 and 2010 and accounted for more than half of the U.S. child population growth."

"Research shows students benefit from the extra hours and that it helps level the playing field for kids from low-income households. In a 2005 Rutgers University study, children enrolled in full-day kindergarten demonstrated "significantly stronger" academic gains than their peers in half-day programs."

"Along with Title I funds, state officials who work with other federal programs, such as those serving homeless students or migrant students, may also take the opportunity to monitor local school systems. Once the state completes its audit, it sends the report to local school systems electronically."

"The Maryland General Assembly is currently considering legislation that would require school districts across the state to spend millions of dollars a year on private tutors for students in their lowest-performing schools -- regardless of whether the tutoring actually helps kids achieve more in the classroom."