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"'You want judicial independence, but you want to balance it with some consistency,' Linarducci said. 'Just because the judges aren't doing anything illegal doesn't mean it's a good system.' About 8.6 million disabled workers nationwide get an average monthly benefit of $1,170. Another 8.2 million low-income disabled people get about $517 a month in Supplemental Security Income."

"One in five Kent County children now lives in poverty and it's causing a bevy of social problems, according to an annual data compilation."

"Though schools have long struggled to close the achievement gap between white and minority students and between low-income and more affluent students, the tougher standards have made closing those gaps even harder. And the tougher standards have shown schools especially weak in math and science, despite a nationwide focus in those areas as the United States tries to shift to a future-minded economy."

"The authors say those numbers are expected increase because developing and implementing such systems is a central component of the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge, the federally funded competitive grant program."

"The measure also would provide $1.5 million in state funds, along with some matching money, to nursing homes and other facilities that provide medical services and other care to low-income people and the disabled in the Medicaid program. That could provide people who work in those facilities a bonus equal to about 5 percent of their annual salaries, Brown said."

"A $2 million federal grant has been awarded to the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte for the first phase of a Steele Creek apartment community - the latest in a series of affordable housing projects the diocese is developing. All the apartment communities, including sites in Mooresville and Salisbury, will cater to low-income seniors, disabled adults or both."

"A discussion among Kalamazoo County officials about the future of the local Head Start program is tapping into a years-long national debate about the "real" mission of the 47-year-old federal program, which serves 3- and 4-year-olds in households below the poverty line."

The fastest route out of poverty lies with education. With better education, kids live longer, earn more, wait longer to have a child, and are less likely to commit a crime. More importantly, these benefits pass on to their children, snapping the cruel cycle of poverty.

"We know low-income children in particular are likely to enter kindergarten one or two years behind in language and other important skills. We know almost one half of children in many Appalachian counties are living in poverty."

"The N.C. House Select Committee on Early Childhood Education Improvement isn't fooling anybody with its title. This committee isn't focused on "improving" the state's early childhood education. It's trying to dismantle it, and take away thousands of at-risk children's access to pre-kindergarten programs."

"If elderly Tennessee voters nudge Santorum to the top, they may be voting against their interests. A topic Santorum didn't discuss during his Abba's House speech is what he would do with Social Security. Unlike the rest of the GOP field, Santorum has said he would cut benefits immediately and set a higher eligibility age."

"The Jersey City Housing Authority has been granted nearly $1 million in federal funds to construct a new Head Start facility, the state's two U.S. senators announced Thursday. The city agency will use the funds to expand an existing community center at the Marion Gardens public-housing complex to accommodate Head Start, a federally funded early-education program for low-income families."