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"Under the roughly $10 billion program, families with incomes up to 130 percent of the poverty level - $28,665 a year for a family of four - are eligible for free meals. Those who earn 130 percent to 185 percent of poverty level, or $40,793 for a family of four, qualify for reduced-price meals."

"Rising poverty, coupled with the state's changing demographics, poses a daunting challenge for public policy and Michigan's future. Michigan's population is becoming more diverse, with whites expected to become the state's largest minority group in just over 30 years."

"For the first time, the majority of Kentucky's public schools have failed to meet federal goals in reading and math on statewide tests, according to state test results released Tuesday."

"At the same time, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in seven low-income preschoolers is obese, as well as 17 percent of all children and adolescents."

"Yes, the idea is to help more black and Latino students to graduate. But Madison Prep will be open to boys and girls of all races and ethnicities. The only limit on enrollment may be that half of the academy's students must come from low-income families."

"Ingle said teachers have started tying incentives to attendance, such as free ice cream once a month for those with perfect attendance. But the school also has gotten tougher on those who are absent. Physical education teachers are tasked with calling parents when students first start to show a pattern of absences."

"Like most school systems that serve disadvantaged children, New Haven, an urban district with a high poverty rate, has faced enormous challenges in improving the quality of instruction."

"As recent statistics show increasing poverty in Milwaukee, Barrett said, 'I remain convinced that education, and access to education, and access to books, is one of the best things we can do to combat that. We're trying to foster a positive learning environment.'"

"One columnist's idea of a good principal: A good principal has been a teacher.While Ivy Leaguers in their 20s can now become principals, Jacqui Getz, 51, the new principal of Public School 126, a high-poverty school in Chinatown, came up the old way."

"That percentage could be substantially higher in the Los Angeles Unified School District, which serves a large number of low-income minority students attending campuses with poor test scores and high dropout rates."

"New data released today from the U.S. Census Bureau show a surprising dip in the estimated number of St. Cloud residents living in poverty last year, but a sharp increase in poor children and seniors. The results of the 2010 American Community Survey show an estimated 23.8 percent of people in St. Cloud had an annual income in the past year below the poverty line."

"Similarly, 22 percent of the admissions officials at four-year institutions said the financial downturn had led them to pay more attention in their decision to applicants' ability to pay."