Texas

"Imagine a high school where students show up for class only four days a week. You'd probably say that campus is plagued with serious problems. But not if it's one of Chicago-based Cristo Rey's 26 private Catholic high schools, which are finding success nationwide with an innovative school-work model. Now the organization wants to bring its innovative strategy to Dallas, opening a school here that gives low-income students a real chance to make it to college and to attain a prosperous future."

"As in other rankings, schools serving poorer students that did earn a top grade tended to be magnet schools or schools of choice. But neighborhood elementary schools with high poverty rates did perform better than secondary schools with similar populations in the survey."

"As the mosquito-borne West Nile virus makes its return to North Texas this spring, free insect repellent is being offered to low-income senior citizens in Dallas County."

"Offering free breakfasts to all interested students in low-income areas, not just to those who qualify under federal guidelines, is a program that some state legislators are trying to expand to schools in poor neighborhoods across Texas."

"Berger's efforts are paying off. Reagan High is the best urban high school in the Houston area, according to the latest rankings by the nonprofit Children at Risk. The category is limited to campuses where at least 74 percent of students are from low-income families."

"The bill would severely cut back exit tests, and lower the number of courses students must take in math and science. The proposed changes come as some policy experts are challenging the role of the advanced math in preparing students for college and career. But it has raised alarm from business leaders and national advocacy groups concerned about how the changes might affect academic achievement in the state, particularly for low-income and minority students."