The roles of technology and education were at the forefront throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. This mixed-methods study examines the role of the three levels of the digital divide (i.e., access, capability, and outcomes) during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kentucky. We create and analyze a new multifaceted measure of district-level digital capacity to…

The FNS Research Corner provides a continuing series to summarize recently completed and current research conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) in the area of child nutrition. Summaries of recently completed research projects, research conducted through grant activities, and in-progress research are…

This article juxtaposes "world culture" and "policy borrowing and lending" literatures to understand policy formation in China. Through reviewing China's student nutrition policy evolution since the International Conference on Nutrition in 1992 to the launch of China's landmark national rural student nutrition program in 2011,…

Over the past decade, the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services (hereinafter referred to as "the Committee") has examined a number of rural issues that touch upon the social determinants of health. The Committee's past work has focused on understanding how conditions and outcomes such as homelessness, childhood…

In the 1980s California poverty rates increased dramatically. Poverty rates were substantially higher in rural areas and for Hispanics, Asians, single-parent families, and children. The percentage of the labor force in poverty increased, and poverty rates were exceptionally high for the unemployed and for "discouraged workers." The…

A workshop was conducted at which 13 papers were presented on problems of chronically depressed rural areas. Attendees endeavored to assess the existing knowledge with respect to these problems, to point out major gaps in this body of knowledge, and to suggest types of research needed to cope with the problems of rural poverty. It was determined…

This workshop collection contains a paper which analyzes the actual and potential income and wealth sources of rural inhabitants, an appendix which discusses the effectiveness of current transfer payment programs in reaching the rural poor, and a reviewer's comments. The paper by Emery Castle and Mark Goldstein describes incomes of rural residents…

This paper presents an overview of poverty in rural America, and examines the ways in which improved education could alleviate rural poverty. The question of education as a mechanism to reduce poverty includes issues of economic demand and supply. On the demand side, labor market projections indicate that the service sector will continue to grow,…

By exploring the everyday experiences of women in a rural Head Start program, this study examines the processes of underprivileged women working to make a better life for themselves and their families. In all, researchers interviewed 42 parents, 7 of them fathers, 18 staff members, and 4 community representatives. To empower mothers, the Head…

Describes Title I of PL 99-457, federal legislation dealing with early intervention services for handicapped infants and their families which requires a state plan to include a definition of "developmental delay." Discusses the individual family service plan and strategy for rural educators. (SKW)

Economic pressures along with health, nutrition, housing, sanitation, and child labor problems contribute in large measure to the plight of the migrant population. The incomplete and fragmented education migrant children receive is further compounded by low expectations from teachers and inappropriate curriculums. Legislative action has attempted…

The decline of agriculture in the 1920s and 1930s was compounded by the subsequent collapse of the rural social community, leaving the rural poor without a community and thus exacerbating and prolonging their poverty. Present restructuring of agriculture in the United States may have a similar impact on rural communities. (JHZ)

Reviews the history of the response of professional social work organizations to the problems of rural poverty. Offers specific strategies to increase the involvement of the Council on Social Work Education and the National Association of Social Workers with rural poverty. (JHZ)

Effective rural development planning depends on facts and analysis based, not on rural averages, but on the diverse social and economic structure of rural America. Programs tailored to particular types of rural economies may be more effective than generalized programs. Because of their unique characteristics, government policies and economic…

The United States does not have a coherent national rural policy. The federal government has focused on a sector-based policy that has only indirect impact on rural America. State governments have failed to move beyond their traditional focus areas of education, corrections, Medicaid, and other state services. The diversity of rural America makes…