This report summarizes a series of studies on school size, poverty, and student achievement. These studies analyzed 29 sets of test scores from various grades in Georgia, Ohio, Montana, and Texas to examine the relationship between school-level performance on tests, school size, and community poverty level. The studies found that as schools become…

This document is comprised of the three 2000 issues of "News & Issues," a newsletter from the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) devoted to identifying and promoting strategies to reduce the young child poverty rate and to improve the life chances of children still living in poverty. The winter issue includes the following articles:…

This digest looks at school district size and its possible relationship to school performance, defined here as aggregate achievement of a school's students on state-mandated tests. An overview of size issues briefly discusses class size, school size, district size, and organizational "scaling" or coordination of various levels of size.…

Homelessness influences every facet of children's lives, inhibiting their physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and behavioral development. Homeless women face such obstacles to healthy pregnancies as chemical abuse, chronic health problems, and lack of prenatal care. Homeless infants are more likely to have low birth weights and are at greater…

The Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) is a national program that supports the efforts of community colleges in distressed rural areas to move their people and communities toward prosperity. RCCI's goals are increasing access to education and developing regional economies. RCCI demonstration sites have produced a wealth of information about…

This report revisits several key questions examined in a 1999 report, "Title I Midstream: The Fight to Improve Schools for Poor Kids," investigating whether all states have: set standards for student performance; measured attainment of standards with assessments that meet Title I requirements; and developed accountability systems…

Noting that the U.S. child poverty rate is no longer declining, this research brief uses 2001 Census data to present a statistical portrait of poor children in the United States. The research brief also highlights some consequences of poverty for children and considers promising approaches for decreasing poverty among low-income children and their…

This annual report details the activities of the Foundation for Child Development (FCD) for 2001-2002. Beginning the report is a brief description of the Foundations mission, its funding priorities, and application procedures. The report then presents the joint statement of the chair, Karen Gerard, and the president, Ruby Takanishi, focusing on…

This study explored the impact of mandatory work requirements on welfare-reliant mothers struggling to pursue postsecondary education and the overwhelming difficulties created by rigid and punitive policies at both the federal and state levels. The study documented and analyzed the policies and practices of the Family Independence Agency and Work…

This study examined the role of the SNDT (formerly Shreemati Nathibai Damodar Thackersey) University in reducing poverty in the Gilbert Hill-Gamdevi Dongri area of Mumbai, India. The Gilbert Hill area accommodates around 1 million people, most of whom are migrants form other parts of India. The Department of Post-Graduate Studies and Research in…

This booklet discusses how to improve girls' education drawing on lessons from experience and proposing action for the future. In spite of significant international mobilization in favor of women and their rights to education, much remains to be done. While girls' enrollment has increased, gender inequalities persist at all levels of education,…

This volume presents papers from a 1998 conference on school violence in Valparaiso, Indiana. The papers include: "What is School Violence? An Integrated Definition" (Stuart Henry); "Violence in Schools: Rage against a Broken World" (J. Scott Staples); "Listening to What the Streets Say: Vengeance as Ideology?" (Ralph…

This report summarizes the work and achievements of Year 2 of the Positive Parenting Project. The project was designed to support parents in combating the effects of poverty in four disadvantaged communities in Scotland, by using a needs-led and preventive approach; by working in partnership with parents and other agencies to develop sustainable…

Previous studies in seven states have shown that school and district size consistently mediated the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and student achievement, with results critically relevant to state-level policymaking. The present study examined how the relationship between size and achievement varied in Arkansas schools and…

This report describes the professional development experiences of teachers in high-performing, high-needs (HPHN) schools. Researchers surveyed K-5 teachers from 10 schools in a district with large numbers of impoverished students, examining: teachers' perceptions of the characteristics and outcomes of their professional development experiences;…