- State will switch to public workers for FoodShare program, By Jason Stein, August 12, 2011, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “In a deal that preserves millions of dollars in federal aid to Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker’s administration will drop hundreds of private contractor employees who work for the state’s food assistance program and hire scores of public workers as replacements. The agreement comes after federal officials had threatened in recent months to withhold some money for the state’s FoodShare program because of what they said were improper privatization efforts that were started by the administration of Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle and initially intensified by the administration of Walker, a Republican…”
- Local use of food stamps doubles, By Kathleen Foody, August 13, 2011, Wausau Daily Herald: “The number of residents receiving food stamps in Marathon and Lincoln counties nearly doubled during the last four years as the recession forced more people into poverty and stretched family paychecks. In the first six months of 2011, a monthly average of 14,784 Marathon County residents received food stamps, up from 7,936 in 2007. Almost 3,700 Lincoln County residents used the program in the same time frame, up from 1,587 in 2007. Tammy Beranek, a 44-year-old Wausau resident who has used the program for three years, said it allowed her to make ends meet when she was diagnosed with epilepsy and couldn’t continue working as a housekeeper…”
Day: August 15, 2011
Academic Achievement and Income – Michigan
- State educators: Michigan accreditation system ‘no longer has relevance’, By Dave Murray, August 15, 2011, Grand Rapids Press: “Michigan’s school accreditation system ‘no longer has relevance’ state educators say, as every school in the state has met state criteria despite sliding backward on federal testing goals. The state Education Department released announced Monday that 79 percent of Michigan’s public school buildings and 93 percent of the school districts made federal testing goals – called ‘adequate yearly progress’ – for the 2010-11 school year. That’s down from 86 percent of schools and 95 percent of districts making AYP the previous school year…”
- Income gap can be bridged, starting with expectations, educators say, By Dave Murray, August 15, 2011, Grand Rapids Press: “It’s not that children from poor families can’t do well in school, Northview Superintendent Mike Paskewicz says. But they might not be as prepared when they arrive in kindergarten, so schools need to find ways to help them. ‘Parents might not be able to spend time reading with their kids at night when their priorities are trying to get food on the table or a roof over their heads,’ he said. A Press study of U.S. Census figures shows school districts with the lowest reading and math test scores often have the highest poverty rates. The most affluent West Michigan districts – including East Grand Rapids and Forest Hills – have six-figure family incomes and test scores well above the state average. Those with the highest rates of poverty, Godfrey-Lee and Grand Rapids Public Schools, also have the lowest average achievement on the 2011 Michigan Merit Exams given to high school juniors. A family’s income can explain academic struggles, but should not be an excuse, Paskewicz and other educators say. All students have needs, and districts both rich and poor are working to meet them…”
Foster Care and Out-of-State Placement – Rhode Island
RI pays millions to send foster kids out of state, By David Klepper (AP), August 14, 2011, Houston Chronicle: “Nicholas Alahverdian was a 15-year-old foster child when he was sent from Rhode Island to live in facilities for troubled young people, first in Nebraska and later in Florida. According to lawsuits he filed, he was subjected to regular physical and emotional abuse. Now 24, Alahverdian blames officials in Rhode Island for moving him hundreds of miles from his home, school and friends. The state is failing its foster children when it places them far from its oversight, he said. ‘It’s an inhumane approach to a human problem,’ Alahverdian told The Associated Press. ‘These are the most vulnerable people in Rhode Island. We have the ability to provide for them here. And we’re spending all this money to ship them across the country.’ Each year, Rhode Island sends dozens of children to facilities elsewhere, at a cost to taxpayers that has averaged $14 million over the past decade, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press through an open-records request. In fiscal year 2010, for instance, 117 foster children were placed out of state, most in neighboring Massachusetts but some in Florida, Georgia and Tennessee…”