Philadelphia rates highest among top 10 cities for deep poverty, By Alfred Lubrano, September 24, 2014, Philadelphia Inquirer: “Already the poorest big city in America, Philadelphia also has the highest rate of deep poverty – people with incomes below half of the poverty line – of any of the nation’s 10 most populous cities. Philadelphia’s deep-poverty rate is 12.2 percent, or nearly 185,000 people, including about 60,000 children. That’s almost twice the U.S. deep-poverty rate of 6.3 percent. Camden’s deep-poverty rate of 20 percent is more than three times the national mark, but its population is a fraction of Philadelphia’s…”
Tag: Philadelphia
Promise Zones
Programs target poverty in Obama’s 5 ‘Promise Zones’, By NPR Staff, July 6, 2014, NPR: Five areas across the country have been designated as ‘Promise Zones’ by the federal government. These zones, announced by President Obama in January, are intended to tackle poverty by focusing on individual urban neighborhoods and rural areas. In the five Promise Zones — located in Philadelphia, San Antonio, southeastern Kentucky, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and Los Angeles — the idea is to basically carpet-bomb the neighborhoods with programs like after-school classes, GED courses and job training to turn those areas around. . .”
Promise Zones – Philadelphia
Obama’s Promise Zone both a boon and challenge for West Philly nonprofit, By Kate Kilpatrick, June 16, 2014, Al Jazeera America: “With only a week left in the school year, Annette John-Hall was having a tough time getting her third- and fourth-graders to focus on today’s lesson: imagery and metaphors. ‘My hair is like a woolly crown,’ the former Philadelphia Inquirer columnist gave as an example, and asked them to come up with more. ‘My baseball hits are better than Babe Ruth’s?’ asked Lawrence. The class was not quite getting it yet. ‘I’m funnier than [Marvel villain] Deadpool,’ Amir wrote on the paper in front of him. Then, at last, Robert called out: ‘My report card is as good as bacon!’Mighty Writers is wrapping up its first school year at its newest location in West Philadelphia on the corner of 39th Street and Lancaster Avenue, right in the heart of an area designated a Promise Zone by President Barack Obama earlier this year. . .”