The Impact of Poverty on Education Jesse Maltby and Morgan Mills

Guilford County Schools system annually reports data on children experiencing homelessness over the course of the school year For the 2012/2013 school year, Guilford County Schools reports that 2,277 students experienced homelessness 540 Guilford County high school students experienced homelessness, 91 of whom were unaccompanied by an adult

Child Poverty: Linked with substandard living conditions, homelessness, food insecurity, poor nutrition, lack of safety, childcare, and healthcare Affects school achievement, dropout rates, behavioral and socioemotional issues

What is Food Insecurity? Definition: the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food

Issues Related to Food Insecurity When students do not eat during the weekend they cannot learn at the same rate as their peers It takes up to Wednesday of that week of regular eating at school for those students to catch up

Poverty and Achievement: Higher adverse effects in children, early childhood Drop-out rates in low-income homes four and one-half times higher Achievement gap “pronounced” for low-income African American and Hispanic youth The cycle of poverty precludes growth of future generations Learner at greater risk of learning challenges due to lead paint exposure and other environmental contaminants due to housing inequity and poverty

● High degree of transiency ● Frequent moves within short area ● Absenteeism ● Hunger ● Child Care “The poorest districts experience the highest rate of student transiency” (Poverty, Housing Insecurity…2010) Challenges at Home

● Mother often head of household ● Financial strains ● Healthcare issues ● Poor health ● High rate of depression ● Transportation ● Fewer books, materials, technology, etc. Single Parent Households

● Poor prenatal care ● Exposure to lead paint/Higher Rates of ADD/ADHD ● Hunger ● Time constraints interfere with: ◦ Daily reading ◦ Help with homework Parent behavior is due to stressors and long work hours that are not conducive to reading/homework support Learning Challenges

Number of students on Free/Reduced Lunch programs has been steadily increasing over last three years %, %, 2014/ % Demographics students, 208 African- American (87.4%) EOG Reading Scores (percentages) rd Grade- School: 28.6 District: 53.8 State: 59 4th Grade- School: 17.4 District: 53.4 State: th Grade- School: 9.1District: 48.7State: 53 Gillespie Park Elementary School

This trend is evident among High Schoolers as well This graph demonstrates a strong correlation between household income and SAT score averages. SAT Score Disparity

Book Drive- Collected 1,700 Books to combat summer slide/ loss of literacy over the summer break, through the Give Five Read Five program Research and Raising Awareness- Service Learning Ambassadors Reading Programs/Gillespie Park; Brooks’ Buddies Canned Food Drives School Wide Clubs and Food Pantry Club Grimsley Impact...

Perk Homework Help ACT/SAT Words of the Day NHS Tutoring Food Desert Project Man-Up Program Key Club, Glam, and other clubs participate in food drives Grimsley Impact...

Toy Drive with Community, Parents, Faculty & Grimsley’s Service Learning Ambassadors In response to research, we learned children often take on the financial woes of their family and lose creativity and innocence. Here’s how we are combatting this problem. Officers divided among schools groups and worked with team members and school leaders to determine need, organize a drive, and collect a set amount of toys by grade level and gender Over 700 toys were distributed to the following schools: Gillespie ParkIrving Park JonesBrooks Global Morehead Sternberger

Community Outreach Let us know of need or programs in need of student assistance Raise awareness of our Grimsley Goods Food Pantry Provide Service-Learning Opportunities for Whirlies!

Sources American Psychological Association. (2016, February 20). Effects of Poverty, Hunger, and Homelessness on Children and Youth. Retrieved from Barton, P. E. (2004, November). Why Does the Gap Persist? Educational Leadership, pp Lott, B. (2001). Low-Income Parents and the Public Schools. Journal of Social Issues, Poverty, Housing Insecurity and Student Transiency (2010). Retrieved April 12, 2010, from Post, W. (2013, March). SAT Scores by Family Income. Washington, District of Columbia. Stats on Hunger in Our Community. (2015, October 12). Retrieved from Out of the Garden.Org:

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