This report examines the technology gap in low-income communities, assesses the barriers that are slowing the spread of new technologies to the underserved, and describes some of the most promising efforts to produce a more equitable distribution. Chapter 1 of the report discusses what is known about the extent of the technology gap and its…

Background information and recommendations related to the support of child care services in Fort Wayne, Indiana is presented in six chapters. Chapter I discusses the feminization of the workforce and demographic data bearing on the need for child care, the child care workforce, and child care arrangements. Chapter II reviews child care services in…

Background: Disadvantaged communities are increasingly the target for interventions. Sure Start was launched in England in 1999 to tackle child poverty and improve child and family services, with Sure Start Local Programmes (SSLPs) targeted at relatively small areas of marked deprivation. However, they are located in a range of different types of…

This report is a comprehensive study of the status of children and their families in New York City. It measures how well children are doing by using widely recognized indicators of well-being, and it measures the need, use, and accessibility of services to help children. "Keeping Track" focuses on community-level data, examining the 59…

Summarizes the extent to which the literature has conceptualized poverty and self-sufficiency within the broader person-in-environment context. Findings from an ethnographic study of a multicultural community illustrate how residents redefine self-sufficiency in the context of the environment. Support is defined as a prerequisite for…

Proposes social structural view of poverty rates as a function of local opportunity instead of individual-level focus on who is poor. Defines poverty rates as a function of industrial structure and relative power of labor in a locality. Confirms theoretical model with data from 46 South Carolina counties. (LFL)

Stressed by high poverty levels, a low tax base and low teacher salaries, the East Feliciana School District competes, most often unsuccessfully, with neighboring districts and states, and with a relatively segregated white academy system for qualified teachers and pupil resources. Consequently, at the dawn of the federal government's landmark…

This book includes nine articles that broaden current debates on the American urban "underclass" by assessing the circumstances of inner-city Latino communities. An introduction provides background information on the U.S. Latino population and addresses factors related to urban poverty and to the "underclass" debate, including…

Sources of diversity in the Pacific Northwest's Spanish origin population, up 79.7% since 1970, was the subject of research based on 1980 Census data. Census information for Whites and Hispanics from metropolitan and nonmetropolitan counties with 400 or more persons of Spanish origin was compared on the basis of age, family/household structure,…

In evaluating the impacts of increased industrialization on small rural communities, some factors to consider are: how much employment and income will go to local people; will industry alleviate poverty; how will income benefits be distributed; and how will industry change community values, local politics and volunteer organizations, local…

A study was done of factors affecting differences in teacher salaries among Vermont towns. Data from 181 local education agencies were used for the study and a set of factors was examined that included family, community, and school information to determine what influences teacher salaries. Findings included the following: (1) average teacher's…

Rural ghettos are created when proportionately large numbers of unemployed, low income, and elderly residents live in communities located 30 miles or more from communities which can provide the range of goods and services necessary for a decent quality of life. This definition may apply to 300 Iowa towns. (JHZ)

DRAWING UPON RECENT STUDIES OF SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, THIS PAPER DISCUSSES THE BASIC CLASS-RELATED CHARACTERISTICS OF THE POOR. THE POOR ARE DESCRIBED SPECIFICALLY IN TERMS OF COMMUNITY CHARACTERISTICS, HEALTH CHARACTERISTICS, DELINQUENCY, AND SEX AND FAMILY CHARACTERISTICS. OTHER CORRELATES OF SOCIAL CLASS POSITION WHICH ARE DISCUSSED INCLUDE THE…

In Kentucky, high stakes assessment of schools and school districts resulting from the state's educational reform initiative raises the issue of fairness. Should educational officials and teachers be held accountable for student performance despite vast differences in the socioeconomic conditions of the surrounding communities when extensive…

Review of recent educational research compares academic outcomes of poor rural students and poor urban students and explores rural community characteristics and rural school characteristics that may affect students' opportunity to learn. Information specifically on poor rural students, schools, and communities is sketchy, unfocused, and not…