The purpose of this case study was to examine the factors pertaining to socially, economically, and culturally disadvantaged students, and to relate how these factors do not prohibit these students from demonstrating academic progress in literacy if they are provided with additional academic assistance and resources. This study examined roles and perceptions of administrators, teachers, students, and parents toward the socially, culturally and economically disadvantaged students. Focusing on these elements led to the discovery of which elements affected and prohibited these students from achieving academic success on the literacy component of the fourth-grade New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge (NJ ASK). In the past, students who have been categorized as disadvantaged, based on the free and reduced lunch formula, have not received any additional educational services that address their specific learning and reading needs. In this study, students received focused instruction and interventions based on their individual needs and were identified using formal and informal assessments. For 2 years, the study followed a group of six, fourth-grade students who were identified as economically disadvantaged using the state formula for the free and reduced lunch program and scored in or slightly above the partially proficient range on the language arts portion of the NJ ASK 3. During the first year, the fourth-grade students were provided interventions and then monitored as fifth graders during the second year. The study was designed to investigate whether fourth-grade students who had been identified as nonproficient in language arts on the NJ ASK benefit from individually tailored, assessment- and data-driven interventions; whether students who were provided with differentiated reading interventions, typified by a variety of literacy strategies, demonstrated improvement on their language arts scores; and whether the assessment used to match literacy intervention methods to the individual needs of fourth-grade students had any positive impact on the NJ ASK language arts scores. The intervention program improved the test scores of these students and also closed the achievement gap. These students demonstrated growth on the fourth-grade standardized test and were able to maintain progress at grade level during their fifth-grade year. Today's educational climate is focused on student growth outcomes. Profiling the educational strengths and weaknesses of students and creating custom-fitted educational intervention are effective strategies to build a strong foundation and allow students from low socioeconomic backgrounds to achieve proficiency in language arts literacy. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]