Wednesday, August 26, 2009

When children go homeless, we all pay a price

From "Facts on Trauma and Homeless Children," a 2005 report authored by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network and funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the US Department of Health and Human Services:

  • Homeless children are sick at twice the rate of other children. They suffer twice as many ear infections, have four times the rate of asthma, and have five times more diarrhea and stomach problems.
  • Homeless children go hungry twice as often as non-homeless children.
  • More than one-fifth of homeless preschoolers have emotional problems serious enough to require professional care, but less than one-third receive any treatment.
  • Homeless children are twice as likely to repeat a grade compared to non-homeless children.
  • Homeless children have twice the rate of learning disabilities and three times the rate of emotional and behavioral problems of non-homeless children.
  • Half of school-age homeless children experience anxiety, depression, or withdrawal compared to 18 percent of non-homeless children.
  • By the time homeless children are eight years old, one in three has a major mental disorder.

Download the full six-page report here. (PDF)

Monday, August 24, 2009

School systems expect more demand for free or reduced-price lunches

School systems in eastern Connecticut expect an increase in the number of students receiving free or reduced-price lunches under federal programs this year, according to the Norwich Bulletin, which adds that the schools saw an increase last year as well.

For instance, Putnam saw the percentage of students using lunch programs rise from 45 percent in October 2007 to 56 percent in June 2008. "With the economy the way it is, I’m expecting it will grow even more," Virginia Smelser, food service director for Putnam schools, told the Bulletin.

Children from families with incomes less than 130 percent of the poverty level qualify for free meals, while children from families with incomes between 130 percent and 185 percent of the poverty level qualify for reduced-price meals, under just-released federal guidelines.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

'Sesame Street' takes on the recession


Elmo has a new message for you and your family: You're not alone these days in having to deal with job loss and tighter finances.

Sesame Workshop, the production company behind "Sesame Street," has produced a PBS prime-time special on how families can deal with the recession.

Called "Families Stand Together: Feeling Secure in Tough Times," it will provide simple strategies and tips on how to maintain small children's physical and emotional well-being in these times.

The hosts -- in addition to Elmo, who must cope with his mom's job loss -- are Al Roker and Deborah Roberts. They're joined by financial expert Jean Chatzky and parenting and relationship expert Dr. Joshua Coleman.

PBS has scheduled the program to air at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, September 9, but check your local listings.

In announcing the program, Sesame Workshop said it will "extend the initiative by providing additional resources online, in print, and into local communities," in part by working with PBS stations in 32 key markets to promote community screenings and to deliver 200,000 bilingual educational outreach kits nationwide.

Resources and materials will be available online at www.sesameworkshop.org/toughtimes beginning September 9, "so that families everywhere can view the videos and download the information," Sesame Workshop added.

Here's a positive review of the program from DailyFinance.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Child dental care another casualty of the recession

CBS reports that some 12 million children face serious barriers to dental care, involving either high cost or lack of dental insurance. For families struggling just to put food on the table and pay their mortgages, "a trip to the dentist is often the first thing to go" from their budgets, according to CBS.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

The recession is rough on single moms—and their kids

Nationally, at least 121,000 children have lost health insurance coverage as a result of single mothers losing their jobs in the recession, according to Congress' Joint Economic Committee.

The number of unemployed female heads of household has increased 53 percent over the past twelve months, the Committee says in a new report, "Comprehensive Health Insurance Reform: An Essential Prescription for Women," adding: "For many of these women, the loss of a job means not only a disappearing paycheck, but also the disappearance of employer-sponsored health insurance coverage for their families."

Monday, August 10, 2009

Stimulus money = Summer youth jobs in Norwich

In the Norwich area, the Summer Youth Employment Program uses federal stimulus money to give youth from low-income families an opportunity earn money and learn some job skills, according to the Norwich Bulletin. The program provides up to six weeks of summer employment for 124 students at 57 sites in Norwich, Colchester, Griswold, and Sprague. They make the minimum wage of $8 per hour for up to 25 hours per week and up to six weeks.