Job Skills, Housing, and More for 25,000 People find their way to The Action Center in different ways. Paul, a college graduate and former professional skier, eventually found the center after getting caught up in an embezzlement scheme, putting in jail time, living...
In 30 years, 13,000 people housed “So many people come to us so broken,” Precious Stargell Cushman says of the homeless families she sees at Community LINC, a Kansas City agency. But her next thoughts are ones of success. Teenesha found herself homeless with two...
Cooking classes for families with very young children Feeding America, the nationwide network of food banks, recently produced a commercial sung by a little six-year-old boy as he scours an empty refrigerator. I want to eat, eat, eat apples and bananas I need to eat,...
Well-care, dentistry, and concern for the whole child At 16, Maria was overweight, a common problem among patients at the Turner House Children’s Clinic in Kansas City, Kansas. In fact, 24.6 percent of Turner House’s young patients are diagnosed as obese or...
Progress in Rochester When a first-time, low-income mother encounters the Nurse-Family Partnership, she benefits from parent education and support through home visits in the first year of her child’s life. But what then? With a low-wage job, uncertain childcare,...
Low-income kids reach unexpected heights Sergio Panelo has been an educator for 14 years in the Mapleton school district outside of Denver, where 68 percent of students qualify for free or reduced lunches. More than 40 percent are second-language learners. Few...
When a town unites, their children thrive At first glance, the graduation rate looked average—70 percent. But when the town of Geneva, New York, looked closer, the numbers were upsetting. Learning disabled children were graduating at 37 percent, children of color at...
A children’s garden of achievements, tended with care and ambition Every year the students of Hope Hall School bury their fears—literally. Each writes down one thing she thinks she can’t do—for example, make friends or master subtraction—and places it in a hole where...
Their college students beat the nation by 300% If you’re a graduate of Cristo Rey in Kansas City, you can be sure Sister Linda Ross has her eye on you. As the alumni director at the high school, she helps low-income students transition to and stay in college. She has...
In Rochester, teachers team up In the quandary that is college preparation, with its varying standards, diverse applicants, and underfunded schools, it’s tempting to point fingers. According to the Nation’s Report Card, just one-third of new students arrive on college...
How personalization can change teaching and learning Chicago’s Lovett Elementary School teems with energy. On any day, you might catch a presentation called “Real Men Read” or celebrate with the Principal Scholars, students who have earned all A’s in key subjects. Too...
An after-school club goes the distance By The Hand Club for Kids is a Chicago-based, after-school program that provides tutoring and support to children and teens in the city’s most under-resourced neighborhoods, including the Austin community. By The Hand Club...
96% of these grads are accepted to two- or four-year colleges The motto of the Cristo Rey Network of high schools is Schools That Work. The dictum pays tribute to the schools’ success at graduating at-risk urban youth and its innovative work-study program, which...
Help for homeless pregnant girls and women When you’re 16 or 18 years old, alone, homeless, and pregnant, it’s hard to believe there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. But in Chicago there is. It’s called Bright Endeavors, a candle-making operation. But before that,...
At Cara, motivation is a mighty force Four mornings a week, joy and determination break out in a loft space just west of Chicago’s Loop. Some 60 men and women form an exuberant circle to share their stories, cheer each other on, sing, dance, applaud, and address...
The first step: imagine life as it could be People arrive at Crossroads, a supportive living program for men and women transitioning out of homelessness, from every stage of life and also loss—loss of family, friends, home, job, health. But they also arrive with...
Countering high homelessness rates with pathways to self-sufficiency With Denver’s beautiful Rocky Mountain backdrop and booming job market, one might think the city has just the right ingredients for success. But Denver has a homelessness problem. The city has one of...
Tech graduates shine in work and community When David Williams ran out of money during his first year at Illinois State University, he went home to Chicago’s Austin neighborhood, where the unemployment rate is nearly 23 percent. Living with his mother, he enrolled in...
Life-saving food, with a dash of life-saving education Even though she’s offering samples of freshly prepared food, Melissa Moreno meets some hesitance as she visits with the folks waiting for groceries at the Food Bank of Northern Nevada’s mobile unit, called Mobile...
A human services story from Denver When April arrived at Warren Village in Denver, Colorado, she had a six-month old son; a violent, unrepentant husband; and nowhere to go. Offering affordable housing and a range of services, Warren Village addressed her needs—and...
