via National Opportunity to Learn
Recent data released by the US Department of Education and the Hechlinger report revealed that funding disparities between rich school districts and poor school districts increased by 44% over the last decade. According to the National Opportunity to Learn, there is a funding gap of $1,500 per student.
Suicide rates among youth ages 10 to 24 are nearly twice as high in rural communities than in urban areas, according to a recent study by the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.
You can read the EdWeek article here.
EdWeek | Youth Suicide Rates Higher in Rural Areas
Last week, a working group hired by the University of North Carolina’s (UNC) Governors’ Board published a report recommending the closing of UNC-Chapel Hill’s Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity. The center is housed by the UNC school of law and is “a non-partisan, interdisciplinary institute designed to study, examine, document, and advocate for proposals, policies and services to mitigate poverty in North Carolina and the nation.” The center operates on an annual budget of $120,000 and receives no funding from the state, relying only on grants secured through 2016. Should the center be shut down, this funding will need to be returned. The proposed closing has drawn criticism and opposition on both a local and national level, with statements released by the UNC School of Law and the American Association of University Professors defending the center and its director, law professor Gene Nichol.
Spurred to action by recent events in Ferguson, MO and New York, NY, as well as the “Black Lives Matter” movement, community leaders from Hertford and Bertie Counties gathered at the Hertford County Public Schools Central office in Winton, NC to discuss how to prevent a similar tragedy from happening in their community. Community leaders agreed that increasing positive interactions between the community and local law enforcement will be key to preventing potential tragedy.