skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Some Maine Kids Facing Racial, Ethnic Roadblocks

play audio
Play

Tuesday, October 24, 2017   

AUGUSTA, Maine – Children of color and those living in immigrant families face persistent challenges that make their road to success more difficult, according to a new report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The research measures education, health and economic milestones by racial and ethnic groups.

While Maine is not as diverse as other states, the report's co-author and the associate director of policy reform and advocacy at the Foundation, Laura Speer, says major racial disparities exist in educational achievement and family economic security, leading to poorer outcomes for children of color.

"Kids of color especially are often disadvantaged based on where they live," she laments. "That means that the schools that they can attend are often less well resourced and they're less likely to be plugged-in to some of the things that can really make a difference in terms of children's long-term development."

The report noted African-American children in Maine are not faring nearly as well as their white and Latino peers. Speer says improving access to opportunities is important in part because, as the state's population ages, today's kids represent tomorrow's workforce.

Speer says because of the current climate facing parents of Maine's 18,000 kids living in immigrant families, children frequently go without health coverage and food assistance because parents are afraid to ask. She says there are proven policies that help families become more economically secure - which is key to a child's overall well-being including job-placement programs and the Earned Income Tax Credit.

"Work supports like access to child-care subsidies or health care can really help for people who are working in low-wage jobs," she explains. "They often don't have access to things like healthcare from an employer."

The report's recommendations include increasing access to education and healthcare, prioritizing keeping families together when enforcing immigration policy, and increasing economic opportunities and support for parents.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021