Since 1991, charter schools have been springing up around the country under a multitude of different state laws. These new schools are independent of central school district oversight. So, who’s making sure new charters get off to a good start and fulfill their promise to educate children? Rob Capriccioso reports.

Among the five major federal child nutrition programs Congress is expectedto act on this spring, the National School Lunch Program is the biggest and best-known of the five. LaFleur Stephens describes how the program provides an every-day lifeline for one family.

PCHCF keeps children experiencing homelessness connected to their education, through funding for transportation, school supplies, uniforms, tutoring and enrichment opportunities.

YACD empower emancipated youth transition from foster care to adulthood. This is accomplished with self advocacy and mentoring.

Project Connect keeps children experiencing homelessness connected to their education through advocacy, enrollment and transportation assistance, tutoring, enrichment and support with school supplies & uniforms.

The mission of the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) is to Leave No Child Behind and to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities in Ohio.

60 policymakers and numerous low-income constituents in Colorado, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, Ohio, Washington, and West Virginia are spending a month together "walking a mile" in each other's shoes to learn from one another about poverty, public policies and politics. It's part of the national Walk a Mile (WAM) project based in Seattle. Among the object lessons: policymakers will try to feed their family on the amount of money they would receive in food stamps for their family size.

High-quality early childhood programs can produce broad, long-term societal benefits -- including increased employment and associated tax revenue, reduced crime, and reduced dependency on social welfare systems. Many states are moving toward providing universal pre-K to all children. This RAND report describes eight states' efforts to create statewide systems of high-quality pre-K.

Over the past two years, many states tried to balance their budgets by increasing sales and excise taxes, which disproportionately burden low-income working families. At the same time, advocates struggled to improve state Earned Income Tax Credit policies to give these families tax relief. 2005 may offer opportunities to create effective state EITCs, according to this State EITC study. The report summarizes advocacy efforts in Arkansas, Indiana, Ohio, Rhode Island and Utah, and offers strategies for all states.

This website provides resources and information to improve access to education in Ohio, as well as funding and support for education initiatives in the state. Such initiatives include community services in local schools.