This book marks the first time a human development approach to measuring well-being has
been applied to an industrialized nation. Published by the Social Science Research
Council and Columbia University Press, it ranks states and congressional districts
according to the "American Human Development Index"—which goes beyond economic
output to include three aspects of well-being: health and longevity, access to
knowledge (educational attainment and enrollment), and standards of living (median
earnings). Hard copy: $16.47 or access findings for free on the Web site.

Take The Measure of America Quiz - How sensitive are you to the factors that shape the
quality of life for average Americans? Find out online, and then learn about the Social
Science Research Council and Columbia University report on the American Human
Development Index, The Measure of America.

Mayor Bloomberg has a new plan and it's the first time any local government has put in
place an alternative to the country's 40-year- old standard for measuring poverty, the
National Academies reports.

This report from First Focus is a road map for the Children's
Budget Bill in Congress (as of July 2008). Only one penny of every new, non-defense
dollar spent by the federal government has gone to children and children's programs.
Since the 1960s, the share of spending on kids has dropped 23 percent.
Kids' Share 2008. From the Urban Institute and the New America Foundation, this report
looks at trends in federal spending and tax expenditures on children and finds that
kids have historically not been a budget priority. In 2007, children's spending did not
keep pace with GDP growth and will continue to be squeezed in the next decade unless
policies change.

When it comes to the federal budget, not much is a simple. But a bill in Congress has
potential. The "Children's Budget" legislation -- introduced in Congress in July 2008
by Senator Menendez (D-NJ) and several co-sponsors -- would require future Presidents
to add up all the different sources of funding for children's programs in the federal
budget plans they submit each year, much the way they currently tally spending on
homeland security. It carries no cost and is an easy way to paint a clear picture of
overall spending on children's programs.

Run to Vote combines the sport of track and field with your pledge to vote in 2008. A nonpartisan voting drive led by students and teachers from Granville Central High School in Stem, North Carolina, the Run to Vote team is traveling through 48 states to register people to vote, and collecting pledges to participate in the election this November. For every person that registers to vote or pledges to vote, one of the teachers, or volunteers from the team, will run the equivalent lap on a quarter mile track. Through July 5, 2008, the team has run 814 laps, registered 153 people in 18 states and collected more than a thousand citizen pledges to vote.

As the 2008 election campaigns gain momentum, political hopefuls are bringing national attention to the importance of early childhood and supporting parents as children's first teachers. In this Q&A, Sue Stepleton, president and CEO, and Jane Callahan, public policy director of Parents as Teachers National Center provide helpful information for getting the early childhood message out to key decision-makers.

The president's annual federal budget submission is as much about sending messages as setting spending goals. So what's the buzz this year—and where in the nation's priorities are kids, families, and communities? Jan Richter takes a look at the 2008 budget proposal.

Youth Communication, the non-profit founded by Keith Hefner in New York City to give young people a voice on the things that matter to them, is now 25 years old—a notable milestone in the notoriously under-funded world of youth media. Lisa R. Rhodes, a former Youth Communication writer herself, looks at how Hefner's organization has grown and thrived, transforming young lives along the way.

Voters feel Congress is out of touch when it comes to funding education—that's according to a new national poll from the National School Boards Association (NSBA). Of 1,200 respondents, 74 percent said Congress does not do a good job of setting priorities for the federal budget and spending—and needs to change these priorities. A majority (59 percent) said they'd be less likely to vote for a member of Congress who voted against funding No Child Left Behind and Special Education programs to their "authorized and promised levels." Voters aligned with both parties supported restoring this funding.

Pete Wright, an attorney with decades of experience in special education law—and his own memories of standing up before the U.S. Supreme Court to argue a case—attended oral arguments last week in the most recent special education case to reach the highest court. Wright shared his impressions with Connect for Kids Editor Susan Phillips.