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From the Desk of Bill Cirone...
February 5, 1999
Child poverty affects schooling
The most recent Children's Scorecard published by the KIDS Network of Santa Barbara County shows the community what educators see every day: 41 percent of the county's children live in poverty.
These children received free or reduced lunches at school by virtue of the fact that their family's income in 1997 was below the federal poverty level of $16,276 for a family of four. Their parents often work, but at low-paying, low-skilled jobs. Many live in substandard housing; some are homeless. In fact, the rates for families living on welfare assistance decreased this past year, but homelessness among children in our county appears to be on the rise.
The scorecard is compiled by the KIDS Network staff in cooperation with the UCSB graduate school of education. Statistics are supplied by law enforcement officials, health workers, social services, welfare agencies, and educational institutions.
There was some good news in the report. There was a five-year decline in birth rates among teen-age girls under age 17 and a three-year decline in families living on welfare assistance. There was a four-year decline in the school drop-out rate and a 43 percent decline in new tuberculosis cases.
Another source of good news was the 10 percent decline in families referred to Child Protective Services for alleged child abuse and neglect. This past year there was also a decrease in the children referred to the Probation Department.
But these heartening statistics were offset by some sobering counterparts. Of the 860 children in our county who received homeless services, more than two-thirds were under the age of 12. There was also a 19 percent increase in the number of women and children staying in battered women's shelters.
The report clearly outlined the need for more affordable child care in the county, especially because many parents will have to return to work under welfare reform laws.
The report also helped place in context some of the challenges facing our schools. Study after study shows that test scores correlate with socioeconomic status. Some of it has to do with life experiences that children have prior to their schooling, and the extent to which families are able to supplement schooling with enriching and educational family experiences.
But some of the results have to do with the difficult and challenging conditions created by poverty in and of itself: Inadequate health and dental care can lead to distractions that are difficult to surmount. I have often explained that it is difficult for a young person to focus on the correct spelling of "accommodate" or the reasons for the fall of Rome if he is suffering from a severe toothache or from pains created by hunger.
The increase in attendance at battered women's shelters points to great difficulties for children as well. How can you adequately focus a child's attention on locating Concorde, Mass. on a map if he is suffering from a physical or emotional beating or if he had to leave home the night before because his mother was beaten?
Schools strive every day to overcome these challenges for every child. That is the mission and the reality of every classroom: equal access to education, and to learning opportunities, for every single child. When we create partnerships and enlist the help of other institutions and members of our communities countywide, we are trying to enhance the general well-being of the children we serve, so that educational interventions can hit their mark and better nurture every child. No one institution can do this alone. We must form a circle of responsibility around all our children, and work together to nurture the next generation.
© Santa Barbara County Education Office
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