low income

In a recent study from National Center for Education Statistics found even after controlling for academic achievement in high school, black and Latino students attend selective institutions at far lower rates and drop out of college more often.

Why Colleges Already Face Race-Related Challenges In Serving Future Students

4:01am May 24, 2017

by Melissa Hung

By 2020 more than half of children in the U.S. will be part of an ethnic or racial minority. Colleges and universities are figuring out how to prepare for them.

In California, failure to pay traffic fines can lead to suspension or loss of license, and even jail time for some.

How A Traffic Fine Can Lead To Jail Time In California

8:10pm May 04, 2017

by Leah Donnella

Traffic fines in California have an outsize effect on low-income drivers and minorities.

Parents, students and supporters of Chicago Public Schools teachers gather at a press conference in 2016 near Mayor Rahm Emanuel's home.

Chicago Mayor's Plan To Update H.S. Graduation Has A Fatal Flaw

4:03am April 09, 2017

by Amy Alexander

The mayor's mention of "like you do with your children," raises questions about his grasp of his school district's largest student and parent constituency — African-Americans and Latinos.

A man walks by the Farragut Houses, a public housing project in Brooklyn, N.Y. The budget blueprint President Trump released Thursday calls for the cutting of billions of dollars in funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Advocates Say Trump Budget Cuts Will Hurt Country's Most Vulnerable

7:18am March 17, 2017

by Pam Fessler

The outline released Thursday by the White House reduces funding for public housing, Meals on Wheels, community grants and more. Trump's lead budget official says such programs aren't proven to work.

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Failure rates for common forms of birth control are down, according to new research.

Birth Control Is Working Better – Or At Least, It's Failing Less

7:13pm March 01, 2017

by Sarah McCammon

Failure rates for the most common forms of contraception are down, but it's not entirely clear whether it's due to education, availability, or other reasons.

Howard University graduates celebrate at commencement in May 2016.

HBCUs Graduate More Poor Black Students Than White Colleges

5:08am March 01, 2017

by Nick Chiles

Roughly half of HBCUs have a freshman class where three-quarters of the students are from low-income backgrounds, while just 1 percent of non-HBCUs serve as high a percentage of low-income students.

Mosaic seized about $20,000 from Keith Herie's wages over the course of eight years. When NPR and ProPublica published their story in 2014, he still owed $26,000. Mosaic later offered to settle for $8,300, and Herie accepted.

Nonprofit Hospital Forgives Debts And Stops Suing So Many Poor Patients

8:00am June 02, 2016

Scrutiny by Sen. Charles Grassley and an investigation by NPR and ProPublica led a Missouri hospital to give $17 million in debt relief. Will other nonprofit hospitals follow suit?

Life Expectancy Study: It's Not Just What You Make, It's Where You Live

6:24pm April 11, 2016

by Jim Zarroli

A study of Social Security and tax records says poor people live longer in some cities than in others, and it's not clear why.

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National

In A High-Rent World, Affordable And Safe Housing Is Hard To Come By

4:25pm March 30, 2016

by Pam Fessler

Most low-income tenants who end up in court are extremely poor; many of them are women with children. With a lack of housing aid and limited legal help, they often lose their cases and face eviction.

Terrell Walker says that her apartment in Washington, D.C., has mold and problems with heating and old appliances. She's been withholding rent in an effort to get her landlord to fix up the apartment.

Low-Income Renters Squeezed Between Too-High Rents And Subpar Housing

10:58am March 30, 2016

by Pam Fessler

Tenants often stop paying rent to force the repair of poor conditions in the only housing they can afford. But landlords say can't fix the problems until they get the rent. It's a vicious cycle.

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