– The annual cost of infant care in D.C. is about $11,500, according to a new report out this week.  That’s more than twice the cost of tuition at a public college.  Click here to find out what one organization says the city can do to help struggling parents.

– The Washington Post takes a look at what Craigslist says they’re doing to keep ads for underage girls out of the website’s “adult services” section, and what’s actually going on in that section.  Last week FAIR Fund, a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner, called Craigslist  the “Wal-mart of online sex trafficking.”

– Washington City Paper takes a look at homeless services in the District after money for needy families was spent to make up for a shortfall in a summer employment program.  And DC Fiscal Policy Institute, a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner, has a list of lessons that city leaders can take away from the Summer Youth Employment Program.

– Over the weekend, Elena Kagan was sworn in as the 112th justice of the Supreme Court. She’s the fourth woman to be named justice in the history of the high court.

– The first woman to head a major U.S. intelligence agency is being instated today.  Letitia A. Long will be the director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.  Click here for details.

Photo Credit: gabi_menashe via Creative Commons.

Tags: washington, dc, childcare, homeless, summer, employment, elena, kagan, fair fund, dc fiscal policy institute, letitia long

– The Foster & Adoptive Parent Advocacy Center (FAPAC) is applauding members of the D.C. Council for passing the Adoption and Guardianship Subsidy Emergency and Temporary Amendment Acts of 2010.  The legislation expands guardianship and adoption subsidies until youths turn 21 and expands the definition of those eligible to apply to become subsidized guardians.  Before the legislation was passed that opportunity was open only to “kin or godparents.”  Now, foster parents or others who have a significant relationship with a child can become subsidized guardians.  This is particularly important to older youth in the foster care system.  FAPAC is a Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner.

– D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty has enacted emergency executive orders that increase taxes and fees on everything from business permits to traffic fines.  Fenty says the orders are “emergency” maneuvers to balance the budget and added that the increases would bring the city about $7 million this fiscal year and $21 million in the 2011 fiscal year which begins in October.  Click here for details.

– The job market may be getting better for teens and recent college graduates, but, according to experts, the improvements are coming so slowly that they may not see noticeable change until the fall.  Meanwhile, older workers continue to fill jobs that, traditionally, went to younger people.  Click here for more.

Tags: washington, dc, women, girls, foster, care, children, fapac, adrian fenty, taxes, fines, employment, unemployment, summer, jobs, teens

– Federal subsidies for child care are failing to keep up with rising demand, leaving an increasing number of low-income families struggling to balance work and parenting.  Click here to read how this is effecting parents, particularly low-income, single women.

– Later today, teenagers in Prince George’s County will attend Youth Explosion, a program that promotes safe activities and helps teens find summer jobs.  The program is for kids between 12 and 18 and is from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Tabernacle Church in Laurel.

– Some local dads say they’re paying attention to parenting messages on bus shelter posters.  The posters say “Take time to be a dad today” and offer suggestions for activities parents and children can do together.  According to the National Fatherhood Initiative, one-third of kids in American grow up in a home without their biological fathers.  Click here to find out why some fathers say the ads are working.

– According to the Washington Post, “the D.C. Council passed emergency legislation on Tuesday intended to make it easier for foster families to provide permanent homes for children, especially older ones, who often languish in the child welfare system.”  Click here to learn more about the subsidy that’s being extended to help foster families and children.

– Why do women still earn less than men? Time explored that question as we marked Equal Pay Day.  Click here for the answer.

– For civil rights leader Dorothy Height, equality went beyond skin color.  A day after her death, NBC4 takes a look at her remarkable life and her fight for equality for everyone.

Tags: washington, dc, women, girls, equal, pay, foster, system, children, dorothy height, equality

The latest news, analysis and opinion on the state of low-income women and their families from Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, a national foundation-led initiative, is excited to collaborate with The Women’s Foundation to bring you the latest news and analysis on women and poverty.  Spotlight is the go-to site for news and ideas about fighting poverty.

Here’s this week’s news:

• The Wall Street Journal reports that women facing difficult circumstances and stress, including extreme poverty, have a higher risk of problems during pregnancy.

• The Los Angeles Times interviews several low-income immigrant women who miscarried or gave birth to children with birth defects, problems that they attribute to a nearby polluted dump in rural Kettlemen City.

• The South Florida Sun-Sentinel profiles 21-year-old student Tamarra Lestage.  Lestage would be homeless if not for a monthly stipend given to former foster children, a program which may be cut due to Florida’s budget crunch.

• The Portland Press Herald highlights the opening of Florence House, a $7.9 million facility that will house 40 homeless women in apartments or semi-private bedrooms.

• Seven months after being fired from the Hyatt in Boston, Lucine Williams and almost 60 other mostly female former housekeepers still struggle to find work, according to the Boston Globe.

For daily updates and links to past articles, check out “Women and Poverty.”  It’s a section of the Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity site with a comprehensive collection of recent news and analysis on women and poverty.  Along with these daily updates, continue to visit Washington Area Women’s Foundation for our weekly rundown of the top news stories on women and poverty every Friday.  To learn more about Spotlight visit www.spotlightonpoverty.org.  To sign up for our weekly updates with the latest news, opinion and research from around the country, click here.

The Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity Team

Photo credit: Stephen Maturen for the Wall Street Journal

Tags: women, poverty, assistance, pregnancy, health, low, income, foster, care, homeless, homelessness, shelter, shelter for women, unemployment, jobs

In today’s rundown: Solutions for the high cost of child care.  |  Promising new legislation that will invest in community colleges.  |  The impact of women’s philanthropy.

– For some local parents, the cost of quality child care can account for up to 60 percent of their annual incomes.  While subsidies do exist to help offset the costs, they’re often not enough.  Hyesook Chung, executive director of D.C. Action for Children talks about options.  Click here to listen to what she has to say.

– President Obama spoke to students at Northern Virginia Community College in Alexandria where Jill Biden teaches English.  The president was there to discuss new legislation that will revamp the federal student loan program and invest billions of dollars into community colleges around the country.  Click here for details.

– The Women’s Foundation Grantee Partner Borromeo Housing Inc. is featured in this video story about women’s philanthropy and its impact worldwide.  Borromeo Housing operates Elizabeth House, the program featured in the piece.  Elizabeth House is an education-first residential program for homeless adolescent mothers.

Got something to say?  Leave a comment below.  Or join us at www.Facebook.com/TheWomensFoundation.

Photo credit: Editor B via Creative Commons

Tags: washington, maryland, virginia, child, care, costs, women, girls, children, subsidies, northern virginia community college, women moving millions, borromeo housing, elizabeth house, homeless, teen, mothers

The most current professional advice recommends that the average pregnant woman needs only 300 calories a day beyond her normal caloric intake.  That’s the equivalent of a glass of milk and a sandwich!  Of course, each woman’s doctor is always the final authority on diet, and caloric intake may vary depending on age and weight.

Also on the podcast, the authors of Eating for Pregnancy, chef Catherine Jones and dietician and perinatal nutritionist Rose Ann Hudson, have lots of tips for expectant moms.  For example, there’s the skinny on “forbidden foods”: predatory fish – which contain high mercury levels – and any unpasteurized cheeses.  Yogurt (pasteurized, of course) is on the “fave foods” list for all ages.  The way it’s made allows even those who are lactose intolerant to enjoy this goody.  And the calcium content of a 6 ounce serving equals 8ounces of 1%-2% milk.

Get everyone involved!
Healthy eating for expectant moms is healthy eating for the whole family.  A day of nutrition-wise eating should include: four servings of dairy products, at least 2 servings of meat, fish, poultry, beans & eggs, 6-9 servings of grains, at least 4 portions of vegetables and 3 servings or more of fruits.  And budget shopping doesn’t have to be nutrient-poor.  Brown rice, sweet potatoes, kale, collard greens and any seasonal fruits are frugal and vitamin-filled additions to the fridge and pantry.

Salivating for more?  The “Parents’ Perspective” website is rich with go-to material on all kinds of child-rearing issues.  Meantime, hand out the popsicles and Italian ice to the ladies with the big tummies, and tell them to stay hydrated!  And this season, here’s to good health for all!

Parents’ Perspective is a weekly radio show where experts are interviewed about a wide variety of child-rearing topics.  You can listen and learn more by going to www.parentsperspective.org.

Tags: diet, pregnancy, expectant, mothers, eating, nuitrition, parents perspective

Spotlight is the go-to site for news and ideas about fighting poverty.

For daily updates and links to past articles, check out “Women and Poverty.” It’s a new section of our site with a comprehensive collection of recent news and analysis on women and poverty.

Along with these daily updates, continue to visit TheWomensFoundation.org for our weekly rundown of the top news stories on women and poverty every Friday.

Here’s this week’s news:

• Andrea Castaneda is one of several mothers participating in a Head Start program that seeks to help impoverished families replace unnecessary trips to the emergency room with home care, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

• Deborah Stiell, a 55-year-old low-income grandmother, has cared for her three grandchildren their entire lives. She tells the Detroit News that, like many grandparents in her situation, she struggles to pay the bills.

• The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports that thanks to increased state funding, a clinic run by the University of Tennessee College of Medicine’s obstetrics-gynecology department has been able to reach out to more low-income patients, resulting in a 20 to 35 percent increase in patient visits.

• The Boston Globe celebrates the achievements of Elisabetta Mitrano, who lifted her family from poverty by opening a salon that would allow her children a better upbringing than she had.

To learn more about Spotlight visit www.spotlightonpoverty.org  

To sign up for our weekly updates with the latest news, opinion and research from around the country, click here. 

The Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity Team

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is a foundation-led, non-partisan initiative aimed at ensuring that our political leaders take significant actions to reduce poverty and increase opportunity in the United States. We bring together diverse perspectives from the political, policy, advocacy and foundation communities to engage in an ongoing dialogue focused on finding genuine solutions to the economic hardship confronting millions of Americans.

Tags: spotlight, and, opportunity, team

Spotlight is the go-to site for news and ideas about fighting poverty.

For daily updates and links to past articles, check out “Women and Poverty.”  It’s a new section of our site with a comprehensive collection of recent news and analysis on women and poverty.

Along with these daily updates, continue to visit TheWomensFoundation.org for our weekly rundown of the top news stories on women and poverty every week.

Here’s this week’s news:

• The Washington Post tells the story of how Lawanda Madden and her children became homeless. Her family joins an influx of recently homeless single-mother families now relying on relatives for shelter and food.
• The Times-Picayune profiles Looking Good, a nonprofit founded by Hope Encalada that provides low-income women with professional clothing, makeovers and a self-confidence boost in preparation for job interviews.
• Many low-income mothers will be left without affordable childcare if day care centers close due to budget cuts, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
• The Boston Globe features a piece on a movement in Providence to close down “spas,” or thinly veiled brothels.  Rhode Island is the only state in the U.S. that permits indoor prostitution.
• The Times Picayune reports on a teen panel on poverty and drugs, which included suggestions from several young women living in impoverished neighborhoods.

To learn more about Spotlight, visit www.spotlightonpoverty.org.  To sign up for our weekly updates with the latest news, opinion and research from around the country, click here.

The Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity Team

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity is a foundation-led, non-partisan initiative aimed at ensuring that our political leaders take significant actions to reduce poverty and increase opportunity in the United States. We bring together diverse perspectives from the political, policy, advocacy and foundation communities to engage in an ongoing dialogue focused on finding genuine solutions to the economic hardship confronting millions of Americans.

Tags: Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, women and poverty

Below are excerpts of the research update.  For the full research update, including summarized key findings, click here.

Financial Education and Wealth Creation News

The National Council of Negro Women conducts a study to identify potential lending disparities in gender and race among African-American, Hispanic, and Caucasian borrowers, particularly as the foreclosure crisis spreads.  (Full text) 

Jobs and Business Ownership News

The Brookings Institution publishes research on the extent to which the recession has affected urban and suburban communities across the country and looks looks within the nation’s 100 largest metro areas to examine recent unemployment trends in their cities and suburbs. (Abstract) (Full text)

Child Care and Early Education News

A new Child Trends study commissioned by the Council of Chief State School Officers finds disparities between poor, at-risk children and more advantaged children as early as 9 months of age–extending prior research that primarily focuses on disparities at kindergarten entry and beyond. (Abstract) (Full text)

Health and Safety News

The Urban Institute identifies ways to reduce obesity using many of the same strategies used in the war against tobacco.  (Introduction) (Full text)

Other News and Research

The Economic Mobility Project investigates neighborhoods and the black-white mobility gap, including whether neighborhood poverty in childhood impacts the ability of both black and white adults to move up or down the income ladder relative to the position their parents held and whether changes in neighborhood poverty rates experienced by black children affected their adult incomes, earnings, and wealth. (Abstract) (Full text)

Tags: Stepping Stones, Urban Institute