We cannot have prosperous places without addressing poverty. David McGranahan of USDA ERS will be discussing factors affecting rural child poverty. See the USDA maps of child poverty rates below. Texas has high rates of child poverty and persistent child poverty with rates 20%+ over the past 30 years. I hope you will be able to join the ERS webinar to see how our policies and practices affect poverty in our communities.

Wednesday, July 22, 2015, Noon Central
For More info: http://www.ers.usda.gov/conferences/the-geography-of-the-recent-growth-in-rural-child-poverty.aspx

Using the official poverty measure, child poverty in rural (nonmetropolitan) areas grew by over 5 percent between 1999 and 2013, to affect over 25 percent of rural children. This growth was uneven across rural counties: child poverty increased by over 10 percent in some counties, but declined in others. This presentation examines 3 factors affecting rural child poverty over the period: changing economic opportunities, rising young-adult education levels, and increasing proportion of children in single-parent households. While a decline in high school dropout rates among young adults was associated with lower child poverty rates, weak or declining local economies and substantial increases in single-parent households were associated with higher child poverty rates.