This document discusses the causes and consequences of poverty and proposes solutions. It defines poverty and notes that lack of education is a main cause. High school dropouts face higher risks of poverty and homelessness. The document proposes more engaging activities and funding in schools, shorter school days, intramural sports, and adult education programs to help keep students motivated and address poverty issues. Equal funding for all public schools is also advocated to break the cycle of underfunding schools with lower-income students.

1. People for
Education
©People for Education 2012
© Roshni Sopariwalla
© Christina Martin
©Dylan Mackin
©Cristina Miclat

2. What is Poverty?
Poverty is defined as: “the state of one who lacks a
usual or socially acceptable amount of money of
material possessions”
Basically, poverty is the state of being extremely poor
A few of the consequences of poverty include
homelessness, hunger, and poor health.
A homeless person is defined as a person who
lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate night time
residence. This includes those who live in
shelters, cars, campgrounds, motels, and people
who share a home with others.

3. What Causes
Poverty?
The main cause for poverty is a lack of education
Research has shown that the lack of a high school
diploma is directly associated with homelessness for
individuals and families
People drop out of school for various reasons
including, but not limited to: trying to get a job to
help provide for their family, substance abuse, lack of
motivation, and lack of money.
But school is very important for children especially
because it is a place of safety, structure, and
opportunity in life. Especially when life at home is
bad, going to school is even more necessary so that
children can be motivated to one day attempt to leave
the cycle of poverty and misery.

4. Drop Outs
“22% of public high school students will drop out in
California”
“When examined through the lenses of reading skills
and poverty . . . It was found that poor children
account for 70% of the kids who don’t graduate.”
Dropouts are more likely to face poverty according to
the US Census Bureau.
Typically high school dropouts earn $19,000 a year
while high school graduates earn $28,000
Also, sixty-eight percent of prison inmates are high
school dropouts.

5. What Do We
We propose that there needs to be more activities and shorter
Propose?
school days to keep students in poverty (and students in all
economic classes) motivated to pursue their education. To allow
for equal education for all we demand that all public schools
have equal funding and adult schools for those adults who want
to complete their high school education.
Many students today say they feel disengaged in school and
almost like a separate entity from the student body. Therefore
we should allow students to be more involved in school
programs
For example, all sports should have an intramural aspect
as well. Those kids who do not make JV or Varsity school
teams, should not be told to play somewhere else or to wait
till next year. Instead there should be a group which also
gets the opportunity to compete with other students from
other schools and get time to bond with their schoolmates
on a slightly less competitive level.
There should also be all school programs and activities
more often so that students can get feel a closer connection

6. Propositions: Equal
Funding
There needs to be equal funding for all public
schools. Public schools are currently funded by taxes
of the nearby area. Therefore, upper class areas have
better funding for their public schools where lower
class areas have more inadequate funding for their
public schools. Additionally, a lot of public schools
are starting to be judged based upon their
standardized testing scores.
Consequently a negative cycle is forming for
those schools which are not doing that well.
Firstly the students are not doing well. Therefore
their school is not being funded adequately. Thus
the required resources to help the students
improve is not being provided. And once again,
the students do not do well and their schools
receive less money.

7. More Propositions
Additionally, schools could have shorter school days
but less breaks because research proves that it is
beneficial to focus for a short span of time in order
to absorb as much information as possible, rather
than sitting for more time trying to cram
information into tired minds.
We also believe that there should be more adult
schools available. This program would benefit adults
who dropped out of high school or college and would
like the opportunity to earn a diploma and a degree.
By doing this, adults do not have to suffer through
poverty because of bad decisions they made when
they were younger but can instead focus on mending
and improving upon their life.

8. Why Is A Diploma Important?
Finding a career that pays well is hard without
a diploma.
“On average, a high school graduate earns
$9,367 more each year than a high school drop
out does” and that amount of money could make
a huge difference in a person’s life.
Also, without a diploma you are not as
marketable to employers who are searching for
employees.
It is estimated that “at least half of all welfare
recipients do not possess a high school
diploma”, solid proof that those with diplomas
are doing remarkably better.

9. What Does a Diploma Do
For You?
Years ago, many relatively high paying jobs did not
require a diploma, but today most jobs above the fast
food industry do require a high school diploma.
Nine of every ten jobs in the USA require a college
degree even after the high school diploma.
People who pursue education and receive their
diploma are half as likely to get divorced and be a
single parent.
People without a diploma make about $1.5 million
less in their life.

10. In Conclusion
Poverty has a large effect
on our society and the
quality of life for
everyone in the United
States of America.
To end poverty we
propose shorter school
days, equal funding,
intramural sports, and
adult schools.
We need to Make
Poverty History