Pour Your Heart Out: Are We Setting Kids Up to Fail?

I am pouring my heart out today with:

I've done two blog posts about great organizations and programs helping to bridge the gap for kids heading back to school without the support they need... you can read about my #BagItForward for the Teacher's Supply Closet and some great initiatives from the Boys and Girls Club of America but the one thing that keeps roaming around in my mind are the statistics and underlying problems with our school systems...

Some things that I learned:

• There are 34 schools in the tri-county area around Charleston, SC that have 80% or more of their students receiving free or reduced lunch... that means that a family of four lives on less than $42,643 a year.  When you think of what housing, feeding and clothing four people costs these days, you have to wonder just how much money is left over for things like school supplies....  
• Nearly 60% of all South Carolina students are on free or reduced lunch.
• Across the nation, more than 31 million students from low-income families receive free or reduced-price school lunches based on that same Federal Funding number...
• 15.1 million children across America are left unsupervised after school

It’s been proven that having quality supplies is important to building a child’s confidence and self-esteem  which, in turn, supports educational accomplishments.  Kids who don't have the tools they need to succeed are already at a disadvantage.  It's also been proven that kids who have activities and supervision after school are less likely to be in trouble, have higher grades and more self-esteem...

So my question is WHY isn't the government providing all of our children with the tools and support that they need NOW?  Imagine if every child went to school had the supplies and support that they need - the costs for welfare and incarceration when these children become adults will diminish - AND the tax base will be better because our whole population will be educated, capable and productive citizens... 

Letting kids fall through the cracks because they are in poverty now only ensures that the next generation will struggle with the same issues and costs... at some point we need to break this chain and give ALL kids the future they deserve.