Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Education

1. Senate panel approves bill that rewrited education law; The New York Times, October 21,2011

Legislation rewriting the No Child Left Behind education law finally gained traction this week, and the Senate Democrat whose committee passed the bill said on Friday that progress became possible because lawmakers were irritated by the Obama administration’s offering states waivers to the law’s key provisions.

2. Texas trails most states, many countries in young adults with degrees; Statesman.com, October 21, 2011

Texas trails most other states and many developed countries in the percentage of young adults with a college degree, and demographic changes suggest the underperformance will worsen as time goes on. About 32 percent of Texans ages 25 to 34 have earned an associate's degree or higher, compared with 41 percent for the nation as a whole. Massachusetts ranks first among the states at about 54 percent, and South Korea led an international sampling at 63 percent.

Health
1. Study: Foreclosure crisis threatening America's health; USA Today, October 22, 2011
A new study finds that falling behind on your mortgage payments hurts more than just your finances, as the stress and financial strain that come with the struggle can also harm your physical and psychological health. People who reported that they had fallen behind on their mortgage between 2006 and 2008 reported more depressive symptoms, more food insecurity and were more likely to say they weren't taking prescription medications as prescribed because of cost.

2. Massive free health clinic serves more than 1,000 on first day; Los Angeles Times, October 21, 2011
More than a thousand people on Thursday took advantage of a massive free clinic that opened at the L.A. Sports Arena. The outreach event, which goes until Sunday, is expected to treat more than 5,000 patients for tooth decay, high blood pressure, diabetes and other medical needs. It is organized by CareNow, an L.A.-based nonprofit that assists urban areas with healthcare needs.

3. Change your neighborhood, improve your health; Time.com, October 20, 2011
When a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offered a program in the 1990s to move families out of poor neighborhoods, it created a unique opportunity not only to improve people's day-to-day lives, but also to study how a change in environment might impact their health over the long term. Now, more than a decade later, the researchers have found that families who moved to lower-poverty neighborhoods had lower levels of obesity and diabetes than those who stayed behind. What's more, the improvements in health were as significant as those that typically result from targeted diet and exercise interventions or the use of medications to treat diabetes.


Race
1. SC voter ID law hits some black precincts harder; Boston.com, October 19, 2011
South Carolina’s new voter photo identification law appears to be disproportionately affecting minority voters in one of the state’s largest counties and black precincts elsewhere, according to an analysis by The Associated Press. For instance, nearly half the voters who cast ballots at a historically black college in Columbia lack state-issued photo identification and could face problems voting in next year’s presidential election, according to the analysis of precinct-level data provided by the state Election Commission.