A new report from the Wyoming Children’s Action Alliance says between 2005 and 2010, the number of children living in poverty jumped from 11 percent to 14 percent. Marc Homer is with the Children’s Action Alliance. He says the biggest spike came in 2009 and 10 when the nations recession began to catch up to the state, and childhood poverty jumped from 13 percent to 19 percent.
“Certainly I think it’s the recession that’s hit the United States and its impacted Wyoming,” says Homer. “So we’re seeing a slowing of the economy and this trickles down to families in our communities.”
The report also looked at exam data for the Proficiency Assessments for Wyoming Students. They found that almost 60 percent of 3rd graders eligible for free and reduced lunches scored below proficient in reading compared to students who did not qualify for aid.
In math, more than a quarter of low income students scored below proficient compared to 14 percent of their wealthier counterparts.