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A high school in Tennessee has a student organization that raises money and creates awareness about disease and poverty in Africa. The club called the Teen African Relief Effort involves about 25 students in McGavock High School.The Tennessean's Andy Humbles fills us in on what the student group does. TARE is sponsored by English teacher Faye Walker, but the club is student-driven, with Abbie Alexander and senior Robert Curry the founders and co-chairs. TARE usually sets its own meeting schedule after school or even on weekends off campus.Last school year TARE raised $940 to buy 94 mosquito nets for African families through the Nothing But Nets campaign. The nets are sent to Africa to help protect residents against malaria, which is spread by mosquitoes and is a leading cause of death.The...

1 in 6 Tennessee residents use food stamps according to the state's monthly survey. That's one million people in total, an increase of 75,000.In this Associated Press article found in the Chattanooga Time Free Press, those in charge of the system say it's directly effected by the slumping economy.“Food stamps absolutely trend with the economy,” said Human Services Department spokeswoman Michelle Mowery Johnson. “And when the economy is doing poorly, we get really busy.”An Associated Press analysis of the state Department of Human Resources data shows the rate of food stamp usage was highest in West Tennessee, where 324,000 people, or 21 percent of the grand division’s population of 1.55 million, were receiving assistance.Similar numbers of people received food stamps in the...

from the Shelbyville Times GazetteBy John I. CarneyA house and lot at 262 North Main St., jointly owned by the city and county, may become a volunteer-run homeless shelter and child care center, using surplus Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers which have been cleared following a recent formaldehyde scare.Carl Bailey appeared before Bedford County Board of Commissioners' courthouse and county property committee on Tuesday to discuss his proposal for Community Religious Outreach Social Services and request the use of the house.The committee voted to pass the request on to the full commission, but wants to make sure that any lease agreement holds the county harmless from liability arising from the use of the property.Bailey said the current economic conditions and a decline in...

from the TennesseanBy JANELL ROSSStaff WriterRising gas and food prices in an economy facing recession are forcing more Tennesseans to do something they never expected — ask for help feeding their families.Participation in the federal food stamp program here and nationwide is approaching 2005 levels, when Hurricane Katrina scattered the poor and suddenly disadvantaged across the country.The program — which adds an average of about $100 to a family's monthly food budget — is limited to those who take home less than federal poverty line wages. Food bank workers say they're seeing more working professionals, putting pressure on pantries when donations are low."When I first started doing this, we had pregnant teenagers, we had seniors," said Margaret Ingram, who coordinates a Second...

from the TennesseanBy KATHLEEN SMITHFor The TennesseanTwenty-five Vanderbilt University graduate students will spend spring break helping those at the "bottom of the pyramid," the people of Bangladesh.Students in the Project Pyramid Global Poverty Alleviation program, a class offered by the Owen Graduate School of Management, will travel Wednesday to Bangladesh for a firsthand look at some solutions to poverty.A highlight of the trip includes meeting with Muhammad Yunus, the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner and a Vanderbilt University graduate, whose Grameen Bank is changing the lives of the poor in Bangladesh through micro-lending."He is a man filled with not only deep experience but a ton of new ideas and inspiration for addressing poverty," said Bart Victor, director of the Cal Turner...

from The TennesseanRutherford County rate rises fastest in Nashville areaBy CLAY CAREYStaff WriterFor the last few years, Ray Parson has lived a poor man's life. He has been without a home, staying with family and friends around Murfreesboro a few nights at a time.Those who work with the poor say more and more people in the Nashville area are ending up like Parson — living below the poverty line. And while he's not a statistician, Parson has figured out that there are more poor people in his community."I run up on people (in his situation) all the time," drinking coffee at fast-food restaurants or walking the streets of Murfreesboro, Parson said."They just move around, trying to see where jobs are," Parson said.The latest U.S. Census numbers show Tennessee's poverty rate rising more...

from The Jackson SunAs a recent report shows a majority of public school children in the South are poor, local educators say more funding is needed to improve students' chances for success.The study by the Southern Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization that examines economic and social issues in the region, found that for the first time since the 1960s, a majority of public school children in the South were poor. According to its findings, in 1990, 37 percent of public school students in the South were low-income compared to 54 percent by 2006.Low-income students are children whose family income makes them eligible for free or reduced meals at school. In 2006, 53 percent of Tennessee's public school students were poor, while nationally the figure is 46 percent. When the South is...

from the Nashville City PaperBy Amanda N. Maynord, amaynord@nashvillecitypaper.comMetro police say 454 people have been charged with “quality of life” violations downtown since the department began an initiative focused on cleaning up the area in late July.Although police officials refrain from labeling individuals as homeless, the persons charged have been homeless or chronically homeless.“There’s been a consorted effort by the police department since the summer to strongly address quality of life issues downtown,” said Don Aaron, Metro Police spokesperson.Quality of life violations include public drunkenness, indecent exposure and trespassing.Police officials said despite criticism from homeless advocates that police are “picking” on the homeless population, they are...

from WTVFNASHVILLE, Tenn. - More than half of the students enrolled in Nashville's public schools live in poverty.School officials said the number has steadily increased.In response, Metro Schools has several programs designed to deal with some of the issues students face at home.Administrators said the district is headed in the right direction."I've always enjoyed working with children," said Crisma Carter, a teacher for the past three years at Buena Vista Elementary School.She said she knew it was her calling. She said she's always wanted to make a difference in the lives of youngsters.Carter's school is recognized as one of the best in Metro.Principal Debra Smith attributes it to supportive parents.Smith said her many of students strive despite financial hardships at home."Just because...

from WVLTBlount Co. (WVLT) - Of every 100 live births in Blount County, more than nine percent are low birth weight babies.Nearly three percent of blount county families receive needy family assistance.These are just some of the consequences of poverty.And now, Volunteer TV's Jessa Goddard reports, the people that serve the under-served are taking a walk in their shoes."I was a 15 year old male child in a family of four.""I was Olivia. I was a 12 year old girl with learning disabilities.""And we ended up losing our home and wound up in a homeless shelter.""Being able to see the struggles that my mother had to deal with, how hard it was for her to get food, to pay our mortgage."This is a role playing simulation, but the situations are real life.The Blount Memorial Good Sumaritan Clinic is...

from WBIRBy: Robin Murdoch, ReporterA poverty role-playing scenario in Blount County helped workers to walk a mile in someone else's shoes Thursday."I would suggest you go back to the homeless shelter," says one of the participants."We are not able to help you with legal assistance."The conversation had the so called "Miss Jolly" anything but jolly. In the poverty simulation, Miss Jolly is a single mother with two young children trying to make ends meet.The ordeal was a role playing exercise for the Hospice Volunteer turned actress on Thursday."It opened my eyes a lot. It was hard," says Sarah Wimmer.It was real life for others."The whole purpose of this is to encourage people to think about being in the place of poverty, in a low income family, and the day to day stress they have to go...

from WMCNASHVILLE, Tenn. Legislators told state education officials today that they're concerned students living in poverty aren't being properly prepared to enter college or the work force upon graduation.State Representative Barbara Cooper of Memphis said she was contacted recently by a woman who wasn't able to find a job, to join the military or qualify for a lottery scholarship after leaving high school.Cooper told the House Education Committee that poor children simply are not receiving the quality, experienced teachers that they need.The Peabody College of Education and Human Development at Vanderbilt University is using its research findings to prepare recommendations for the State Board of Education about changes needed in Tennessee's K-12 schools.Among the research findings is...

from The TennesseanFaith in Action"Mother Theresa" is 65, the mother of two and grandmother of one, the wife of a Nashville surgeon and a savior to Haiti's poor and AIDS-stricken."I'm totally humbled," says Theresa Patterson after admitting that many in that Caribbean nation call the Belle Meade homemaker and one-time interior design instructor by that near-holy nickname.Since this devout Catholic devotes her energies to helping Haiti's poorest find first aid for their souls and bodies, the real Mother Teresa probably wouldn't mind.Haiti may not be as hopeless as Calcutta's gutters, where the late Mother Teresa delivered faith and love. But it is a blighted land, and Nashville's Theresa pledged her love to its people on the day she arrived for her first visit 28 years ago: "I remember...