Extra-Curricular Activity: Schools Forced to Help Economically-Stressed Students

The slumping economy has had an under-publicized effect on children, who bring the pain of their parents’ troubles to school in the form of stress, hunger, lack of money for basic activities or even homelessness.

Dealing with economically-deprived students has been a regular duty of some suburban districts that have had lower-income demographics for decades. But now even more affluent school systems have to cope with a myriad of negative effects on youths from the economy.

Earlier:

The mushrooming numbers of low-income students in the three high schools comprising District 207 bear out the seriousness of the problem. In 2009-10, after nearly two years of recession, the district had 1,557 students who qualified as low-income due to federal standards, said Dave Beery, spokesperson for District 207. That number has increased to 1,830 in the 2011-12 school year.

Maine South has the biggest percentage increase in low-income students, from 139 to 200, over the two-year period, Beery said. Maine East’s increased from 751 to 874, and Maine West’s from 667 to 756.

and have always dealt with larger-than-usual numbers of low-income students. But as the effects of the recession have persisted, their woes have become more acute.

The issue came to the forefront in a Sept. 26 visit by Sen. Dick Durbin to  in Morton Grove while promoting the American Jobs Act. District 67 Supt. Jamie Reilly told Durbin that children showed up increasingly stressed, requiring the school’s help in an era of cutbacks of key positions like guidance counselors. 

“Kids are feeling distracted in class,” a teacher told Durbin.

Illinois’ senior senator was moved. “It’s something I’ve never thought of,” he said.

Extra duties for school staff

But even before individual cases of student behavior are considered, the raw numbers are forcing school administrators and counselors to take on additional burdens in their daily routines.

"I know for a fact that we have staff throughout the district who, dating back even before the economic downturn, have made a point of looking after students in need,” said Dr. Ken Wallace, District 207 superintendent.

Wallace said they might provide a winter coat or make sure there's food available for students before they start the school day.

“We have many teachers and staff who are sensitive to these kinds of needs and always have been," he said.

The school staff going the extra mile for needy students is necessary, with instances of hunger, stress and students living in cars or in families doubling and tripling up in homes reported throughout even the most affluent suburban districts due to the long-term poor economy, according to school officials in districts 225 and 31. Some schools are even stocking granola bars in their nurses’ offices as a quick energy boost for students who have not had any breakfast.

Recession’s effects on kids multi-fold

Howard Sussman, principal of Stevenson School in District 63, listed burgeoning negative trends along with anecdotes that would have been unthinkable five years ago:

• An increase in anxiety among students about their families’ well being.
• “Many more” students requiring school supplies purchased for them by their teachers.
• An increase in the number students living in a residence with multiple families.
• Students being left alone while parents work two jobs, or who provide childcare for younger siblings.
• A brother-sister pair who informed Sussman they stopped going to an after-school care program because their mother was unemployed.
• An increase in tardy students.

Nichole Gross, principal of District 63’s Mark Twain School, said they work with families to make sure they are aware of local resources such as the Maine Township Food Pantry in Park Ridge. She said they assist those who need help in completing the various forms for financial assistance, and have provided logistical help such as faxing items to local assistance organizations.

“We do what we always have done considering our families are consistently affected by the economy,” Gross said.

Poverty a reality in districts before recession hit

Teachers and administrators in districts 62 and 63 are veterans in dealing with their students’ economic problems.

“This is not new stuff for our families,” said Brad Voehringer, assistant superintendent of District 62, who is in charge of student services for the 12 schools.

While granola bars have been an emergency foodstuff in District 207, District 63 teachers also have a backup plan.

“Our teachers and staff have always kept around goldfish crackers,” Voehringer said.

Voehringer said most of the districts in the collar around the city and airport have these issues.

“We’ve always had that as a reality,” Voehringer said. “We’ve been talking for years about poverty and its educational impact, about kids who are homeless.”

Flexibility in keeping the students in school is now a daily fact of life for administrators and teachers, as both provide counseling beyond their job titles.

“One of our principals met with a parent about renting a home, being displaced and how to stay in the district,” said Lynn Glickman, spokesperson for District 63.

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