Rural Children Lag in Early Childhood Educational Skills
A new study on early childhood educational achievement says that young rural children begin elementary school well behind their urban and suburban peers in reading and math skills. (January 2005)

Diverging Fortunes: Trends in Poverty and Inequality

 Danziger and Gottschalk analyze changes in wage rates, earnings, and family incomes over the last quarter of the 20th century, detailing that this was a period of slow growth in family income, modest progress against poverty, and rapid growth in earnings and income inequality. The following excerpt is from the report "Diverging Fortunes: Trends in Poverty and Inequality"; published by the Russell Sage Foundation and the Population Reference Bureau. (January 2005)

Welfare Limits Mean Increased Hardship for Rural Ohio Families
A new study of low-income Appalachian Ohio families finds that time limits on cash welfare benefits have coincided with gains in employment and a distressing rise in their levels of hunger and homelessness. (January 2005)

Marriage and Family in a Multiracial Society

 This report provides a comprehensive portrait of recent changes in marriage and the American family, with special emphasis on racial and ethnic diversity. The following excerpt is from the report "Marriage and Family in a Multiracial Society," published by the Russell Sage Foundation and the Population Reference Bureau. (December 2004)

Trends in the Well-Being of America's Children

 This report documents significant improvement in the well-being of American children during the last half of the 1990s, led by changes among black and Hispanic children. Post-2000 trends indicate improvements in child well-being have slowed dramatically, and many of the gains made during the late 1990s are in jeopardy. The following excerpt is from the report "Trends in the Well-Being of America's Children," published by the Rusell Sage Foundation and the Population Reference Bureau. (December 2004)

America's Military Population (PDF: 627KB)

 This Population Bulletin focuses on the 1.4 million active-duty uniformed personnel, and examines the size, distribution, and composition of the American military population. (BUL59.4, December 2004)

Cohorts and Socioeconomic Progress

 Dowell Myers examines progress in achieving the American Dream—education, employment, and homeownership—for successive generations, including new waves of immigrants, and provides a clear picture of actual socioeconomic progress in America. The following excerpt is from the report "Cohorts and Socioeconomic Progress"; published by the Russell Sage Foundation and the Population Reference Bureau. (December 2004)

Why Do Canadians Outlive Americans?
Over 250,000 Americans who died in 1998, roughly one of every 10 U.S. deaths that year, would have survived had they been Canadian, according to a comparison of patterns of death between the two countries. (November 2004)

Presidential Elections: Swing States and Bellwethers
Although historical trends can help predict the voting patterns of states in the 2004 election, such factors as campaign issues, the relative strengths of the two major-party candidates, and the ability of third-party candidates to draw votes in key states also play important roles in determining the outcome of presidential elections. (October 2004)

An Overview of Disability in America
Participation in society to the fullest extent possible by people with disabilities has been a goal of U.S. policies and programs. But fulfilling that goal requires confronting a series of challenges. (October 2004)