State of Opportunity

Series produced by Michigan Radio

Caption: State of Opportunity from Michigan Radio
State of Opportunity from Michigan Radio 

What can be done to break the cycle of poverty and improve opportunities for the most disadvantaged children?

Michigan Radio’s State of Opportunity project is looking at what can be done to break the cycle of poverty and improve opportunities for the most disadvantaged children. We’re examining the impact that healthcare, schools, family, the local community, and public policy have on child development…from cradle to college.


105 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Infant Mortality: A special documentary
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Piece image
Infant mortality rates in Michigan are better than they used to be, but still not good enough. Seven out of every 1,000 babies born in Michigan w...

  • Added: Oct 12, 2012
  • Length: 51:01
Life on public assistance, a personal story
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: A family photo of Keisha Johnson and her three children, Credit: Keisha Johnson
When it comes to the “cycle of poverty,” the brutal truth is more than forty percent of children raised in poverty stay in poverty as adults. Among...

Bought by Delta College Public Radio


  • Added: Apr 26, 2013
  • Length: 04:03
  • Purchases: 1
Getting kicked off cash assistance, a personal story
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Keisha Johnson walks her kids to school., Credit: Jennifer Guerra
As part of our State of Opportunity project, we’re following parents as they struggle to get off public assistance and make a better future for the...

Bought by Delta College Public Radio


  • Added: Apr 26, 2013
  • Length: 03:59
  • Purchases: 1
Preschools are segregated. Is that a problem?
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
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Our State of Opportunity team has spent the last several months reporting on preschool. But there’s one aspect of preschool we haven’t touched o...

  • Added: Apr 26, 2013
  • Length: 03:25
A teen mom, twice
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Piece image
The Teen Parent Center is a housing shelter in Grand Rapids for teen moms with nowhere else to stay. The shelter is run by the Salvation Army, and ...

Bought by Delta College Public Radio


  • Added: Apr 26, 2013
  • Length: 06:10
  • Purchases: 1
A how-to guide to create a high quality preschool program
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Students start their day with story time on the big blue rug , Credit: Jennifer Guerra / Michigan Radio
What if there was a program for kids in poverty that guaranteed at least a seven dollar return on investment for every dollar spent. And what if th...

  • Added: May 03, 2013
  • Length: 04:18
Military kids; stress, trauma and potential
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: The military's strong culture creates opportunities for sharing resources to help families through stressful times, but the military has been criticized for not offering a more formal structure of support., Credit: Sarah Alvarez / Michigan Radio
We’ve been hearing a lot about the effect of stress and trauma on kids the last few days. It can have a profound effect on kids, getting them label...

Bought by KCMJ Community Radio


  • Added: May 03, 2013
  • Length: 04:09
  • Purchases: 1
The link between savings and upward mobility
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Monique Norton is saving money so she can buy a used car and rent an apartment, Credit: Jennifer Guerra / Michigan Radio
Saving money – can be especially hard to do in a tough economy. But for families at the bottom of the economic ladder, saving money can make a real...

Bought by Delta College Public Radio


  • Added: May 10, 2013
  • Length: 03:45
  • Purchases: 1
Rural Stockbridge provides pre-K springboard
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Piece image
In the first piece in the Stockbridge series, State of Opportunity's Sarah Alvarez takes a look at education in Stockbridge and how its' increasing...

  • Added: May 13, 2013
  • Length: 03:48
Do high expectations for 'at risk kids' make a difference?
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Stockbridge's Smith Elementary uses a system of behavior and learning interventions keep expectations high and kids on track., Credit: Sarah Alvarez / Michigan Radio
In the second piece in the Stockbridge series, State of Opportunity's Sarah Alvarez finds that despite their demographics, kids in the elementary s...

  • Added: May 13, 2013
  • Length: 03:34
Stockbridge's Exploratory Academy: no student wants a 'sick day'
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Stockbridge superintendent Bruce Brown, Credit: Logan Chadde
In the third piece in the Stockbridge series, State of Opportunity’s Sarah Alvarez tells us about an innovation educators have made work without an...

  • Added: May 13, 2013
  • Length: 03:38
Stockbridge Series: Is middle school worth the trouble?
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Students at Stockbridge middle school-where they are working hard to improve test scores, Credit: Angie Eagle
Middle school is a crucial time in kids education. It’s when many choose to succeed, or stop believing in themselves. But almost everyone ignores m...

  • Added: May 13, 2013
  • Length: 03:36
Stockbridge Series: Is college readiness enough?
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: A glimpse into technical classes at Stockbridge High School, Credit: Logan Chadde
Wrapping up our series on Stockbridge schools, State of Opportunity's Sarah Alvarez takes us to the high school, where college readiness and techni...

  • Added: May 13, 2013
  • Length: 03:45
A documentary on race, neighborhoods, schools, and kids in Michigan
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: State of Opportunity from Michigan Radio
If you think we live in a post-racial world…think again: statistically speaking, being born Black or Latino or Native American is associated with s...

  • Added: May 24, 2013
  • Length: 50:27
What you can learn about prejudice by putting kids in different colored shirts
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Piece image
Most parents want to believe they’re raising their kids to be free from prejudice. Racism … sexism … these are problems we don’t want to pass dow...

Bought by Delta College Public Radio and New Hampshire Public Radio


  • Added: Aug 09, 2013
  • Length: 03:41
  • Purchases: 2
How to get people off state assistance: "Just giving someone a job doesn't solve their problems."
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Amy Valderas
This is a story about how to move families off public assistance, and help private companies along the way. The story starts more than a decade ago...

Bought by Delta College Public Radio


  • Added: Aug 09, 2013
  • Length: 03:43
  • Purchases: 1
Essay: A former teen mom defies expectations
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Three generations of strong, determined woman: Jacquise Purifoy (mother), Jasmine (daughter), and Vivian (grandmother), Credit: Photo courtesy of Jacquise Purifoy
The latest Kids Count data show that roughly 11,000 teens gave birth in Michigan in 2010. Statistically speaking, teen parents are more likely to d...

  • Added: Aug 09, 2013
  • Length: 03:05
Drug shortages are affecting children in the NICU
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Bo Velarde-Chan, age 6, needs daily IV fluids to keep his body healthy, Credit: Jennifer Guerra / Michigan Radio
The State of Opportunity project focuses on kids and what it will take to get them ahead. At the most basic level, that means ensuring children are...

  • Added: Aug 09, 2013
  • Length: 04:12
Lake County has a wealth of natural beauty but few job opportunities
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: The Pere Marquette River runs through Lake County, Credit: Jennifer Guerra / Michigan Radio
Support for State of Opportunity comes from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, a partner with communities where children come first.

Bought by Delta College Public Radio


  • Added: Oct 04, 2013
  • Length: 04:05
  • Purchases: 1
Lake County's "promise" to make college affordable for low-income families
From: Michigan Radio
Series: State of Opportunity
Caption: Anthony Horton (left) and Willie Jones will use Baldwin Promise money to enroll in Muskegon Community College this fall, Credit: Jennifer Guerra / Michigan Radio
Support for State of Opportunity comes from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, a partner with communities where children come first.

  • Added: Oct 04, 2013
  • Length: 04:03