The invisible signs to look for on the first day of school - The Hechinger Report

The invisible signs to look for on the first day of school - The Hechinger Report

The invisible signs to look for on the first day of school
Hunger and homelessness hamper kids’ ability to learn

Last week, when many students were beginning the new academic year in some public schools in the United States, my family and I took a cruise to Cuba. My 7-year-old-son Roby could barely wait to get off the ship to enjoy the sights and sounds of Havana. This was not his first vacation abroad. In past trips, he had gawked at Big Ben in London, strolled through the United Nations in Geneva and fallen down a set of stair in the Eiffel Tower. (He always tells people, “Daddy let me fall!” to embarrass me.)

After docking in Old Havana, we strolled through the center of town, and the sight of classic automobiles cruising through the streets, carrying photo-happy tourists, delighted Roby. His eyes bounced between the horse-driven carriages, timeworn buildings and buskers singing folk songs. He saw women gyrating to the rhythms thumping from a standing bass and congas, reminiscent of the dancing he knew from his hometown of New Orleans.

Then something else caught his eye: the signs of poverty all around us. There were the feral cats that sat at our feet in restaurants, panhandlers on the roads, and ragged clothing worn by children at his eye level. At one point, Roby looked up to me and asked plainly, “Is this a poor country?”

Cuba is a communist country, and the government owns all the property and distributes goods and services meant to maintain equity among the populace. Our escort told all of us on tour that everyone had free health care, a good education and a home. “That’s good,” my son responded seriously.

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As we begin the school year, let’s not ignore the signs of poverty in the United States. Some families can afford to spend their August on vacation, learning from new places. Travel is an excellent teacher. However, there will be some children who will need to start school, not to get a better education, but to have a nutritious meal and shelter during the day. Many of those students will enter the school year with obvious signs of poverty: old, dirty uniforms, worn-down shoes and teeth that need a dentist’s chair. But we should not ignore the things we can’t see: low-quality health care, persistent hunger and housing insecurity.

When I look at public schools in the U.S., like my son, I ask, “Is this a poor country?”

The United States Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as a household condition of low or limited access to sufficient amounts of food, resulting in hunger. According to a 2016 report by the No Kid Hungry campaign, run by the nonprofit Share Our Continue Reading: The invisible signs to look for on the first day of school - The Hechinger Report