Educational inequity is the reality that where a child is born determines the quality of his or her education and life prospects.
Educational inequity starts early and gets worse over time.
- By the time they reach fourth grade, children living in low-income communities are already two to three grades behind their higher-income peers.
- Just half of students in low-income communities will graduate high school by age 18. Those who do graduate will perform on average at an eighth-grade level.
- Overall, only 1 in 10 students growing up in poverty will graduate from college.
Educational inequity prevents children from fulfilling their potential.
It limits life choices, professional options, and incomes, and weakens families and communities. Because children in low-income communities are predominantly children of color, they also face the added burden of societal low expectations and discrimination.
Educational inequity undermines our nation's economic strength.
A McKinsey & Company study indicates that educational inequity costs the country $500 billion each year, which is the equivalent of a permanent national recession.
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