Economists may assert that we’re in the early stages of a recovery, but surveys continue to show that the impact of the Great Recession on American families is deep, widespread and grim. A Pew Research poll published last month indicated that more than half of all adults in the U.S. labor force had experienced some “work-related hardship” — a period of unemployment, a pay cut, a reduction in work hours or an involuntary move to part-time employment — since the recession began in December 2007.

This summer, some Boston public school ninth-graders have been asked to write their innermost thoughts and offer them to PostSecret, a group art project that publishes anonymous secrets sent on postcards online and in print. Of the nearly 370 ninth-graders in summer school, 125 are wrapping up a new arts-centric curriculum the city piloted this year to help students grapple with social issues through creative outlets.

For the third consecutive day, a top Chicago police official held a news briefing as the department struggles to get out its message that crime isn't out of control despite headline-grabbing stories about the city's daily violence. On Monday it was police Superintendent Jody Weis, who highlighted that homicides have dropped sharply over the last two decades and, for the first seven months of 2010, are holding about even with last year. He also noted other violent crimes have plummeted since the early 1990s.

The nation commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act last week. But a number of Americans have yet to fully benefit from the law. Individuals living with disabilities are disproportionally poor, many of whom live in low-income urban areas that sometimes lack necessary services or physical accommodations. Host Michel Martin talks with disabled rights activist Bobby Coward and Deidre Davis, the first director of ADA services for retail giant Walmart.

The housing crisis has been a roller coaster ride for many families, a journey riddled with scams aimed at people in precarious situations. Foreclosure rescue scams target those who’ve fallen behind in their mortgage payments and whose homes are in danger of foreclosure. Latino communities are being especially hard hit by these schemes.

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Education announced 19 finalists in the second round of the "Race to the Top" program, which will award some $3.4 billion to winners. In an interview with NPR's Michele Norris, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that many of the 35 applicants — 34 states, plus the District of Columbia — had improved on their first-round proposals, and he expects to allocate money to more than half the finalists.

March was a weird month for Mae O'Brien to begin her new job as executive director of HealthLink Medical Center, a free clinic serving the working uninsured in Bucks and Montgomery Counties. That's because March was the same month that President Obama signed the federal Affordable Care Act, with its promise of increased access for all.

March was a weird month for Mae O'Brien to begin her new job as executive director of HealthLink Medical Center, a free clinic serving the working uninsured in Bucks and Montgomery Counties. That's because March was the same month that President Obama signed the federal Affordable Care Act, with its promise of increased access for all.

For many college students and their families, rising tuition costs and a tough economy are presenting new challenges as college bills come in. This has led to a little-known but growing population of financially stressed students, who are facing hunger and sometimes even homelessness. UCLA has created an Economic Crisis Response Team to try to identify financially strapped students and help keep them in school.

For many college students and their families, rising tuition costs and a tough economy are presenting new challenges as college bills come in. This has led to a little-known but growing population of financially stressed students, who are facing hunger and sometimes even homelessness. UCLA has created an Economic Crisis Response Team to try to identify financially strapped students and help keep them in school.

The pain coursing through American families is all too real and no one seems to know what to do about it. A rigorous new analysis for the Rockefeller Foundation shows that Americans are more economically insecure now than they have been in a quarter of a century, and the trend lines suggest that things will only get worse.

The pain coursing through American families is all too real and no one seems to know what to do about it. A rigorous new analysis for the Rockefeller Foundation shows that Americans are more economically insecure now than they have been in a quarter of a century, and the trend lines suggest that things will only get worse.

Chase took the city test for the public schools’ gifted and talented kindergarten program, but missed the 90th-percentile cutoff, she said. Ms. Stewart, a single mom working two jobs, didn’t think the process was fair. She had heard widespread reports of wealthy families preparing their children for the kindergarten gifted test with $90 workbooks, $145-an-hour tutoring and weekend “boot camps.”

Chase took the city test for the public schools’ gifted and talented kindergarten program, but missed the 90th-percentile cutoff, she said. Ms. Stewart, a single mom working two jobs, didn’t think the process was fair. She had heard widespread reports of wealthy families preparing their children for the kindergarten gifted test with $90 workbooks, $145-an-hour tutoring and weekend “boot camps.”

Thousands of mentally disabled immigrants are entangled in deportation proceedings each year with little or no legal help, leaving them distraught, defenseless and detained as their fates are decided. Their plight is detailed in a report issued Sunday by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union, who exhort federal authorities to do better.

Thousands of mentally disabled immigrants are entangled in deportation proceedings each year with little or no legal help, leaving them distraught, defenseless and detained as their fates are decided. Their plight is detailed in a report issued Sunday by Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union, who exhort federal authorities to do better.

Hispanics are eager to blend into American society while still maintaining their cultural identity, a paradox that reflects the complex beliefs of the nation’s fastest-growing minority. And most don’t expect the United States to elect a Latino president in the next 20 years. Those are some of the findings from an Associated Press-Univision poll of more than 1,500 Latinos. In addition, the survey suggests Hispanics worry more than most Americans about losing jobs and paying bills. They place a high importance on education and expect their children to go to college.

Hispanics are eager to blend into American society while still maintaining their cultural identity, a paradox that reflects the complex beliefs of the nation’s fastest-growing minority. And most don’t expect the United States to elect a Latino president in the next 20 years. Those are some of the findings from an Associated Press-Univision poll of more than 1,500 Latinos. In addition, the survey suggests Hispanics worry more than most Americans about losing jobs and paying bills. They place a high importance on education and expect their children to go to college.

Alex Williamson, 8, doesn't look very hungry — in fact, he's a little chubby. But Alex, who lives in Carlisle, Pa., is one of 17 million children who live in U.S. households where getting enough food is a challenge. The Obama administration has pledged to end childhood hunger in America by 2015. A key element of that challenge is to make sure the food hungry children eat is nutritious. They're lofty goals that will be difficult to achieve.

Alex Williamson, 8, doesn't look very hungry — in fact, he's a little chubby. But Alex, who lives in Carlisle, Pa., is one of 17 million children who live in U.S. households where getting enough food is a challenge. The Obama administration has pledged to end childhood hunger in America by 2015. A key element of that challenge is to make sure the food hungry children eat is nutritious. They're lofty goals that will be difficult to achieve.