Education

Achievement gap widens between poorer, richer students

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By EDITH ZHOU
Capital News Service
LANSING – Michigan has 1.2 million families, with 2.3 million children, 42 percent of them live in low-income families, according to the National Center for Children in Poverty. And an achievement gap between them and wealthier children is widening, according to new research. That achievement gap is measured primarily by scores on standardized tests, said Pamela Davis-Kean, director of the Center for the Analysis of Pathways from Childhood to Adulthood at the University of Michigan. Davis-Kean, who studies influences of family environments on children’s development, said, “Parents’ income does have indirect influences on children’s school achievement since they don’t have extra money to pay for private day care or tutors.”
Davis-Kean’s research found that home environments are one cause of achievement gaps. “What’s more important are parents’ education levels.

Agriculture

‘Survival Mode’ for many dairy farmers

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BY EDITH ZHOU
Capital News Service
LANSING – Despite recent rains, the 2012 drought — the most destructive in 50 years — has driven many Michigan dairy farmers into “survival mode”. The dry weather reduced crop yields and tightened the feed supply, increasing the costs to farmers. “The low crop yields make this fall truly a change in seasons for Michigan’s dairy farmers,” said Staci Garcia, the executive director of communications at United Dairy Industry of Michigan in Okemos. Michigan had 5,164 licensed dairy farms in 1992. Today, the number stands at 2,100, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Agriculture

Mixed results for Michigan soybean crop

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By EDITH ZHOU
Capital News Service
LANSING – Like corn and apples, Michigan’s soybeans have been hit hard by the drought and extreme hot weather. “We are facing a 20 to 30 percent reduction of soybeans altogether compared to normal years,” said Tim Boring, research director of the Michigan Soybean Promotion Committee in Frankenmuth. According to figures from the committee, Michigan ranks 12th among nation’s 31 soybean-producing states. Nearly 2 million acres are planted annually in Michigan. The economic impact of soybean farming in 2011 was approximately $1.25 billion.

Business & Economy

Growth seen in alternative energy jobs

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By EDITH ZHOU
Capital News Service
LANSING –Michigan manufacturers employ 498,000 people, and more than 20,700 of them are in the alternative energy industry. According to the Michigan Manufacturers Association, these alternative energy production jobs account for 4.1 percent of all manufacturing jobs. The state Bureau of Labor Market Information counted less than 9,000 jobs in the alternative energy industry in 2009. The number of jobs grew by 133 percent in three years, partly because Michigan is home to the continent’s largest lithium ion battery manufacturer. The bureau found the wind energy industry is the biggest economic winner among renewable energy technologies.

Business & Economy

Home heating aid funds drop despite downturn

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By EDITH ZHOU
Capital News Service
LANSING – A new Vulnerable Household Warmth Fund in the Department of Human Services is temporarily replacing a decade-old state program to help low-income residents heat their homes this winter. The fund will provide $58 million to help consumers pay their gas and electric bills. That’s less than $87 million available last year and $89 million in 2010 when the program was under the public service commission, according to its reports. “With the cuts to the fund, many seniors and low-income residents will be paying more to keep their homes warm in the months ahead,” said Judy Putnam, the communications director of the Michigan League for Human Services, an advocacy group. “While the Vulnerable Household Warmth Fund is better than no assistance, it was a ‘fix’ to something that was never broken,” she said.