To ensure that community education serves as a pathway out of poverty for children in low-income communities by building a continuum of quality learning opportunities that stretches from the preschool years through preparation for higher education and the work force. There is ample evidence that more education lowers the probability of being poor. Education from birth to formal schooling, followed by increased academic achievement in the school system and higher education attainment, can greatly increase income and life chances for individuals of all racial backgrounds and income levels. Moreover, our economy and the American workplace have been fundamentally altered in recent decades, due largely to the introduction of new technologies and pressure from global competition.
Today there is increasing demand for skilled labor and decreasing demand for the unskilled.
In this context, community education is defined as the capacity of individuals in a low-income community to mobilize the community's assets and resources around the educational needs of children, youth and families. Community education is critical for community members isolated by poverty because they need help accessing mainstream education institutions, and holding those institutions accountable to their needs. Such an education system, which is composed of many institutions, associations and networks, is shaped by the community, sensitive to issues of racial justice and aligned around children's academic achievement. It is especially attuned to the needs of traditionally underserved children and families. The problem is most severe for young children and families living in poverty, because they are the least likely to have access to quality school readiness initiatives in their communities.