Challenges Children Face in Appalachia (West Virginia)

I chose to research Appalachia because I grew up in that region of the country and every time I go home to visit family, I see the struggles of the people there.  I will specifically talk about West Virginia; I lived in Ohio but was only twenty minutes from the border of West Virginia.  I attended Marshall University located in Huntington, West Virginia so I am very familiar with the area.

During the presidential race of 1969, the Democratic candidates were fighting for the support of West Virginia.  It was during this campaign that John F. Kennedy shocked the nation by exposing the extreme poverty that existed in this state.  It was unbelievable that the level of poor health care, poor nutrition, and hunger existed at this point in American history since the rest of the country was enjoying unprecedented economic growth and prosperity (Pore, n.d.).  A War on Poverty was declared and over the next 45 years, the area went through and amazing transformation.  Several health and nutrition programs were started to include food stamp program, Women, Infant, Child Nutrition (WIC), and various health programs that brought medical care and modern medicine to the area.  Not only did these programs provide services to the people, they educated the people on how to care for their children and themselves.  The people who worked for the organizations providing services were from the surrounding area so they could empathize and relate to the people in need.  This built the credibility of these programs and encouraged people to reach out and accept help.

Although the health and nutrition programs have greatly assisted the people of West Virginia since their inception, today the people face a new set of challenges.  Instead of hunger and malnutrition, the people are fighting obesity and the diseases associated with obesity, rampant drug abuse, divorce, domestic violence, and murder (Pore, n.d.).  The people are still living in poverty and the children are suffering.  There have been several attempts to improve quality of early childcare and education, but they have all failed to meet the mark due to under funding.  Pore noted a study of the surrounding eight states revealed that West Virginia investments in early childhood are behind all states, except Virginia.  (That is just fantastic since we live in Virginia!)  In terms of obesity, it has been said that Huntington, West Virginia is the fattest city in the country.  Jamie Oliver, famous food personality/chef, completed a documentary-type program to bring attention to the obesity problem in Huntington.  It is very sad and very true.

There are many,many problems facing the people of West Virginia, one of the scariest being the lack of support and attention to early childhood.  Even though we know that early childhood education is one of the greatest investments we can make, not much movement is taking place to get programs on track.  Some teachers in West Virginia have been heard to say that they know at age five years old which kids will be successful and which ones will not.  How can we allow people to give up so easily?  I agree with Pore…failure at five is unacceptable!

Pore, R. (n.d.). Investing in the Potential of Children: A Strategy to Promote Sustainable Growth in Central Appalachia. Retrieved from http://appalachiantransition.org/essays