Giving Compass' Take:

• Chalkbeat reports on evidence that anti-poverty programs can help young students in low-income households get better test scores and graduate from high school.

• Which programs are most effective in this regard? The Earned Income Tax Credit is one that's been linked to better outcomes, but those in the education sector have a wide range to explore.

• Here's a crash course for donors who want to make an impact on K-12 education.

When Marquita, a Memphis mother of six, became homeless, her children began to struggle in school. “The kids were just out of control,” she said. “Their grades weren’t the same.”

"What people don't understand is what adults go through, kids go through it too,” she said. “I didn’t know kids get depressed until I went through this situation.”

Marquita, who asked that her last name be withheld to discuss her living situation and her children’s mental health, said she became homeless because she was pushed out of her apartment when she filed a lawsuit about poor conditions. She wasn’t able to find and afford a new place immediately, so over the course of three months, she stayed with friends, rented hotel rooms, or slept in her car. Marquita washed clothes at her kids’ school, which had a washing machine.

“It was a journey,” she said.

Marquita eventually found a permanent place to live with the support of a local “rapid rehousing” program, which also paid her first six months of rent. It immediately made a difference for her kids.

Read the full article about boosting test scores by helping low-income families by Matt Barnum at Chalkbeat.