The Leadership Initiative for Faith and Education is focused on outcomes for America’s most vulnerable students.
By The Numbers
We look at data and factors that affect these students - from how many students receive Free and Reduced Priced Lunches (FRPL) to the impacts that religion has on minority communities and their families to the widespread effects of poverty, not only on education but on many other factors that affect student achievement
350K+
Religious Congregations in America
(Churches, Temples, Mosques)
Did you know...
over
51%
of public school K-12 students in the U.S. are considered to be from low-income backgrounds.
Poor children are
6x more likely
to attend a 'high poverty' public school
Black
45%
White
7%
Percentage of students attending high-poverty schools
Poverty Not Only Affects Education, But Also...
economic opportunity
access to healthcare
housing
transportation
"There are two rivers [faith-inspired and secular human service organizations] running in parallel, and the separation is not to the benefit of progress."
- ROSANNE HAGGERTY
PRESIDENT AND CEO, COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS
Our Founder
Our Director
Irvin Scott, Ed.D.
Irvin Scott joined the faculty of Harvard Graduate School of Education during the summer of 2016. At Harvard, Scott's concentration is educational leadership. In 2017, Scott was tapped to lead a new initiative at Harvard to bring faith and education communities together in what became the Leadership Initiative for Faith and Education (LIFE).
"As people of faith in the United States, we experience vast differences in what we believe and how we practice those beliefs; however, I am convinced that what we can agree on is that there are too many children in this country who live in poverty, and one of the ways to right that is through learning, growth and achievement. "
-DR. IRVIN SCOTT
SENIOR LECTURER OF EDUCATION
HARVARD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION