Tragically, violence, hunger, homelessness and abuse have become an unfortunate way of life for far too many students living in cities such as Trenton, where the school that I lead is located. Many students hear gunshots on a regular basis in their neighborhoods. Sometimes, they are threatened at gun- or knife-point or deal with the murder of a family member or friend. To make matters worse, these students are frequently forced to skip dinner or have to move from house to house or car to car for shelter at night. Some of them experience unthinkable abuse that causes even greater trauma to their young lives.
Many programs treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in war veterans; society is starting to realize how significant a problem this is for people who have fought for their country. Unfortunately, there are not enough programs to effectively treat this ailment suffered by public school students and their parents.
[For more of this story,written by Dale G. Caldwell, go to http://www.nj.com/opinion/inde...bility_to_learn.html]
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