ATLANTA—December 22, 2010: This report by the Southern Education Foundation reveals that extreme poverty was the fastest growing income group in America in 2009. The number of people living below 50 percent of the poverty threshold increased by more than 2.1 million at a rate of 12.9 percent.

The report also finds that the number of children in extreme poverty grew in 2009 at virtually the same rate. More than 770,000 children became extremely poor. The South had the lion’s share of America’s extremely poor children – 42.2 percent. The West and Midwest had barely half that share, and the Northeast had only 14.7 percent of the country’s poorest children. Eleven of the 15 states with the highest rates of extreme poverty in 2009 were in the South.

Based on Census data relased in late 2010, the 23-page report provides data on extreme poverty rates by race and ethnicity in 2009 for each of the 50 states. It also includes maps, graphs, and charts illustrating changes in extreme poverty across states, regions, and the nation.

In addition, the update discusses the implications these trends have for education in the South and the nation.

This update follows a report issued in June, 2010 (The Worst of Times: Children in Extreme Poverty in the South and Nation) using 2008 Census data in analyzing extreme poverty among children in school districts across the United States.