Paying Kids to Get a Library Card/Go to the Dentist

Parents Forum
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<p>What do you think? Does Opportunity NYC increase the risk of creating a poverty mentality or will it make a difference for the lives of the kids?</p>

<p>"Under the direction of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the city of New York is trying something truly new. Under the rubric of Opportunity NYC, a sizable sample of “children, adults, and families living in poverty” will be paid cash for making “decisions that will improve their prospects for the future.”</p>

<p>Some of the rewards focus on education: $25 per month for attending school regularly, $25 for going to a parent-teacher conference, $600 for accumulating 11 high school credits per year, $50 for acquiring a library card. Others are health-driven: $20 a month for staying in subsidized insurance, $100 for getting preventive dental care. There are also workforce incentives—$150 per month for working full-time, or $200 for taking an approved training program.</p>

<p>Opportunity NYC is privately funded by large foundations, including the Rockefeller Foundation, as well as by Michael Bloomberg himself. If the pilot is deemed successful there are plans to roll it out as a tax-supported government program"</p>

<p>Full Story: <a href=“http://www.american.com/archive/2007/july-0707/sometimes-cash-incentives-can-hurt[/url]”>http://www.american.com/archive/2007/july-0707/sometimes-cash-incentives-can-hurt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>See thread</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=361112&highlight=preventative[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=361112&highlight=preventative&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Maybe I should try that to get my kid to go to the dentist while he is living on his own ($100!)</p>