Tashonia Hentz listens to the Rev. Starsky Wilson, president and CEO of the Children’s Defense Fund, during a forum on child poverty in East St. Louis, Ill., on Sept. 10, 2024. Sophie Proe St. Louis ...

Poverty statistics paint a stark picture, but they rarely tell the whole story. In 2024, the official national poverty rate ...

The anti-poverty charity, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said the figures should not be seen as "true fall" in poverty.

Spencer Platt / Getty Images A Nepalese immigrant in his early 40s described the stress and uncertainty he felt during college about how to afford rent, food and tuition despite having a scholarship.

The cost of basics like housing and food rose, while incomes and other resources, like public benefits, did not keep up.