Education and Poverty:
The more education a person has, the less likely they will end up in poverty. 
The lack of education is not only a direct result of choice however; it is often based off the home-life situations and upbringing. With a strong home and good life decisions, people are found to be more successful in school. The more successful in school they are the higher degree they are able to get, therefore increasing their financial stability. This connection to education is a common barrier in a life of poverty. It is found that out of all the unemployed, 18.6% of those people are high school drop-outs.
Family Environment:
There are currently 77.9 million families estimated in the poverty state in our country. More specifically, one in every six children in our country is estimated to live in poverty. One leading contributing factor to these poverty-stricken children is their family structure. Single parenting is common in many of these situations, and more commonly single mothers. Because a child is more likely to live with their mother-figure after a separation, over 54% of young children are found to live in poverty due to poor female wages causing a great struggle for the single mother to be able to support her family.
Business Cycle:
In a period of recession, the working poor and the unemployed are the most affected. During a suffering economic period, less people buy goods, causing the demand to go down for products as well as workers to sell and distribute those products. 
During a period of general economic decline, sometimes working full time and earning minimum wage just isn’t enough to escape poverty. When the economic cycle is doing poorly, families who live on the edge of poverty often are pushed across the line.
Disabilities of Mental Health: People with disabilities are often very dependent on family members or public assistance because they are unable to Racial Injustice: Although we do not always see it in our Toledo area as a dramatic problem compared to other areas, racial injustice still exists and is a continuing challenge within the cycle of poverty. Minority groups are twice as likely to fall under the line of poverty compared to other majorities. Segregation and discrimination contributes to this unfortunate percentage of minorities in poverty.
completely support themselves. One of the biggest struggles is finding employment, and even if employment can be found in their condition, it is often only part-time. This causes them to be at great risk of falling under the poverty line. Other risks include addictions, medical problems, and poor nutrition. Abuse also is a risk which often leads to mental health problems which makes a greater challenge to find jobs and financial support for themselves.
