It turns out that obese adolescent girls are half as likely to go to college as non-obese girls, according to a new study out of the University of Texas at Austin. (Via the Chronicle of Higher Education.)
The study, which tracked 11,000 teenagers, is another reminder at how complicated the intersection of poverty, hopelessness, and education can become. But no one should be fooled into thinking that getting these girls to simply shed a few pounds is going to suddenly make them Harvard-bound. This problem is so much deeper than that.