Question

Great Society Successes
Based on what you have read, choose each response below that correctly describes a success of Johnson’s Great Society legislation.

Check all of the boxes that apply.

a drop in the poverty rate

the end of Head Start

an increased graduation rate

a decrease in substandard housing

a rise in infant mortality rate

an expansion of medical coverage for the poor

Answer 1

Correct choices:

- a drop in the poverty rate — Yes. The War on Poverty and related programs helped reduce the official poverty rate in the 1960s.
- an increased graduation rate — Yes. Federal education aid (Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Head Start, etc.) contributed to higher school completion rates.
- a decrease in substandard housing — Yes. HUD programs and urban renewal efforts reduced the amount of substandard housing (though results were mixed by locality).
- an expansion of medical coverage for the poor — Yes. Medicaid (1965) extended medical coverage to many low‑income Americans.

Incorrect choices:

- the end of Head Start — No. Head Start was created by the Great Society, not ended.
- a rise in infant mortality rate — No. Infant mortality fell during this period rather than rose.