KIDS COUNT News
2009 West Virginia KIDS COUNT Data Book
January 27, 2010
2009 KIDS COUNT Data Book: Most Indicators of Child Well-Being Show Solid Improvement Statewide
Low Birth-Weight Babies, Children Approved for Free and Reduced Price Lunches and Dropout Rates Continue to Get Worse
Charleston, W. Va. – According to the 2009 West Virginia KIDS COUNT Data Book, eight of the twelve key indicators of child well-being have shown solid improvement since the start of the new millennium. The most dramatic improvements have been in the percent of eligible children served by Head Start (a 23.4% improvement) and the juvenile delinquency case rate (an 18.2% improvement). However, according to the KIDS COUNT report, three important indicators of child well-being have gotten worse. The percent of low birth-weight babies increased from 8.4% in 2000 to 9.6% in 2007, a worsening of 13.7%. The percent of children approved for free and reduced price school meals increased from 49.5% in 2000 to 53.6% in 2007, a worsening of 8.4% and evidence of increasing child poverty. And, the percent of high school dropouts increased from 16.4% in 2000 to 17.0% in 2007, a worsening of 3.7%. “For the most part, the well-being of West Virginia’s children has improved significantly since 2000,” says Margie Hale, Executive Director of the West Virginia KIDS COUNT Fund. “For organizations like KIDS COUNT that advocate for children’s needs, this represents a major victory in our efforts to invest in the public structures children need to thrive and achieve. However, we are still troubled by the continued increase in the percent of low birth-weight babies, child poverty and the dropout rate. We need stronger supports for pregnant women. And we need to invest in improving the quality of childcare because we know those investments will dramatically reduce the number of kids who drop out of school.”
Below is the overall, 2009 statewide profile for each of the twelve KIDS COUNT indicators of child well-being:
|
Indicators
|
2000 Rate/Percent
|
2007 Rate/Percent
|
2007 U.S. Rate/Percent
|
Better/
Worse
|
|
Percent low birth-weight babies
|
8.4%
|
9.6%
|
8.2%
|
13.7% worse
|
|
Infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births)
|
7.9
|
7.5
|
6.6
|
4.8% better
|
|
Child death rate (age 1-14 per 100,000 children)
|
24.5
|
22.9
|
19.1
|
6.7% better
|
|
Percent eligible children served by Head Start (ages 3-4)
|
59.5%
|
73.4%
|
NA
|
23.4% better
|
|
Indicators
|
2000 Rate/Percent
|
2007 Rate/Percent
|
2007 U.S. Rate/Percent
|
Better/
Worse
|
|
Percent children approved for free and reduced price school meals (K-12)
|
49.4%
|
53.6%
|
38.8%
|
8.4% worse
|
|
Child abuse/neglect rate (per 1,000 children)
|
NA
|
19.6
|
10.6
|
NM
|
|
Teen birth rate (ages 15-19 per 1,000 females)
|
46.3
|
42.3
|
42.6
|
8.7% better
|
|
Percent births to unmarried teens (ages 10-19)
|
9.6%
|
9.6%
|
9.0%
|
0.0%
|
|
Percent high school dropouts
|
16.4%
|
17.0%
|
NA
|
3.7% worse
|
|
Juvenile delinquency case rate (ages 10-17 per 1,000 youths)
|
30.6
|
25.0
|
NA
|
18.2% better
|
|
Teen injury death rate (ages 15-19 per 100,000 teens)
|
67.5
|
62.0
|
NA
|
8.2% better
|
|
Percent births to mothers with less than a 12th grade education
|
19.4%
|
18.3%
|
NA
|
5.5% better
|
The 2009 KIDS COUNT Data Book can be downloaded free at www.wvkidscountfund.org. In addition to a statewide profile of child well-being, the publication also includes county-by-county profiles and rankings and key facts related to early child development in West Virginia. Often, these early child development (ECD) facts highlight the need for greater investment in young children, for example, the number of children under six who need childcare (64,000) versus the number of accredited childcare centers (29).
The ECD facts from the 2009 KIDS COUNT Data Book are:
Number of children under age six - 126,493
Percent of children under age six with all available parents
in the labor force - 50.6%
Number of registered family day care homes - 1,938
Percent of family childcare providers who are graduates
of the Apprenticeship for Child Development Specialist program - 5.3%
Number of family childcare facilities - 100
Number of licensed childcare centers - 367
Percent childcare centers that are accredited - 7.9%
Percent four year olds enrolled in Pre-K - 50.6%
Traditionally, KIDS COUNT includes an essay as part of its Data Book, but, this year, the KIDS COUNT Data Book Essay, “The Kids First Communities Campaign: A Playbook for Early Child Development Policy Change,” was published separately and is available for free download from the KIDS COUNT website at www.wvkidscountfund.org/publications.php.
This year’s essay is a case study of KIDS COUNT’s successful Kids First Communities Campaign. In March of 2008, KIDS COUNT launched a grassroots campaign to bring parents, childcare providers and community leaders together to advocate for a childcare quality rating and improvement system (QRIS). The campaign, which relied heavily on grassroots organizing by six, regional “Kids First Communities,” spanned one year and culminated with new legislation creating the framework for West Virginia’s first system to rate and improve the quality of childcare. The KIDS COUNT essay is a how-to manual for other non-profit organizations that want to strengthen their grassroots advocacy and bring about policy change to improve child well-being.
“Our goal for the campaign was to secure new state funding for a childcare quality rating and improvement system (QRIS). Our regional approach to grassroots organizing played a critical role in achieving the first step toward that goal: the legislative framework for a QRIS.” said Hale. “In fact, the regional approach was so successful that we’ve made it a permanent part of the KIDS COUNT infrastructure. We hope this year’s Data Book Essay will inspire like-minded advocacy groups to use similar grassroots strategies in their own work for children.”
In addition to the downloadable version of the 2009 Data Book, county-specific data and links to the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s interactive Data Center are also available on the KIDS COUNT website at http://www.wvkidscountfund.org/interactive-data-tools.php. Hard copies of the Data Book and the essay are available for $25 from the West Virginia KIDS COUNT Fund, 1031 Quarrier Street, Suite 313, Charleston, WV 25301 or by calling (304) 345-2101 or (888) 543-7268.
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For 20 years, the West Virginia KIDS COUNT Fund has been the state's most trusted source of information about the well-being of children and a leader in the effort to educate parents, policymakers and the public about what young children need to thrive and achieve. KIDS COUNT has published the annual report of data on the status of West Virginia’s children since 1992. The organization’s vision is to create a culture that values, nurtures and realizes the potential of our youngest children. KIDS COUNT’s current focus is advocating for investments that will improve the quality of West Virginia’s childcare system and recognizing and supporting businesses that adopt childcare-friendly policies. To learn more about the organization’s mission, history and programs, go to www.wvkidscountfund.org.
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- 9/18/2008
- Statewide Celebration Will Honor Childcare Providers
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- West Virginia 44th in the National in Child Well-Being
- 3/20/2008
- Statewide Effort to Build Support for New Investments in Childcare Quality Under Way
- 2/19/2008
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