South Carolina ranks 45th in the nation for child well-being, according to the 20th annual KIDS COUNT Data Book released Tuesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
Last year, the state was ranked 46th in the nation.
Through the data book, state residents, lawmakers and child advocates can view national and state-by-state information as well as statistical trends on the conditions of children and families across the nation.
The data book compares states on 10 core indicators or measures of child well-being: infant mortality rate; low-birthweight babies; child death rate; teen death rate; teen birth rate; high school dropouts; children in single-parent families; teens not attending school and not working; children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment; and children in poverty.
From 2000 to 2006, the state has improved in six of the 10 measures.
For example, the state showed 9 percent of teens not attending school and not working compared to 12 percent in 2000.
At the same time, the state was becoming worse in the areas of low birthweight; families with children without secure employment; children in poverty; and children in single-parent families.
In 2006, the state ranked 47th in the nation for percentage of low birthweight babies. The state had 10.1 percent while the national percentage was 8.3 percent.
Low birthweight is a weight at birth which is less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces.
Other highlights from the data book:
- In 2000, 187,275 children from birth to 18 years old were living in households with incomes below the poverty level. Any child living in a family of two adults and two children with an annual income below $21,027 is consider by the foundation to be impoverished.
- The percentage of people aged 18 to 24 that didn’t complete high school in 2000 was 16.8 percent.
- Children born to mothers with less than a high school education in 2006 was 23.9 percent.
- A little over 45 percent of children born in the state during 2006 were to single mothers.
In the 2009 KIDS COUNT Data Book essay, “Counting What Counts,” the foundation calls for federal, state and local leaders to look at developing high-quality data systems so that the systems can be used to improve the lives of children.
“Access to timely and easily understood data can lead to better-informed policies, more focused programming, and more efficient use of taxpayer dollars,” Patrick McCarthy, senior vice president of the Casey Foundation, said in a foundation press release. “Despite the temptations to cut back on government-financed systems during hard economic times, ensuring that policy makers and managers have the information they need to make critically important decisions can deliver an immense payoff in reduced waste and improved results for children.”
A private charitable organization, the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s primary mission is to foster public policies, human-service reforms, and community supports that more effectively meet the needs of today’s children and families.
The entire Kids Count Data Book and information on individual counties can be found at http://datacenter.kidscount.org.
On the Web
Annie E. Casey Foundation, www.aecf.org
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