The 10 worst states for kids to grow up
I'm shocked, shocked to tell you that red states dominate this list.
The 10 worst states for kids to grow up
Published: Sunday, January 29, 2012
NEW YORK -- Oh, children. When will they learn? Never, it turns out, if they happen to live in one of the states in the U.S. with a poor record of quality of life for kids. In the Foundation for Child Development's latest Child and Youth Well-Being Index, the group looked at 28 indicators (most focusing on children under 18 but some including young adults in their 20s) in seven categories to calculate its state-by-state index. The seven areas include family economic well-being, health, safe/risky behavior, educational attainment, community engagement, social relationships and emotional/spiritual well-being, which were given specific weights to calculate the index, on a scale of -1 to 1.
"This report shows that a strong relationship exists between children's well-being and state policies that drive investments in children," the report says. "The gap between public opinion and public investments in children remains large."
A child's well-being is strongly related to the state where he or she lives, the Foundation for Child Development says in a report.
The study's findings paint a wide spectrum of childhood well-being in the U.S., indicating that "a child's well-being is strongly related to the state where he or she lives."
Among the other key findings:
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http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2012/01/29/news/doc4f25b23185867147918314.txt?viewmode=fullstory
toddwv
(2,830 posts)hfojvt
(37,573 posts)the ten reddest states by victory margin in the 2008 election
Wy - 32.24
Ok - 31.29
Ut - 28.02
Id - 25.30
Al - 21.58
Ak - 21.54
Ark - 19.85
La - 18.63
Ky - 16.22
Tn - 15.06
Ne - 14.93
Ks - 14.92
Okay, that is 12, but notice that 3 of the 4 deepest red states are not on the list of 10 worst states for kids. Arizona's victory margin for McCain was only 8.48, and neighboring New Mexico and Nevada both went for Obama by over 10%. Yes, the worst state for kids is a blue state. Arkansas by the way only went for Bush by 9.76 in 2004. It became deep red in 2008 because of what Obama did to Hillary, their native daughter, as it were, in the primary.
The deepest red states in 2004
Utah - 45.54
Wy - 39.79
Id - 38.12
Ne - 33.22
Ok - 31.14
ND - 27.36
Al - 25.62
Ak - 25.55
Ks - 25.38
Tx - 22.86
SD - 21.47
Mt - 20.50
Ky - 19.86
Ms - 19.69
Again, the four deepest red states are not on the list of ten worst for kids. I would also note that the West is deeper red than the south. Some of that may come from the triage. Kerry, having limited resources in a close race, did not bother to campaign in places like ND or Ne or Ks or Ok or SD. The Obama campaign, having more copious resources in 2008, put some effort into those states. It did not really pay off, except in lowering the margin of victory, but Obama won a number of traditionally red states like Nevada, Colorado, Virginia, North Carolina and Indiana. In a perhaps closer race, it may once again make sense to write off ND and Ks instead of wasting limited resources chasing after 9 electoral votes you are not gonna win anyway.
seabeyond
(110,159 posts)10th-worst state for kids: Kentucky (tie)
10th-worst state for kids: Alaska (tie)
Eighth-worst state for kids: Oklahoma
Seventh-worst state for kids: Alabama
Sixth-worst state for kids: Arizona
Fifth-worst state for kids: Nevada
Fourth-worst state for kids: Arkansas
Third-worst state for kids: Louisiana
Second-worst State for Kids: Mississippi
The worst state for kids: New Mexico
get the red out
(13,468 posts)We just about always make the top ten in all things miserable and basketball.
Thank God for basketball.
seabeyond
(110,159 posts)all things miserable. but you have basketball.
Kablooie
(18,641 posts)But of course they have Disney World so how could it be a bad state for kids?
PatentlyDemocratic
(89 posts)I lived more than a decade in each state. I went to school in Alabama, and I noticed a significant step down when I arrived in Florida. The school days are ridiculously short, the schools are underfunded, and the curriculum is centered around the FCAT.
Obviously it depends on where you go to school, but I received a good education from Alabama public schools. The problems that I observed were mostly from a lack of good parenting, although I suppose that is true everywhere.
Liberal_Stalwart71
(20,450 posts)dawg
(10,624 posts)the authors concluded that our stunning good looks made up for any possible shortfalls in education and culture.
Liberal_Stalwart71
(20,450 posts)Alcibiades
(5,061 posts)I assume they are #11. Georgia's not nearly so bad as it once was, as YGA achieved national recognition as the #1 party school a couple of years ago.
Liberal_Stalwart71
(20,450 posts)to Emory (my alma mater) or Georgia Tech. It's getting better now, but it's difficult to shake that reputation.
zbdent
(35,392 posts)oh, wait ... states as in divisions of the U.S. ?
Kurmudgeon
(1,751 posts)They used to be and often still are members of the "worst states" list gang.
I think what has happened is the interstates built over the last several decades have opened up the state to both better access and people from outside.
West Virginia is much more cosmopolitan than it used to be, though it still has a long way to go.
Major Hogwash
(17,656 posts). . but they can't see Russia from their house!!
Boo-yah!!
Art_from_Ark
(27,247 posts)and whose nieces and nephews all grew up in Arkansas, I find it very hard to believe that the whole state is the 4th worst in the nation for kids. Maybe the situation is different in other parts of the state, but my area (Northwest) is not bad at all for kids. And I can certainly think of a lot of places in the US that are not on that list where I would never want to try to raise kids.
provis99
(13,062 posts)Things must be improving there.
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)And six others...
Chico Man
(3,001 posts)I've spent some time in the Navajo country of northern AZ and NM, this is not a surprise.
dipsydoodle
(42,239 posts).
BlueIris
(29,135 posts)Sick as hell that there is any place in this country where children are so neglected, let alone many.
DonCoquixote
(13,616 posts)I iknow the powers that be hate education and children. If ten states managed to be worse then Florida, then these places have to be hellholes!
xocet
(3,873 posts)Here is a link to the report, Investing in Public Programs Matters: How State Policies Impact Childrens Lives, 2012 STATE Child and Youth Well-Being Index (CWI), that lists the rankings of all of the states:
http://fcd-us.org/sites/default/files/STATE%20CWI%20Report.pdf .
Please see Table 2: State Rankings on Overall Child Well-Being 2007 on pages 6 and 7 for the top ten states:
Rank* State Index Value
1 New Jersey 0.85
2 Massachusetts 0.84
3 New Hampshire 0.77
4 Utah 0.75
5 Connecticut 0.74
6 Minnesota 0.73
7 Iowa 0.59
8 North Dakota 0.56
9 Maryland 0.53
10 New York 0.46
One should note that the 2012 report is based on 2007 data as is mentioned on page 2 of the report:
This study presents results for 2007, because this is the most recent year for which data are available from the National Survey of Childrens Health (NSCH), the only state-level source for several key indicators of child well-being. The relationships linking state tax rates, policies and CWI values, which have been calculated and presented for the first time in this report, are consistent with earlier studies involving more specific analyses and are likely to be quite stable from year to year.
This report was funded by the Foundation for Child Development and the Annie E. Casey Foundation.