Kids Count Report – Michigan

Posted on January 12, 2010 by townsend

• Kids Count: Report card mixed on the welfare of Saginaw County children, By Barrie Barber, January 12, 2010, Saginaw News: “The welfare of Saginaw County children received mixed grades in an annual report card released today. The Kids Count in Michigan Data Book 2009 report compiles federal and state information to chart children’s well-being. The county counted more kids in poverty and more child abuse and neglect cases, but the number of fourth- and eight-graders deemed proficient in state standardized math test was up and the high school drop-out rate declined, the report said…”
• Child health signs mixed in Michigan, By Elizabeth Willis, January 12, 2010, Battle Creek Enquirer: “It is no surprise that more children in Michigan were born into poverty in recent years, and that their health has been affected by it, according to a report released today. Calhoun County’s youngest children were among the most vulnerable in Michigan, according to the Kids Count in Michigan Data Book 2009, an annual project of the Michigan League for Human Services. The infant death rate increased significantly in Calhoun County, though the state rate declined. The county had the third-worst infant mortality rate among the 54 counties reporting. There are 83 counties in Michigan…”
• Report: Poverty rates for rural Michigan higher than Wayne County, Associated Press, January 11, 2010, MLive.com: “Some of Michigan’s relatively rural northern counties have a higher percentage of children living in poverty than the state’s big urban counties, according to a study released Tuesday. The latest Kids Count report says one of every five children in Michigan lived in a family with income below the federal poverty level in 2007. Poverty was defined as income below roughly $17,000 for a family of three led by a single parent or $21,000 for a family of four with two parents…”
• Child poverty, neglect on rise in Michigan, By Catherine Jun, January 12, 2010, Detroit News: “Childhood poverty, neglect and abuse continue to rise in Michigan, troubling signs that children continue to bear the brunt of the state’s economic woes, according to a report released today. More than 40 percent of Michigan students were eligible and received free or reduced federal lunches in 2008, according to Kids Count in Michigan, a report released by the Michigan League of Human Services. That’s up from 30.7 percent in 2001. Even in Oakland County, the state’s wealthiest county, more children (age 17 and younger) are falling into poverty: 11 percent compared with 8.6 percent in 2005. Statewide, one in five children lives in poverty…”
• Growing child poverty in Michigan must be addressed, Editorial, January 12, 2010, Detroit News: “A new Kids Count report shows that growing poverty is taking a toll in Michigan and serves as a reminder of the importance of a healthy education system. The report released today by the Michigan League for Human Services and Michigan’s Children finds state childhood poverty rose 6 percent between 2005 and 2007, with nearly one in every five children in Michigan living in poverty. The number of students receiving free or reduced-priced lunches increased 14 percent between 2006 and 2008 — meaning more than two of every five public school K-12 students participate in the school lunch program at free or reduced prices…”