BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
Telegraph Editor
Each community has its strengths and weaknesses when it comes to the well-being of its children, and a recent report published by the Florida Policy Institute shines a light on the strengths and weaknesses of Florida counties.
Information in the 2021 County Rankings for Child Well-Being is sourced from KIDS COUNT, a project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Each year, the foundation produces a report — the KIDS COUNT Data Book — that assesses child well-being in the United States.
According to FPI, “The outcomes in communities are not accidental. Counties with higher rankings tend to be well-resourced places, where families can afford to invest in things like high-quality childcare, education and other opportunities for their children. Counties that rank near the middle tend to have a mixture of well-resourced and less well-resourced areas, such as some larger counties with a combination of big cities and suburban and rural areas. Counties with lower rankings tend to be places that have borne the brunt of the state’s disinvestment in public services and where people face historic barriers to economic opportunity.”
The major categories explored are economic well-being, education, health, and family and community.
Bradford
Ranked 59 out 67 counties for child well-being, Bradford’s highest ranking was in the category of family and community. It was 37th on the list. Verified maltreatment of children dropped from 12.6% to 4.3%, and youth contact with juvenile justice fell from 33.5% to 17.5% when comparing numbers from 2015 and 2020. However, the percentage of children living in single-parent families was up from 31.8% to 39.6%.
Bradford ranked 55th in the state for child economic well-being. There were 1% fewer children living in poverty from 2014 to 2019, but the percentage was still high —27.2%. In addition, 25.9% of families deal with high housing costs, unemployment has increased, and more than 15% of teens are not in school and not working, according to the report.
Child health made Bradford 56th in the state. A higher percentage of children are insured, and fewer high schoolers are engaging in alcohol and drug abuse. However, the percentage of overweight and obese first-, third- and sixth-graders grew to 42.8% in 2020, and the number of low-birthweight babies more than doubled from 2014 to 2019.
Education was the county’s lowest ranking category, placing it 65th out of 67 counties. Even though the study showed an improvement in high school graduation and proficiency in math among eighth-graders, 96% of those students were still not math proficient, according to the report. Eighty-three percent of fourth-graders were not proficient in English Language Arts, and more than 66% of 3- and 4-year-olds were not enrolled in school.
Union
Education was the high point of Union County’s place in the report, making it ninth in the state in education and helping it rank 13th overall out of 67 counties. While nearly 57% of 3- and 4-year-olds were not enrolled in school and 56% were not proficient in English Language Arts, according to the study, the numbers from 2019 were significant improvements, down from more than 70% in each category. Graduation rate had also improved.
Union County ranked 26th in family and community, with slightly fewer single-parent households (34.4%) and improvements in child treatment and contacts with juvenile justice.
Healthwise, child well-being was 34th in the state. While the percentage of low-birthweight babies was down, there was no improvement in uninsured children. The overweight and obesity percentage remained nearly 36%, and a higher percentage of teens had used drugs or alcohol.
Child poverty had improved in Union County but was still above 20%. High housing costs had improved slightly as well. However, the unemployment rate remained the same, and more than 19% of teens were not in school or working. Union’s economic well-being made it 40th in the state, its worst category.
Clay
Union was 13th overall in the state, and Clay County was 14th. But Clay was third in the state for the economic well-being of its children, having lowered child poverty to 12%. Numbers were better for high housing costs, although nearly 26% of families still find it burdensome. Teen truancy had improved as well.
Clay’s family and community ranking was 11th in the state. While 27% still live in single-parent families, that was a slight improvement. The real progress was made in reducing youth contact with juvenile justice from 19% to 7%.
The education ranking was 25th in the state. The graduation rate improved significantly, but while the percentage of fourth-graders proficient in English also improved, 66% were still not proficient. Fewer eighth-graders were proficient in math, and more than 61% of 3- and 4-year-olds were not in school.
Ranked 28th in child health, Clay saw a fixed percentage of low-birthweight babies, and uninsured children, although the percentages were already lower compared to others. The percentage of overweight and obese first-, third- and sixth graders increased to 33.7%
St. Johns County was ranked number one overall in the state. Desoto was 67th in the state.
Florida Policy Institute is an independent, nonpartisan and nonprofit organization advancing policies and budgets it believes will improve the economic mobility and quality of life for all Floridians. Among them are:
—prioritizing child well-being and quality of life by preserving and expanding basic household supports like nutrition, housing and income assistance.
—nurturing children by investing in affordable, quality early learning, thriving public schools and well supported teachers.
—building a stronger workforce by expanding access to higher education and job training.
—ensuring all Floridians have access to affordable, quality health care.
