The Annie E. Casey Foundation has released its 30^th edition of the KIDS COUNT Databook which shows how Michigan stacks up to the rest of the country in key indicators for child well-being.

The Databook shows there are approximately 419,000 Michigan children living in poverty.

Racial disparities persist nationally and in our state as Michigan has the highest rate of concentrated poverty for African American children in the country for the second year in a row.

“To mark the 30th edition, this year’s national KIDS COUNT Data Book provides a unique opportunity to look at child well-being over three decades. We can see where Michigan has gained significant ground —and where we are still unfortunately struggling,” Alicia Guevara Warren, Kids Count project director at the Michigan League for Public Policy said. “Thankfully, many of the struggles facing Michigan kids in 1990 have improved significantly, but it is deplorable that amidst all that progress, policymakers have not moved the needle on child poverty over the last three decades.”

When it comes to overall child well-being our state ranks 32^nd in the U.S. Our state’s ranking has hovered around the low 30s for the past few years, and we remain behind all other Great Lakes states.

In the four categories of health, family and community, economic well-being and education, the overall trend data shows that compared to last year, our state has slightly improved in all four areas.

Nationally, Michigan ranks:

• 30^th in Economic Well-Being (an improvement from 31^st last year): Approximately 25 percent of children live in households with a high housing cost burden and 29 percent of children have parents who lack secure employment.

• 37^th in Education (an improvement from 38^th last year): The data shows 68 percent of fourth graders are not proficient in reading while 69 percent of eighth graders aren’t proficient in math. About 52 percent of young children (ages 3 and 4) are not in preschool.

• 29^th in Family and Community (an improvement from 30^th last year): The percentage of children in single parent families has slightly grown to 35 percent. Approximately 15 percent of Michigan children live in high-poverty areas.

• 18^th in Health (an improvement from 25^th last year): The number of children without health insurance in Michigan continues to drop; the data shows 3 percent of children don’t have health insurance.

According to the data, Michigan is one of 12 states that has experienced a decline in our child population since 1990. However, our state has further diversified in racial/ethnic makeup since 1990 with more kids of color. The Casey Foundation says the growing diversity of our child population makes it critical to address systemic racism and increase opportunities for all kids.

“America’s children are one-quarter of our population and 100 percent of our future,” Lisa Hamilton, president and CEO of the Casey Foundation said. “All of the 74 million kids in our increasingly diverse country have unlimited potential, and we have the data, knowledge and evidence to create the policies that will help them realize it. It’s incumbent on us to do just that.”

The foundation recommends urgently addressing ethnic and racial inequities, along with other policy recommendations.

• Provide the tools to help families lift themselves up economically. Federal and state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit programs mean working parents can use more of their take-home pay to meet their children’s needs. Last week we reported that CMF is part of a broad coalition of organizations which has expressed support for increasing Michigan’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from 6 to 12 percent.

• Count all kids. Ensure the 2020 census counts all children, especially those under 5 years old and from hard-to-count communities. As CMF has reported, nationally, about one million young children, or 5 percent of those under the age of 5, were not counted in the 2010 census, making them the largest undercounted age group in the last census. Through the Michigan Nonprofits Count Campaign – led by the Michigan Nonprofit Association and supported by CMF, leveraging the expertise of many CMF members – customized messaging for hard-to-count communities in Michigan will be deployed through grassroots organizations doing on-the-ground outreach in the coming months.

Want more?

Read the full report.

Check out the Michigan KIDS COUNT data profile.