The Annie E. Casey Foundation released its 2020 Kids Count Data Book, with state and national indicators of child well-being. The new data shows encouraging, improving trends on the national scale.

However, the Casey Foundation notes that data was collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning that dramatic shifts in data and rankings will likely be reflected in future research. The foundation is planning to collect data on the impact of COVID-19 on children but shared that it wanted to release this information so it would be available for policymakers, researchers and advocates now.

We're taking a look at how Michigan stacks up in the latest rankings. In the new report, Michigan ranks 32^nd overall.

Kids Count collects data in four categories—economic well-being, education, health and family and community. While Michigan’s overall rank stayed the same, the state’s rankings in those key areas slightly worsened for the most part between 2019 and 2020.

Nationally, Michigan ranks:

• 30^th in Economic Well-Being: Michigan held steady compared to the 2019 ranking but the report cited improvements have been made in addressing child poverty, securing employment for parents, housing cost burden and the number of teens who are not in school or working.

• 40^th in Education: Our national ranking dropped from 37^th in 2019 and the report showed no change in student proficiency rates from 2019:

  • 68% of fourth-graders are not proficient in reading.

  • 69% of eighth-graders are not proficient in math.

• 22^nd in Health: Michigan fell from 18^th in the U.S. in 2019 to 22^nd in 2020. While improvements were seen in the number of children with health insurance and childhood and teen obesity rates, babies born with low birthweights and child and teen deaths increased.

• 30^th in Family and Community: We dropped from 29^th to 30^th in the rankings over the last year, with a significant increase in the number of children living in single-parent households. However, improvements were made in head-of-household education levels, the number of children living in high-poverty areas (14%) and teen birth rates (16 births per 1,000).

CMF reported on the Michigan League for Public Policy’s (MLPP) 2020 Kids Count in Michigan data in May, which breaks down the above categories at a statewide, county and regional level. MLPP’s data is shared with the Casey Foundation to create the national Kids Count data book each year.

MLPP also created a list of recommendations to improve child well-being across the state, including:

• Make the expungement of juvenile offenses more accessible and affordable.

• Expand paid parental and sick leave for working parents and guardians.

• Create a weighted school funding system to better serve students living in poverty, English language learners and students who have special needs.

• Increase the Earned Income Tax Credit from 6% to 20% to allow families more funds to pay for necessities.

Want more?

Read the 2020 Kids Count Data Book.

See Michigan data for the 2020 Kids Count data book.

See MLPP’s 2020 Kids Count in Michigan data.