NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665

September 2, 1999

1998 N.D. KIDS COUNT! Data Signal Challenges

North Dakota has consistently ranked among the top five in the national KIDS COUNT! state-by-state study, which provides comparative details about the living conditions of U.S. children. But data contained in the 1998 North Dakota KIDS COUNT! Fact Book suggest that children in the state are facing serious challenges in the midst of a rural crisis.

"Conditions have continued to worsen for North Dakota's children in many categories," says Richard Rathge, director of the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University in Fargo.

The State Data Center is one of the partners in the North Dakota KIDS COUNT! project, which is headquartered in Grand Forks within the University of North Dakota's Department of Social Work. The North Dakota KIDS COUNT! project publishes the fact book annually.

Selected indicators from the 1998 North Dakota KIDS COUNT! Fact Book appear in the September edition of the State Data Center's Population Bulletin. Examples of those indicators include the following:

• Population: children younger than 18--DOWN 0.7 percent per year during the last five years
• Family Composition: foster care--UP 20 percent during the 1993-1997 period
• Economic Condition: children receiving free/reduced-price lunches--UP 29 percent in 1997
• Safety: child abuse and neglect victims--UP 4 percent in the last year
• Health: 17,000 children are now without health insurance
• Health: mothers receiving inadequate prenatal care--UP 3 percent in the last year
• Health: low-weight births--UP 15 percent during the 1995-1997 period
• Education: high school drop outs--UP 27 percent during the past three academic years
• Education: seriously emotionally disturbed children in special education system--UP 45 percent during the past five academic years
• Teens at Risk: liquor law violations--UP 13 percent during the 1995-1997 period

"It is important for us to recognize the danger signs we see for North Dakota children in important areas of their lives," says Ann Lochner, director of the North Dakota KIDS COUNT! project. "Because a larger number of North Dakota families--particularly rural families--are facing downturns, their children can be vulnerable to a number of circumstances they may otherwise have the resources to overcome."

The goal of the North Dakota fact book, sponsored by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, is to increase public awareness about the needs of the children across the state. For more information regarding the KIDS COUNT! findings, contact Lochner at (701) 777-4086.

###

Source: Richard Rathge (701) 231-8621
Editor: Dean Hulse (701) 231-6136

Click here for a pdf version of this graphic. (79KB b&w text page)   

Click here for a pdf version of this graphic. (141KB b&w table)