September 2, 2004

North Dakota Ranks High Nationally on Child Well-being, but Concerns Exist

According to the national KIDS COUNT! program, North Dakota ranks eighth in the nation on child well-being indicators. The high ranking is largely due to low rates of low-birthweight babies, child deaths, teenage births, high school dropouts and children in poverty. “These data support what we know in North Dakota, that our state is family- oriented and we place high value on protecting and improving the well-being of our children,” says Richard Rathge, North Dakota KIDS COUNT! executive director. However, the 2004 “North Dakota KIDS COUNT! Fact Book” indicates that, despite the high national ranking, many challenges exist for children and families.

This month’s edition of the “Population Bulletin,” released from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University, presents select indicators from the “2004 North Dakota KIDS COUNT! Fact Book.” The 2004 publication marks the tenth annual publication produced by the North Dakota KIDS COUNT! program. KIDS COUNT! is part of a 50-state network founded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation to collect information about the status of children in communities across the United States.

Data included in the Fact Book cover issues affecting children from birth through adolescence and are widely used in planning, needs assessments and grant writing activities on behalf of North Dakota children. Fact Book data offer a road map to understanding the challenges facing North Dakota children in the communities where they live, and quantify the numbers of children affected by respective areas of concern. This year’s Fact Book presents some issues concerning the well-being of North Dakota’s children.

A large proportion of North Dakota’s children up to age 17 continue to live with both parents, however current data suggest that the composition of North Dakota families is changing. According to Census 2000, 30,695 children lived with a single parent in North Dakota, a 23.3 percent increase from 24,886 in 1990. This is cause for concern because the poverty rate for North Dakota children living with one parent (39.4 percent) is nearly six times the rate for children living with two parents (6.9 percent). In addition, the number of children living with grandparents and in foster care settings increased as well.
Despite economic gains during the 1990s, one in four North Dakota children currently live in families with incomes below or very near the poverty line. In addition, approximately 39 percent of non-white children, 44 percent of children living with single mothers and 40 percent of children living on American Indian reservations are living in poverty.

For a copy or more information regarding the North Dakota KIDS COUNT! findings and highlights, contact Rathge at (701) 231-8621 or richard.rathge@ndsu.nodak.edu. Helen Danielson, North Dakota KIDS COUNT! coordinator can also be contacted at (701) 231-5931 or ndkidscount@yahoo.com. The North Dakota KIDS COUNT! Web site can be accessed at http://www.ndkidscount.org.

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Source: Richard Rathge, (701) 231-8621, richard.rathge@ndsu.nodak.edu
Editor: Rich Mattern, (701) 231-6136, richard.mattern@ndsu.nodak.edu

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