Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Comparison Of Children's Lives Made Among States

How does life for Arkansas children compare with that for children in other states? One answer can be found by looking at the risk factors faced by their families.

Each year the Annie E. Casey Foundation reports on the well-being of children in the United State. They rate each state by a variety of indicators. This year the foundation reported that 16 percent of Arkansas children live in "high risk" families.

The way they determine a "high risk" family is to look at six family characteristics. If there are at least four of the six characteristics in the family, the child is considered at risk.

Here are the characteristics:

The first factor is that the child is not living with two parents. In Arkansas 33 percent of our children live in families headed by a single parent.

Betty Youngman, family life specialist, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Arkansas, reminds us that researchers don't consider single families bad, but they know that it is more difficult for one parent to provide the emotional and financial support that children need. Single parents have less time to do all the jobs that need to be done.

The second characteristic of a "high risk" family is that the household head is a high school dropout. Dropping out of school doesn't mean the parent is not intelligent. Instead, it means that this head of the family will likely have a more difficult time of supporting them because of leaving school early.

The third high risk factor is that the family income is below the poverty line. There is less money available to buy food, clothing, housing and other needed items.

The fourth high risk characteristic is living with parents who do not have steady, full-time employment. This risk implies that it would be difficult to build a stable family environment when finances are uncertain.

The fifth characteristic is that the family is receiving welfare benefits. This risk also implies economic insecurity in the family. This insecurity affects all aspects of the family, including emotional stability.

The sixth characteristic is that the child does not have health insurance. This is very much related to economic conditions in the family, and implies that the child would have inadequate health care.

To be "at risk," a child's family must meet at least four of the characteristics. In Arkansas 16 percent of our children at "at risk." This compares to a national average of 14 percent. In surrounding states, we find that the rate for Missouri is 10 percent; Oklahoma is 13 percent; Tennessee is 14 percent; and Texas is 15 percent. The state with the fewest "at risk" families is Utah, with only five percent of its children at risk.

For more information about child development and family life contact the Clark County Extension office at 501 Clay Street in Arkadelphia, or call 246-2281.