Arkansas Climbs 8 Spots in National Child Economic Well-Being Rankings

Rich Huddleston

For the first time in six years, the number of Arkansas children living in poverty decreased, according to data released Tuesday in the annual Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Book.

Last year the state ranked 48th, with 202,000 children living in poverty; in 2016 Arkansas saw a decline to 184,000 children in poverty, putting the state in 41st place.

The report, which focuses on key trends in child well-being in the post-recession years, measures child well-being in four areas: economic well-being, education, health, and family and community. This year, fewer Arkansas children live in poverty, more have health insurance and more attend pre-K.

But Arkansas plummeted 12 spots overall in the health category, putting it in 46th place. Though the state decreased its number of uninsured children from 6 percent to 5 percent, low birth weight babies and child and teen deaths per 100,000 both increased slightly.

“Our economy has really rebounded in the last couple of years, unemployment is low, and that’s good for families’ economic well-being,” said Mike Malone, president and CEO at Northwest Arkansas Council. “But to continue growing and moving in the right direction, we have to ensure that we’re preparing our future workforce through smart investments in education, health, and other areas.”

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families Executive Director Rich Huddleston said key policy changes are important in tackling this issue.

“While Arkansas’ improved economic well-being score is encouraging, specifically the lower child poverty rate, it’s important to bear in mind that 26 percent of Arkansas children — more than one in four — still live in poverty,” Huddleston said.

The data show that African-American children were twice as likely as the average child to live in high-poverty neighborhoods and to live in single-parent families. Latino children were the least likely to live with a household head who has at least a high school diploma.

Arkansas rankings from the 2016 report were:

• 36th in economic well-being (including children in poverty; children whose parents lack secure employment; children living in households with high housing cost; and teens not in school and not working)
• 38th in education (including children not attending Pre-K; fourth graders not proficient in reading; eighth graders not proficient in math; and high school students not graduating on time)
• 45th in family and community (including children in single-parent families; children in families where the household head lacks a high school diploma; children living in high-poverty areas; and teen births per 1,000)
• 46th in health (including low-birthweight babies; children without health insurance; child and teen deaths per 100,000; and teens who abuse alcohol or drugs)