Kids Count Data Book summary shows Indiana’s overall child well-being remains unchanged

An Executive Summary of the 2022 Indiana Kids Count Data Book is out. The full report is delayed because of the pandemic.

The state data book is usually released in January or early February. This year an extended census due to the pandemic pushed the release of the full book to April.  But a first look at the data indicates Indiana’s overall child well-being remains unchanged, ranking 29th in the nation.

The Indiana Youth Institute compiles the annual data book.  IYI President and CEO Tami Silverman said the information is used by lawmakers, community leaders, and nonprofits.

“We have a tremendous number of youth serving organizations across the state that use the data book to write their own grants and compare, you know, here’s what’s going on in the state and across the county,” Silverman said.

The data includes county snapshots that can be used to determine what areas need greater attention. IYI will present the State of the Child to the legislature using some additional metrics next month.

Silverman said the book is a helpful tool.

“All this information is out there and available all the time, this is all secondary data, but it’s really hard to get it all together and to have it in a way for a user to compare and use to help kids in their own area,” she said.

The overall rankings will not change in the covered categories.

• Indiana’s Overall Child Well-Being Rank: 29th
• Indiana’s Family & Community Rank: 31st
• Indiana’s Health Rank: 36th
• Indiana’s Economic Well-Being Rank: 18th
• Indiana’s Education Rank: 17th

Contact WFYI city government and policy reporter Jill Sheridan at jsheridan@wfyi.org. Follow on Twitter: @JillASheridan.