State’s Children Facing Fewer Risks, Study Says

Although quality of life for many of its children remains far from ideal, California is doing better at guarding their safety, with declines in the number of child abuse cases, gun injuries and teen births, according to a study by the advocacy group Children Now.

The California Report Card 2001 issued by the Oakland-based group compiled recent statistics in education, family economics, health and safety, and gave the state and each county a mixed progress report.

Of particular significance were gains made in Los Angeles County, whose large population drives many state trends.

The numbers of Los Angeles County children in foster care dropped to 13.1 per 1,000 in 2001, from 18.7 in 1997. The number of gun injuries decreased from 415 in 1997 to 282 in 1999, while 113 gun deaths were recorded in 1999 compared with 145 in 1997.

The county also recorded sharp drops in child abuse cases, with 53.1 reports per 1,000 in 2000 compared with 71.2 reports in 1996. Meanwhile, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties all showed increases in the numbers of expectant mothers receiving prenatal care.

The stronger economy through the end of last year helped ease some social problems affecting children, while public and private programs also contributed to those improvements, the study suggested.

Economy a Factor for School Success

But the study also pointed to discouraging signs that shaky economic and social conditions continue to harm many of the state’s children and their school performance.

“It’s so important in this era of budget cuts and tight fiscal picture that policymakers realize that investing in K-12 education isn’t going to pay off unless we pay attention to the other factors like low incomes, health insurance and quality child care that ensure kids are going to succeed in school,” said Children Now Vice President Amy Dominguez-Arms.

According to the annual study, an estimated 47% of school-age children statewide live in families with low incomes (less than $32,653 a year for a family of four), while 20% of children live in poor families (with incomes of less than $17,650 for a family of four.)

Poverty is a fact of life even in places that appear fairly prosperous.

In Orange and Ventura counties, for example, median incomes top $53,000, yet 17% of children in those counties are poor.

One out of every five California children, or 1.85 million, lacks health insurance, the seventh-highest rate among all states. Fewer than 40% of eligible children got free or reduced-cost school breakfasts. Subsidized after-school programs are available for fewer than half of the 5- to 14-year-olds in low income families.

The study found a disturbing divergence in school resources across the state and even within counties. In Los Angeles County, only 75% of teachers are fully credentialed compared with 91.7% in Orange, 91.8% in Ventura and 95% in San Diego counties.

Within Los Angeles County, the study compared two elementary schools--Balboa Gifted Magnet in Van Nuys and West Vernon Avenue Elementary--which scored the highest and lowest on the state’s year 2000 Academic Performance Index: 100% of Balboa’s teachers were credentialed compared with 44% at West Vernon; 79% of parents at Balboa had college degrees versus 17% of parents at West Vernon; 15% of students qualified for free or subsidized lunches at Balboa compared with 100% of students at West Vernon.

Child Care Is a Big Expense

One startling figure is that child care is now one of the largest family expenditures, with full-time toddler care costing more than 50% of the fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment in almost every county.

In Los Angeles County, monthly child care costs for an infant in 2000 were $653 compared to an average monthly rent of $766.

The numbers in Orange County were $720 for child care versus $891 for rent; in San Francisco, $893 for child care compared to $1,251 for rent.

“What it comes down to is that taking care of kids, our most precious resource, is one expense that we ask parents to foot most of the bill,” said Shelley Waters Boots, research director for the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network.

“It’s hard for middle-income families, but the trade-offs for low income families--child care versus food, having a safe neighborhood to live in and taking care of health needs--are severe.”