Children of Low-Income Working Families

Seeds of Prosperity: Children of Low-Income Working Families 2006 Connecticut KIDS COUNT Data Book Connecticut Association for Human Services Connecticut Association for Human Services Our Mission The Connecticut Association for Human Board of Directors Services is an independent, statewide, nonprofit organization that works to Offi cers Walter S. Gilliam reduce poverty and strengthen families Director, Edward Zigler Center for Child Development and communities through advocacy President and Social Policy, Yale University supported by outreach, research, and Robert A. Solomon Professor of Law, Yale University Wade A. Hyslop education. Pastor, Trinity Missionary Baptist Church Vice President Staff Laura Lee Simon Marilyn Ondrasik Chair Emerita, Connecticut Commission on Children Executive Director James P. Horan, Executive Director Trustee Emerita, Connecticut Public Broadcasting Bridgeport Child Advocacy Coalition Maggie Adair Secretary Stephanie Robinson Gloria Beltran Sheila Perrin Founding President and CEO Nancy Benedict President, Perrin Family Foundation The Jamestown Project, Yale University Mark Briggs Judith Carroll Treasurer Lisa J. Thibdaue Ellen Carter Michael Rohde Vice President - Rates, Regulatory Affairs and Helene Figueroa Director of Development and Marketing Compliance, Northeast Utilities Tracy Helin Ronald McDonald House Mary Jennings Linda Martinez Past President Emeritus Aleja Rosario Directors Cornell Scott Executive Director, Hill Health Center Luis C. Cabán Interns and Volunteers Executive Director, Southside Institutions Neighborhood Alliance Directors Ex Offi cio Terry Chriswell Michael Hornyak William J. Cibes, Jr. Kaye E. Barker Amanda Johnston Chancellor Emeritus Clinical Social Worker, Family Centers, Inc. Eric Manoni Connecticut State University System AnJeanette McKenzie Pamela Koprowski Kathleen Milnamow Kenneth A. Couch Director, Corporate Communications Carly Steier Economist, University of Connecticut Stamford Health Services Seeds of Prosperity: Children of Low-Income Working Families Judith Carroll Contributing Author Kathleen Milnamow Design and Layout Mary Jennings Amanda Johnston Photographs Gloria Beltran Ellen Carter Mary Jennings Amanda Johnston AnJeanette McKenzie Pat Estill, Connecticut Commission on Children Published by Connecticut Association for Human Services, Inc. Hartford, CT November 2006 Connecticut Association for Human Services 2006 Connecticut KIDS COUNT: Seeds of Prosperity © 2006 by the Connecticut Association for Human Services, Inc. All rights reserved. The photographs in this book are used for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to imply any relationship between the persons photographed and the subject matter discussed. Any portion of this report may be reproduced without prior permission, provided the source is cited as: Judith Carroll and Kathleen Milnamow, Seeds of Prosperity: Children of Low-Income Working Families. 2006 Connecticut KIDS COUNT Data Book. Hartford, CT: Connecticut Association for Human Services, Inc. To purchase a copy of Seeds of Prosperity or for further information, technical assistance, or presentations, contact: Connecticut Association for Human Services, Inc. 110 Bartholomew Avenue, Suite 4030 Hartford, CT 06106 (860) 951-2212 email: [email protected]; website: www.cahs.org Connecticut Association for Human Services 2006 Connecticut KIDS COUNT: Seeds of Prosperity FOREWORD Seeds of Prosperity: Children of Low-Income Working Families is the companion report to Sowing Prosperity: Low-Income Working Families and Connecticut’s Economic Future, Connecticut Association for Human Services’ recent publication for the national Working Poor Families Project. Sowing Prosperity provides policymakers and the public with a view of the changing nature of work and how those changes affect low-income working families, economic and workforce development policies, and the state economy as a whole. In Seeds of Prosperity, we examine the condition of children in low-income working families and the association between income and child well-being. We present critical reasons why linking economic development, workforce education and training, work supports, and child and family policies and programs makes sense. Recommendations also are proposed. This data book draws a picture of life for children across the economic spectrum of Connecticut cities and towns by including tables on 19 indicators of child well-being. Five domains are represented: demographics, family economic security, education, health, and safety. Of the 19 indicators reported, 16 are comparative and 3 provide baseline information (child population, child race and ethnicity, and child poverty). At the state level, eight of the comparative indicators demonstrate improvements in child well-being to the baseline year, six show declines, and two show no change. At the town level, the picture that the data present is not as clear. Our largest cities, where low-income families are often more visible, show both improvements and downturns in outcomes, depending on the indicator. Higher rates of Food Stamp participation and late or no prenatal care, and reductions in child care subsidy receipt are occurring in Hartford, Bridgeport, and New Haven. At the same time, the number of low birthweight babies born in Bridgeport and Hartford actually declined while the rate of the state as a whole increased. Some indicators (prekindergarten experience, infant mortality, and abuse and/or neglect) illustrate the problems that are affecting children from wealthy suburbs, poor cities, and rural towns alike. We hope that this document and its companion, Sowing Prosperity, will help you understand the challenges faced by working families throughout our state. i Connecticut Association for Human Services 2006 Connecticut KIDS COUNT: Seeds of Prosperity ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Connecticut Association for Human Services would like to thank the Annie E. Casey Foundation for its work on behalf of all children, for its ongoing support of the Connecticut KIDS COUNT Project, and for sharing our commitment to improve the economic security of all families in our state. In particular, we would like to thank the Foundation’s staff, including Cory Anderson, Laura Beavers, Tony Cipollone, Don Crary, Bill O’Hare, and Carol Rickel for their hard work, wise counsel, and humor. We would also like to thank Debra Delgado, formerly of the Casey Foundation and now with The Atlantic Philanthropies, for her engagement on the issues and dedication to families. For their sponsorship of the 2006 Connecticut Data Book, we would like to thank Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Connecticut, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, and the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. For their assistance with the data that are reported here, we would like to thank the staff of several state agencies, including Gary Kleeblatt from the Connecticut Department of Children and Families; Rick Cloud, Bill Congero, Ray Martin, Kendra Shakir, Maureen Staggenborg, and Alison Zhou of the Connecticut State Department of Education; Federico Amadeo from the Connecticut Department of Public Health; and Peter Palermino and Carl Thiesfi eld from the Connecticut Department of Social Services. We would like to acknowledge the particular contributions of the following individuals: Stephen Adair, Ph.D., Central Connecticut State University; Penny Canny, Ph.D., Connecticut Voices for Children; Dianne DeVries, Ph.D., Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding; Pat Estill, Connecticut Commission on Children; Doug Hall, Ph.D., Connecticut Voices for Children; Mary Alice Lee, Ph.D., Connecticut Voices for Children; and Stephanie Mastrobuono, University of Hawaii. Finally, the Connecticut KIDS COUNT Advisory Committee has given us invaluable guidance. We would like to thank the following members: Sheila Allen-Bell, Administrator, Community Services Agency, City of New Haven Kathleen McKay, Ph.D., Senior Epidemiologist, Child Health Data Center, Connecticut Leslie Gabel-Brett, Ph.D., Former Executive Director, Connecticut Permanent Children’s Medical Center Commission on the Status of Women Jeanne Milstein, Child Advocate, State of Connecticut Liz Brown, Legislative Director, Connecticut Commission on Children Victoria Niman, M.B.A., M.D., Medical Director, Connecticut Department of Children Penny Canny, Ph.D., Director of Research, Connecticut Voices for Children and Families Fred Carstensen, Ph.D., Director, Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis, Marilyn Ondrasik, Executive Director, Bridgeport Child Advocacy Coalition University of Connecticut Peter Palermino, Manager, Child Care Team, Connecticut Department of Michelle Doucette Cunningham, Project Administrator, Connecticut After School Social Services Network Natasha Pierre, Associate Legislative Analyst, Connecticut Permanent Commission Walter Gilliam, Ph.D., Director, Edward Zigler Center for Child Development and on the Status of Women Social Policy, Yale University Ramon Rojano, Director, Department of Health and Human Services, City of Hartford Beverly Goulet, Director, Department of Human Services, City of Norwich Maureen Staggenborg, Director, Offi ce of Child Nutrition and Adult Education, Marie Hawe, L.C.S.W., Director, IDA Training and Technical Assistance, Connecticut State Department of Education CTE, Stamford Susan Wilson, Director, Early Childhood DataCONNections, Child Health and Nancy Leonard, Public Affairs Offi cer, William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund Development Institute of Connecticut

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