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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Report: Arizona Kids Face Challenges in Housing, Education

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Tuesday, June 18, 2019   

PHOENIX — Housing affordability is one of the most critical challenges children face growing up in Arizona, according to a new report. Arizona ranked low among the 50 states in several categories in this year's Kids Count Data Book from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

In overall well-being for children, Arizona ranked 46th among the 50 states, down from 45th position in 2018. Dana Wolfe Naimark, president and CEO with the Children's Action Alliance, said high housing costs are a bellwether of poverty for many families.

"The housing affordability is a red flag, because it's an area where Arizona used to do a little bit better than the national average and now we're a little bit worse,” Naimark said. “So, I think it's a warning sign that we better pay attention before it gets even worse."

Naimark said the report showed children of color are more likely to experience financial instability tied to rent burden, with 38% of Latino children affected in Arizona in 2017, compared with 24% of white children. She added nearly 3-in-10 children in Arizona live in homes where no parent has a stable, full-time job - ranking Arizona 37th in that category in the new report.

Educational issues also created obstacles for Arizona children. Naimark said the state showed an increase to 22% of high school students not graduating within four years - compared with 15% nationally.

"High school graduation rates, unfortunately from 2016 to 2017, we actually got worse. So, while the U.S. continued to improve, Arizona dipped back down,” she said. “So that was a great problem, and we still rank 46th in graduation rates."

The color divide also greatly affects kids, both in Arizona and across the nation. Leslie Boissiere, vice president of external affairs with the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said demographers predict children of color will represent the majority of all U.S. kids by 2020.

"Educational outcomes are significantly lower for children of color than they are for white children,” Boissiere said. “We see children of color more likely to live in high-poverty neighborhoods and to live in poverty overall."

She added it's important to have an accurate census count in 2020. Fifty-five major federal programs, including Head Start and the Children's Health Insurance Program, allocate more than $880 billion each year nationwide based on census data.

Disclosure: Annie E Casey Foundation contributes to our fund for reporting on Children's Issues, Criminal Justice, Early Childhood Education, Education, Juvenile Justice, Welfare Reform. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


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