Oregon sits at 26th in a new ranking of states based on child well-being.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation has released its annual Kids Count data book, which measures states in four areas: economic well-being, education, health and family and community.

Jenifer Wagley - executive director of Our Children Oregon - said the state has improved in a lot of measures, such as a decrease of children in poverty.

"Then on the other hand," said Wagley, "Oregon is still right in the middle of the pack when it comes to rankings against all the other states. And we've got some real places that need attention, including our education system and supporting our families better when it comes to economic well-being."

Data for the report is from 2020, the first year of the pandemic. It finds that there's been an increase across the nation in the number of children and teens experiencing anxiety and depression.

Wagley called it a "youth mental health pandemic," and noted that numbers are higher in Oregon than the national average.

She also said it's important to dive into the numbers in this report.

For example, Wagley said that Oregon has the lowest rate of low birth-weight babies in the nation, at 6.5%. But that's not the case for all Oregonians.

"You see that there's real disparities in the way that our children of color and their birth-weights are," said Wagley. "And so in the places that we're doing well, we need to make sure that we're looking at the full data set and really not leaving anyone behind."

Wagley said there's proof that the state can enact policies that improve kids' lives.

"Only 4% of Oregon's kids don't have health insurance," said Wagley. "Well, that was a policy win. That was called Cover All Kids and it was a coalition of organizations and legislators and people leaning in to ensure that Oregon's kids were covered."

She also pointed to the expansion of the Child Tax Credit during the pandemic, which helped pull millions of kids out of poverty.

Based in Provo, Utah, the software company Qualtrics ranks among the top employers providing adoption and foster-care benefits to its workers.

The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption commissioned a national survey of employers to learn whether they offer financial reimbursement for adoption costs and paid leave for foster parents, and how many workers are eligible for those benefits.

Matt Inama, customer success manager for Qualtrics, said adopting a child can be quite expensive. He stressed the financial reimbursement his company offered was "transformational" for him and his wife to create the family they had always dreamed of.

"Having that kind of support and benefit available from one's employer I think is very, very important," Inama asserted. "It just helps to foster, I think, that sense of belonging for an employee within their organization."

Inama encouraged those considering adoption to know it can be a lengthy process. He emphasized it is critical to find local experts in your area who can shed light on how different laws and guidelines affect the adoption experience.

Rita Soronen, president and CEO of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, said the survey aims to foster a sense of equity among employers which many times offer benefits to families formed through birth. She argued those formed through adoption should be no different.

"We created the 100 Best Adoption-Friendly Workplace list to encourage employers to take that step, to learn about it," Soronen explained. "Then, we know that employers enjoy sort of competitive advantages over each other and 'best' lists tend to provide that."

Soronen added people in the job market who are contemplating offers may look to see if adoption benefits are included. For some, it could be a deciding factor.

"If everything else is equal and this company offers adoption benefits or foster care benefits, then they tend to lean that way because it said something about the company," Soronen observed. "It gives, we believe, employers a competitive edge in recruiting employees."

Ohio child welfare advocates are urging lawmakers to restore more than $60 million in funding to address the state's ongoing foster care placement crisis. A decision is expected by the end of June.

Gov. Mike DeWine and state House leaders included funding in the budget to expand the State Child Protective Allocation and create new child wellness campuses. But the Ohio Senate removed both investments.

Scott Britton, assistant director of the Public Children Services Association of Ohio, said counties can't manage this crisis alone.

"Children deserve a safe place to sleep that meets their behavioral health and their well-being needs. The cost of foster care placements is outpacing inflation - 68%, or $158 million more today than just five years ago - and federal reimbursement is declining," he explained.

The Senate cut $61 million from the House budget: $31 million from county child protection funds and $30 million from proposed wellness campuses. Conference committee members are working to finalize the budget by June 30.

Britton said the proposed child wellness campuses would help reduce the number of children sleeping in county offices. He adds that the governor, House, and a cross-agency group support the plan.

"The campuses are going to be trauma-informed places where children can be properly assessed and supported," he said. "Our cross-system working group prioritized this solution, so we believe Ohio could be a national leader with the strategy."

Advocates say restoring the full investment would help stabilize foster care costs and better serve children in crisis across Ohio.

With school out for summer vacation, maintaining healthy sleep habits can be a challenge for parents and children.

Longer daylight hours and shifting schedules can disrupt sleep patterns, leaving families feeling off balance or out of sync.

Dr. Chafen Watkins Hart, pediatric sleep specialist at National Jewish Health in Denver, said sleep routines do not begin just before bedtime, they are shaped by what happens all day long. She stressed it is important to keep the time kids wake up relatively consistent, even if they get to sleep in during summer months.

"I recommend parents keep the wake time as stable as possible, within 30 minutes to an hour," Hart explained. "Getting them out into the sun early in the day is really important. Keeping meal times structured around the same time each day."

Hart noted there is no one-size-fits-all approach to sleep and encouraged parents to find a routine that works best for their child. While elementary-age children typically fall asleep more easily, teenagers may struggle due to natural shifts in their circadian rhythms during puberty.

Warmer nights can also interfere with the body's natural cooling process, making it harder to fall and stay asleep. Hart suggested turning off phones and other screens and no eating at least one hour before bedtime.

"Maybe set a timer for bedtime. Change the lighting," Hart outlined. "Dimmer lights can help the brain sort of process that nighttime is coming, that sleep should happen in the next couple of hours."

As the new school year draws near, Hart said it's best to gradually adjust sleep times to get children of all ages to bed earlier. And helping kids go over tomorrow's plans can help ward off any nighttime anxiety. If kids cannot fall asleep and are just laying awake for 40 minutes or more, she suggested getting out of bed and doing a quiet activity in a dimly lit area, ideally outside their bedroom.

"If they can get out of bed, it will help their brain associate their bed with sleep and not just with laying there being anxious," Hart added. "Then try to go back to sleep 30 or 40 minutes later. That can help reset the brain, and they might have better luck falling asleep the second time around."


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