Utah kids in top 10 for wellness, bottom half for education, study shows

Utah kids in top 10 for wellness, bottom half for education, study shows

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SALT LAKE CITY — Children in Utah are in the top 10 among all U.S. states in key wellness indicators but are worse off than most of their counterparts in education, according an annual report released by charitable organization Annie E. Casey Foundation.

The report's findings, compiled in a Kids Count Data Book and released this week, rank Utah second for child wellness in its family and community metric, seventh in health and eighth in economic well-being.

However, the state ranked 29th for the second straight year in the education metric, the fourth major area analyzed by the organization.

The Data Book, released by the foundation at 10 p.m. Monday, uses hundreds of statistical factors to analyze how states are doing at creating positive environments and life experiences for children. The newest data accounts for 2013, as more recent information is still being collected.

Utah ranked second in the family and community metric for data collected in both 2012 and 2013. The state improved from 10th to eighth in economic well-being, but fell one spot in the health area. Overall, the state ranks ninth in child well-being, according to the Data Book — its first top 10 showing since 2011.

A majority of young Utah children do not attend preschool, which pulls Utah's education ranking down, said Terry Haven, deputy director for Voices for Utah Children. About 60 percent of Utah children don't attend preschool, while top-ranking Connecticut has only 37 percent who don't attend.

Several Utah nonprofit organizations are working together to improve that number, according to Haven, including her organization and United Way.


Knowing that we are better than Nevada or Colorado is great, but we need to make sure we are the best Utah for kids that we can be.

–Terry Haven, Voice for Utah Children


"We hope to expand these efforts and look forward to seeing these numbers improve," Haven said.

Utah has seen improvements in recent years in the main wellness categories, as well as more specific indicators, Haven said, but she warned Utahns shouldn't be too enamored with high rankings.

Utah has the lowest proportion of children living in a single-parent household in the country, she said, but it is critical to remember that number is still 168,000.

"The state also ranks No. 1 in lowest percent of teens who abuse alcohol or drugs, but 13,000 teens still participate in these unsafe behaviors," Haven said. "While we should be proud of the improvements we are seeing, we must remember that all children in Utah deserve the opportunity to reach their full potential. Knowing that we are better than Nevada or Colorado is great, but we need to make sure we are the best Utah for kids that we can be."

Utah will need to reduce the number of uninsured children in order shore up its health ranking, the only metric the state slipped in during the past year, Haven said.

"Expanding Medicaid coverage to more parents and investing in outreach to high uninsured populations, like Hispanic families, would go a long way in closing Utah's gap (with top-ranking Massachusetts)," she said.

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Ben Lockhart

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