Fewer Indiana Kids Are Growing Up In High-Poverty Areas

Indiana is among the 29 states that have seen a drop in children growing up in high-poverty areas, according to a Kids Count data snapshot released Tuesday.

AdobeStock photo

(Indianapolis, Ind.) - A new examination of child poverty in the U.S. shows improvements in Indiana. According to an Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count data snapshot released today, 10 percent of Hoosier kids are growing up in neighborhoods where 30 percent  or more of the population lives in poverty. That's a 9 percent  decrease in the time period between 2013-2017 compared to the previous 4-year period.

Tami Silverman, president and CEO of the Indiana Youth Institute, said concentrated poverty is one of the greatest risks to child development.

"Oftentimes there's a lack of access to healthy food, a lack of access to quality medical care, exposure to additional environmental hazards, and some real chronic health issues that can come along," Silverman said.

Indiana's rate of 10 percent  is tied with Illinois, but lower than the national average of 12 percent .

Silverman contends all children deserve to live in neighborhoods where they can learn, play and grow. But, she said the report shows some major racial disparities.

"Right now in Indiana, Black or African-American children are 6 times as likely to live in concentrated poverty as compared to white children," she said; "so 34 percent  of Black children as compared to 5 percent  of white children."

The associate state director of advocacy with the Casey Foundation, Scot Spencer, said strategies and policies that can strengthen communities and help struggling families are within reach.

"While the numbers here are very stark, we believe that communities working together at both the state, local and the federal level can actually craft a set of solutions that will help alleviate neighborhoods of concentrated poverty."

Suggested solutions include revitalizing high-poverty communities by improving affordable housing options, incentivizing community institutions to hire locally, and increasing job training opportunities.