A new report argues that as Rhode Island becomes increasingly diverse, people of color continue to suffer from inequities in education, health, and economic security.
Rhode Island Kids Count, a nonprofit advocacy group focused on the welfare of children, on Monday released its annual fact report showing the persistence of youth poverty.
According to the report, “From 2018 to 2022, 53% of American Indian children, 38% of Hispanic children, and 22% of Black children in Rhode Island lived in poverty, followed by Asian/Pacific Islander children. This was followed by 11% of children and 8% of white children. ”
Most of these numbers are slightly down from the previous year's report, which looked at statistics from 2017 to 2021. However, poverty among Hispanic children increased by 8 percentage points.
more: The RI Kids Count fact book has been published. What is written about the condition of children in RI?
“Children are more likely than adults to identify as people of color in our state, and as young people age, disparities will only continue if we don't address them.” said Paige Clausius, Rhode Island Child Count Executive Director. park. “And as our population continues to become more diverse, that disparity will continue to grow.”
Other ongoing issues include obesity, which affects Hispanic and Black children at higher rates than any other population. The report found that 32% of Hispanic children were obese and 28% of black children were obese, each a 1 percentage point decrease from last year's report.
Lead exposure remains the highest in Rhode Island, with “more than twice the proportion of children with elevated blood levels” of lead in Providence, Pawtucket, Central Falls and Woonsocket, according to the report. It's one of yet another health crisis that disproportionately affects children of color. There is no blood lead level that is considered safe.
more: The twins of a Central Falls couple were having a hard time.Blood tests later revealed high lead levels.
The good: Massive efforts to keep children in school have reduced absenteeism
Although the report raises many issues, there are some bright spots, such as a decline in student absenteeism in Rhode Island.
Last school year, “25% of all Rhode Island students in kindergarten through 3rd grade were chronically absent, and 33% of Rhode Island students in grades 9 through 12 were chronically absent. ”, the report states. “This compares to last year, when 31% of all Rhode Island students in kindergarten through 3rd grade were chronically absent and 38% of Rhode Island students in grades 9 through 12 were chronically absent. has decreased.”
more: Absenteeism is on the rise in Rhode Island schools. How is the country doing it?
This is a big win for the state, which has launched an advertising campaign to raise awareness that missing two days of school a month means a child is chronically absent. The end of the pandemic is also likely to have been a major factor pushing up enrollment rates.
Clausius Parks also pointed to federal pandemic aid from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund that has helped school districts.
“For example, some schools now have funding in place for staff to call families to find out what the barriers are and why children are not attending school,” she said. says. “So we're also seeing funding coming from schools that have made very smart decisions around ESSER dollars to support families, support children and better understand what's going on at home. ”
Calls for more financial support for multilingual learners
In an interview with the Providence Journal, Clausius Parks called for a more reliable flow of funding for the state's growing number of multilingual learners (MLLs).
According to the report, the state's MLL “doubled (85% increase) from the 2012-2013 school year to the 2022-2023 school year.” However, their scores on common tests were low. Clausius Parks said it's time for the state to include reliable funding to support MLLs in its funding formula, a complex equation that determines how much state funding a district receives. Ta.
“Funding for multilingual learners could be incorporated into the actual funding formula, rather than categorical funding that schools add on top of the funding they receive,” Clausius Parks said. . “The reason this is important is because the categorical amount can change from year to year. It's unpredictable. That's why schools can't invest in some of the high-quality programs like bilingual education programs. , because we don't know for sure.''If we get the same amount of funding every year. ”
To read the full report, visit rikidscount.org.
This article was originally published in the Providence Journal: Diversity is increasing in RI, but inequality among children is increasing, report finds