Each year, the Annie E. Casey Foundation compiles its Kids Count Data Book from trusted data sources to help parents, educators, and policymakers understand where children across the United States are thriving—and where they need more support (see Appendix: Definitions and Data Sources).

In the forward for this year’s report, Lisa Lawson, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Annie E. Casey Foundation, wrote, “Good decisions start with good data — especially when it comes to supporting children and families. For 36 years, the KIDS COUNT® Data Book has provided a clear, consistent overview of children’s well-being, using federal data collected across all 50 states.”

The Kids Count Data Book provides a wealth of important information about the well-being of children nationally, by state, and by demographic groups. The “Interactive” Kids Count Data Book provides a tool for examining data by age groups, gender, race and ethnicity, as well as locations (i.e., cities, counties, and congressional districts), making it an essential resource for examining the well-being of children in our state of Maryland.

[See this month’s Director’s Desk article, Getting Ready for Day One, and By the Numbers: Summer Learning Loss, for more insights into summer planning for the new school year.]

The Kids Count Data Book tracks child well-being across 16 indicators in four domains and ranks the states according to how children are faring overall and by domain. Each domain, then, includes four key indicators of children’s well-being. (Note: For most indicators, the most current available data are from 2023. High school graduation data are from 2021-22, while the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data are from the 2024 administration.)

The four critical domains are:

1. Economic Well-Being
2. Education
3. Health
4. Family and Community

Recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic

To examine the state of the nation’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s KIDS COUNT Data Book presents comparisons between 2019 and 2023 where possible. National findings include:

Economic Well-Being

• Positive trends include a small reduction in the % of “children in poverty.
• Yet, 16% of children, or more than 11 million, were still living in poverty.
• Similarly, while there was a small decrease in the percentage of children whose parents “lack secure employment,” the percentage is still very high (25%).

Education

• Three of the four indicators worsened since 2019.
• The percentage of “young children (ages 3 and 4) not in school” increased to 54%, and NAEP reading and math proficiency rates both declined.

Health

• Nationwide, 5% of children lacked health insurance in 2023 — an improvement from 6% in 2019.
• However, the percentage of “Low birth-weight babies” increased from 8.3% to 8.6%, and the number of “child and teen deaths” increased from 25 to 29 per 100,000.

Family and Communities

• The data in this domain improved on three of the four indicators and was unchanged on the fourth.
• The percentage of children living in “high-poverty areas” decreased to 8%.
• The number of teen births decreased from 17 to 13 per 1,000.
• The percentage of children in families “where the household head lacks a high school diploma” decreased slightly from 12% to 11%.
• The percentage of children living in single-parent families remained unchanged (34%).

Where You Live Matters

Where a child lives continues to matter profoundly for their health and quality of life. “Geographic disparities have persisted for years, shaped by differences in state and local policies, economic conditions, infrastructure, resources, neighborhood characteristics, and community investment. These realities are reflected not only at the state level but also in communities across the country” (Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2025).

Using standard scores for each of the 16 indicators, states were ranked on each domain. The overall rank was then determined by summing the four domain standard scores. “The lowest-ranked states are concentrated in the South and Southwest, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia. In contrast, the Northeast and Midwest are home to many of the highest-performing states, such as Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota, and Vermont.”

An examination of a sample of indicator data for the State of Maryland (ranked 21st), as well as the highest and lowest-ranked states, in comparison to the overall national data, provides a snapshot of the relative well-being of children in each state. At the domain level, New Hampshire ranked in the top four on each indicator, while New Mexico ranked in the bottom four on each, and Maryland’s rank ranged from 10th in Economic Well-Being to 28th in Health.

• Sixteen percent of the children in the U.S. “live in poverty” compared to 8% in New Hampshire, 11% in Maryland, and 25% of the children in New Mexico.
• Nationally, 70% of 4th graders scored below proficient on the 2024 NAEP reading test, compared to 64% in New Hampshire, 66% in Maryland, and 80% in New Mexico.
• In the Health domain, 5% of the youth in the U.S. are without health insurance, compared to 3% in New Hampshire, 5% in Maryland, and 6% of children in New Mexico.
• In the Family and Community domain, 34% of children in the U.S. live in single-parent families, compared to 27% in New Hampshire, 34% in Maryland, and 45% in New Mexico.

Rank and indicator data by state are presented in Appendix A of the Kids Count Data Book.

State of Maryland

As noted, Maryland ranked 21st overall in children’s well-being. In most cases, the state’s performance was not significantly different from the national data. Regarding the four domains, Maryland ranked 10th in Economic Well-Being, 18th in Education, 28th in Health, and 23rd in Family and Community.

• Maryland improved (from 2019 to 2023) and outperformed the U.S. on all four Economic Well-Being indicators. For example, 11% of the children were living in poverty (compared to 12% in 2019 and 16% nationally), and 6% of Maryland teens were “not in school and not working” (compared to 7% in 2019 and 7% nationally).
• Conversely, Maryland worsened on all four Education indicators, although the state results were all similar to the national percentages. For example, 66% of Maryland 4th graders scored below proficient on the NAEP grade 4 reading assessment (compared to 70% nationally), and 75% of the 8th graders scored below proficient on the NAEP grade 8 mathematics assessment (compared to 73% nationally).
• While Maryland ranked 28th overall in the domain of Health, again, the state percentages were similar to the national data on all four indicators. Maryland improved on the percentages of “low birth-weight babies” (from 8.7% in 2019 to 8.6% in 2023) and the percentage of “children and teens who are overweight or obese” (from 34% to 31%).
• Maryland ranked 23rd (out of 50 states) on the Family and Community indicator, improving in two areas and remaining unchanged in two. The number of “teen births per 1,000” improved from 14 per 1,000 in 2019 to 11 per 1,000 in 2023, and the percentage of children living in single-parent families decreased slightly from 35% to 34%.

Disaggregating Data on Child Well-Being

“To improve well-being, we must ensure progress reaches all children… [the report] sheds further light on the status of children’s well-being by disaggregating the index’s 16 indicators by race and ethnicity. This deeper look uncovers widespread disparities that have been entrenched for years.” Here, a single representative measure for each domain is used to illustrate some of the most critical challenges.

In Economic Well-Being, for example, 29% of Black and 22% of Latino children under age 18 lived in families with incomes below the U.S. poverty threshold. (A family of two adults and two children was categorized as living in poverty if the family’s annual income fell below $30,900.)

In Education, the performance of Black and Latino students has, for many years, lagged behind that of White and Asian students and the national percentages. In 2024, these gaps not only persisted but “all groups experienced losses in reading and math proficiency” from 2019 to 2024.

In the area of Health, “Tragically, the death rate for Black children and youth is now close to twice the national rate, rising nearly 30% between 2019 and 2023 from 41 to 53 deaths per 100,000 young people ages 1 to 19 (Kids Count Data Book, 2025).

Regarding the broader Family and Community, the percentage of Black children living in “single-parent families” is almost three times that of White children and nearly twice the national percentage.

On the positive side, “the latest data show that Black children are doing better than average on preschool enrollment and having a household head with a high school diploma, and they match the U.S. total on uninsured rates, whereas Latino children outperformed the national rates of low birth-weight babies and child and teen deaths.”

The complete disaggregated breakdown for all 16 indicators is presented in Table 2 (p. 12) of the Kids Count Data Book (2025).

Call to Action

The 2025 Kids Count® Data Book is a call to action. Here in Baltimore, the challenges are not new. Economically, too many children live in poverty, too many parents struggle to secure employment, and housing is too expensive. Educationally, more kindergarten programs are needed for three and four-year-olds, and our schools must continue to address the critically low performance of students, particularly Black and Brown children. In the area of health, too many babies are born with low birth weight, too many children are overweight or obese, and far too many children and teens are dying before they even reach the age of 19.

“We know what children need to thrive — essentials such as food, housing, mental and physical health care; adequate household income; quality education and work opportunities as they age; permanent relationships with caring adults; and safe, stable environments at home and in their communities. While many children in America are doing well, it is evident from these data that large swaths of the population are not. Leaders have an opportunity now to make kids a priority, apply what we know works, and secure a strong future for children and our nation” (Kids Count Data Book, 2025).

As school districts prepare for the upcoming school year, the Data Book and the Interactive Book provide valuable information for school leaders to consider.

[See this month’s Director’s Desk article, Getting Ready for Day One, and By the Numbers: Summer Learning Loss, for more insights into summer planning for the new school year.]

Appendix: Definitions and Data Sources

Economic Well-Being Indicators

Children in poverty – the percentage of children under age 18 who live in families with incomes below 100% of the U.S. poverty threshold, as defined each year by the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2023, a family of two adults and two children lived in poverty if the family’s annual income fell below $30,900. The data are based on income received in the 12 months prior to the survey. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Children whose parents lack secure employment – the share of all children under age 18 who live in families where no parent has regular, full-time, year-round employment. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Children living in households with a high housing cost burden – the percentage of children under age 18 who live in households where more than 30% of monthly household pretax income is spent on housing-related expenses, including rent, mortgage payments, taxes, and insurance. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Teens not in school and not working – the percentage of teenagers between ages 16 and 19 who are not enrolled in school (full or part time) and not employed (full or part time). SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Education Indicators

Young children not in school – the percentage of children ages 3 and 4 who were not enrolled in school (e.g., nursery school, preschool, or kindergarten) during the previous three months. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Fourth graders not proficient in reading – the percentage of fourth-grade public school students who did not reach the proficient level in reading as measured by the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress.

Eighth graders not proficient in math – the percentage of eighth-grade public school students who did not reach the proficient level in math as measured by the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress.

High school students not graduating on time – the percentage of an entering freshman class not graduating in four years. The measure is derived from the adjusted cohort graduation rate (ACGR). The four-year ACGR is the number of students who graduate in four years with a regular high school diploma divided by the number of students who form the adjusted cohort for the graduating class. Students who enter ninth grade for the first time form a cohort that is adjusted by adding any students who subsequently transfer into the cohort and subtracting any students who transfer out. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data

Health Indicators

Low birth-weight babies – the percentage of live births weighing less than 5.5 pounds. The data reflect the mother’s place of residence, not the place where the birth occurred. SOURCE: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital Statistics.

Children without health insurance – the percentage of children under age 19 not covered by any health insurance. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Child and teen deaths per 100,000 – the number of deaths, from all causes, of children between the ages of 1 and 19 per 100,000 children in this age range. The data are reported by the place of residence, not the place where the death occurred. SOURCES: Death statistics: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital Statistics. Population statistics: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates.

Children and teens who are overweight or obese – the percentage of children and teens ages 10 to 17 with a Body Mass Index (BMI) at or above the 85th percentile. The data are based on a two-year average of survey responses. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, National Survey of Children’s Health.

Family and Community Indicators

Children in single-parent families – the percentage of children under age 18 who live with their single parent in a family. Children not living with a parent are excluded. In this definition, single-parent families include cohabiting couples. Children who live with married stepparents are not considered to be in a single-parent family. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Children in families where the household head lacks a high school diploma – the percentage of children under age 18 who live in households where the head of the household does not have a high school diploma or equivalent. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Children living in high-poverty areas – the percentage of children under age 18 who live in census tracts where the poverty rates of the total population are 30% or more. In 2023, a family of two adults and two children lived in poverty if the family’s annual income fell below $30,900. The data are based on income received in the 12 months prior to the survey. SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.

Teen births per 1,000 – the number of births to teenagers ages 15 to 19 per 1,000 females in this age group. Data reflect the mother’s place of residence, not the place where the birth occurred. SOURCES: Birth statistics: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital Statistics. Population statistics: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates

Reference:

Annie E. Casey Foundation (2025, June 9). U.S. States See Progress, Setbacks in Child Well-Being in 2025 Report. https://www.aecf.org/blog/us-states-see-progress-setbacks-in-child-well-being