Data Book 2015 - Child and Family Services

Transcription

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New Hampshire Kids Count
Data Book
2015
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INTRODUCTION
Every two years, NH Kids Count publishes the most comprehensive source of
information on Granite State children —– the NH KIDS COUNT DATA BOOK.
The DATA BOOK includes facts on Granite State children from birth to 18 years
through 36 separate indicators, each highlighting both state and county data.
The Data Book divides the 36 indicators into five topic areas: Family and
Community, Health and Wellness, Safety and Well-Being, Education and Economic
Opportunity. Data is also summarized at the county and the state levels in charts
in the closing section of the book.
The depth and variety of indicators in this book identify many trends in the lives
of New Hampshire’s children. Overall, New Hampshire’s child population is
shrinking and researchers predict our state will continue to get older.
percentage of those graduates here by creating
more jobs and providing a broader range of
housing options.
New Hampshire is only as strong as our
children, their families and the communities in
which they build their lives. We have a shared
responsibility to one another to ensure
every child has the opportunity to succeed.
It’s time to do more. Our future prosperity
and productivity as a state depends on
investing in our children now.
COOS
Berlin
Two-thirds of our children live in the southern-most third of the state.
Approximately 9 percent of our child population is non-white, and 5 percent are
Hispanic or Latino. Almost 65 percent of New Hampshire public school students
receiving Limited English Proficiency services are enrolled in the Manchester,
Nashua, and Concord school districts.
Conway
Too many children live in families with poverty-level incomes, less than $25,000 a
year for a family of four –- two adults and two children. For children younger than
18 years of age, the poverty level is 11.1 percent. Twenty-eight percent of
students (47,586) in grades 1 – 12 qualify for the federally subsidized lunch
program, generally considered a proxy for poverty.
Although the poverty rates are highest in New Hampshire’s northern county, the
largest numbers of children living in poverty reside in the southern counties.
Among those low-income families, 43.7 percent are single parent households with
children less than 5 years old.
Although employment rates have increased since the Great Recession, many New
Hampshire family incomes have not rebounded to their pre-2008 levels. Families
with fewer economic resources turn to a mix of public and private sources to
provide subsidies for essential services such as rent, heat, childcare, food and
medical care. A recent study noted that without these programs, another 25,000
Granite State children would slip into poverty.
The Granite State continues to graduate a high number of students who do well
on regional measures of student aptitude. The state is working to keep a greater
GRAFTON
CARROLL
Lebanon
Laconia
BELKNAP
SULLIVAN
Claremont
MERRIMACK
Concord
STRAFFORD
Dover
HILLSBOROUGH
Keene
Manchester
CHESHIRE
Nashua
ROCKINGHAM
Salem
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
SAFETY AND WELLBEING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Child Population and Racial Composition.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Limited English Proficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Children in Single-Parent Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Child Care Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Bullying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Child Maltreatment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Children in Out-of-Home Placements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Homeless Children and Youth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Children in Need of Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Youth in Detention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Juvenile Arrests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Unemployment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Livable Wage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Free and Reduced-Price Lunch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
SNAP (Food Stamp) Enrollment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Child and Family Poverty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
WIC Participation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
EDUCATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Preschool and Kindergarten Enrollment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Fourth Grade Reading and Math . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Eighth Grade Reading and Math. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
High School Dropouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Special Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
HEALTH AND WELLNESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Low Birth Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Infants Born at High Risk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Infant Mortality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Student Overweight and Obesity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Student Alcohol Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Student Tobacco Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Student Marijuana Use. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Student Prescription Drug Abuse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Children Mental Health Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Children’s Health Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
COUNTY PROFILES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Belknap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Carroll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Cheshire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Coos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Grafton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Hillsborough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Merrimack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Rockingham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Strafford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Sullivan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
This research was funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and other
generous donors. We thank our funders for their support but acknowledge
that the findings and conclusions presented in this report are those of
NH Kids Count alone.
Keystone Press
Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth
Public Service of New Hampshire
New Hampshrie Women’s Foundation
Lowell Five Cent Savings Bank
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At the same time, racial and ethnic diversity in the child population is on the
rise. In 2011, the number of minority births exceeded non-Hispanic white
births for the first time in the United States, which indicates increasing youth
diversity on a national level (Johnson, Schaefer, Lichter, & Rogers 2014). White
non-Hispanic children are predicted to comprise less than 40 percent of the
child population by 2050, and the population of Hispanic children is predicted
to be comparable by that time. The percentages of children identifying as Asian
and those who identify with two or more races are also expected to grow
(Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, 2014).
HISPANIC
OR LATINO
ORIGIN
WHITE ALONE,
NOT HISPANIC
OR LATINO
STATE TOTAL
279,716
90.7%
1.8%
0.2%
2.7%
1.1%
3.5%
5.0%
87.2%
Belknap
12,419
92.8%
2.6%
0.2%
1.9%
0.3%
2.1%
2.6%
90.7%
Cheshire
14,712
93.0%
1.0%
0.2%
1.4%
0.7%
3.7%
2.8%
91.6%
Carroll
8,572
96.0%
0.5%
0.2%
ASIAN
OTHER RACE
TWO OR MORE
RACES
Children under 18 have represented a decreasing percentage of the total U.S.
population since reaching a high of 36 percent at the end of the post-World
War II baby boom. It appears this trend is leveling off; projections of the child
population through 2050 remain at approximately a quarter of the total
population. Boys (at 51 percent) slightly outnumber girls (49 percent) in the
general population of children (Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family
Statistics, 2014).
AMERICAN
INDIAN +
ALASKA
NATIVE
CONTEXT
by County, 2009-2013, 5-year estimate
BLACK OR
AFRICAN
AMERICAN
This indicator reports the number of children under 18 years of age as a
percentage of the total population of each county. The child population is broken
down into three categories: under 5 years, 5 to 13 years, and 14 to 17 years. The
racial and ethnic composition of the child population is also presented.
Child Population by Race
WHITE
DEFINITION
TOTAL
POPULATION
UNDER 18
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY
CHILD POPULATION AND RACIAL COMPOSITION
0.3%
0.1%
2.9%
2.2%
94.4%
Grafton
15,994
91.7%
0.2%
0.4%
3.0%
0.2%
4.5%
2.8%
89.5%
Merrimack
30,946
93.0%
1.3%
0.1%
2.3%
0.3%
3.0%
2.9%
90.6%
1.1%
0.3%
3.0%
0.7%
4.2%
3.1%
88.4%
Hillsborough
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
91,955
65,599
24,901
8,752
86.1%
93.4%
90.8%
94.1%
3.3%
1.0%
0.4%
0.1%
0.2%
0.0%
3.9%
2.2%
0.9%
2.2%
0.6%
1.3%
4.3%
2.6%
3.3%
9.0%
3.5%
2.3%
80.1%
90.7%
93.6%
NOTE: Data unavailable for Coös County.
NEW HAMPSHIRE FINDINGS
Like its adult population, New Hampshire’s child population is concentrated in the
southern part of the state. One third of New Hampshire residents under the age
of 18 live in Hillsborough County, which contains the state’s two most populous
cities of Manchester and Nashua. Children represent over 20 percent of the
populations of Hillsborough, Merrimack, and Rockingham Counties, which have the
highest child population percentages. The lowest child population percentages are
found in the northern part of the state, with 17.2 in Carroll County, 17.4 percent in
Grafton, and 17.6 in Coös. These three counties combined account for nearly 11
percent of the state’s child population (U.S. Census Bureau, 2014).
Despite an increase of over 13 percent in New Hampshire’s adult population since
2000, the population of children has declined by over 12 percent. The population
of New Hampshire residents under the age of 18 was 271,122 in 2013, or 20.5
percent of the total state population (1,323,459) compared with 25 percent in
2000. The percentage of boys and girls is the same as the U.S. child population: 51
and 49 percent, respectively.
Estimates of the racial and ethnic composition of New Hampshire from 2009 to
2013 reflect limited diversity, with white non-Hispanic or Latino children accounting
for 87.2 percent of the state’s child population. Asian children make up 2.7 percent
of the child population and black or African-American children comprise 1.8
percent. Five percent of children in New Hampshire are Hispanic or Latino.
While racial and ethnic minorities constitute a small percent of the total child
population in New Hampshire, the state is experiencing growing diversity in its
child population, consistent with national trends. Between 2000 and 2010, the
minority child population in New Hampshire increased by 72.1 percent, while the
non-Hispanic white child population decreased by 12.8 percent (Johnson, 2010).
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CHILD POPULATION AND RACIAL COMPOSITION
SOURCE OF DATA FOR ILLUSTRATION/METHODOLOGY
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Population Estimates, Table PEPAGESEX
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics (2014). At a Glance for 2014: America’s
Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being.
> www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/index.asp
Belknap
Johnson, Kenneth M. (2012). New Hampshire Demographic Trends in the Twenty-First Century. The
Carsey Institute. May 1.
> http://scholars.unh.edu/carsey/164
Carroll
Cheshire
Johnson, Kenneth M., Andrew Schaefer, Daniel T. Lichter, and Luke T. Rogers (2014). The Increasing
Diversity of America’s Youth. Carsey Institute. April 22. http://scholars.unh.edu/carsey/212
Coös
U.S. Census Bureau (2013). American Community Survey, Table S0901, 2008–2012 5-Year
Estimates.
Grafton
U.S. Census Bureau (2014). Census Population Estimates, Table PEPAGESEX, 2013.
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
5%
Under 5
10%
15%
5 to 13
20%
25%
14 to 17
Hillsborough County is home to the highest percentage of Hispanic children
(9 percent), which is more than double the percentage of the county with the
second largest percentage, Rockingham County (3.5 percent). It is also home
to the highest percentage of black or African-American (3.3 percent) and
Asian (3.9) children as well as children of some other race (2.2 percent). The
relative racial and ethnic diversity of Hillsborough County is partially due to
international immigration. Between 2012 and 2013, more than one thousand
international immigrants became new residents of Hillsborough County,
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representing 58 percent of the state’s total international immigrants in that
year. The available data show that racial and ethnic composition varies quite a
bit more at the city level. An estimated 8.8 percent of children in Manchester
are black or African-American, and 14 percent are Hispanic or Latino (U.S.
Census Bureau, 2015).
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by County, 2013
Child Population by Age Group
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LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number and percentage of students in each county
receiving language instruction and other services for learning English under
Title III of No Child Left Behind. Title III funds support these services as well
as technical assistance and training for teachers and school administrators
(New Hampshire Department of Education). The percentage of students
receiving Limited English Proficiency (LEP) services can serve as a proxy measure
of the presence of recent immigrants in the communities comprising each
county.
CONTEXT
Students receiving LEP services are part of a larger group known as English
language learners (ELL), which refers to all students who are learning English as
their second language. Most ELL students are citizens born in the United States
(George Washington University Center to Equity and Excellence in Education,
2012). The percentage of ELL public school students in the United States rose
from 8.7 percent in school year 2002–2003 (approximately 4.1 million students)
to 9.1 percent in school year 2011–2012 (approximately 4.4 million students)
(National Center for Education Statistics, 2012).
New Hampshire has a long history of immigration. In the 1800s, thousands of
French-Canadians immigrated to New Hampshire seeking work, predominantly
in the state’s mill towns. By 1930, 80 percent of residents were immigrants or
children of immigrants with half of French-Canadian descent still speaking
French (Upham-Bornstain, 2012). Today, cultural assimilation has reduced the
number of people speaking the languages of earlier waves of immigrants, while
more recent immigrants from Africa, Asia, and Latin America have introduced
many new languages to the state.
In 2012, approximately 40 different languages other than English were spoken
at home by almost 8 percent of New Hampshire residents over the age of 5.
(U.S. Census Bureau, 2012a and 2012b). This diversity presents several challenges
to school districts and to the students learning English. In 2012, the Census
Bureau reported that the ability of children to speak English less than “very
well” ranged from 15 percent for children speaking Indo–European languages
to 22 percent for Spanish speaking children to 23 percent for those who speak
Asian and Pacific Island languages (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012a). Students with
limited English proficiency have a significantly lower high school graduation rate
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Limited English Proficiency Students
by County, SY 2013-2014
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Carroll
TOTAL ENROLLMENT
# OF LEP
STUDENTS
% OF STUDENTS
RCVNG LEP SVCS.
185,320
3,513
1.9%
5,752
18
0.3%
8,871
52
0.6%
Cheshire
9,153
54
0.6%
Grafton
11,049
149
1.3%
Coös
4,130
8
0.2%
Hillsborough
60,292
2,213
3.7%
Rockingham
45,573
345
0.8%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
19,470
15,849
5,181
383
190
51
2.0%
1.2%
1.0%
than high school students overall, which can lead to long-term disadvantages
including difficulties accessing higher education and fewer job opportunities. For
the school year 2011–2012, the national average 4-year graduation rate was 80
percent. However, the national average among students with limited English
proficiency was only 59 percent. New Hampshire students fared slightly better,
with a total 4-year graduation rate of 86 percent, and a 4-year graduation rate
of 68 percent for students with limited English proficiency (U.S. Department of
Education, 2014).
Of the 185,320 students enrolled in New Hampshire public schools in the 2013–
2014 school year, 3,513 received LEP services (1.9 percent). Most of these students
attended school in the southern part of the state. Almost 65 percent of New
Hampshire public school students receiving LEP services are enrolled in the
Manchester, Nashua, and Concord school districts. Approximately 37.5 percent of
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LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
by County, SY 2013-2014
Limited English Proficiency Students
New Hampshire Department of Education (2014).
> http//my.doe.nh.gov/profiles
George Washington University Center for Equity and Excellence in Education (2012).
> http://ceee.gwu.edu/ELLs
Belknap
National Center for Education Statistics (2012). Fast Facts: English Language Learners.
> http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=96
Carroll
Upham-Bornstain, Linda. Berlin History: The City That Trees Built.
Cheshire
> http://www.berlinnh.gov/pages/berlinnh_webdocs/berlinhistory
U.S. Census Bureau (2012a). Table S1601, Language Spoken at Home. 2008–2012 American
Community Survey.
> http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_12_5YR
_S1601&prodType=table
Coös
Grafton
U.S. Census Bureau (2012b). Table B16001, Language Spoken at Home by Ability to Speak
English for the Population 5 Years and Over. 2008–2012 American Community Survey.
> http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_12_5YR
_B16001&prodType=table
Hillsborough
Merrimack
U.S. Department of Education (2014). Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation Rates and
Event Dropout Rates: School Years 2010–2011 and 2011–2012.
> http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014391.pdf
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0.0% 0.5% 1.0% 1.5% 2.0% 2.5% 3.0% 3.5% 4.0%
New Hampshire public school students receiving LEP services in the 2013–2014
school year were enrolled in the Manchester school district, although the district’s
enrollment represents only 8 percent of students statewide. The Manchester school
district provided LEP services to both the highest number (1,318) and percentage
(8.9 percent) of students with limited English proficiency.
Hillsborough County, which includes both the Manchester and Nashua school
districts, had the highest county level percentage of students receiving LEP services
at 3.7 percent. Coös County had the lowest percentage with 0.2 percent of its
enrolled students receiving LEP services.
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SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number and percentage of single-parent families
consisting of a householder with no spouse present and one or more children
under age 18 by birth, marriage, or adoption.i
CONTEXT
In 2012, more than two-thirds (68 percent) of U.S. children under 18 lived with
two parents, most (64 percent) with two married parents, compared with just
over a quarter (28 percent) living with one parent. In addition, six percent of all
children under 18 lived with one or both parents who were in a cohabitating
union but not married (Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family
Statistics, 2014).
According to recent national estimates, the poverty rate among married couple
families with children under 18 years is 8.3 percent. Among families with children
under 18 headed by single women, the rate is 40 percent -- nearly five times
that of married couple families. Single women whose children are under 5 years
old have an even higher poverty rate of 46.9 percent; nearly half of these families
live below the poverty line (U.S. Census Bureau, 2014).ii
An estimated 27.9 percent of New Hampshire families with children under the age
of 18 are single-parent families. Women head 71.6 percent of these single-parent
families, and the remaining 28.4 percent are headed by men. In New Hampshire,
the poverty rate among families with children under 18 headed by women is nearly
10 points lower than the national rate at 30.6 percent. However, for those whose
children are under the age of 5, the rate is closer to the national level at 43.7 percent.
Coös County had the highest rate of single-parent families at 37.4 percent, followed
by Sullivan County (33.1 percent), Belknap County (32.3 percent), and Grafton and
Strafford Counties (31.2 percent and 31.1 percent, respectively). Rockingham
County had the lowest rate by a fairly wide margin at 21.2 percent. In some New
Hampshire cities, almost half of families with children under 18 are single-parent
families. In Rochester, for example, 47.9 percent of families are single-parent, in
Claremont 47.2 percent, in Berlin 43.1 percent, and in Manchester 41.8 percent.
Single-Parent Families with Children Under 18
by County, 2009-2013 5-Year Estimate
ALL
FAMILIES
W/CHILDREN
SINGLE-PARENT
FAMILIES
#
STATE TOTAL
%
FEMALE HEAD OF
SINGLE-PARENT
FAMILIES
#
%
#
%
20.0%
11,506
7.9%
18.0%
554
11.6%
384
12.1%
21.5%
3,591
7.6%
15.3%
2,038
145,476
40,576 27.9%
29,070
Carroll
4,793
1,417 29.6%
863
Coös
3,176
1,187 37.4%
Belknap
Cheshire
Grafton
Hillsborough
6,600
7,179
8,317
23.0%
2,191 30.5%
1,547
21.5%
644
2,597 31.2%
1,927
23.2%
670
4,286 27.8%
3,076
20.0%
4,131 31.1%
2,745
20.7%
803
13,789 29.1% 10,198
34,843
7,378 21.2%
15,397
Strafford
13,287
Sullivan
1,515
47,443
Merrimack
Rockingham
2,132 32.3%
4,441
MALE HEAD OF
SINGLE-PARENT
FAMILIES
1,468 33.1%
5,340
1,056
25.3%
23.8%
617
9.3%
9.0%
8.1%
1,210
7.9%
1,386
10.4%
412
5.8%
9.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2009-2013 American Community Survey 5-year Estimates, Table DP02
accounting for approximately three-quarters of all single-parent families (74.2 and
74.0 percent, respectively) and male headed families accounting for approximately
one quarter (25.8 and 26.0 percent, respectively). Carroll County had the least difference, with 60.9 percent female headed families and 39.1 percent male headed
families.
Grafton and Hillsborough Counties had the greatest differences between the number
of female and male headed single-parent families, with female headed families
8
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SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES
by County, 2009-2013 5-Year Estimate
U.S. Census Bureau (2014). American Community Survey, Table DP02, Selected Social
Characteristics, 2009–2013 5-Year Estimate.
> www.factfinder.census.gov
REFERENCES
STATE TOTAL
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics (2014). America’s Children: Key National
Indicators of Well-Being, 2013.
> www.childstats.gov/pdf/ac2013/ac_13.pdf
Belknap
Carroll
Stanczyk, Alexandra (2009). Low-Income Working Families: Updated Facts and Figures. Urban
Institute.
> www.urban.org/publications/411900.html
Cheshire
U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, Table DP03, Selected Economic
Characteristics, 2009–2013 5-Year Estimate.
Coös
Grafton
U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, Table S1101, Households and Families, 2009–
2013 5-Year Estimate.
Hillsborough
i The definition of “family” provided by the U.S. Census Bureau for these data is “a householder and
one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. Same-sex couples are included in the families category if there is at least one additional person related to the
householder by birth or adoption. Responses of ‘same-sex spouse’ were edited during processing to
‘unmarried partner.’ ” Because the data on single-parent families do not indicate the presence of
non-spousal adults living in the family, it is possible that some single-parent families reported here
included unmarried partners.
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
ii Data unavailable for poverty rates among male headed family households.
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
Female-headed household
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
25%
30%
35%
40%
Male-headed household
9
Single-Parent Families with Children Under 18
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CHILD CARE CAPACITY
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of licensed child care center based
programs and family home based programs in New Hampshire and the total
number of children that can be placed in the care of these programs. These
figures do not represent all of the licensed child care options in New
Hampshire, which also include school nurseries, night care programs, and
residential child care programs (NH DHHS, 2014a).
A family home based child care program is one that is operated out of a
provider’s home. A licensed home provider can care for a maximum of six
preschool children at any one time, in addition to a maximum of three
children enrolled in full-day school. No more than four of the preschool
children can be younger than 36 months old, and no more than two can be
younger than 24 months old. If the home has a child care worker in addition
to the provider, they can care for a maximum of twelve preschool children, in
addition to a maximum of five children enrolled in full-day school, no more
than four of whom can be younger than 36 months old (NH DHHS, 2014b).
Child care center based programs are those that operate outside of the
provider’s home, and the center director is required to be on the premises
during at least two thirds of the day’s operating hours. Child care centers have
required minimum staff to child ratios. For example, an associate teacher can
care for no more than eight children ages 36 to 47 months. An associate
teacher and a child care assistant can care for no more than sixteen children
of the same age group. Whenever there are eleven or more children in the
building, a second staff person must be present (NH DHHS, 2014b).
Child care program licensing, whether center or family home based, is handled by
the Child Care Licensing Unit (CCLU), a division of New Hampshire’s Department
of Health and Human Services. In order to receive a child care license, the
following documentation must be provided to the CCLU: 1) completed
application; 2) a list of all individuals over the age of 10 who live in the household
seeking licensing and all individuals over the age of 16 who will have daily contact
with the children under care; 3) proof of inspection and approval by the local fire
inspector within 12 months prior to the date of the application; 4) proof of
inspection and approval by the local health department within 12 months prior to
the date of the application; and 5) documentation that the child care program is in
compliance with local zoning ordinances. Additionally, for a center based program,
10
Child Care Capacity
by County, 2014
CENTERBASED
PROGRAMS
CENTERBASED
PROGRAM
CAPACITY
FAMILYBASED
PROGRAMS
FAMILYBASED
PROGRAM
CAPACITY
TOTAL
PROGRAMS
TOTAL
CAPACITY
STATE TOTAL
710
42,794
198
2,260
908
45,054
Carroll
29
1,205
4
52
33
1,257
Belknap
26
1,680
14
205
Cheshire
36
1,659
12
128
Grafton
52
1,937
26
340
5,425
19
202
Coös
17
1,021
Hillsborough
195
14,653
Rockingham
179
10,741
Sullivan
24
968
Merrimack
Strafford
86
66
3,505
0
47
39
21
16
40
48
1,885
1,787
0
17
476
242
15,129
410
218
11,151
40
1,163
252
195
78
105
87
1,021
2,277
5,627
3,757
documentation must be provided with the center director’s education and
professional experience. For a family based program, documentation is required
with the level of education completed beyond high school for any provider who is
under 21 years old (NH DHHS, 2014a). Additionally, all child care personnel,
including any individual who lives in a family based child care home who is 17 years
old or over, are required to submit fingerprints to NH DHHS.
CONTEXT
Access to reliable, licensed child care is a critical need for working parents. In
2012, approximately 69 percent of New Hampshire children under 6 years of
age had all of the parents in their family in the workforce, a slight increase from
67 percent in 2009 (U.S. Census, 2014). Nationally, in 2011, 61 percent of
children under 5 years of age whose mothers were working were in regular
child care arrangements. Forty-two percent were cared for by relatives, such as
a grandparent (24 percent) or their fathers (18 percent). Approximately 4
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CHILD CARE CAPACITY
Child Care Capacity
by County, 2014
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Child Care Licensing Unit, 2014.
REFERENCES
Belknap
U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce (2013). Who’s Minding the Kids? Child Care
Arrangements: Spring 2011.
> www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p70-135.pdf
Carroll
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (NH DHHS) (2014a). Child Care
Licensing Unit.
> www.dhhs.nh.gov/OOS/cclu/index.htm
Cheshire
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (NH DHHS) (2014b). New
Hampshire Child Care Program Licensing Rules 2008–2016.
> www.dhhs.nh.gov/OOS/cclu/documents/finalrules.pdf
Coös
Grafton
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (NH DHHS) (2014c). Child Care
Scholarship Program Maximum Weekly Standard Rates Effective July 1, 2013.
> www.dhhs.state.nh.us/dcyf/cdb/documents/scholarships.pdf
Hillsborough
U.S. Census (2014c). American Community Survey, Table DP03, 2007–2009 and 2010–2012.
Merrimack
eligible, children must be younger than 13 years old and parents must be
working, actively seeking employment, or in a training program. In 2014, the
income limit for a family of three was $49,475 or 250 percent of the federal
poverty level. As of September of the same year, there was no wait list for
families looking for child care subsidies (NH DHHS, 2014c).
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
4,000
8,000
12,000
16,000
20,000
Center-based program capacity
Family-based program capacity
percent of working mothers cared for their child(ren) while they worked.
Thirty-three percent were in non-relative care, such as day care centers
(13 percent) or family home based providers (8 percent) (Census Bureau, 2013).
The state of New Hampshire subsidizes child care for income-eligible families
through the Child Care and Development Fund, which is operated by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Child Care. To be
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NH KIDS COUNT
In 2013, the average full-time child care center rates in New Hampshire ranged
from $170.00 for a preschooler (children between 36 and 78 months) to $201.75
for infants (children between 1 and 17 months) per week. Family home based
programs cost less, ranging from $147.50 for preschoolers to $155.00 for infants
per week (NH DHHS, 2014c).
In 2014, the CCLU reported 710 child care center programs (42,794 child capacity)
and 198 family home based programs (2,260 child capacity) in the state of New
Hampshire. Hillsborough County, New Hampshire’s most populous county, had the
greatest number, with 195 child care centers (14,653 child capacity) and 47 family
home based programs (476 child capacity). Coös County, the state’s least populous,
is reported to also have the fewest child care options, with 17 child care center
based programs (1,021 child capacity) and no licensed family home based programs.
11
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Economic
Opportunity
SPONSORED BY
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
13
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ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on the annual unemployment rate, which is the number
of unemployed persons as a percentage of the labor force. Unemployed
persons are defined as those who are not currently employed but are actively
seeking work, including those waiting to be called back from a layoff or waiting
to report to a new job within thirty days. The labor force is defined as those
persons 16 years of age and over who are employed, or unemployed and
actively seeking employment (BLS, 2014a). A limitation of the unemployment
rate is that it excludes unemployed people who are not actively seeking work,
as they are not considered members of the labor force.
CONTEXT
Parental unemployment and the associated loss of wages and benefits is a
leading contributor to child poverty and homelessness. Children with
unemployed parents are at a higher risk of hunger, emotional trauma, abuse,
and educational failure, threatening their short-term well-being and their longterm opportunities. In 2010, at the height of the Great Recession, over 8
million children under the age of 18 lived with unemployed parents (Lovell and
Isaacs, 2010). By 2013, the number was down to about half that of the
recession’s peak at approximately 4 million (BLS, 2014b).
National unemployment has been in a slow decline since its 2010 spike of 9.6
percent, falling to 7.4 percent by 2013 (BLS, 2014c). However, still of concern
are the large numbers of workers who remain jobless, particularly those 3.9
million considered long-term unemployed, without work for twenty-seven
weeks or longer. These workers account for 37.7 percent of the unemployed
(BLS, 2014d).
New Hampshire’s unemployment rate has been consistently lower than the
national average for the last decade, and 2013 was no exception with New
Hampshire’s unemployment rate of 5.3 percent coming in at 30 percent lower
than the national average of 7.4. Like the national unemployment rate, New
Hampshire’s rate has also decreased steadily since the Great Recession’s peak.
Unemployment Rate
by County, 2009-2013
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
STATE TOTAL
6.2%
6.2%
5.5%
5.5%
5.3%
Belknap
6.6%
6.7%
5.6%
5.3%
5.2%
Cheshire
5.7%
6.0%
5.3%
5.2%
5.1%
Carroll
Coös
Grafton
5.6%
7.9%
5.1%
5.9%
8.0%
5.1%
5.5%
7.7%
4.5%
5.2%
7.6%
4.4%
5.1%
6.4%
4.3%
Hillsborough
6.5%
6.4%
5.7%
5.6%
5.4%
Rockingham
6.6%
6.4%
5.8%
5.9%
5.7%
5.7%
5.8%
4.9%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
5.6%
6.2%
5.6%
5.9%
5.0%
5.4%
4.9%
5.4%
4.7%
4.8%
5.1%
4.5%
the highest unemployment rate, but it also experienced the greatest decline over
this five-year span, down from 7.9 percent in 2009. Carroll County’s rate remained
the most stable over the past five years, with 5.6 percent unemployment in 2009
and 5.1 percent in 2013.
Of New Hampshire’s most populous towns and cities, Dover had the lowest
unemployment rate in 2013 at 4.2 percent unemployed, and Salem had the highest
with 7.6 percent unemployed. This represents a decline of just under half a
percentage point from Salem’s 2009 recession-era rate of 8 percent.
While unemployment rates varied across New Hampshire’s ten counties in 2013,
from a low of 4.3 percent in Grafton County to a high of 6.4 percent in Coös
County, every county saw a decrease between 2009 and 2013. Coös County had
14
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UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
Unemployment Rate
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014).
> www.bls.gov/data/#unemployment
REFERENCES
8%
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014a). How the Government
Measures Unemployment.
> www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm#unemployed
Coös
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014b). Employment
Characteristics of Families – 2013.
> www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/famee.pdf
7%
Belknap
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014c). Regional and State
Unemployment- 2013 Annual Averages.
> www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/srgune.pdf
STATE TOTAL
6%
Stra
ffor
d
ire
h
s
e
Ch
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (2014d). Long-Term Unemployed
Account for 37.7 Percent of All Unemployed Persons in December 2013.
> www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2014/ted_20140114.htm
am
Rockingh
Hillsb
orou
Merrimac
5%
k
2009
www.nhkidscount.org
2010
NH KIDS COUNT
2011
Carroll
Sulliva
n
Grafton
4%
gh
2012
2013
15
Livable Wage.qxp_Layout 1 3/14/15 9:29 PM Page 22
LIVABLE WAGE
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on a living wage calculated for each county using an
online tool developed by the Living Wage Project. The living wage is the
hourly pay rate that an individual must earn to support his or her family
working full time (2,080 hours per year). It is based on 2010 estimates of the
cost of living in each county using a set of typical expenses for the location,
including food, child care, health care, housing, transportation, other necessities,
and taxes (Glasmeier, 2014).
Livable Wage
by County, 2010
N.H. Minimum Wage
N.H. Poverty Wage
1 ADULT
1 CHILD
1 ADULT
2 CHILDREN
2 ADULTS
2 CHILDREN
$7.00
$ 8.80
$ 10.60
$21.29
$27.01
$20.15
$7.25
$ 7.25
$ 7.25
2014 LIVABLE WAGE:
STATE TOTAL
Two additional indicators—minimum wage and poverty wage—are included
in the table and the chart for comparison to the living wage. The minimum
wage of $7.25, which totals $15,080 annually at full time, is the legally required
minimum hourly wage for all workers in the state. By comparison, the poverty
wage of $7.00 an hour is the gross annual income of, for example, a singleparent, single-child household living at the federal poverty threshold of
$14,570, converted to an hourly wage (Glasmeier, 2014a).
Belknap
$20.34
$26.04
$19.19
Cheshire
$20.81
$26.51
$19.65
CONTEXT
Grafton
Hillsborough
$20.27
$21.87
$25.97
$27.57
$19.11
$20.70
Rockingham
$21.90
$27.61
$20.74
The number of working poor in the United States now exceeds 47 million,
due in part to declining wages. The real value of the federal minimum wage has
fallen by almost 30 percent since the 1970s. Even with recent federal increases,
the minimum wage is still too low to meet the basic needs of working families
(NELP, 2014).
A study conducted just before the Great Recession (Kenyon, 2008) found that
79 percent of jobs in New Hampshire do not pay a wage sufficient for singleparent families with two children to cover necessities such as housing, food,
transportation, child care, and health care. Approximately one in three New
Hampshire workers is employed in a low-wage services position. As New
Hampshire’s service-based economy continues to grow, it is likely that the
proportion of jobs paying a livable wage will decline (Kenyon, 2008).
The livable wage for single-parent families with two children in New Hampshire is
$27.01 per hour, nearly four times the current minimum wage of $7.25, and
somewhat lower for two-parent families at $20.15, reflecting the assumption that
both parents work. Two of New Hampshire’s counties were calculated to have
livable wages higher than the statewide average for a single-parent household with
16
Carroll
Coös
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
$20.37
$18.44
$21.01
$21.21
$19.86
$26.06
$24.13
$26.71
$26.91
$25.56
$19.21
$17.29
$19.85
$20.05
$18.71
two children—$27.57 in Hillsborough County and $27.61 in Rockingham County.
Coos County had the lowest livable wage in the state at $24.13.
For all ten of New Hampshire’s counties, the livable wage for families of any size
and composition is at least two to three times the minimum wage. Getting by on a
minimum wage is particularly challenging for families due to the expenses of raising
children, including, for example, child care, adequate clothing and food, larger
housing, and expenses related to school and extracurricular activities. Communities
with greater access to jobs paying a livable wage create more opportunities for
parents to meet their children’s needs and reduce the risk of families falling into
poverty.
NH KIDS COUNT
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LIVABLE WAGE
by County, 2010
Glasmeier, Amy K. (2014). Poverty in America Living Wage Calculator. Massachusetts Institute of
Technology.
> http://livingwage.mit.edu/states/33/locations
NH Minimum Wage
REFERENCES
NH Poverty Wage
Glasmeier, Amy K. (2014a). Living Wage Calculation for New Hampshire. Massachusetts Institute of
Technology.
> http://livingwage.mit.edu/states/33
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Kenyon, D.A. and A. Churilla. (2008). Many New Hampshire Jobs Do Not Pay a Livable Wage.
Carsey Institute. Carsey Institute Issue Brief No. 5. Fall 2008.
> http://scholars.unh.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1047&context=carsey
Carroll
Lovell, P. and J.B. Isaacs. (2010). Families of the Recession: Unemployed Parents and Their Children.
First Focus Campaign for Children, revised June 2010.
> http://www.brookings.edu/research/papers/2010/01/14-families-recession-isaacs
Cheshire
Coös
National Employment Law Project (2014). Living Wage and Minimum Wage.
Grafton
> www.nelp.org/site/issues/category/living_wage_and_minimum_wage
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
$0
$5
$10
1 Adult, 2 Children
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
$15
$20
$25
$30
2 Adults, 2 Children
17
Livable Wage
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FREE AND REDUCED-PRICED LUNCH
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on students eligible for free and reduced-price school
lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act of 1946 as a
number and percentage of district enrollments in grades 1 through 12. The
data describe the students eligible for the program and not the students
participating in the program.
Free and Reduced-Price Lunch
COUNTY PUBLIC
SCHOOL
ENROLLMENT
GRADES 1-12
STUDENTS
ELIGIBLE FOR
FRPL
% OF ENROLLED
STUDENTS
ELIGIBLE FOR
FRPL
168,237
47,586
28.3%
Belknap
8,024
2,842
35.4%
Cheshire
8,130
2,956
36.4%
Grafton
10,056
3,089
30.7%
CONTEXT
STATE TOTAL
Eligibility of students for free and reduced-price lunch is widely accepted as a
proxy measure for the poverty rate since it describes a population that is
economically disadvantaged. The designation also determines allocation of
federal Title I funds and state aid programs that assist schools with covering the
additional costs of serving meals to children (Tappin and Norton, 2009).
Carroll
Students receive free or reduced-price lunches through the National School
Lunch Program (NSLP). The NSLP is one of several federally assisted child
nutrition meals programs designed to ensure that children have access to
nutritionally balanced, low-cost or free lunches and other meals as a supplement
to the food they receive at home. In New Hampshire, children are eligible to
participate if they or members of their households already receive Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (TANF) benefits; if they are documented as a homeless, runaway, migrant,
or foster child; or if they are enrolled in a Head Start, Even Start, or other
comparable federally funded program (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2012).
Coös
5,252
3,775
2,008
1,823
38.2%
48.3%
Hillsborough
55,259
16,092
29.1%
Rockingham
41,502
6,738
16.2%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
17,149
14,413
4,677
5,013
5,170
1,855
29.2%
35.9%
39.7%
In the 2013 to 2014 school year, 47,586 or 28.3 percent of New Hampshire public
school students in grades 1 through 12 were eligible for free and reduced-price
lunches.This is a slight uptick over the 27.3 percent reported by the New Hampshire
Department of Education as eligible during the 2012 to 2013 school year, but a
substantial increase since pre-recession 2006 to 2007, when 18.9 percent were eligible.
Sullivan and Carroll Counties (39.7 percent and 38.2 percent, respectively).
Eligibility rates for school districts varied considerably more, from 3.2 percent in
Hanover, for example, to 57.2 percent in Laconia. Berlin, Manchester, and
Claremont also had rates at or around 50 percent of total enrollment (52.6
percent, 51.1 percent, and 49 percent, respectively).
Eligibility for free and reduced-price lunch in the 2013 to 2014 school year was
lowest in Rockingham County, with 16.2 percent eligible, approximately 12
percentage points below the statewide rate and approximately 13 percentage
points below the next lowest rates found in Hillsborough (29.1 percent) and
Merrimack (29.2 percent) Counties. Coös County had the highest rate of
eligibility at 48.3 percent, nearly half of public school students, followed by
These rate variations are evidence of the wide range of economic conditions in
which New Hampshire families are living. To some extent, the rates reflect
variations of participation in the other federal assistance programs that certify
families for free and reduced-price lunches across the state as well.
18
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FREE AND REDUCED-PRICE LUNCH
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
New Hampshire Department of Education, 2014.
Tappin, Ryan J. and Steve Norton (2009). New Hampshire’s Latest School Funding Formula. New
Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies, Concord, New Hampshire.
> www.nhpolicy.org/UploadedFiles/Reports/new_education_funding_formula_2009.pdf
Belknap
Carroll
United States Department of Agriculture (2012). Eligibility Manual for School Meals: Determining
and Verifying Eligibility. Child Nutrition Programs, Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
> www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/cn/EliMan.pdf
Cheshire
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
10%
NH KIDS COUNT
20%
30%
40%
50%
19
Free and Reduced-Price Lunch
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SNAP (FOOD STAMP) ENROLLMENT
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number and percent of children under the age of
18 enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
(SNAP), commonly known as Food Stamps.
CONTEXT
SNAP provides a monthly benefit to eligible households enrolled in the
program, enabling participants to purchase food items from authorized vendors.
Along with federal child nutrition programs such as the National School Lunch
and School Breakfast Programs and the Special Supplemental Program for
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), SNAP is a major source of food for
children in low-income families. SNAP is the largest of these food assistance
programs, accounting for 73 percent of all federal food and nutrition spending in
2013 (USDA ERS, 2014). To be eligible, a household’s gross monthly income
cannot exceed 130 percent of the federal poverty level, which is currently
$2,584 per month for a family of four (USDA FNS, 2014). The average per
person benefit level in 2013 was $133.08 per month (USDA ERS, 2014).
Historically, SNAP or Food Stamps participation has fluctuated with economic
conditions, rising during recessionary periods of high unemployment and
poverty. The percentage of Americans participating in the program has grown
steadily since 2000, with the largest increases occurring during the Great
Recession between 2008 and 2011. In 2013, 46.7 million persons per month
participated in SNAP, an increase of 2 percent from fiscal year 2012, making
this the largest number of participants in the history of the program (USDA
ERS, 2014). This increase, however, was the smallest annual percentage
increase since 2007, which indicates that this trend may be slowing. At the
same time, a slight decline in participation in WIC was reported, with 3
percent fewer WIC participants in fiscal year 2013 compared to 2012, which
was the largest annual decline since the start of the WIC program in 1974
(USDA ERS, 2014). This decline in WIC participation may be related to the
steadily decreasing national child population rates rather than decreased
national need in the program’s target population (Federal Interagency Forum
on Child and Family Statistics, 2014).
Over the past four years, New Hampshire saw an increase in the percentage of
children under the age of 18 enrolled in SNAP, rising steadily year-over-year from
20
Children Under 18 Years Enrolled in SNAP
2010
#
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Carroll
Cheshire
Coös
Grafton
2011
%
#
2012
%
#
2013
%
#
44,711 15.6% 46,681 16.6% 47,640 17.3% 48,536 17.9%
2,802
1,712
2,961
1,669
22.6%
19.4%
19.7%
27.0%
2,735
16.8%
4,842
15.3%
5,057
19.9%
2,921
1,786
3,141
1,743
23.9%
20.8%
21.3%
29.4%
2,917
18.3%
5,118
16.4%
5,199
20.7%
2,977
1,953
3,234
1,786
24.6%
23.3%
22.1%
31.3%
3,047
19.4%
5,411
17.8%
5,153
20.8%
2,966
1,933
3,318
1,793
3,065
Hillsborough
15,581 16.6%
16,151 17.5%
16,345 18.0%
16,563
Rockingham
5,243
5,508
5,543
5,732
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
%
1,990
7.8%
21.7%
2,106
8.4%
23.5%
2,088
8.6%
23.9%
25.1%
23.7%
22.9%
31.8%
19.7%
18.5%
5,717
19.2%
5,270
21.5%
2,151
9.1%
25.2%
NOTES:
1. Annual SNAP enrollment numbers are counts of children under age 18 that were receiving
benefits as of April 30 of each year. Source: New Hampshire DHHS.
2. Percentage based on child population under age 18. Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Population
Estimates, Table PEPAGESEX.
15.6 percent in 2010 to 17.9 percent in 2013. Across the state, 48,536 children
were receiving SNAP benefits as of April 2013, an increase of almost 9 percent
from April 2010 (NHDHHS, 2014).
Of the ten counties in New Hampshire, Coos County had the highest rate of
SNAP enrollment among children as of April 2013, with a rate of 31.8 percent.
Rockingham County had the lowest children’s enrollment by a wide margin at 9.1
percent, approximately half that of the statewide rate. The remaining eight counties
ranged from 18.5 percent in Hillsborough County to 25.1 and 25.2 percent in
Belknap and Sullivan Counties, respectively.
NH KIDS COUNT
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SNAP (FOOD STAMP) ENROLLMENT
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services, Division of Family Assistance, 2014.
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics (2014). At a Glance for 2014: America’s
Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being.
> www.childstats.gov
Belknap
Carroll
United States Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service (2014). Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program Eligibility.
> www.fns.usda.gov/snap/eligibility
Cheshire
United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service (2014). The Food
Assistance Landscape: FY 2013 Annual Report. Economic Information Bulletin No. 120, February
2014.
> www.ers.usda.gov/media/1282272/eib120.pdf
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
5%
10%
NH KIDS COUNT
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
21
by County, 2013
Children Under 18 Years Enrolled in SNAP
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FAMILY AND CHILD POVERTY
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on the percentage of families with children under age
18, and individuals under age 18, whose household income is below the
poverty threshold. The poverty threshold is an annually adjusted dollar
amount the Census Bureau uses to determine a family’s poverty status.
CONTEXT
Currently in the United States more than 16 million children (approximately
22 percent) live in families with incomes below the poverty threshold, which
in 2014 was $24,008 for a family of four with two related children under 18
(U.S. Census Bureau, 2014). The National Center for Child Poverty suggests
that, in order to cover basic expenses, families need about twice as much
income as the poverty level (NCCP, 2014).
Living in poverty can have numerous adverse effects on children’s well-being.
It is associated with social, emotional, and behavioral problems, as well as
poorer physical and mental health (NCCP, 2014). In the long term, childhood
poverty is associated with lower educational attainment, annual hours worked,
and earnings in adulthood (Duncan et al. 2012), related at least in part to the
higher odds of poor health among those who were poor as children (ZiolGuest et al. 2012). Growing up in poverty also puts children at a greater risk
for living in persistent poverty as adults (NCCP, 2014).
According to recent estimates, 5.6 percent of all New Hampshire families live
below the federal poverty threshold. This rate increases to 9.5 percent for
families with children under 18. The poverty rate among individuals under 18
years is 11.1 percent.
Coös County has the highest rate of family poverty in general (9.0 percent),
family poverty among families with children under 18 (19.2 percent), and
poverty among individuals under age 18 (21.7 percent). Rockingham County
has the lowest rates in these three categories, at 3.5 percent, 5.9 percent, and
6.8 percent, respectively.
Poverty in Families with Children Under 18 Years
by County, 2009-2013 (5 year estimate)
% OF ALL FAMILIES
WHOSE ANNUAL
INCOME IS BELOW
POVERTY LEVEL
% OF FAMILIES
WITH CHILDREN
UNDER 18 WHOSE
ANNUAL INCOME IS
BELOW POVERTY
LEVEL
CHILD POVERTY
RATE (POVERTY
AMONG
INDIVIDUALS
UNDER 18)
STATE TOTAL
5.6%
9.5%
11.1%
Belknap
6.9%
12.1%
14.7%
Cheshire
5.8%
10.8%
14.3%
Grafton
5.9%
11.8%
13.8%
Carroll
Coös
Hillsborough
6.5%
9.0%
5.8%
10.5%
19.2%
9.7%
11.8%
21.7%
11.9%
Merrimack
5.2%
8.3%
10.3%
Strafford
7.3%
12.8%
12.5%
Rockingham
Sullivan
3.5%
7.3%
5.9%
13.6%
6.8%
12.6%
NOTE: Margins of error for poverty estimates range from 0.3% to 4.8%. The poverty threshold for
each year is applied to each year of data within the 5-year estimate.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2009-2013 American Community Survey 5-year Estimates, Table DP03
place the number of families with children under 18 living in poverty in Coös
County at approximately 610, compared with approximately 4,600 in
Hillsborough County and 2,060 in Rockingham County.
It is important to note that although poverty rates are highest in Coös
County, higher numbers of families in poverty are found in the more populous
southern part of the state despite the relatively low rates. Recent estimates
22
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FAMILY AND CHILD POVERTY
by County, 2009-2013 (5 year estimate)
U.S. Census Bureau (2014). American Community Survey, Table DP03, Selected Economic
Characteristics, 5-Year Estimate 2009–2013.
> www.factfinder.census.gov
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
Duncan, G.J., K. Magnuson, A. Kalil and K. Ziol-Guest. (2012). “The Importance of Early Childhood
Poverty.” Social Indicators Research 108:87-98.
Belknap
Carroll
National Center for Children in Poverty (2014). Child Poverty.
> www.nccp.org/topics/childpoverty.html
Cheshire
U.S. Census Bureau (2014). Poverty Thresholds.
> www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/data/threshld/
Coös
Ziol-Guest, K.M., G.J. Duncan, A. Kalil and W.T. Boyce. (2012). “Early Childhood Poverty, ImmuneMediated Disease Processes and Adult Productivity.” Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences 109(2):17289-17293.
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
Percentage of all families whose income in the past twelve
months is below the poverty level
Percentage of families with related children under 18 years whose
income in the past twelve months is below the poverty level
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
23
Poverty in Families with Children Under 18 Years
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WIC PARTICIPATION
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the percentage of New Hampshire infants and children
ages 0 to 4 enrolled in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
CONTEXT
The WIC program is federally funded and provides referrals, nutrition
education, and checks or vouchers that participants can use to purchase
approved food items. Among the food items are milk, eggs, cereal, bread,
beans, canned fish, cheese, tofu, brown rice, fruit juice, soft corn and whole
wheat tortillas, peanut butter, oatmeal, fruits, vegetables, and infant nutrition,
including formulas and baby food (NH DHHS 2014b).
Infants, children under 5 years of age, and pregnant and breastfeeding women
may be eligible for WIC benefits. In New Hampshire, infants and children ages
0 to 4 are eligible for WIC if the household income does not exceed 185
percent of the federal poverty level and if they are “nutritionally at risk” as
determined by a staff nutritionist. For a family of two, the annual income limit
to be WIC eligible is $29,101; for a family of four it is $44,123, with an
allowance of $7,511 for each additional family member beyond that. Applicants
for benefits receive a free health screening from a nurse, nutritionist, or doctor
to determine if there is a medically-based risk that would require nutritional
assistance such as an unhealthy body weight, or a dietary risk such as a proteindeficient diet. The state may limit access to benefits for children who are at the
lowest risk level if funding is inadequate (NH DHHS, 2014a).
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) administers the WIC program,
and refers to households that are “unable to acquire enough food to meet the
needs of all their members because they [have] insufficient money or other
resources for food” as “food insecure.” Children who are food insecure are at
particular risk for adverse outcomes, including poorer physical and mental
health, behavioral problems, and low academic performance (Feeding America,
2012). WIC benefits can help to reduce the harmful effects of food insecurity
on children.
In New Hampshire, WIC enrollment rate has declined slowly but steadily from 20.1
percent in 2010 to 18.3 percent in 2013. There were 11,992 infants and children
24
Infants and Children Under 5 Years Enrolled in WIC
2010
#
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
2013
%
#
%
701
23.2%
652
22.1%
682
23.3%
875
23.8%
793
21.6%
798
21.6%
808
21.9%
478
Merrimack
#
24.6%
Coös
Hillsborough
2012
%
748
534
Grafton
#
13,940 20.1% 13,309 19.6% 12,592 19.0% 11,992 18.3%
Carroll
Cheshire
2011
%
977
4,664
1,510
27.5%
33.1%
24.0%
19.7%
20.1%
475
444
864
4,548
1,376
25.7%
32.0%
21.7%
19.5%
18.6%
502
448
840
4,321
1,298
27.1%
34.2%
21.1%
19.0%
18.3%
525
427
776
3,958
22.2%
12.6%
1,439
10.2%
1,298
585
25.2%
553
24.5%
529
24.4%
535
22.0%
1,481
22.6%
17.6%
1,439
1,802
1,463
19.6%
18.6%
12.1%
NA
32.2%
1,300
1,788
NA
28.8%
9.4%
25.6%
NOTES:
1. Annual WIC enrollment numbers are counts of infants and children under age 5 who were
receiving benefits as of April 30 of each year. Source: New Hampshire DHHS.
2. Percentage based on child population under age 5. Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2013 Population
Estimates, Table PEPAGESEX.
ages 0 to 4 enrolled in WIC in 2013. Grafton and Rockingham Counties
experienced the sharpest declines in enrollment rates during this time, from 24.0
to 19.6 percent in Grafton, and 12.1 to 9.4 percent in Rockingham, or
approximately half the statewide rate.
In the same time period, Coös County has consistently had the highest percentage
of its infant and child population enrolled in WIC, and is the only county exceeding
30 percent enrollment in each of the years 2010 to 2013, peaking at 34.2 percent
in 2012. In Carroll County, the enrollment rate has remained second to Coös
NH KIDS COUNT
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WIC PARTICIPATION
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
by County, 2013
Infants and Children Under 5 Years Enrolled in WIC
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2014).
Feeding America (2012). Map the Meal Gap: Highlights of Findings for Overall and Child Food
Insecurity.
> www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/our-research/map-the-meal-gap/2012/2012mapthemealgap-exec-summary.pdf
Belknap
Carroll
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2014a). Eligibility.
> www.dhhs.state.nh.us/dphs/nhp/wic/eligibility.htm
Cheshire
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2014b). WIC Foods: February
2014.
> www.dhhs.state.nh.us/dphs/nhp/wic/documents/nh-wic-approvedfood.pdf
Coös
Grafton
i Data were unavailable for Strafford County in 2010. It is not known whether there was a net
increase or decrease in WIC enrollment in Strafford County between 2010 and 2013. There was only
minimal change between 2011 and 2013.
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
County’s throughout this time. It is one of only two counties reporting an increase
since 2010, rising from 27.5 percent to 28.8 percent in 2013. The other is Sullivan
County, which has remained fairly stable but increased slightly in that time from
25.2 percent in 2010 to 25.6 percent in 2013.i
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
25
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26
NH KIDS COUNT
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Education
SPONSORED BY
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
27
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PUBLIC SCHOOL ENROLLMENT IN PRESCHOOL AND KINDERGARTEN
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of preschool and kindergarten students
enrolled in New Hampshire public schools.
EDUCATION
CONTEXT
Research suggests that children who were enrolled in preschool programs
experience benefits in later childhood, including advanced educational skills in
language, literacy, and math; better social and emotional outcomes; and
improved health. These findings hold true for children from a wide range of
socioeconomic backgrounds. Preschool attendance has also been linked to
positive effects on adolescent and adult outcomes, including reduced teen
pregnancy, higher graduation rates, higher educational attainment, increased
earnings, and lower crime rates (Barnett, 2008; Hirokazu et al., 2013). This
research highlights the importance of early childhood education.
The availability of state-funded public education for preschool-aged children
varies from state to state. Currently, forty states and the District of Columbia
offer state-funded preschool programs to all children three and four years of
age. This includes all New England states except for New Hampshire, which
primarily (although not exclusively) provides state-funded preschool for
children three to five years of age with special needs in compliance with the
requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA).
Nationally, 4 percent of 3-year-olds and 28 percent of 4-year-olds were
enrolled in state-funded preschool programs during the 2012 to 2013 school
year. The total number of children in the U.S. enrolled in state-funded
preschool was 1,338,737, of which 435,788 were special education students
(32.5 percent). While the percentage of 3-year-olds enrolled in preschool has
remained stable since 2002, the percentage of 4-year-olds enrolled has
doubled from 14 percent in that year. Meanwhile, the average cost to the
state of having a child enrolled in preschool has decreased 20 percent, from
$5,043 in 2002 to $4,026 in 2013 (NIEER, 2014).
The number of children enrolled in New Hampshire’s public preschools has
steadily increased from 2,987 in the 2009 to 2010 school year to 3,401 in the
2013 to 2014 school year despite a decline in the child population under five
28
Preschool Enrollment
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2,987
3,095
3,165
3,200
3,401
Belknap
155
136
137
154
168
Cheshire
209
232
243
240
227
Grafton
165
159
191
182
180
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coos
47
109
55
85
56
97
48
55
105
69
Hillsborough
1,005
1,087
1,111
1,104
1,276
Rockingham
695
717
733
691
722
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
321
198
83
305
222
97
291
175
131
348
201
127
339
242
123
years of age since 2010. At the same time, kindergarten enrollment decreased
in line with the declining child population.
For the 2013 to 2014 school year, Hillsborough County—New Hampshire’s
most populous county—correspondingly had the highest number of preschool
(1,276) and kindergarten (3,475) students enrolled. This represents an increase
in preschool enrollment of 16 percent from the previous year and a decrease in
kindergarten enrollment of 3 percent. Coös and Grafton Counties had the
lowest enrollment numbers. Coös, the least populous county in the state, had
69 children in preschool and 286 in kindergarten while Grafton, the state’s fifth
most populous county, had 55 children in preschool and 371 in kindergarten.
For Coös County, this represents a 35 percent decrease in preschool
enrollment and an 8 percent decrease in kindergarten enrollment. This decline
in preschool enrollment is primarily attributable to a change in educational
strategy implemented by the White Mountains Regional School District in the
2013 to 2014 school year that limited enrollment for 3-year-olds only to those
identified as special education students.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
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PUBLIC SCHOOL ENROLLMENT IN PRESCHOOL AND KINDERGARTEN
Kindergarten Enrollment
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Cheshire
Coos
Grafton
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
11,969
11,922
11,904
11,888
11,602
567
519
582
540
560
Barnett, W. Steven (2008). Preschool Education and Its Lasting Effects: Research and Policy
Implications. Boulder and Tempe: Education and the Public Interest Center & Education Policy
Research Unit.
> http://nieer.org/resources/research/PreschoolLastingEffects.pdf
715
National Institute for Early Education Research (2014). State of Preschool 2013: Executive
Summary.
> http://nieer.org/sites/nieer/files/yearbook2013_executivesummary.pdf
720
Hirokazu, Yoshikawa, et al. (2013). Investing in Our Future: The Evidence Base on Preschool
Education. Society for Research in Child Development, Foundation for Child Development.
> http://fcd-us.org/sites/default/files/Evidence%20Base%20on%20Preschool%20Education%20FINAL.pdf
387
730
287
738
405
691
289
728
365
710
307
706
403
742
274
718
371
286
Hillsborough
3,505
3,557
3,491
3,590
3,475
Rockingham
2,862
2,789
2,827
2,776
2,649
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
REFERENCES
2009-10
1,368
1,124
401
1,365
1,203
376
1,341
1,172
403
1,346
1,120
379
1,317
New Hampshire Department of Education (2014a). New Hampshire Early Learning Curriculum
Guidelines and Preschool Child Outcomes for Young Children with Disabilities Ages 3–5.
> www.education.nh.gov/instruction/special_ed/documents/preschool_child_outcomes.pdf
1,128
New Hampshire Department of Education (2014b). 2012–2013 Attendance Report in NH Public
Schools. Division of Program Support, Bureau of Data Management.
> www.education.nh.gov/data/documents/att_rate_dis12_13.pdf
381
DATA NOTE: For districts serving multiple counties, preschool and kindergarten enrollments
were assigned to the counties in which the individual schools are located.
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
29
EDUCATION
Belknap
New Hampshire Department of Education, August 25, 2014.
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FOURTH GRADE READING AND MATH
EDUCATION
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the percent of fourth grade students scoring at or above
proficient in math and reading on the New England Common Assessment
Program (NECAP) standardized tests. Performance at or above proficient is an
indicator that the student has sufficient mastery of content and skills from the
previous grade to successfully work on the current grade’s content and skills
(NECAP, 2014).
CONTEXT
Performance on standardized achievement tests is used as a measure of what
students know, a predictor of their future success in education, and a measure
of their school’s success in educating them. The New Hampshire Department
of Education assesses students annually in math and reading in grades 3 through 8
and again in grade 11. The purposes of testing are measurement of student
performance on educational standards, program evaluation, improvement of
the curriculum and instruction in schools, and public reporting (Measured
Progress, 2013).
Collaboration between the state education agencies in New Hampshire,
Rhode Island, Maine, and Vermont resulted in the development of the NECAP.
The tests were developed specifically for these states. They are administered
at the beginning of the school year in the fall and measure students’ knowledge
and skills relative to their prior year’s grade level/grade span expectations.
Performance of each student is assessed using four achievement levels:
proficient with distinction, proficient, partially proficient, or substantially below
proficient. NECAP results are used to assess performance of individual students
and, through aggregation of student scores, their schools and school district
for comparison to each other and to the state (NECAP, 2011).
NECAP is one of several standardized tests used in New Hampshire, but it is
the only one that is administered to all students in all schools in the state. The
U.S. Department of Education conducts the National Assessment of Education
Progress (NAEP), also know as “The Nation’s Report Card,” to samples of
students in each state every year. The resulting data describe the performance
of the state as a whole, and not individual students or schools. In 2013, New
Hampshire fourth grade students ranked fourth in reading and third in math
compared to other states on the NAEP (U.S. Department of Education,
2014).
30
Fourth Grade NECAP Assessments
by County, Fall 2013
PERCENT AT OR ABOVE
PROFICIENT IN READING
PERCENT AT OR ABOVE
PROFICIENT IN MATH
STATE TOTAL
75%
72%
Belknap
74%
75%
Cheshire
73%
75%
Grafton
82%
82%
Carroll
Coös
Hillsborough
81%
81%
76%
76%
75%
74%
Merrimack
78%
75%
Strafford
75%
72%
Rockingham
Sullivan
83%
81%
72%
76%
In Fall 2013, about three quarters of New Hampshire’s fourth grade students
scored at or above proficient on the reading and math NECAP exams (75
percent and 72 percent, respectively). At least 72 percent of students scored
at proficiency or above for both reading and math in every New Hampshire
county.
Rockingham County had the highest percentage of students scoring at or
above proficient in reading at 83 percent, and Grafton County had the highest
percentage for math at 82 percent. Coös County reported the most improvement between the Fall 2012 and Fall 2013 NECAP assessments, with students
scoring at above proficient, increasing fifteen percentage points for reading and
ten for math to 76 percent in both areas.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
FOURTH GRADE READING AND MATH
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
Fourth Grade NECAP Assessments
Belknap
New England Common Assessment Program (2013). Grade 4 School Results Report.
Carroll
> http://reporting.measuredprogress.org/nhprofile/reports.aspx?view=37d
U.S. Department of Education. NAEP State Comparisons. National Center for Education Statistics.
Cheshire
> http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/statecomparisontable.aspx?sbj=RED&gr=4&yr=201
3&sample=R3&jur=NH&st=MN
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
20%
40%
4th Grade Reading
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
60%
80%
100%
4th Grade Math
31
EDUCATION
Measured Progress (2013). Guide to Using the 2013 NECAP Science Reports.
> http://reporting.measuredprogress.org/NECAPPublicRI/documents/1213/Spring/Guide%20to%
20Using%20the%202013%20NECAP%20Science%20Reports.pdf
EIGHTH GRADE READING AND MATH
EDUCATION
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the percent of eighth grade students scoring at or above
proficiency level in reading and math on the New England Common Assessment
Program (NECAP) standardized tests. Performance at or above proficient is an
indicator that the student has sufficient mastery of content and skills from the
previous grade to successfully work on the current grade’s content and skills
(NECAP, 2014).
CONTEXT
Performance on standardized achievement tests is used as a measure of what
students know, a predictor of their future success in education, and a measure
of their school’s success in educating them. The New Hampshire Department
of Education assesses students annually in math and reading in grades 3 through 8
and again in grade 11. The purposes of testing are measurement of student
performance on educational standards, program evaluation, improvement of
the curriculum and instruction in schools, and public reporting (Measured
Progress, 2013).
Collaboration among the state education agencies in New Hampshire, Rhode
Island, Maine, and Vermont resulted in the development of the NECAP. The
tests were developed specifically for these states. They are administered at the
beginning of the school year in the fall and measure students’ knowledge and
skills relative to their prior year’s grade level/grade span expectations. Performance
of each student is assessed using four achievement levels: proficient with
distinction, proficient, partially proficient, or substantially below proficient.
NECAP results are used to assess performance of individual students and,
through aggregation of student scores, their schools and school district for
comparison to each other and to the state (NECAP, 2011).
NECAP is one of several standardized tests used in New Hampshire, but it is
the only one that is administered to all students in all schools in the state. The
U.S. Department of Education conducts the National Assessment of Education
Progress (NAEP), also know as “The Nation’s Report Card,” with samples of
students in each state every year. The resulting data describe the performance
of the state as a whole, and not individual students or schools. In 2013, New
Hampshire’s eighth grade students ranked sixth in reading and third in math
compared to other states on the NAEP (U.S. Department of Education,
2014).
32
Eighth Grade NECAP Assessments
PERCENT AT OR ABOVE
PROFICIENT IN READING
PERCENT AT OR ABOVE
PROFICIENT IN MATH
STATE TOTAL
77%
64%
Belknap
82%
69%
Cheshire
79%
67%
Grafton
89%
72%
Carroll
Coos
83%
65%
74%
51%
Hillsborough
78%
65%
Rockingham
83%
70%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
85%
69%
78%
63%
78%
63%
In Fall 2013, about three quarters of New Hampshire’s eighth grade students
scored at or above proficient on the reading portion of the NECAP exams,
while just under two thirds scored at or above proficient in the math portion
(77 percent and 64 percent, respectively). All counties had at least 74 percent
proficiency or above for reading and 51 percent proficiency for math.
Grafton County had the highest percentage of students scoring at or above
proficient on both reading (89 percent) and math (72 percent), and Coös
County reported the lowest percentage of students scoring at or above proficient on both reading (74 percent) and math (51 percent). Coös County’s
math score represents a decrease of ten percentage points from the 2012 to
2013 school year. Percentages for all other counties remained relatively stable
over the past five school years.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
EIGHTH GRADE READING AND MATH
Eighth Grade NECAP Assessments
REFERENCES
Belknap
New England Common Assessment Program (2013). Grade 4 School Results Report.
> http://reporting.measuredprogress.org/nhprofile/reports.aspx?view=37d
Carroll
U.S. Department of Education. NAEP State Comparisons. National Center for Education
Statistics.
> http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/statecomparisontable.aspx?sbj=RED&gr=4&yr=201
3&sample=R3&jur=NH&st=MN
Cheshire
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
20%
40%
8th Grade Reading
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
60%
80%
100%
8th Grade Math
33
EDUCATION
Measured Progress (2013). Guide to Using the 2013 NECAP Science Reports.
> http://reporting.measuredprogress.org/NECAPPublicRI/documents/1213/Spring/Guide%20to
%20Using%20the%202013%20NECAP%20Science%20Reports.pdf
STATE TOTAL
dropouts.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:14 PM Page 22
HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS
EDUCATION
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the annual number and percent of early exit non-graduates
who were not identified as either passing the General Educational Development
(GED) test or enrolled in college. The definition excludes students who were
homeschooled, suspended, temporarily expelled, truant, incarcerated, or who
completed a high school program (diploma or certificate), transferred to another
high school, or died. The rate is calculated by dividing the number of students who
dropped out before graduation by the October 1 enrollment count plus students
who dropped out before October 1 (New Hampshire Department of
Education).
CONTEXT
The individual and societal costs of students dropping out of high school
before graduation are well-documented. Over their lifetime, dropouts are less
likely than graduates to obtain employment and, if they do, will earn lower
wages. In 2012, the median income of an individual without a high school
diploma was $20,241, while the median income for a high school graduate
was $30,627 (U.S. Census, 2012). Over a lifetime, this amount translates into
approximately $750,000 in lost earning potential, which impacts the economy
through lower tax contributions and a higher reliance on public assistance
(Levin and Belfield, 2007).
In addition to a higher rate of unemployment and lower wages, high school
dropouts are also less likely to engage in positive civic activities such as voting,
while their involvement in criminal behavior and incarceration rates are higher.
Additionally, they are more likely to become unmarried parents or marry
early and give birth in their teenage years. Dropouts are more likely to have
poor physical and mental health and to live shorter lives, as they often lack
the resources to obtain good health care (Hauser and Koenig, 2011).
Nationally, the high school dropout rate has continued to steadily decline over
the last thirty years, from the 6 percent range in the 1970s to 3.3 percent in
the 2011–2012 school year (Stetser and Stillwell, 2014). New Hampshire has
reported a marked decline in recent years. In 2000, the dropout rate was 5.3
percent, higher than the national rate of 4.8 percent. By the 2012–2013
school year, the rate was down to 1.3 percent, well below the national
average (NH DOE, 2014).
34
High School Dropout Rates
TOTAL
ENROLLED
TOTAL
DROPPED OUT
ANNUAL
DROPOUT RATE
187,957
780
1.3%
Belknap
8,983
25
0.9%
Cheshire
9,335
26
1.0%
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coos
Grafton
Hillsborough
5,863
4,186
11,226
38
364
46,275
96
19,702
Strafford
15,937
Sullivan
15
61,146
Merrimack
Rockingham
13
5,304
0.7%
1.2%
1.0%
1.8%
93
1.6%
82
1.7%
28
0.6%
1.7%
NOTE: Data not displayed for cities/schools with fewer than 5 reported student dropouts.
New Hampshire’s dropout rate is now one of the lowest in the nation. This
low rate may be a reflection of a law that was passed in New Hampshire in
2007 that raised the age for compulsory school attendance from 16 to 17
years (New Hampshire Senate Bill 18-FN, 2007). After the law was phased in
over a three year period, the state’s dropout rate declined by over half to 1.7
percent during the 2008–2009 school year, reaching a low of less than one
percent (0.97) in 2009–2010. Since that time, the dropout rate has remained
stable at the state level at just above 1 percent.
All counties experienced a decline in dropout rates between the 2008–2009
and 2009–2010 school years, which coincides with the passing of Senate Bill
18-FN. The lower rates have remained relatively stable since the 2009–2010
school year.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
dropouts.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:14 PM Page 23
HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS
Annual Dropout Rates
REFERENCES
Belknap
EDUCATION
Hauser, R.M. and J.A. Koenig, Editors (2011). High School Dropout, Graduation, and Completion
Rates: Better Data, Better Measures, Better Decisions. National Research Council and National
Academy of Education. Washington, DC: National Academic Press.
STATE TOTAL
Levin, H.M. and C.R. Belfield (2007). Educational Interventions to Raise High School Graduation
Rates. In C.R. Belfield and H.M. Levin (Editors), The Price We Pay: Economic and Social
Consequences of Inadequate Education (pp. 177–199). Washington, DC: Brookings Institution
Press.
Carroll
Cheshire
New Hampshire Senate Bill 18-FN (2007). An Act raising the age of required attendance of children in school.
> www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2007/sb0018.html
Coös
Stetser, Marie C. and Robert Stillwell (2014). Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation
Rates and Event Dropout Rates: School Years 2010–11 and 2011–12. U.S. Department of
Education, National Center for Education Statistics.
> http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014391.pdf
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0.0%
0.5%
1.0%
1.5%
2.0%
The highest countywide annual dropout rate was reported by Hillsborough
County at 1.8 percent; it is home to New Hampshire’s largest city’s school
district, Manchester, which had a dropout rate of 4.4 percent. Among New
Hampshire’s most populous towns’ and cities’ school districts, the next highest
dropout rates were found in Rochester (3.5 percent) and Claremont (3 percent), located in Strafford and Sullivan Counties, respectively; the lowest rates
were found in Conway (0.2 percent) located in Carroll County, followed by
Hanover (0.3 percent) and Lebanon (0.4 percent) in Grafton County, and
Salem (0.4 percent) in Rockingham County.
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
35
Special Education.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:13 PM Page 22
SPECIAL EDUCATION
EDUCATION
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on two measures related to special education in New
Hampshire. First, it reports the percentage of children and youth enrolled in public
schools, preschool through grade 12 (or age 3 through 21), who receive special
education services because they have a disability. Second, it examines the
percentage of students with disabilities who graduate with a regular high school
diploma or adult high school diploma within five years of entering ninth grade for
the first time.
CONTEXT
The New Hampshire Department of Education’s Bureau of Special Education
oversees compliance with federal and state laws concerning children and
youth with disabilities. Their mission is to “improve educational outcomes for
children and youth with disabilities by providing and promoting leadership,
technical assistance, and collaboration statewide” (NH DOE, 2014). Part of
this mission involves engaging in strategies consistent with the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which was passed in 1990 and mandates
free and appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment
possible for every child with a disability from birth through age 21. These
strategies include, for example, promoting the acquisition of early language,
communication, social, and emotional skills for preschool children, as well as
reducing the academic achievement gap and the number of suspensions and
expulsions for all special education students.
Another key provision of IDEA is that an Individualized Education Program
(IEP) must be drafted for each child with special education needs. Every IEP
must include certain required components, including the student’s present
level of academic achievement and functional performance, measurable annual
goals, short-term objectives, and any necessary modifications or
accommodations (Parent, 2014).
In the United States, the percentage of students receiving special education
services has been in slight but steady decline from a peak of 13.8 percent
reported in the 2004 to 2005 school year. In the 2010 to 2011 school year, 13
percent of students received special education services under IDEA. The highest
percentage of students who received special education services that year were
reported as having a specific learning disability (4.8 percent), followed by students
with speech or language impairment (2.8 percent) (U.S. DOE, 2013).
36
Students Preschool-Grade 12 Receiving Special Education
Services
TOTAL
ENROLLED
TOTAL STUDENTS
W/DISABILITIES
PERCENT
W/DISABILITIES
187,957
28,859
15.4%
Belknap
8,983
1409
15.7%
Cheshire
9,335
1606
17.2%
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
5,863
4,186
11,226
61,146
1017
741
1618
8828
17.3%
17.7%
14.4%
14.4%
Merrimack
19,702
2935
14.9%
Strafford
15,937
2817
17.7%
Rockingham
Sullivan
46,275
5,304
6772
1116
14.6%
21.0%
According to an October 1, 2013 New Hampshire Department of Education
statewide census by disability, slightly over a third of New Hampshire public
school students ages 3 to 21 (34 percent) are reported to have specific
learning disabilities, 16 percent speech or language impairments, and 10
percent developmental delays. The remainder have disabilities that fall into
categories with under 10 percent representation or “other” categories.
For the 2012 to 2013 school year, five of the ten New Hampshire counties
had enrollment rates of students with disabilities within 1 percentage point of
the state’s 15.4 percent average. Grafton and Hillsborough counties had the
lowest rates (14.4 percent). Sullivan County had the highest rate of enrolled
students with disabilities at 21 percent, followed by Coös and Strafford
Counties at 17.7 percent.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Special Education.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:13 PM Page 23
SPECIAL EDUCATION
5-Year Cohort Graduation Rate for Students w/Disabilities
by Selected Cities/Towns, 2011-2012
REFERENCES
STATE TARGET
STATE RATE
Concord
New Hampshire Department of Education (2014). Special Education.
> www.education.nh.gov/instruction/special_ed/
Conway | Kennet
Parent Information Center on Special Education (2013). IEP Development & Approval.
Dover
> nhspecialed.org/special-ed-process/iep-development-approval/
Keene
United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2013). Digest
of Education Statistics, 2012.
Manchester | Central
Manchester | Memorial
i Bud Carlson Academy is a non-traditional high school offering intensive individualized programs and
alternative paths to graduation.
ii Bud Carlson Academy is the exception with a difference of -0.86 percent, as there is a negligible
difference between the populations being compared.
Manchester | West
Merrimack
Nashua | North
Nashua | South
Portsmouth
Rochester | Bud Carlson Academy
Salem
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Nationwide, approximately 68 percent of students with a specific learning
disability graduated with a regular diploma in the 2010 to 2011 school year
(Cortiella, 2013). In New Hampshire, in the 2011 to 2012 school year, 76
percent of all students with IEPs graduated with a regular or adult high school
diploma within five years of entering ninth grade for the first time (referred to
as the 5-year cohort graduation rate) and 70 percent within four years. The
New Hampshire Department of Education’s Special Education State
Performance Plan for 2012 set a target rate of 85 percent.
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
Across the twenty-four individual New Hampshire high schools for which data
were available for the 2011 to 2012 school year, the top 5-year cohort
graduation rates for students with disabilities were 91 percent for Exeter High
School, 89 percent for Souhegan Cooperative High School, and 88 percent
for both ConVal Regional and Salem High Schools. The lowest were 63
percent for both Alvirne High School in Hudson and Bud Carlson Academy i
in Rochester, and 61 percent for Manchester Central High School.
In comparison to the 70 percent 4-year cohort graduation rate among
students with disabilities, the rate among all students was 87 percent. For all
but one of the high schools reporting, ii the graduation rate for all students
was higher than the rate for students with disabilities; the differences between
rates ranged from 4.6 percent at Exeter High School (92.1 percent compared
with 87.5 percent) to 23.7 percent at Concord High School (79.5 percent
compared with 55.8 percent).
37
EDUCATION
Cortiella, Candace (2013). Diplomas at Risk: A Critical Look at the Graduate Rates of Students with
Learning Disabilities. National Center for Learning Disabilities.
> www.ncld.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/DiplomasatRisk.pdf
HEALTH.qx.qxp_Layout 1 3/14/15 8:41 PM Page 30
38
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
HEALTH.qx.qxp_Layout 1 3/14/15 8:41 PM Page 31
Health and
Wellness
SPONSORED BY
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
39
Low Birth Weight.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:24 PM Page 22
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
LOW BIRTH WEIGHT
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number and percentage of infants born at low birth
weights to women residing in each New Hampshire county, regardless of
where the birth took place. “Low birth weight” describes infants weighing less
than 2,500 grams (5.5 pounds) at birth (CDC, 2014a).
Low Weight Births
by County of Mother’s Residence, 2010-2012
TOTAL BIRTHS
LOW WEIGHT
BIRTHS
RATE OF LOW
WEIGHT BIRTHS
38,053
2,681
7.0%
Belknap
1,674
113
6.8%
Cheshire
2,161
126
5.8%
Grafton
2,291
150
4,123
283
6.9%
3,773
255
6.8%
CONTEXT
STATE TOTAL
Birth taking place before a full 37-week gestation is the primary cause of low
birth weight in infants, and full-term babies may also be born underweight due
to fetal growth restrictions (BCH, 2014). A lower than normal weight at birth
puts an infant at risk for serious health problems, vision and hearing loss,
intellectual or learning disabilities, cerebral palsy, and even death. Infants born
with low birth weights are also at an increased risk for medical issues later in
life, including high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease (MOD, 2014).
Carroll
Although infants are born underweight under many different circumstances,
research indicates that certain factors increase risk. These factors include
multiple births as well as births to mothers who: 1) have had a preterm baby
before; 2) are younger than 15 or older than 35; 3) are African–American (at
twice the risk of Caucasian mothers); 4) use illegal drugs, alcohol, or cigarettes;
5) experience pregnancy complications; 6) live in poverty, or have poor
nutrition or inadequate prenatal health care; 7) are exposed to environmental
contaminants; or 8) endure stress or domestic violence (BCH, 2014; CDC,
2014b).
Coös
1,113
790
Hillsborough
13,258
Rockingham
7,626
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
1,244
69
59
997
513
116
6.2%
7.5%
6.5%
7.5%
6.7%
9.3%
From 2010 through 2012, a total of 2,681 infants (7.0 percent) were born with low
birth weights to New Hampshire residents. The rate of low weight births was
highest during this period in Sullivan County at 9.3 percent, which is nearly two
percentage points higher than the next highest rate of 7.5 in both Coös and
Hillsborough Counties. The lowest rate was found in Cheshire County at 5.8
percent. The remaining counties had rates within the 6 percent range.
Nationally, the 2012 low weight birth rate was 8 percent (Martin et al., 2013). The
rate among New Hampshire residents for the same year was 7.2 percent; however,
this rate has increased from 6.5 percent over the past five years.
40
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Low Birth Weight.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:24 PM Page 23
LOW BIRTH WEIGHT
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Low Weight Births
New Hampshire Department of State, Division of Vital Records (2014).
Boston Children’s Hospital (2014). Low Birthweight in Newborns.
> www.childrenshospital.org/health-topics/conditions/low-birthweight-in-newborns
Belknap
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014a). Birthweight and Gestation.
> www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/birthweight.htm
Carroll
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014b). Low Birthweight and the Environment.
> http://ephtracking.cdc.gov/showRbLBWGrowthRetardationEnv.action
Cheshire
March of Dimes (2014). Your Premature Baby.
> www.marchofdimes.org/baby/low-birthweight.aspx
Coös
Martin, Joyce A., Brady E. Hamilton, Michelle J. K. Osterman, Sally C. Curtin, and T. J. Matthews
(2013). Births: Final Data for 2012. National Vital Statistics Report. U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services.
> www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr62/nvsr62_09.pdf#table25
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
2%
NH KIDS COUNT
4%
6%
8%
10%
41
High Risk Infants.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:25 PM Page 22
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
INFANTS BORN AT HIGH RISK
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on the number of infants born at high risk and that
number as a percentage of all births to women residing in each county,
regardless of where the birth took place. “High risk” is defined for this report
as infants born to teens ages 14 to 19 who were unmarried and had not
completed high school at the time of the infant’s birth.
CONTEXT
Although the United States has one of the highest rates of teen births among
industrialized nations, the rate has been in decline since 1991 (CDC, 2014). In
2012, a record low of 305,388 babies were born to women aged 15 to 19
years, or a rate of 29.4 births per 1,000 women in this age group (Martin et al.,
2013). This is the lowest number of births to women in this age group since
1945. The reasons for the decline remain unclear, although there appears to be
a decrease in the percentage of teens who have had sexual intercourse and of
teens who have not used contraception (CDC, 2014).
The impact of teen pregnancy and childbirth on both mother and child, as well
as society as a whole, is substantial. Teenage mothers have significantly higher
high school dropout rates. Approximately 50 percent of teen mothers receive
a high school diploma by the age of 22, compared with 90 percent of women
who did not give birth during adolescence. Additionally, children of teenage
mothers are more likely to experience problems such as poor academic
achievement, higher risk of health problems, higher risk of incarceration during
their own adolescence, higher rates of unemployment as young adults, and an
increased probability of becoming a teen parent themselves. On a societal
level, teen pregnancy and childbirth were estimated to cost U.S. taxpayers
$9.4 billion in 2011 due to the expenses of health care, foster care, higher
incarceration rates for children of teenage mothers, and lost tax revenue from
lower educational attainment and subsequent earning power for teenage
mothers (CDC, 2014).
New Hampshire consistently ranks first or second in the nation for its low teen
birth rates, tying with Massachusetts for the lowest rate in 2012 (Annie E.
Casey Foundation, 2014). After a slight rise between 2007 and 2008 during an
overall downward trend of the last two decades, the New Hampshire teen
birth rate fell to its lowest point in the year 2012 with 14 live births per 1,000
females aged 15 to 19 years.
42
High Risk Births
TOTAL BIRTHS
HIGH RISK
BIRTHS
RATE OF HIGH
RISK BIRTHS
38,053
778
2.0%
Belknap
1,674
48
2.9%
Cheshire
2,161
47
2.2%
Grafton
2,291
42
1.8%
92
2.2%
84
2.2%
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coös
1,113
790
27
19
Hillsborough
13,258
305
Rockingham
7,626
72
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
4,123
3,773
1,244
42
2.4%
2.4%
2.3%
0.9%
3.4%
From 2010 through 2012, two percent of births among New Hampshire residents
were high risk, that is, to unmarried teen mothers who had not completed high
school. Sullivan County had the highest rate of high risk births at 3.4 percent, which
is half a percentage point above the next highest rate in Belknap County.
Rockingham had the lowest rate at 0.9 percent, followed by Grafton County at 1.8
percent. The remaining counties had rates within the two percent range
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
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INFANTS BORN AT HIGH RISK
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
High Risk Births
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2014). Teen Birth Rate at Historic Low. Kids County Data Center.
> www.aecf.org/blog/teen-birth-rate-at-historic-low
Belknap
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014a). Teen Pregnancy. Retrieved October 3,
2014.
> www.cdc.gov/teenpregnancy/aboutteenpreg.htm
Carroll
Martin, Joyce A., Brady E. Hamilton, Michelle J. K. Osterman, Sally C. Curtin, and T. J. Matthews
(2013). Births: Final Data for 2012. National Vital Statistics Report. U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services.
> www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr62/nvsr62_09.pdf#table25
Cheshire
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
1%
NH KIDS COUNT
2%
3%
4%
5%
43
Infant Mortality.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:25 PM Page 22
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
INFANT MORTALITY
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on the number of deaths occurring to infants under
one year of age per 1,000 births among women residing in New Hampshire.
Infant Mortality
TOTAL BIRTHS
2009-13
DEATHS OF INFANTS
<1 YR 2009-13
RATE OF INFANT
MORTALITY
PER 1,000 BIRTHS
63,504
294
4.6
Belknap
2,798
10
3.6
Cheshire
3,552
12
3.4
CONTEXT
Infant mortality rates are sometimes interpreted as a barometer of the overall
health and well-being of a nation (CDC, 2014). While infant mortality rates in
the United States have declined steadily over the last fifty years, they remain
higher than in most other industrialized nations (Annie E. Casey, 2009). The
leading causes of infant mortality in the United States are serious birth defects,
preterm or low weight birth, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (CDC,
2014).
New Hampshire has the lowest rate of infant mortality in the country at 4.21
deaths per 1,000 live births compared with 5.98 nationwide (CDC, 2014b).
Infant mortality rates in the United States vary by race. In 2010, AfricanAmerican infants had the highest mortality rate at 11.6 per 1,000 live births,
followed by American Indians at a rate of 7.6 per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality
rates for Asian and Pacific Islander infants are lower than the national average
for all races, with a mortality rate of 3.6 percent per 1,000 live births (Annie E.
Casey, 2013).
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
1,845
Coös
1,301
Hillsborough
22,025
Rockingham
12,877
Sullivan
2,021
Grafton
Merrimack
Strafford
11
6.0
9
6.9
3,818
14
3.7
6,856
37
5.4
6,411
40
6.2
96
4.4
53
4.1
12
5.9
The infant mortality rate in New Hampshire during the period of 2009 to 2013
was 4.6 per 1,000 births, compared with 5.2 per 1,000 births in the previous fiveyear period. By county of the mother’s residence, the highest rates were found in
Coös County (6.9 per 1,000) and Strafford County (6.2 per 1,000). The lowest
were in Cheshire (3.4 per 1,000), Belknap (3.6 per 1,000), and Grafton Counties
(3.7 per 1,000).
44
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
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INFANT MORTALITY
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
per 1,000 births, 2009-2013
Rate of Infant Mortality
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2009). Kids Count Indicator Brief: Reducing Infant Mortality.
> www.aecf.org/m/resourcedoc/AECF-KCReducingInfantMortality-2009.pdf
Belknap
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2013). Infant Mortality Rate at Historic Low.
> www.aecf.org/blog/infant-mortality-rate-at-historic-low
Carroll
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2014). Infant Mortality. Kids Count Data Center.
> http://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/6051-infant-mortality#detailed/1/any/false/133,38,
Cheshire
35,18,17/any/12718,12719
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014). Infant Mortality.
Coös
> www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/infantmortality.htm
Grafton
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014b). Stats of the State of New Hampshire.
> www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/states/NH_2014.pdf
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
www.nhkidscount.org
1
2
NH KIDS COUNT
3
4
5
6
7
8
45
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STUDENT OVERWEIGHT AND OBESITY
DEFINITION
This indicator reports on the percentage of students in grades 9 through 12
at high schools participating in the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS)
who are overweight or obese based on a calculation of Body Mass Index
(BMI). Participating students provided their age, height, and weight. From this
information, BMI was calculated and students were categorized as
underweight, average, overweight, or obese. Overweight is defined as a BMI at
or above the 85th percentile and lower than the 95th percentile for children
of the same age and sex. Obesity is defined as a BMI at or above the 95th
percentile for children of the same age and sex (CDC, 2014a).
CONTEXT
People become overweight and obese by consuming too many calories and not
getting enough physical activity (CDC, 2014a). Rates of overweight and obesity
among children and adolescents have more than tripled over the last three
decades—in only one generation (Ogden and Carroll, 2010). A White House
Task Force on Childhood Obesity called child obesity an epidemic and a “national
crisis” (White House Task Force, 2010). In 2012, approximately 17 percent (12.7
million) of children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 were considered obese (CDC,
2014a). Survey data from the national 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey indicates
that, among participating high school students, approximately 17 percent are
overweight and 14 percent are obese (CDC, 2014b).
Although childhood obesity has recently leveled off or begun to decline in
certain areas and among certain populations, the prevalence of overweight and
obesity remains a concern nationwide (CDC, 2014c; RWJF, 2013). Overweight
and obese children face extensive risks to their physical and mental health. They
are more likely to develop high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which are
associated with cardiovascular disease; glucose intolerance, insulin resistance, and
type 2 diabetes; asthma and other breathing problems; joint and musculoskeletal
problems; fatty liver disease, gallstones, and gastro-esophageal reflux; and social
and psychological problems such as depression and eating disorders associated
with discrimination and poor self-esteem. Obese and overweight children are
also more likely to become obese adults and, as adults, develop serious chronic
health conditions or life-threatening diseases (CDC, 2014a).
The development of an “obesogenic” environment over the last thirty years
that promotes over-consumption of food and discourages physical activity is
46
Overweight and Obese Students
by County, 2013
% OF STUDENTS
IN GRADES 9-12
WHO ARE
OVERWEIGHT
% OF STUDENTS
IN GRADES 9-12
WHO ARE
OBESE
TOTAL % OF STUDENTS
IN GRADES 9-12 WHO
ARE OVERWEIGHT
OR OBESE
STATE TOTAL
14.1%
11.4%
25.5%
Belknap
15.0%
12.3%
27.3%
Cheshire
15.4%
12.7%
28.1%
Grafton
14.8%
13.6%
28.4%
Merrimack
14.0%
12.3%
26.3%
Carroll
Coös
Hillsborough
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
15.5%
17.1%
13.9%
13.1%
13.3%
15.1%
11.3%
26.8%
13.6%
30.7%
10.7%
24.6%
9.6%
22.7%
11.7%
25.0%
15.2%
30.3%
believed to be the major factor in the rising obesity rates. Contributing to this
environment is a decline in the cost of foods high in calories, while prices of
healthier vegetables and fruits have increased. Food of all kinds, but particularly
low quality snack foods, are more widely available and convenient, and are
marketed in larger portion sizes than in the past. Also, most children now
spend a great deal of their time in “built” or human-made environments that
minimize walking, bicycling, outdoor play, and other physical activities (Duffy, et
al., 2012). Surrounded by such challenges to healthy behaviors, families face an
uphill battle to maintain a nutritious diet and active lifestyle.
In 2013, 14.1 percent of students at New Hampshire high schools participating in
the YRBS were overweight and 11.4 percent were obese, which is lower than the
national estimates of 16.6 overweight and 13.7 percent obese (CDC, 2014d).
There was a slightly higher rate of overweight among girls (14.2 percent) than boys
NH KIDS COUNT
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STUDENT OVERWEIGHT AND OBESITY
by County, 2013
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014). Youth Online: High School YRBS.
> http://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline/App/Results.aspx
STATE
2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS); 86% 9th - 12th grade student response rate statewide.
> http://www.education.nh.gov/instruction/school_health/documents/nhyrb
sdemogdescription.pdf
Belknap
REFERENCES
Carroll
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014a). Childhood Overweight and Obesity.
> www.cdc.gov/obesity/index.html
Cheshire
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014b). The Obesity Epidemic and United States
Students.
> www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/yrbs/pdf/us_obesity_combo.pdf
Coös
Grafton
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014c). New CDC Vital Signs: Obesity Declines
among Low-Income Preschoolers.
> www.cdc.gov/media/dpk/2013/dpk-vs-child-obesity.html
Hillsborough
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014d). The Obesity Epidemic and New Hampshire
Students.
> www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/yrbs/pdf/obesity/nh_obesity_combo.pdf
Merrimack
Duffy, P., F. Yamazaki, and C. Zizza (2012). Can the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 Help Trim
America’s Waistline? Choices: The Magazine of Food, Farm, and Resource Issues. 1st Quarter
2012.
> www.choicesmagazine.org/choices-magazine/theme-articles/potential-impacts-of-2010-dietaryguidelines-for-americans-/can-the-dietary-guidelines-for-americans-2010-help-trim-americas-waistline
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
10%
Percent Obese
20%
30%
40%
Ogden, C., and M. Carroll (2010). Prevalence of Obesity Among Children and Adolescents: United
States, Trends 1963–1965 Through 2007–2008. National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for
Disease Prevention and Control.
> www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.pdf
Percent Overweight
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (2013). Where are We Seeing Signs of Progress?
> www.rwjf.org/en/research-publications/find-rwjf-research/2012/09/declining-childhood-obesity-
rates.html
(13.5 percent) in New Hampshire, but the rate of obesity was lower among girls
than boys (7.4 percent compared with 14.9 percent) (CDC, 2014).
Coös and Sullivan Counties had the highest total percentages of overweight and
obese students at 30.7 and 30.3 percent respectively; Coös County had the highest
percentage of overweight students at 17.1 percent, and Sullivan County the highest
percentage of obese students at 15.2 percent. Rockingham County had the lowest
percentage of overweight students at 13.1 percent as well as the lowest
percentage of obese students at 9.6 percent, resulting in the lowest combined
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
i The data used in this study were not weighted and represent only those students who participated
in the survey. Inferences should not be made to any non-participating students; the data is not
representative of New Hampshire students. Confidence intervals cannot be applied to unweighted
data.
percentage of 22.7 percent. Strafford County also had a relatively low percentage
of overweight students at 13.3 percent, and Hillsborough County a relatively low
percentage of obese students at 10.7 percent.
47
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Overweight and Obese Students
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STUDENT ALCOHOL USE
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the average percentage of students in grades 9 through
12 at high schools participating in the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
(YRBS) who said they had one or more drinks of alcohol on one or more of
the past thirty days (alcohol use), and the average percentage of students
who said they had five or more drinks in a row within a couple of hours on
one or more of the past thirty days. i,ii The latter definition is consistent with
binge drinking, as intoxication usually occurs after four or more drinks are
consumed within two hours for women and five or more for men (NIAAA).
CONTEXT
While alcohol consumption by individuals under the age of 21 is illegal, it is
also widespread, with more young people using alcohol than tobacco and
illicit drugs (CDC, 2014). In the United States, 11 percent of all alcohol
consumed is by people between the ages of 12 and 20, and 90 percent of
this alcohol consumption is binge drinking (CDC, 2014). Underage drinking is
related to numerous negative outcomes, including increases in risk-taking,
sensation-seeking, and erratic behavior; motor vehicle accidents; risky sexual
activity and physical and sexual assaults; and legal consequences (US DHHS,
2007). Additionally, it is also associated with poor academic performance and
heavy drinking later in life (USDHHS, 2007; CDC, 2014).
Underage drinking is estimated to cost the United States $62 billion in
medical care, work loss, and pain and suffering each year. More than half of
these costs are due to the alcohol-related homicides, suicides, and aggravated
assaults, and another 16 percent are due to motor vehicle accidents. In New
Hampshire, these costs have been estimated at $209 million or $1,572 per
youth per year or $2.32 per drink consumed underage (PIRE, 2012). In 2012,
fifty youth under age 18 were arrested in New Hampshire for driving under
the influence, 799 were arrested for violations of liquor laws, and 196 for
drunkenness (Century Council, 2012). New Hampshire’s northern and central
regions have some of the nation’s highest rates of underage binge drinking
(SAMHSA, 2014).
An average of over one-third (34 percent) of New Hampshire students at high
schools participating in the 2013 YRBS reported using alcohol at least once in
the previous thirty days. The average percentage reporting binge drinking in the
48
Student Alcohol Use
by County, 2013
HAD
1 DRINK*
HAD
5+ DRINKS**
STATE TOTAL
34.0%
18.9%
Carroll
35.1%
18.5%
Belknap
Cheshire
Coös
34.9%
33.3%
40.6%
20.8%
19.3%
23.7%
Grafton
32.2%
17.6%
Merrimack
32.0%
18.5%
Strafford
29.7%
16.9%
Hillsborough
Rockingham
Sullivan
34.1%
30.7%
35.4%
18.3%
15.7%
20.0%
* Percent of students who had at least one drink of alcohol on one or
more days during the past 30 days
** Percent of students who had five or more drinks of alcohol in a row,
that is, within a couple of hours, on one or more of the past 30 days
past month was 18.9 percent, a difference of almost five percentage points
from a 2011 statewide estimate of 23.8 percent (CDC, 2014b).
The highest average reported rate of alcohol use at least once in the past
month was found in Coös County at 40.6 percent, approximately five
percentage points higher than the next highest average rates of 35.4 percent
in Sullivan County and 35.1 percent in Carroll County. The lowest average
rate was in Strafford County at 29.7 percent; all other counties had average
rates within the thirty percent range. Coös County also had the highest
average rate of students reporting binge drinking behavior at 23.7 percent,
and Rockingham had the lowest at 15.7 percent.
NH KIDS COUNT
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STUDENT ALCOHOL USE
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
by County, 2013
Student Alcohol Use
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014). Fact Sheets: Underage Drinking.
> www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/underage-drinking.htm
Belknap
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014b). Youth Online: High School YRBS.
> http://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline/App/Default.aspx
Carroll
Century Council (2014). State Facts: Drunk Driving.
> http://responsibility.org/state-facts/new-hampshire
Cheshire
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (n.d.). Drinking Levels Defined.
Coös
> www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/moderate-binge-drinking
Grafton
Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE), Underage Drinking Enforcement Training
Center (2012). Underage Drinking Costs.
> www.udetc.org/UnderageDrinkingCosts.asp
Hillsborough
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) (2014). The NSDUH
Report: Underage Binge Alcohol Use Varies within and across States.
> http://samhsa.gov/data/2K14/NSDUH199/sr199-underage-binge-drinking-2014.htm
Merrimack
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2007). The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to
Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking.
> www.camy.org/factsheets/sheets/alcohol_advertising_promotion/Call_To_Action.pdf
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Percent of students who had at least one drink of
alcohol on one or more days during the past 30 days
i The percentages from each participating school within each county were averaged to calculate the
county level percentages. One participating school was excluded from county averages due to
extreme values.
ii The data used in this study were not weighted and represent only those students who participated
data.
Percent of students who had five or more drinks of
alcohol in a row, that is, within a couple of hours, on
one or more of the past 30 days
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STUDENT TOBACCO USE
DEFINITION
(YRBS) who said they engaged in the following tobacco use behaviors: 1) had
smoked cigarettes on at least one day during the past thirty days; 2) had
smoked cigarettes daily for the past thirty days; and 3) had used smokeless
tobacco—chewing tobacco, snuff, or dip—on at least one day during the past
thirty days. i, ii
CONTEXT
Each day in the United States approximately 3,200 young people under 18
smoke their first cigarette. Almost 90 percent of adult smokers in the United
States began smoking before 18 years of age. Cigarette use among young
people is not as prevalent as it once was, declining sharply between 1997 and
2003, with the decline continuing at a slower rate in the last decade. In 2012,
slightly more than 23 percent of high school students reported using some
type of tobacco product, with the use of electronic cigarettes doubling since
the previous year (CDC, 2014).
The consequences of cigarette smoking can include nicotine addiction and
significant impact on lung growth and function, including long-term risk of
cancer, stroke, and other diseases of the heart and lungs (CDC, 2014).
Smokers are at greater risk for panic attacks, anxiety disorders, and depression
(NIH, 2012). They are also more likely to use alcohol and other drugs and to
engage in risky sexual or violent behaviors. Eventually their physical
performance and endurance declines and, on average, they experience shorter
lifespans (WHO, 2012).
An average of 16.0 percent of students at New Hampshire high schools
participating in the 2013 YRBS reported smoking cigarettes at least once in the
past thirty days. This behavior has decreased significantly in New Hampshire since
2011, when the statewide estimate was 19.8 percent (CDC, 2014b). On average,
approximately one in ten students reported that they smoked cigarettes daily in
the past month, and 7.0 percent reported that they used chewing tobacco, snuff, or
dip at least once in the past month. Statewide, these rates have not significantly
changed since the 2011 survey
50
Student Tobacco Use
by County, 2013
% OF STUDENTS
WHO SMOKED
CIGARETTES ON ONE
OR MORE OF THE
PAST 30 DAYS
% OF STUDENTS
WHO SMOKED
CIGARETTES DAILY
OR EVERY DAY OF THE
PAST 30 DAYS
TOTAL % OF STUDENTS
WHO USED CHEWING
TOBACCO, SNUFF OR DIP
ON ONE OR MORE OF THE
PAST 30 DAYS
STATE TOTAL
16.0%
10.3%
7.0%
Belknap
16.9%
10.6%
7.0%
Cheshire
18.3%
12.8%
9.7%
Grafton
15.3%
10.3%
7.4%
Carroll
Coös
Hillsborough
14.1%
20.4%
14.4%
8.3%
12.5%
8.9%
7.1%
7.9%
6.1%
Merrimack
13.2%
8.0%
7.5%
Strafford
15.3%
9.8%
7.4%
Rockingham
Sullivan
11.0%
19.4%
6.5%
4.8%
12.0%
10.2%
Coös County high schools had the highest average rate of students reporting that
they smoked cigarettes at least once in the past month at 20.4, followed by Sullivan
County at 19.4, and Cheshire County at 18.3. The same three counties also had the
highest average rates reporting that they smoked cigarettes daily in the past month,
with 12.8 percent in Cheshire County, 12.5 percent in Coös County, and 12.0
percent in Sullivan County. And those same counties had the highest average rate
of students reporting that they used smokeless tobacco (chewing tobacco, snuff, or
dip) in the past month, with 10.2 percent in Sullivan County, 9.7 percent in
Cheshire County, and 7.9 percent in Coös County. However, the average rate of
reported smokeless tobacco use in Coös County was similar to average rates in
other New Hampshire counties, six of which were also in the seven percent range.
Rockingham County had the lowest average rates of all three tobacco use
behaviors, with an average of 11.0 percent of high school students reporting
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STUDENT TOBACCO USE
by County, 2013
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Student Tobacco Use
REFERENCES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014). Fact Sheets: Youth and Tobacco Use.
> www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/underage-drinking.htm
STATE TOTAL
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014b). Youth Online: High School YRBS.
Belknap
> http://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline/App/Default.aspx
U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (NIH) (2012). Medicine Plus:
Smoking and Youth.
> www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/smokingandyouth.html
Carroll
Cheshire
World Health Organization (WHO) (2012). Tobacco-Free Initiative: Health Effects of Smoking
Among Young People.
> www.who.int/tobacco/research/youth/health_effects/en
Coös
Grafton
extreme values.
data.
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
Smoked on one or more of the past 30 days
Smoked daily, or every other day of the past 30 days
Used chewing tobacco, snuff or dip on one or more of the past 30 days
smoking at least once in the past month, 6.5 percent reporting smoking daily in the
past month, and 4.8 percent reporting that they had used smokeless tobacco in
the past month.
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
51
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STUDENT MARIJUANA USE
DEFINITION
(YRBS) who said they had used marijuana one or more times in the past
thirty days. i,ii
CONTEXT
Marijuana use represents two-thirds of illicit drug use in the United States,
more than prescription pain relievers, inhalants, hallucinogens, stimulants,
sedatives, cocaine, or heroin combined. In 2012, it was reported that 9.2
percent of the population had used illicit drugs or abused medications, up from
8.3 percent in 2002. This increase was largely attributed to increased rates of
marijuana use, with 7.3 percent of people aged 12 years or older reported as
being current users (use in the past month) in 2012, an increase from 5.8
percent in 2007. More than half of first time users (52 percent) were under
the age of 18 in 2012 (NIDA, 2014a).
Short-term effects of marijuana use are well-documented and include
euphoria, distorted perceptions, memory impairment, and difficulty thinking and
solving problems (NIDA, 2014b). Research suggests negative effects on the
brain among adolescents who use marijuana frequently. Marijuana users also
experience increased rates of school absences, tardiness, and dropouts.
Additionally, they report more accidents, higher worker compensation claims,
and more job turnover (NIDA, 2014c).
Student Marijuana Use
by County, 2013
% 0F STUDENTS IN GRADES 9-12 WHO USED MARIJUANA
ONE OR MORE TIMES DURING THE PAST 30 DAYS
STATE TOTAL
23.8%
Belknap
23.2%
Cheshire
25.1%
Grafton
22.5%
Carroll
Coös
29.0%
22.7%
Hillsborough
23.6%
Rockingham
21.7%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
21.3%
23.5%
22.2%
An average of nearly a quarter (23.2 percent) of New Hampshire high school
students participating in the 2013 YRBS reported using marijuana at least once in
the past month. The highest average reported rate of marijuana use in the past
month was found in Carroll County at 29.0 percent. All county averages were
above 20 percent; Merrimack and Rockingham Counties’ were the lowest at 21.3
percent and 21.7 percent respectively.
52
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STUDENT MARIJUANA USE
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
by County, 2013
Student Marijuana Use
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (2014a). DrugFacts: Nationwide Trends.
> www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/nationwide-trends
Belknap
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (2014b). DrugFacts: Nationwide Trends.
> www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana
Carroll
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (2014c). Marijuana: How Does Marijuana Use Affect
School, Work, and Social Life?
> www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/marijuana/how-does-marijuana-use-affectschool-work-social-life
Cheshire
Coös
Grafton
extreme values.
data.
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
5%
10%
NH KIDS COUNT
15%
20%
25%
30%
53
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STUDENT NON-MEDICAL PRESCRIPTION DRUG USE
DEFINITION
(YRBS) who said they used prescription drugs such as Oxycontin, Percocet,
Vicodin, Adderall, Ritalin, or Xanax without a doctor’s prescription in the past
thirty days. i,ii
CONTEXT
Using a prescription drug without a doctor’s prescription is considered a form
of drug misuse, as the drug is taken for reasons or in dosages other than as
prescribed. The most commonly misused prescription drugs include pain
relieving opioids, such as oxycodone (Oxycontin), hydrocodone (Vicodin),
meperidine (Demerol), and diphenoxylate (Lomotil). Stimulants, including
amphetamines (Dexedrin, Adderall) and methylphenidate (Ritalin), as well as
central nervous system depressants, such as diazepam (Valium) and alprazolam
(Xanax), are also widely abused (NIDA, 2014).
In 2013, 17.8 percent of YRBS participants reported ever using non-medical
prescription drugs nationally, compared with 16.5 percent in New Hampshire
(CDC, 2014). The most common reasons that young people give for use of
non-medical prescription drugs include to get high, to treat pain, or to help
them stay alert for schoolwork. The development of substance use disorders,
including addiction, are a common result of prescription drug misuse that may
result in overdose and death. Youths who misuse prescription medications are
also more likely to report higher rates of cigarette smoking, heavy episodic
drinking, and use of illicit drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, and heroin (NIDA,
2011).
Student Non-Medical Prescription Drug Use
by County, 2013
% 0F STUDENTS WHO IN THE PAST 30 DAYS USED
PRESCRIPTION DRUGS (SUCH AS OXYCONTIN,
PERCOCET, VICODIN, ADDERALL, RITALIN OR XANAX)
WITHOUT A DOCTOR’S PRESCRIPTION
STATE TOTAL
7.9%
Belknap
8.1%
Cheshire
8.2%
Grafton
7.0%
Carroll
Coös
8.6%
5.1%
Hillsborough
7.7%
Rockingham
6.7%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
7.6%
8.3%
7.5%
An average of 7.9 percent of New Hampshire students at high schools
participating in the 2013 YRBS reported using prescription drugs in the past 30
days without a doctor’s prescription. The highest reported averages were found in
Carroll County (8.6 percent) and Strafford County (8.3 percent). All remaining
counties had average rates in the seven to eight percent range with the exceptions
of Coös County, which had the lowest average rate at 5.1 percent, and
Rockingham County, which had an average rate of 6.7 percent.
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STUDENT NON-MEDICAL PRESCRIPTION DRUG USE
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
by County, 2013
Student Non-Medical Prescription Drug Use
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014). Youth Online: High School YRBS.
> http://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline/App/Results.aspx
Belknap
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). (2011). Prescription Drug Use: Abuse and Addiction.
Retrieved October 16, 2014.
> http://www.drugabuse.gov/sites/default/files/rrprescription.pdf
Carroll
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). (2014). What is Prescription Drug Use? Retrieved
October 16, 2014.
> http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/prescription-drugs-cold-medicines
Cheshire
Coös
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration. (2014). 2010-2011 National Survey
on Drug Use and Health: Model-Based Prevalence Estimates (50 States and the District of
Columbia). Retrieved October 16, 2014.
> http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUHStateEst2010-2011_v2/279/ExcelTabs/
WebFolder/NSDUHsaeTables2011.pdf
Grafton
Hillsborough
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Administration (2014). Results from the 2013 National Survey on Drug Use and Health:
Summary of National Findings. Retrieved October 16, 2014.
> http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUHresultsPDFWHTML2013/Web/NSDUH
results2013.pdf
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
2%
NH KIDS COUNT
4%
6%
8%
10%
extreme values.
data.
55
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of New Hampshire children ages 0 to 17
receiving mental health services at one of ten state-supported regional
community mental health centers. These numbers do not include children
who received mental health services at the State Hospital, private hospitals,
group homes, or private practices.
CONTEXT
Nationwide, approximately 4 million children under 18 years of age suffer from
a serious mental illness that causes significant issues at home, school, and
among the child’s peers. It is estimated that 21 percent of children ages 9 to 17
have a diagnosable mental illness that causes some level of impairment (NAMI,
2014). Children in vulnerable populations have even higher rates, with 50
percent of children in the child welfare system and approximately 70 percent
of youth in the juvenile justice system reported to have mental health
problems (Masi and Cooper, 2006).
In any given year, it is estimated that only 20 percent of children with mental
illnesses are identified and receive the appropriate mental health services.
Latino children have higher rates of unmet mental health needs (88 percent)
compared with white (78 percent) and black (77 percent) children.
Additionally, children in the child welfare system have higher rates of unmet
mental health needs (85 percent) than children with private (79 percent) or
public health insurance (73 percent) (Masi and Cooper, 2006).
There are a number of negative outcomes associated with untreated mental
illnesses in children. Their illnesses can worsen or they can develop cooccurring mental illnesses. Children in elementary school with mental illnesses
are more likely to have higher rates of absences, suspensions, and expulsions.
Among students with mental illnesses aged 14 and older, the dropout rate is
approximately 50 percent, the highest dropout rate of any disability group
(NAMI, 2014). Mental illness among children in the foster care system is
associated with a decreased likelihood of being placed in a permanent home.
Possible long-term effects in later adulthood include limited employment
opportunities, poverty, increased risk of drug and alcohol dependence, and
years of unnecessary suffering (Masi and Cooper, 2006).
Children and Youth Served at
Community Mental Health Centers
by County, 2009-13
NUMBER OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH
STATE TOTAL
12,258
Belknap
1,043
Cheshire
801
Carroll
831
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
988
3,228
1,543
2,934
890
*No centers are located in Coös and Sullivan Counties
There are no data available to capture the number of children in New Hampshire
with mental illnesses. The best available figure was based on population estimates
and suggests that 55,756 children aged 5 to 19 have a diagnosable mental health
disorder and 14,000 children aged 9 to 17 have a serious emotional disturbance
(NH CPPS, 2007).
According to available data, there were 12,258 children under age 18 treated at one
of New Hampshire’s ten community mental health centers.This total represents a
slight decline of 2 percent from the year prior and a decline of 4 percent from
2010.These declines are likely attributable to the child population’s slight decline
across the state, rather than indicative of declining mental health diagnoses or
service rates.
With the exception of Coös and Sullivan counties, every county in New
Hampshire has a community mental health center. Two community mental health
56
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MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
by County, 2009-13
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Children and Youth Served at
Community Mental Health Centers
REFERENCES
Belknap
Masi, Rachel, and Janice L. Cooper (2006). Children’s Mental Health: Facts for Policymakers.
National Center for Children in Poverty.
> www.nccp.org/publications/pub_687.html
Carroll
National Alliance on Mental Illness (2014). Facts on Children’s Mental Health in America.
> www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=federal_and_state_policy_legislation&template=/
ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=43804
Cheshire
New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies (2007). Children’s Mental Health in New
Hampshire: Executive Summary.
> www.nhpolicy.org/report/childrenamp39s-mental-health-in-new-hampshire
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
0
800
1,600
2,400
3,200
4,000
centers are located in Hillsborough and two in Rockingham County. The two
centers in Hillsborough County, located in Nashua and Manchester, serve a
combined 26 percent of the total children receiving treatment at these centers. The
health center in New Hampshire’s most populous city, Manchester, serves the
greatest number of children (2,042). The two in Rockingham County serve 24
percent.
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
57
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
CHILDREN’S MEDICAID AND CHIP ENROLLMENT
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of children ages 0 to 18 enrolled in New
Hampshire’s Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
Medicaid/CHIP Enrollment Under Age 18
by County, 2013
CONTEXT
Health insurance coverage is associated with numerous benefits for children,
including access to preventive health services and improved social and
emotional development (NH DHHS, 2011). New Hampshire’s Medicaid
program offers comprehensive insurance coverage, both medical and dental, to
qualifying children at no cost to families. Children and teens under the age of
19 who are legal U.S. citizens can qualify for Medicaid if their families have a net
income no higher than 196 percent of the federal poverty level, or less than
$46,746 before taxes for a family of four (US DHHS, 2014).
Expanded Medicaid coverage known as the Children’s Health Insurance
Program (CHIP) is also available for children under age 19. CHIP is intended to
help families secure health coverage for their children if their incomes are
above the limit to qualify for Medicaid, but too low to afford private insurance.
In New Hampshire, CHIP eligibility is based on Modified Adjusted Gross
Income or MAGI. Children ages 0 to 18 whose family MAGI is between 196
and 318 percent of the federal poverty level are eligible for CHIP coverage
(AAP, 2014).
The percentage of children without health insurance has declined to under 10
percent since the enactment of CHIP in 1997. Nationwide, more than 44 million
children under age 19 were covered by Medicaid or CHIP in 2012. However, in
that same year, 7.2 million remained uninsured (CDF, 2014). Currently in New
Hampshire, 7 percent of youth remain uninsured (Kaiser, 2014).
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Carroll
TOTAL
POPULATION
UNDER 18
TOTAL UNDER
18 ENROLLED IN
MEDICAID/CHIP
PERCENT
UNDER 18
ENROLLED IN
MEDICAID
271,122
85,055
26.99%
4.38%
8,153
3,870
39.59%
7.87%
11,831
5,034
36.60%
PERCENT
UNDER 18
ENROLLED IN
CHIP
5.95%
Cheshire
14,468
5,553
33.25%
5.13%
Grafton
15,569
5,589
30.34%
5.56%
Coös
Hillsborough
5,645
8.27%
27,264
26.76%
3.73%
63,166
12,084
15.70%
3.43%
8,543
3,475
29,823
Strafford
24,520
Sullivan
44.85%
89,404
Merrimack
Rockingham
2,999
9,720
8,414
27.81%
30.01%
36.03%
4.78%
4.31%
4.65%
NOTE: Although Medicaid/CHIP eligibility extends through age 18, the
available population data for calculating enrollment rates is for under age 18
only. Therefore, only Medicaid/CHIP enrollees under age 18 are included in
the rate calculation.
New Hampshire made substantial changes to its health care coverage program in
2012, transitioning its CHIP program from the Healthy Kids Silver and Gold system
of subsidized insurance to Medicaid Managed Care (The Moore Center, 2012). This
change also brought expanded eligibility for the program. In 2013, 88,519 New
Hampshire children ages 0 to 18 were covered by Medicaid or CHIP. Eighty-six
percent of these children were enrolled in Medicaid and 14 percent in CHIP (NH
DHHS, 2014). Among New Hampshire youth under 18 years old, 31.4 percent
were covered by Medicaid or CHIP. i
58
Hillsborough County, which includes New Hampshire’s two largest cities,
Manchester and Nashua, also had the greatest number of Medicaid/CHIP
participants, with 28,337 children enrolled. New Hampshire’s least populous county,
Coös, had the fewest participants, with 3,141 children enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP.
However, among children under 18 years old, more than half—53.1 percent—
were covered by Medicaid/CHIP in Coös County, which had the highest
enrollment rate.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
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CHILDREN’S MEDICAID AND CHIP ENROLLMENT
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
by County, 2013
Percent of Children Under Age 18 Enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP
American Academy of Pediatrics, National Academy for State Health Policy (2014). New
Hampshire 2014 CHIP Fact Sheet.
> www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/fed_advocacy_chip_new_hampshire.pdf
Belknap
The State of America’s Children.
Carroll
> www.childrensdefense.org/child-research-data-publications/data/2014-
soac.pdf?utm_source=2014-SOAC-PDF&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=2014-SOAC
Cheshire
Kaiser Family Foundation (2014). State Health Facts.
> http://kff.org/other/state-indicator/children-0-18/?state=NH
Coös
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2011). Children’s Health Insurance
Programs in New Hampshire: Access, Prevention, Care Management, Utilization, and Payments (State
Fiscal Year 2010).
> www.dhhs.nh.gov/ombp/documents/chip10.pdf
Grafton
Hillsborough
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2014). NH Medicaid – Health
Coverage for Children under Age 19.
> www.dhhs.nh.gov/ombp/medicaid/nhmedicaid.htm
Merrimack
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning
and Evaluation (2014). 2014 Poverty Guidelines.
> http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/14poverty.cfm
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
i Although youth are eligible for Medicaid/CHIP coverage through age 18, the best available
population data to calculate the percentage enrolled are for youth under age 18. Accordingly,
Medicaid/CHIP enrollments among 18- year-olds were excluded from this calculation.
Percent Under 18 Enrolled in Medicaid
Percent Under 18 Enrolled in CHIP
Sullivan County had the highest proportion of participants enrolled in Medicaid
compared to CHIP (88.4 percent), while Rockingham County had the lowest (81.9
percent), suggesting a difference in the areas’ proportions of Medicaid incomeeligible families. In Rockingham County, 19.1 percent of children under age 18 were
covered by Medicaid or CHIP.This is the lowest enrollment rate among all New
Hampshire counties by a margin of over 10 percentage points.
www.nhkidscount.org
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Safety and
Wellbeing
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SAFETY AND WELL-BEING
BULLYING
DEFINITION
This indicator presents the number of bullying incidents reported and
investigated at New Hampshire public schools, which are required to
document these incidents per the Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Act of
2000. Bullying describes any written, verbal, electronic, and/or physical act that
physically harms a student or damages his or her property, causes a student
emotional distress, interferes with a student’s educational opportunities,
creates a hostile school environment, or disrupts school operations.
CONTEXT
In 2011, approximately 28 percent of 12- to 18-year-old students reported
that they were bullied at school (BJS, 2013). Students said they were made fun
of; called names or insulted; were the subjects of rumors; were pushed, shoved,
tripped, or spit on; were threatened with harm; were excluded from activities
on purpose; were made to do things they did not want to do; or had their
property destroyed by others on purpose.
Bullying can occur anywhere, but at school, it is most likely to occur in the
hallways or stairwells (46 percent), followed by inside the classroom (33
percent), outside on the school grounds (22 percent), in the bathroom or
locker room (11 percent), in the cafeteria (9 percent), and on the school bus
(7 percent). Cyberbullying was reported by 9 percent of the students and
includes harassment of or posting of hurtful information about another person
on the internet, for example, through text messaging, social networking sites, or
instant messaging (BJS, 2013).
Bullying victims are more likely than the non-bullied to report mental and
physical health problems. Feelings of anxiety and depression, risk of suicide,
eating disorders, smoking and drinking, subsequent violent victimization, and
homelessness have been found to be higher among bullied students. These
students were also less likely to access needed health care, increasing the risk
that the problems remained unaddressed or became chronic (Koeppel and
Bouffard, 2012). Children who bully others are more likely to experience
mental health problems themselves, engage in drinking and substance abuse,
and underperform in school. As adults, they are more likely to commit crimes,
including violence against their spouses and children (Smokoswki and Kopasz,
2005).
62
Bullying Incidents
2012-13
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Carroll
Cheshire
Coös
2011-12
INVESTIGATED
REPORTED
INVESTIGATED
REPORTED
INVESTIGATED
3025
1511
3998
2035
5439
2904
104
50
128
93
255
87
164
83
151
78
77
27
Grafton
222
120
Merrimack
365
152
Hillsborough
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
2010-11
REPORTED
818
633
335
155
278
206
153
430
176
320
894
68
60
154
1125
319
192
401
88
273
405
209
147
224
124
318
172
167
633
1222
400
1162
111
176
173
231
598
916
106
969
265
465
357
128
Prior to 2011, there was no consistent statewide policy regarding bullying in
New Hampshire. In 2010, the State Legislature revised RSA 193-F2, the Pupil
Safety and Violence Prevention Act. Harassment, intimidation, bullying, and
cyberbullying were outlawed across the state, a law that is now tougher and
broader than laws in most states (USDOE, 2011). All school districts are
required to adopt a written policy prohibiting bullying and cyberbullying and
procedures for investigating bullying reports in a timely manner; provide annual
training and educational programming on bullying and cyberbullying to all
employees, contractors, volunteers, parents, and students; and annually report
on substantiated incidents (General Court, 2010).
During the 2012 to 2013 school year, 3,025 bullying incidents were reported in
New Hampshire. Of these, 1,511 were investigated (50 percent). This represents a
24 percent decline in the number of incidents reported from the 2011 to 2012
school year, when 3,998 incidents were reported and 2,035 of those were
NH KIDS COUNT
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BULLYING
Bullying Incidents
New Hampshire Department of Education
REFERENCES
Belknap
Bureau of Justice Statistics (2013). Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2013.
> www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/iscs13.pdf
Carroll
Koeppel, M., and L.A. Bouffard (2012). The Long-Term Health Consequences of Bullying
Victimization. Crime Victim’s Institute, Sam Houston State University.
> http://dev.cjcenter.org/_files/cvi/BullyHealthfinal.pdf
Cheshire
New Hampshire General Court (2010). House Bill 1523 - Final Version: An Act Revising the
Pupil Safety and Violence Prevention Act. March 2010.
> www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2010/HB1523.html
Coös
Grafton
Smokowski, P.R., and K.H. Kopasz (2005). “Bullying in School: An Overview of Types, Effects,
Family Characteristics, and Intervention Strategies.” Children and Schools: A Journal of the National
Association of Social Workers. Vol. 27, Issue 2.
> http://cs.oxfordjournals.org/content/27/2/101.full.pdf+html
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
200
400
Incidents Reported
600
800
1000
Incidents Investigated
investigated (51 percent), and a 45 percent decline from the 2010 to 2011 school
year, when 5,439 incidents were reported and 2,904 were investigated (53
percent).
For the 2012 to 2013 school year, Hillsborough County had the highest number of
reported bullying incidents (818), followed by Rockingham County (633). Coos
County had the fewest reported incidents (78), followed by Carroll County (104).
Schools in Strafford County investigated the greatest percentage of reported cases
(62.4 percent), and schools in Coos County investigated the lowest percentage
(34.6 percent).
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
63
Child Maltreatment.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:31 PM Page 22
CHILD MALTREATMENT
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of substantiated maltreatment victims per
1,000 children age 0 to 17 in 2013. A case of child maltreatment is considered
substantiated when a state investigation supports the maltreatment claim by
state law or policy (US DHHS, 2012).
CONTEXT
Definitions of child abuse and neglect vary from state to state. However, under
the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), federal law requires
that each state retains, at a minimum, the following definition of child abuse and
neglect: “Any recent act or failure to act on the part of a parent or caretaker
which results in death, serious physical or emotional harm, sexual abuse or
exploitation; or an act or failure to act, which presents an imminent risk of serious
harm” (US DHHS, 2012).
In New Hampshire, child abuse includes sexual abuse, intentional physical injury,
psychological injury resulting in “symptoms of emotional problems generally
recognized to result from consistent mistreatment or neglect,” and nonaccidental physical injury. The same statute defines neglect as abandonment by
the parents, guardian, or custodian or leaving a child “without proper parental
care or control, subsistence, education as required by law, or other care or
control necessary for [a child’s] physical, mental, or emotional health.” A child
can also be considered neglected if a parent, guardian, or custodian is unable to
care for the child due to “incarceration, hospitalization, or other physical or
mental incapacity” (NH RS 169-C3).
Not only does child maltreatment lead to the immediate suffering of children,
but there are numerous long-term adverse effects as well. These include
lasting physical consequences such as brain damage, as well as cognitive delays
or educational difficulties and increased likelihood of depression, anxiety, and
engagement in high-risk behaviors. Abused and neglected youth are also at an
increased risk of drug and alcohol abuse, juvenile delinquency, criminality as
adults, and perpetuating the cycle of abuse by becoming abusers themselves
as adults (CWIG, 2013). Finally, child maltreatment can result in the death of a
child (US DHHS, 2012).
In 2012, there were 678,810 unique child victims of abuse and neglect in the
United States, which is approximately 9.2 victims per 1,000 children in the
64
Child Abuse and Maltreatment
by County, 2013
TOTAL POPULATION
UNDER 18
TOTAL CHILD
VICTIMS
CHILD
MALTREATMENT
PER 1,000 CHILDREN
271,122
941
3.5
Belknap
11,831
70
5.9
Cheshire
14,468
93
6.4
Grafton
15,569
62
4.0
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coös
8,153
5,645
27
49
Hillsborough
89,404
239
Rockingham
63,166
105
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
Cases Missing
County Info
29,823
24,520
8,543
70
143
38
41
3.3
8.7
2.7
2.3
1.7
5.8
4.4
* Number of unique child victims.
population. The most at-risk age group was children in their first year of life,
with a victimization rate of 21.9 per 1,000 children. Of the total reported cases,
neglect was the most common type of maltreatment (78.3 percent), followed by
physical abuse (18.3 percent), and sexual abuse (9.3 percent). There are
approximately 2.2 deaths per 100,000 children as a result of maltreatment
in the United States each year (US DHHS, 2012).
New Hampshire had the fourth lowest child maltreatment victimization rate
among the fifty states in 2012, with 3.3 unique victims of substantiated
NH KIDS COUNT
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CHILD MALTREATMENT
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
Child Welfare Information Gateway (2013). Long-Term Consequences of Child Abuse and Neglect.
> www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/factsheets/long_term_consequences.pdf
Belknap
National U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2012). Child Maltreatment 2012.
Administration for Children and Families.
> www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/cb/cm2012.pdf
Carroll
New Hampshire General Court. RSA Chapter 169-C, Child Protection Act. Section 169-C:3.
Cheshire
> www.gencourt.state.nh.us/rsa/html/xii/169-c/169-c-3.htm
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
2
4
6
8
10
maltreatment cases per 1,000 children under the age of 18, well below the
national average of 9.2 (US DHHS, 2012). In 2013, there were 941 unique
victims of substantiated maltreatment cases, or 3.5 child victims of maltreatment
per 1,000 children in New Hampshire’s population. The majority of these child
victims experienced neglect (72 percent), followed by sexual abuse (14
percent), and physical abuse (7 percent).
child victims (239), its rate of maltreatment victims (2.7 victims per 1,000
children) was below the statewide rate by nearly a percentage point.
Rockingham County had the lowest rate (1.7 victims per 1,000 children),
followed by Merrimack County (2.3 victims per 1,000 children).
Coös County had the highest rate of child maltreatment in 2013, with 8.7
victims per 1,000 children, followed by Cheshire County with 6.4 victims per
1,000 children. While Hillsborough County had the largest number of unique
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
65
per 1,000, by County, 2013
Child Abuse and Maltreatment Rate
Children in Out of Home Placements.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:30 PM Page 22
CHILDREN IN OUT-OF-HOME PLACEMENTS
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the rate of New Hampshire children under the age of
18 living in out-of-home placements, which includes kinship care, foster care,
group homes, treatment facilities, and other residential placements.
CONTEXT
When a child faces safety risks at home such as serious interpersonal conflict,
physical or sexual abuse, neglect, or exploitation, child protective staff investigate
the case and make a reasonable effort to first preserve the family by keeping
the child in the home and providing support services. However, if that is not
possible, or if the risk of harm to the child is too great, then the decision may
be made to place the child in out-of-home care. According to a September
2012 snapshot estimate, approximately 399,546 children nationwide were in
out-of-home care during that month and slightly over half had reunification
with their families as a case goal (US DHHS, 2014).
In New Hampshire, child safety concerns are addressed by the Child Protection
Services (CPS) division of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families
(DCYF). The state of New Hampshire is legally responsible for children placed
in out-of-home care. Nearly two-thirds of New Hampshire youth in CPS outof-home placements between 2003 and 2012 were under the age of 10. More
than one in ten New Hampshire youth who have been in out-of-home placements in the past are placed out of the home again after returning to their
families. Rates of returning to out-of-home placements by youth’s county of
residence were found to be as high as one in five in Sullivan County (20.9 percent) and Merrimack County (20.7 percent) (Boakye, Lim, and Ogren, 2014).
In state fiscal year 2014, 1,001 children under age 18 in New Hampshire were in
out-of-home placements through CPS intervention. This represents 3.7 children in
out-of-home placements per 1,000 children in the general population.
Children in Out-of-Home Placements
by County, SFY 2014
TOTAL POPULATION
UNDER 18 YEARS
CHILDREN IN
OUT-OF-HOME
PLACEMENTS
OUT-OF-HOME
PLACEMENTS
PER 1,000 CHILDREN
271,122
1,001
3.7
Belknap
11,831
69
5.8
Cheshire
14,468
62
4.3
Grafton
15,569
39
2.5
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coös
8,153
5,645
28
50
3.4
8.9
Hillsborough
89,404
270
Rockingham
63,166
63
1.0
55
6.4
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
29,823
24,520
8,543
71
132
3.0
2.4
5.4
NOTE:
* Number of children/youths who were in out-of-home Child Protection
Services (CPS) or Juvenile Justice Services (JJS) placement during state fiscal year 2014.
* No county information was available for 162 cases.
* Population data from 2013 Census Population Estimates, Table PEPAGESEX.
Coös County had the highest rate of children per 1,000 in out-of-home placement
at 8.9, followed by Sullivan, Belknap, and Strafford Counties (6.4, 5.8, and 5.4 placements
per 1,000 children, respectively). Rockingham County had the lowest rate with one
child per 1,000 in an out-of-home placement. The remaining counties’ placement
rates were all in the two to four per 1,000 range.
66
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CHILDREN IN OUT-OF-HOME PLACEMENTS
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
Abu Boakye, S., C. Lim, and S. Ogren (2014). Youth Re-entry into Out-of-Home Placement. Policy
brief prepared for the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Division of
Youth and Families.
> http://rockefeller.dartmouth.edu/shop/prs_reentry_082814.pdf
Belknap
Carroll
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2014). Child Welfare Information Gateway: Outof-Home Care Overview.
> www.childwelfare.gov/outofhome/overview.cfm
Cheshire
Coös
Grafton
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
www.nhkidscount.org
2
NH KIDS COUNT
4
6
8
10
67
per 1,000, by County, SFY 2014
Rate of Children in Out-of-Home Placements
homeless children.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:30 PM Page 22
HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of public school students in each county
who are homeless. The U.S. Department of Education defines homeless children
and youth as “lacking fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.” This can
include children and youth who are living with another family or living in motels,
hotels, campgrounds, emergency or transitional shelters, cars, parks, public spaces,
abandoned buildings, substandard housing, and bus or train stations. All U.S.
school districts must identify and report homeless students enrolled in schools
as required by the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987
(U.S. DOE, 2014).
CONTEXT
Children and youth may become homeless due to extreme poverty or unsafe
and unstable living environments, such as those affected by domestic violence,
child abuse and neglect, or natural disasters. More than 1.1 million children and
youth enrolled in public schools nationwide were reported to be homeless in
the 2011 to 2012 school year, an increase of 71 percent over five years earlier.
During this time, severe poverty increased while the availability of affordable
rental housing declined, putting housing out of reach for many low-income
families (NAEHCY, 2014).
Homeless Children and Youth
TOTAL
ENROLLED
HOMELESS
PERCENT
HOMELESS
187,957
3,405
1.8%
Belknap
8,983
238
2.6%
Cheshire
9,335
181
1.9%
Grafton
11,226
106
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coös
5,863
4,186
178
3.0%
57
1.4%
0.9%
Hillsborough
61,146
1,296
2.1%
Rockingham
46,275
550
1.2%
Merrimack
Strafford
Sullivan
19,702
15,937
5,304
251
312
236
1.3%
2.0%
4.4%
Youth who experience homelessness unaccompanied by parents or guardians
include those who have run away from home, been kicked out of their home,
or abandoned by their parents or guardians. Physical or sexual abuse by a parent
or guardian, neglect, parental substance abuse, and severe family conflict are the
leading causes of unaccompanied youth homelessness (Toro, Dworsky, and
Fowler, 2007).
from the prior school year despite a decrease in total enrollment. The majority of
these young people were living with another family (2,535), followed by living in
motels/hotels (363), transitional housing or shelters (335), or unsheltered locations
such as a car or park (172).
In New Hampshire, unaccompanied homeless youth identified mental health
issues, lack of a parent or guardian, lack of transportation, and lack of access to
health care as the most critical barriers they face in their schools and communities
beyond the lack of safe and stable housing. Over 20 percent of unaccompanied
homeless youth reported that they experience fatigue, poor health, and hunger
(NHDOE, 2012).
While Hillsborough County had the greatest number of homeless students with
1,296 homeless young people (2.1 percent), Sullivan County reported the highest
rate of homeless students as a percentage of enrollment at 4.4 percent, followed
by 3.0 percent in Carroll County. Grafton County had the lowest rate, with less
than 1 percent of its students reported to be homeless, followed by Rockingham,
Merrimack, and Coös Counties at 1.2, 1.3, and 1.4 percent, respectively.
During the 2012 to 2013 school year, 3,405 (1.8 percent) of New Hampshire’s
public school students were reported to be homeless, an increase of 3 percent
68
Among New Hampshire’s most populous cities, Manchester, Nashua, Salem,
Claremont, and Rochester reported the largest numbers of homeless students.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
homeless children.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:30 PM Page 23
HOMELESS CHILDREN AND YOUTH
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
New Hampshire Department of Education.
National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (2014). Facts and
Resources about the Education of Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness.
> www.naehcy.org/sites/default/files/dl/homeless-ed-101.pdf
Belknap
New Hampshire Department of Education (2012). A Glimpse of Unaccompanied Homeless
Youth and Homeless Young Adults in New Hampshire.
> www.education.nh.gov/instruction/integrated/documents/nh_unaccompanied_homeless_youthand_young_adults2012.pdf
Carroll
Cheshire
Toro, P., A. Dworsky, and P. Fowler (2007). “Homeless Youth in the United States: Recent
Research Findings and Intervention Approaches.” Toward Understanding Homelessness: The 2007
National Symposium on Homelessness Research. Washington DC: U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development.
Coös
Grafton
U.S. Department of Education (2014). Elementary and Secondary Education, Part C - Homeless
Education. Subtitle B - Education for Homeless Children and Youths, Sex 725. Definitions.
> www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/pg116.html
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0%
www.nhkidscount.org
1%
NH KIDS COUNT
2%
3%
4%
5%
69
Homeless Children and Youth
CHINS.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:30 PM Page 22
CHILDREN IN NEED OF SERVICES
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of voluntary Children in Need of Services
(CHINS) cases from September 2013 through June 2014. It also reports the
number of children petitioned for court CHINS cases and the total number
children involved in court CHINS cases, whether or not they were petitioned,
from July 2013 through June 2014 (state fiscal year 2014). Parents, guardians,
schools, and in some instances, law enforcement may file CHINS petitions.
Children involved in court CHINS cases but not petitioned may include the
siblings or other children sharing the household of a child for whom a petition
has been filed (NH DHHS, 2014).
CONTEXT
New Hampshire’s CHINS program has undergone several changes over the
previous three years. In the past, the program provided court-ordered juvenile
probation and parole guidance, counseling, supervision, and treatment to
children who engaged in status offending behavior such as truancy, running
away from home, repeated disregard of reasonable and lawful commands of
parents or guardians, willful conduct equivalent to a violation of criminal laws if
committed by an adult (excluding misdemeanors and felonies), and willful
conduct prohibited by motor vehicle laws (NH DHHS, 2013). In order to
receive services, a parent, guardian, or custodian filed a petition with the court
requesting services, the child was brought to court, and a judge heard the case
and made a determination of services.
With the enactment of RSA 169-D in 2011, this definition was narrowed to
include only the most severe cases. More specifically, an eligible child became
one described as having “a diagnosis of severe emotional, cognitive, or other
mental health issues who engages in aggressive, fire setting, or sexualized
behaviors that pose a danger to the child or others and who is otherwise
unable or ineligible to receive services” (NHJD, 2013). Additionally, the new law
required that all petitions be submitted to the Department of Children, Youth,
and Families (DCYF) for review before proceeding to court, and all non-court
options needed to be exhausted in order to receive DCYF’s approval to
proceed.
House Bill 260, passed in 2013, reinstated the broader criteria for CHINS
eligibility (NHGC, 2013). Additionally, language was added that allowed for a
system of voluntary services. Under this new provision, children and youth may
70
Children in Need of Services (CHINS) Involved Youth
by County, SFY 2014
NUMBER OF
VOLUNTARY CHINS
CASES
(SEPT 2013 JUNE 2014)
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Carroll
260
14
Cheshire
15
Grafton
11
Merrimack
21
Strafford
36
Coös
Hillsborough
Rockingham
Sullivan
# OF CHILDREN
WITH A PETITION
PARTICIPATING IN
COURT CHINS
CASE
129
168
14
60
50
40
13
13
NUMBER OF
CHILDREN
INVOLVED IN A
COURT CHINS
CASE
27
64
11
15
29
* Number of CHINS involvement is calculated using the number of all children involved
in a CHINS case, not only those for whom a petition was filed.
* Forty-one voluntary CHINS cases and ten children involved in court CHINS cases
were not attributed to a specific New Hampshire county.
* Data suppressed for cell counts under ten.
receive services through the CHINS program without having to first file a
petition and proceed through the court. However, if all parties involved cannot
reach an agreement on voluntary services, then the parent or guardian can file
a petition with the court and the case proceeds to judicial review
(Speropolous and Wauchope, 2013).
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
CHINS.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:30 PM Page 23
CHILDREN IN NEED OF SERVICES
by County, September 2013 - June 2014
REFERENCES
Belknap
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2013). Children in Need of Services
(CHINS).
> www.dhhs.nh.gov/djjs/probation/chins.htm
Cheshire
The New Hampshire General Court (2013). “HB 260-FN: Final Version.”
> www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2013/HB0260.html
New Hampshire Judicial Branch (2013). Circuit Court Family Division - Children in Need of Services.
Grafton
> www.courts.state.nh.us/fdpp/chins.htm
Speropolous, Lisa, and Barbara Wauchope. New Hampshire Children in Need of Services: Impacts
of 2011 Legislative Changes to CHINS. Carsey Institute, Brief 36.
> http://scholars.unh.edu/carsey/205
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Due to the policy changes described above, data on voluntary New Hampshire
CHINS cases were only available for the period of September 2013 through June
2014 rather than for the full 2014 fiscal year. During that period there were 260
cases, 41 of which were not attributable to a specific county. Of those that were,
the largest numbers were found in Hillsborough (60), Rockingham (40) and
Strafford (36) Counties. These findings suggest that there was substantial unmet
need for voluntary CHINS services prior to the new provisions instituted in 2013.
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
There were also 129 children in New Hampshire who had CHINS petitions filed
with the court in the full 2014 fiscal year, as well as an additional 39 children
participating in court CHINS cases who did not have petitions filed, bringing the
total number of children involved in court CHINS cases to 168. Hillsborough
County had the highest number of children participating in court CHINS cases at
50, followed by 27 in Strafford County and 13 in Rockingham County.The number
for the remaining counties did not meet the threshold of 10 required for this report.
71
Number of Voluntary CHINS Cases
Youth in Detention.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:29 PM Page 22
YOUTH IN DETENTION
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number of New Hampshire youth detained at the
John H. Sununu Youth Services Center (SYSC) in fiscal year 2014. Located in
Manchester, the SYSC is operated by the Division for Juvenile Justice Services
(DJJS) and is the state’s only youth detention center. The 144-bed facility houses
youth up to the age of 17 who have both been adjudicated as delinquent by
the courts (committed) or are awaiting court action (detained).
CONTEXT
Approximately 300,000 youth are detained each year in facilities like the SYSC
nationwide (AECF, 2014). The average length of stay in detention is only about
twenty days, although the negative impacts of detention can last much longer.
Detention has been found to be associated with dropping out of high school,
unemployment, and poor health (Holman & Ziedenberg, 2006). Youth with
mental health problems or those who are struggling with trauma and abuse
may suffer exacerbated symptoms as a result of detention (AECF, 2014).
African-American, Hispanic, and American Indian youth are more likely to be
detained. Detained youth are more likely to be formally charged, and are more
likely to be rearrested in the future than youth who are released to their
homes pending court action (AECF, 2014).
Youth in Detention
by County, SFY 2014
CRIMES RESULTING IN JUVENILE DETENTIONS, FY 2014
STATE TOTAL
Belknap
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
177
10
53
16
27
12
NOTES:
* State total includes twenty-eight cases in which no county information
was available.
* The county identified is the place that the crime was committed, not the
county where a youth lives.
* Data suppressed for cell counts under 10.
SOURCE: New Hampshire Department of Safety, State Police UCR Unit
In state fiscal year 2014, 177 youth ages 11 to 17 who were detained, and 112
youth who were committed, were served at the SYSC.i Most of the detained
youth (67.8 percent) were either age 15 or 16 at the time of detention.
White youth (both Hispanic and non-Hispanic) make up a majority (91 percent) of
New Hampshire’s population under 18 years old, but account for only 82.5 percent of the state’s detained youth. New Hampshire youth of racial and ethnic
minorities are overrepresented among youth in detention. Although 1.7 percent of
youth in the state population are black or African-American, this population represents 10.7 percent of detained youth, and although 4.8 percent of youth are
Hispanic or Latino of any race in the state population, this population represents
9.6 percent of detained youth.
detained. The highest number of crimes resulting in juvenile detention took place in
Hillsborough County (53), followed by Rockingham County (27) and Merrimack
County (16).
County youth detention data represent where the crimes resulting in juvenile
detentions took place rather than the county of residence of the youths who were
72
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Youth in Detention.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:29 PM Page 23
YOUTH IN DETENTION
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
by County, SFY 2014
Crimes Resulting in Juvenile Detention
New Hampshire Division for Juvenile Justice Services (DJJS). (2014). Department of Health and
Human Services.
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2014). 2014 Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative Progress Report.
> www.aecf.org/resources/2014-juvenile-detention-alternatives-initiative-progress-report/
Belknap
Holman, Barry, and Jason Ziedenberg (2006). The Dangers of Detention: Impact of Incarcerating
Youth in Detention and Other Secure Facilities. Justice Policy Institute.
> www.justicepolicy.org/images/upload/06-11_rep_dangersofdetention_jj.pdf
Hillsborough
i Some detained youth are eventually committed; therefore, some of the 177 detained youth may
also be included among the 112 committed youth.
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
0
www.nhkidscount.org
50
NH KIDS COUNT
100
150
200
73
Juvenile arrests.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:29 PM Page 22
JUVENILE ARRESTS
DEFINITION
This indicator reports the number and rate of juvenile arrests among youth
ages 14 to 17 in the calendar year 2013.
CONTEXT
In 2011, almost 1.5 million children under age 18 were arrested for criminal
offenses (OJJDP, 2013). These arrests were for violent crimes (68,150 arrests)
including murder, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault; property crimes
(334,700 arrests) including burglary, theft, and arson; and other offenses such as
simple assault, vandalism, drug and alcohol violations, curfew and loitering
violations, and running away. Nationally, juvenile arrests for all offenses have
been declining for two decades.
Numerous interacting circumstances, both individual and environmental, put
youth at risk for delinquency and arrest. Children with early aggressive
behavior, concentration problems, substance abuse issues, involvement with
anti-social peers and gangs, and those living in environments with ineffective or
dysfunctional parenting, parental criminality, community violence, or poverty all
contribute to the risk of juvenile arrest (US DHHS, 2008). One factor alone—
being abused or neglected as a child—increases the likelihood of arrest as a
juvenile by 59 percent (NIJ, 2012).
Although many juveniles are arrested and even more commit illegal acts, few
commit serious crimes or become adult criminals (CBSSE, 2001). Once
arrested, juveniles typically enter into a complex state juvenile justice system
that can include diversion to education and treatment programs, jail, court,
probation, community service, restitution, rehabilitation, or incarceration.
Although the research on the impact of the juvenile justice system on future
offending and recidivism is mixed at a minimum, youths’ involvement in the
juvenile justice system is associated with dropping out of high school and not
enrolling in college, and appears to disrupt their educational trajectory (Kirk
and Sampson, 2013).
In New Hampshire, the legal age of adult criminal responsibility is 17 years of
age, although a bill was signed into law this year that will reclassify 17-year-old
offenders as juveniles beginning on July 1, 2015 (NHGC, 2014). Juveniles
charged with an offense are tried before a judge in a district or family court.
Those waiting for adjudication may be placed in the secure Youth Detention
74
Juvenile Arrests
by County, 2013
TOTAL
POPULATION
AGES 14-17 YEARS
JUVENILE
ARRESTEES
AGES 14-17 YEARS
RATE OF JUVENILE
ARREST PER 100 YOUTH
AGES 14-17 YEARS
68,179
4,461
6.5
Belknap
2,978
213
7.2
Cheshire
3,411
160
4.7
STATE TOTAL
Carroll
Coös
Grafton
2,244
1,473
3,931
183
8.2
94
6.4
258
6.6
Hillsborough
21,971
1,388
6.3
Rockingham
16,756
1,185
7.1
Sullivan
2,117
80
3.8
Merrimack
Strafford
7,613
5,685
401
499
* Total arrests of all age groups: 4,880
5.3
8.8
Services Unit. The Sununu Youth Services Center also provides secure
placement for committed juveniles (NH DHHS, 2014).
In 2013, there were 4,880 arrests of juveniles (children and youth under 18 years
of age) for all offenses in New Hampshire. Arrests of youth ages 14 to 17
accounted for 91 percent of this total. Although the greatest number of arrests
among this age group was reported for Hillsborough County (1,388), the highest
rates of arrest per 100 youth in the population ages 14 to 17 years were in
Strafford (8.8) and Carroll (8.2) Counties. Sullivan County had the lowest rate at
3.8 per 100 youth, followed by Cheshire County with 4.7.
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Juvenile arrests.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 4:29 PM Page 23
JUVENILE ARRESTS
STATE TOTAL
REFERENCES
by County, 2013
Juvenile Arrests Per 100 Youth Ages 14-17
New Hampshire Department of Public Safety, State Police UCR Unit
National Institute of Justice (2012). Impact of Child Abuse and Maltreatment on Delinquency,
Arrest, and Victimization.
> www.nij.gov/topics/crime/child-abuse/pages/impact-on-arrest-victimization.aspx
Belknap
New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (2014). Institutional Services.
Carroll
> www.dhhs.state.nh.us/djjs/institutional
The New Hampshire General Court (2014). HB 16247-FN- Final Version.
Cheshire
> http://gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2014/HB1624.html
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency (2013). Juvenile Arrests 2011.
Coös
> www.ncjj.org/pdf/Juvenile%20Arrests%20Bulletins/244476.pdf
Grafton
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2008). Fact Sheet: Juvenile Delinquency.
> http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/08/boys/factsheets/jd/report.pdf
Hillsborough
Merrimack
Rockingham
Strafford
Sullivan
0
www.nhkidscount.org
2
NH KIDS COUNT
4
6
8
10
75
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76
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
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County Profiles
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
77
Belknap.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:26 PM Page 22
Belknap County
PAGE #
78
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
Limited English Proficiency students
0.6%
Of all county public school students
2013-2014
8
Single parent households
32.3%
Of all county households with children under age 18
2009-2013
10
Total child care capacity
1,885
In all county licensed center- and family-based child care programs
2014
14
Annual average unemployment rate
5.2%
Of all county persons age 16+ employed, or unemployed and
actively seeking employment
2013
16
Livable wage for two adults and two children
$19.19
For county households with two wage-earning adults and two
children
2010
18
Students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch
35.4%
Of all county public school students grades 1 through 12
20
Children enrolled in SNAP
25.1%
Of all county children under age 18
22
Poverty among families with children under 18
12.1%
Of all county families with children under age 18
2009-2013
22
Poverty among individuals under 18
14.7%
Of all county individuals under age 18
2009-2013
24
Infants and children enrolled in WIC
23.3%
Of all county infants and children under age 5
28
Preschool enrollment
168
Number of county 3- and 4-year olds, primarily with special
needs, enrolled in preschool
2013-2014
28
Kindergarten enrollment
560
Number of county students enrolled in kindergarten
2013-2014
30
Fourth graders scoring at or above proficiency
in reading on the NECAP
74%
Of all county fourth graders
2013
30
in math on the NECAP
75%
2013
32
Eighth graders scoring at or above proficiency
82%
Of all county eighth graders
2013
32
69%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
0.9%
Of all county public high school students
2012-2013
36
Special education enrollment
15.7%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
11,831
POPULATION
19.7% of the total county population (60,179)
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Belknap.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:26 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
Infants with low birth weight
6.8%
Of all births among women residing in the county
2010-2012
42
Infants born at high risk
2.9%
2010-2012
44
Rate of infant mortality per 1,000 births
Per 1,000 births among women residing in the county
2009-2013
46
Students in grades 9 -12 who are overweight or
obese
27.3%
Of all students in grades 9-12 at county high schools participating
in the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
2013
48
Students in grades 9-12 who had at least one
drink of alcohol on one or more days during the
past 30 days
34.9%
2013
48
Students in grades 9-12 who had five or more
drinks of alcohol in a row on one or more of
the past 30 days
20.8%
2013
50
Students in grades 9-12 who smoked cigarettes
on one or more of the past 30 days
16.9%
2013
52
Students in grades 9-12 who used marijuana
one or more times during the past 30 days
23.2%
2013
54
Students in grades 9-12 who in the last 30 days
used prescription drugs without a doctor’s
prescription
8.1%
2013
56
Children and youth served at community mental
health centers
1,043
Number of individuals under age 18 treated at a community
mental health center in this county
58
Children enrolled in Medicaid/CHIP
42.5%
Of all children under age 18
62
Reported bullying incidents
164
Number of county public school bullying incidents reported
64
Rate of child maltreatment per 1000 children
5.9
Per 1,000 county children under age 18
2013
66
Rate of out-of-home placements per 1000
children
5.8
SFY 2014
68
Homeless children and youth
2012-2013
70
Voluntary Children in Need of Services
(CHINS) cases
14
Voluntary county CHINS cases only; does not include court
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
10
Crimes taking place in this county resulting in detention of youth
up to age 17 at the Sununu Youth Services Center while awaiting
court action
74
Number of Juvenile Arrests
213
Youth ages 14 to 17
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
3.6
2.6%
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
79
Carroll.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:26 PM Page 22
Carroll County
PAGE #
80
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
4
Children under 18
8,153
6
0.3%
2013-2014
8
29.6%
2009-2013
10
1,257
2014
14
5.1%
2013
16
$19.21
children
2010
18
38.2%
20
23.7%
22
10.5%
2009-2013
22
11.8%
2009-2013
24
28.8%
28
55
2013-2014
28
371
2013-2014
30
81%
2013
30
81%
2013
32
83%
2013
32
65%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
0.7%
2012-2013
36
17.3%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Carroll.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:26 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
6.2%
2010-2012
42
2.4%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
26.8%
2013
48
past 30 days
35.1%
2013
48
the past 30 days
18.5%
2013
50
14.1%
2013
52
29.0%
2013
54
prescription
8.6%
2013
56
health centers
831
58
62
104
64
3.3
2013
66
children
3.4
SFY 2014
68
3.0%
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
N/A
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
N/A
court action
74
183
Youth ages 14 to 17
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
6.0
47.5%
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
81
Cheshire.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:26 PM Page 22
Cheshire County
PAGE #
82
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
0.6%
2013-2014
8
30.5%
2009-2013
10
1,787
2014
14
5.1%
2013
16
$19.65
children
2010
18
36.4%
20
22.9%
22
10.8%
2009-2013
22
14.3%
2009-2013
24
21.9%
28
227
2013-2014
28
715
2013-2014
30
73%
2013
30
75%
2013
32
79%
2013
32
67%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.0%
2012-2013
36
17.2%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
14,468
POPULATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Cheshire.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:26 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
5.8%
2010-2012
42
2.2%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
28.1%
2013
48
past 30 days
33.3%
2013
48
the past 30 days
19.3%
2013
50
18.3%
2013
52
25.1%
2013
54
prescription
8.2%
2013
56
health centers
801
58
62
151
64
6.4
2013
66
children
4.3
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
72
Juvenile detentions
N/A
court action
74
160
Youth ages 14 to 17
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
3.4
38.4%
1.9%
15
2009-2013
2013
CHINS cases
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
83
Coos.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:25 PM Page 22
Coös County
PAGE #
84
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
4
Children under 18
5,645
6
0.2%
2013-2014
8
37.4%
2009-2013
10
1,021
2014
14
6.4%
2013
16
$17.29
children
2010
18
48.3%
20
31.8%
22
19.2%
2009-2013
22
21.7%
2009-2013
24
32.2%
28
69
2013-2014
28
286
2013-2014
30
76%
2013
30
76%
2013
32
74%
2013
32
51%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.2%
2012-2013
36
17.7%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Coos.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:25 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
7.5%
2010-2012
42
2.4%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
30.7%
2013
48
past 30 days
40.6%
2013
48
the past 30 days
23.7%
2013
50
20.4%
2013
52
22.7%
2013
54
prescription
5.1%
2013
56
health centers
N/A
58
62
78
64
8.7
2013
66
children
8.9
SFY 2014
68
1.4%
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
N/A
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
N/A
court action
74
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
6.9
53.1%
94
Youth ages 14 to 17
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
85
Grafton.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:25 PM Page 22
Grafton County
PAGE #
86
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
1.3%
2013-2014
8
31.2%
2009-2013
10
2,277
2014
14
4.3%
2013
16
$19.11
children
2010
18
30.7%
20
19.7%
22
11.8%
2009-2013
22
13.8%
2009-2013
24
19.6%
28
180
2013-2014
28
720
2013-2014
30
82%
2013
30
82%
2013
32
89%
2013
32
72%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.0%
2012-2013
36
14.4%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
15,569
POPULATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Grafton.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:25 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
6.5%
2010-2012
42
1.8%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
28.4%
2013
48
past 30 days
32.2%
2013
48
the past 30 days
17.6%
2013
50
15.3%
2013
52
22.5%
2013
54
prescription
7.0%
2013
56
health centers
988
58
62
222
64
4.0
2013
66
children
2.5
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
72
Juvenile detentions
N/A
court action
74
258
Youth ages 14 to 17
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
3.7
35.9%
0.9%
11
2009-2013
2013
CHINS cases
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
87
Hillsborough.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:25 PM Page 22
Hillsborough County
PAGE #
88
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
3.7%
2013-2014
8
29.1%
2009-2013
10
15,129
2014
14
5.4%
2013
16
$20.70
children
2010
18
29.1%
20
18.5%
22
9.7%
2009-2013
22
11.9%
2009-2013
24
17.6%
28
1,276
2013-2014
28
3,475
2013-2014
30
75%
2013
30
74%
2013
32
78%
2013
32
65%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.8%
2012-2013
36
14.4%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
89,404
POPULATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Hillsborough.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:25 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
7.5%
2010-2012
42
2.3%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
24.6%
2013
48
past 30 days
34.1%
2013
48
the past 30 days
18.3%
2013
50
14.4%
2013
52
23.6%
2013
54
prescription
7.7%
2013
56
health centers
3,228
58
30.5%
62
818
64
2.7
2013
66
children
3.0
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
60
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
53
court action
74
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
4.4
2.1%
1,388
Youth ages 14 to 17
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
89
Merrimack.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:24 PM Page 22
Merrimack County
PAGE #
90
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
2.0%
2013-2014
8
27.8%
2009-2013
10
5,627
2014
14
4.8%
2013
16
$19.85
children
2010
18
29.2%
20
19.2%
22
8.3%
2009-2013
22
10.3%
2009-2013
24
18.6%
28
28
30
EDUCATION
29,823
POPULATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
2013-2014
1,317
2013-2014
78%
2013
30
75%
2013
32
85%
2013
32
69%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.6%
2012-2013
36
14.9%
2012-2013
339
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Merrimack.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:24 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
6.9%
2010-2012
42
2.2%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
26.3%
2013
48
past 30 days
32.0%
2013
48
the past 30 days
18.5%
2013
50
13.2%
2013
52
21.3%
2013
54
prescription
7.6%
2013
56
health centers
1,543
58
32.6%
62
365
64
2.3
2013
66
children
2.4
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
21
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
16
court action
74
401
Youth ages 14 to 17
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
5.4
1.3%
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
91
Rockingham.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:24 PM Page 22
Rockingham County
PAGE #
92
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
0.8%
2013-2014
8
21.2%
2009-2013
10
11,151
2014
14
5.7%
2013
16
$20.74
children
2010
18
16.2%
20
9.1%
22
5.9%
2009-2013
22
6.8%
2009-2013
24
9.4%
28
722
2013-2014
28
2,649
2013-2014
30
83%
2013
30
81%
2013
32
83%
2013
32
70%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
0.6%
2012-2013
36
14.6%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
63,166
POPULATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Rockingham.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:24 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
6.7%
2010-2012
42
0.9%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
22.7%
2013
48
past 30 days
30.7%
2013
48
the past 30 days
15.7%
2013
50
11.0%
2013
52
21.7%
2013
54
prescription
6.7%
2013
56
health centers
2,934
58
19.1%
62
633
64
1.7
2013
66
children
1.0
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
40
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
27
court action
74
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
4.1
1.2%
1,185
Youth ages 14 to 17
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
93
Strafford.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:23 PM Page 22
Strafford County
PAGE #
94
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
YEARS
4
Children under 18
6
1.2%
2013-2014
8
31.1%
2009-2013
10
3,757
2014
14
5.1%
2013
16
$20.05
children
2010
18
35.9%
20
21.5%
22
12.8%
2009-2013
22
12.5%
2009-2013
24
22.2%
28
28
30
EDUCATION
24,520
POPULATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
2013-2014
1,128
2013-2014
75%
2013
30
72%
2013
32
78%
2013
32
63%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.7%
2012-2013
36
17.7%
2012-2013
242
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Strafford.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:24 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
6.8%
2010-2012
42
2.2%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
25.0%
2013
48
past 30 days
29.7%
2013
48
the past 30 days
16.9%
2013
50
15.3%
2013
52
23.5%
2013
54
prescription
8.3%
2013
56
health centers
890
58
62
335
64
5.8
2013
66
children
5.4
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
36
CHINS cases
72
Juvenile detentions
12
court action
74
499
Youth ages 14 to 17
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
6.2
34.3%
2.0%
2009-2013
2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
95
Sullivan.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:22 PM Page 22
Sullivan County
PAGE #
96
INDICATOR
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
4
Children under 18
8,543
6
1.0%
2013-2014
8
33.1%
2009-2013
10
1,163
2014
14
4.5%
2013
16
$18.71
children
2010
18
39.7%
20
25.2%
22
13.6%
2009-2013
22
12.6%
2009-2013
24
25.6%
28
123
2013-2014
28
381
2013-2014
30
72%
2013
30
76%
2013
32
78%
2013
32
63%
2013
34
Annual dropout rate
1.7%
2012-2013
36
21.0%
2012-2013
EDUCATION
2013
2013-2014
2013
2013
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
Sullivan.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:22 PM Page 23
PAGE #
INDICATOR
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
STATISTIC
POPULATION
YEARS
40
9.3%
2010-2012
42
3.4%
2010-2012
44
2009-2013
46
obese
30.3%
2013
48
past 30 days
35.4%
2013
48
the past 30 days
20.0%
2013
50
19.4%
2013
52
22.2%
2013
54
prescription
7.5%
2013
56
health centers
N/A
58
62
155
64
4.4
2013
66
children
6.4
SFY 2014
68
2012-2013
70
(CHINS) cases
72
Juvenile detentions
74
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
5.9
40.7%
4.4%
13
N/A
80
2013
CHINS cases
court action
Youth ages 14 to 17
2009-2013
2012-2013
September
2013-June 2014
SFY 2014
2013
97
acknowledgements.qxp_Layout 1 3/13/15 1:15 PM Page 98
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many of the data presented in this book were provided on request by the staff of
New Hampshire state agencies, and their cooperation was critical in bringing this
important information to our readers. Others also assisted us in pulling the information
together and putting it all in context. We would like to thank the following individuals
and organizations for their meaningful contributions to this data book.
EMILY BERUBE
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Carsey School of Public Policy
University of New Hampshire
JOSHUA BURKHARD
Business Systems Analyst
Bureau of Behavioral Health
Department of Health & Human
Services
JESSICA CARSON, PHD
Vulnerable Families Research Scientist
ANDREW CHALSMA
Office of Medicaid Business and Policy
Services
MELISSA CLEMENT, CHIEF
Child Care Licensing Unit
Services
JANET HORNE
Business Systems Analyst
Bureau of Behavioral Health
Services
98
ANTHONY JOPPIE
Homeless/Migrant Youth Program Associate
Department of Education
SARA J. KELLY
Program Specialist II
Division of Family Assistance
Services
KAREN LAMB
UCR Supervisor
Department of Safety
KIM C. LIM, PHD, MPH
BRFSS Coordinator
Bureau of Public Health Statistics and
Informatics, Division of Public Health
Services, Department of Health &
Human Services
MR. E. NICHOLL MARSHALL
Division of Vital Records Administration
Department of State
PATRICIA A. MCLEAN
Director of Pupil Services
White Mountains Regional School
District
ALLISON PARENT
Data Analyst
Bureau of Organizational Learning &
Quality Improvement
Division of Children, Youth and Families
Services
LISA RICHARDS, MS, RD
Nutrition Services Manager
WIC Nutrition Program
Bureau of Population Health and
Community Services, Division of Public
Health Services, Department of Health &
Human Services
MICHAEL ROGERS, MHA, MT (AMT),
MC
Assistant Administrator, State Opiate
Treatment Authority Designee
Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services
Division of Community Based Care
Services
Services
TERRY R. SMITH, MPHSA
Director
Services
AMBER SWINDELL, MA
Graduate Research Assistant
GRETCHEN TETREAULT
Program Specialist
Bureau of Data Management
New Hampshire Department of
Education
ANASTASIYA VANYUKEVYCH
Senior Data Manager
Division of Children, Youth and Families
Services
BARBARA WAUCHOPE, PHD
Director of Evaluation (Ret.)
LYNN WILDER
TANF Administrator
Services
NH KIDS COUNT
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2014/2015
CHARLENE BAXTER
New London
ANDY BEAUPRE
Portsmouth
PATRICIA CANTOR
Concord
STEVE CHAPMAN
Lebanon
KIDS COUNT REVIEWERS
RESEARCHERS/WRITERS
JEFF MCLYNCH
New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute
ELEANOR JAFFEE, PH.D.
AMY PEPIN
Community Health Institute
MICHAEL SKIBBIE
Disabilities Rights Center- NH
LISA SPEROPOLOUS, MS
Doctoral Research Assistant
PAT CANTOR AND KAREN WELFORD
Plymouth State University
JACK CRISP
Concord
MARYBETH J. MATTINGLY, PH.D.
The Carsey School of Public Policy
TERRY DORR
Newport
JOHN DEJOIE
NH Kids Count
PHOTOGRAPHY
FRONT COVER
CHILD AND FAMILY SERVICES
www.cfsnh.org
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY SECTION
PETRAS GAGILAS
http://www.imcreator.com/
BILL DUNCAN
New Castle
MELINDA GARLAND
Surry
MAUREEN SALO
Concord
NH KIDS COUNT STAFF &
CONSULTANTS 2014/2015
ELLEN FINEBERG
Executive Director
ERIKA ARGERSINGER
Policy Director
ELAINE VANDYKE
Kingston
KAREN WELFORD
Laconia
LINDSAY CRETE
Communications and Fund Development
Coordinator
JOHN DEJOIE
NH CAN Coordinator
Policy Consultant
EVAN WEST
VISTA Hunger Solutions
Outreach Coordinator
LILY FOSS
VISTA Afterschool Meals
Outreach Coordinator
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY SECTION
CRISTIANO BETTA
http://www.imcreator.com/
EDUCATION SECTION
HEALTHY STUDENTS- HEALTHY
PLACES
Stewartstown Teen Cook-Off
HEALTH SECTION
SARAH KRUCZYNSKI
http://sarahkruczynski.wix.com/photography
SAFETY SECTION
GIRLS AT WORK
http://www.girlswork.org/
COUNTY PROFILES SECTION
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
HEART GALLERY
www.dhhs.state.nh.us/
BACK COVER
Copies of this publication
may be purchased for $15.
Bulk discounts are available.
Email: [email protected]
Call: 603-225-2264
SEND A CHECK TO:
NH Kids Count
Two Delta Drive, Suite 201
Concord, NH 03301
CHILD AND FAMILY SERVICES
www.cfsnh.org
www.nhkidscount.org
NH KIDS COUNT
99
cover_back.qxp_Layout 1 3/15/15 10:14 PM Page 12
NH Kids Count
Two Delta Drive, Suite 201
Concord, NH 03301
603-225-2264
www.nhkidscount.org
Special thanks to our major funders

Data Book 2015 - Child and Family Services

Transcription

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