[Washington] State's child poverty rate falls

From The Seattle Post Intelligencer

But 'disconnected youths' struggling

By CLAUDIA ROWE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Washington kids are faring better than many of their peers around the country when it comes to health, with teen death rates falling and teen pregnancies down, according to a long-running national study. But economically, they are struggling.

Among the state's 1.5 million children, about a third live in low-income households, where no adult has full-time, year-round employment, according to figures released today by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in its national Kids Count data book.

Among the more troubling findings is new data on so-called "disconnected" youths -- teenagers and young adults who were neither in school nor employed. Between 2000 and 2003, the report says, Washington saw a 25 percent increase in that population.

"It's a huge concern," said Eric Anderson, manager for youth development at the city of Seattle's Health and Human Services. "How far you go in school has more to do with your future earnings than any other indicator."

Despite the grim statistics, Washington ranked 14th for overall child well-being and appears a comparative bright spot in at least one measure.

"It's one of the few places where the child poverty rate actually went down while the rest of the country's went up," said William O'Hare, director of the Kids Count program, which is based in Baltimore. "So Washington is moving in the right direction while the rest of the country is not."

Kids Count, now in its 16th year of publication, analyzes Census Bureau and state information to help guide public policy. While the report's sponsor, the Casey Foundation, has an avowed mission to strengthen services for young people, the data are generally viewed as credible, said state Rep. Eric Pettigrew, D-Seattle.

In the Washington analysis, Pettigrew's district, which includes portions of South Seattle, was flagged as a hot spot for several high-risk factors affecting children, including high rates of unemployment and persistent poverty.

"It's not a surprise, but it is disappointing," the legislator said. "People in these communities are struggling. They're getting further and further behind."

Among them are teenagers such as Justin West, 18, one of about 46,000 young people who are out of school, out of work and uncertain about their plans for the future, according to the report.

At 17, the Skyway teen dropped out, thinking he would get a GED and save himself some desk time. He said school had devolved into little more than a fighting arena.

"I just wanted to get away from all the problems -- the arguing and fighting with kids over stupid stuff," West said. "I just thought I'd get it over with."

His mother was not pleased with her son's decision. When West sought admission to a GED tutoring program through the YMCA, he discovered there was no room -- it was filled with other floundering teens who had also drifted away from school.

Eventually, a slot opened up (one of the dropouts had dropped out), and West grabbed it. But he's not sure what he'll do once he has an equivalency diploma.

"Probably construction," he said. "Something I can do with my hands."

Richard Brandon, a University of Washington researcher who crunched the Casey numbers to pinpoint Washington's highest-risk neighborhoods, does not offer much encouragement. He said the recession that hit nationally in 2001 dealt a harder blow here, and the effects have lingered, with young people feeling the brunt.

"Teens are the most sensitive barometer of unemployment," Brandon said. "They're the last to get hired, the first to get fired."

For children of color, the picture is even worse.

Lori Pfingst, a researcher who works with Brandon, found that one in 10 Washington youth is at risk. Among black, Latinos, American Indians and Asians, she said, the figure is one in five.

"That, I think, is the most striking thing coming out of our analysis," Pfingst said. "Kids are struggling, but kids of color are really struggling."

P-I reporter Claudia Rowe can be reached at 206-448-8320 or claudiarowe@seattlepi.com.