"GOOD
"GOOD MORNING. I'M ASHLEY GOUDEAU. THIS WEEK -- THE ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION RELEASED THE
2018 KIDS COUNT
DATA BOOK, RANKING TEXAS AS ONE
OF THE 10 WORST STATES FOR
OVERALL CHILD WELL-BEING. IT
CAME IN AT NUMBER 43. IN
TEXAS THIS WEEK -- I SIT DOWN
WITH KRISTIE TINGLE -- A
RESEARCH
ANALYST FOR THE CENTER FOR
PUBLIC POLICY PRIORITIES TO DIG
INTO THE NUMBERS -- AND WHAT
THEY MEAN."
ASHLEY GOUDEAU: "KRISTIE, THANK
YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US
TODAY."
KRISTIE TINGLE: "THANKS FOR
HAVING ME TODAY."
GOUDEAU: "SO LET'S START BY
TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE
KID'S COUNT REPORT. HOW EXACTLY
IS IT FORMULATED WHAT
DATA DO THEY USE, WHAT
METHODOLOGY?"
TINGLE: "SURE, SO EVERY YEAR THE
ANNIE E. CASEY FOUNDATION PUTS
TOGETHER THIS
KIDS COUNT REPORT. AND THEY LOOK
AT CHILD WELL-BEING IN
FOUR CORE AREAS;
THOSE ARE EDUCATION, ECONOMIC
WELL BEING, HEALTH AND
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY. IN EACH OF
THOSE DOMAINS THEY
LOOK AT FOUR DIFFERENT
INDICATORS AND ALL THOSE
INDICATORS TOGETHER RESULT IN AN
OVERALL RANKING AND A
RANKING WITHIN DOMAIN. SO WHAT
WE FOUND THIS YEAR IS THAT
TEXAS RANKS 43RD IN THE U.S. IN
CHILD WELL BEING."
GOUDEAU: "AND COMPARED TO
PREVIOUS YEARS, WHERE HAS TEXAS
RANKED? DID WE FALL? DID WE STAY
ABOUT THE SAME?"
TINGLE: "I WOULD SAY ABOUT THE
SAME. FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS
WE'VE KIND OF BEEN IN THE BOTTOM
10 STATES, IT'S BEEN PRETTY
CONSISTENT. SO THERE'S NOTHING
NEW, NOTHING SURPRISING THIS
YEAR, BUT I THINK THAT SPEAKS
VOLUMES AS WELL."
GOUDEAU: "AND SO LET'S TALK
ABOUT EACH OF THOSE DATA POINTS
THAT
THEY LOOK AT. LET'S START WITH
EDUCATION.
TEXAS IS NOT DOING WELL
ACCORDING TO THIS REPORT."
TINGLE: "NOT REALLY. SO WHAT
WE'RE SEEING IS THAT A
MAJORITY OF 4TH GRADERS ARE NOT
PROFICIENT IN READING AND A
MAJORITY OF 8TH GRADERS ARE NOT
PROFICIENT IN MATH IN TEXAS.
THAT'S A BIG PROBLEM BECAUSE
THESE KIDS ARE GOING TO BE
RUNNING OUR STATE SOON. WE NEED
TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE
READY FOR HIGHER EDUCATION AND
THESE NUMBERS ARE SHOWING THAT
THEY'RE JUST NOT.
GOUDEAU: "ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
IS POSITIVE THOUGH IS OUR
GRADUATION RATES HAVE INCREASED
IN THE STATE."
TINGLE: "THEY HAVE! AND
ACTUALLY, TEXAS'S ON-TIME
GRADUATION RATE IS HIGHER THAN
THE US AVERAGE, SO THAT'S SOME
GOOD NEWS."
BUT OVERALL, KIDS IN TEXAS ARE
STILL LAGGING BEHIND IN
EDUCATION."
GOUDEAU: "IS IT JUST THAT
THEY'RE LAGGING BEHIND EARLY ON,
DO THEY
CATCH UP LATER?"
TINGLE: "THAT'S A GREAT
QUESTION, YOU KNOW I'M NOT SURE
THAT THEY
REALLY CATCH UP ENTIRELY LATER.
THIS REPORT JUST KIND OF LOOKS
AT
A SELECTION OF INDICATORS. BUT
WE ALSO LOOK AT THINGS LIKE, HOW
MANY
KIDS ARE ENROLLED IN PRE- K. IN
TEXAS, IT'S NOT AS MANY AS
OTHER STATES ACROSS THE
COUNTRY."
GOUDEAU: "AND PART OF THAT IS
BECAUSE IT'S NOT ALWAYS FUNDED
TO THE DEGREE THAT IT SHOULD BE,
RIGHT?"
TINGLE: "EXACTLY, AND THAT'S WHY
SCHOOL FINANCE IS SO IMPORTANT
AND
MAKING SURE THAT WE ACTUALLY ARE
FUNDING QUALITY, FULL-DAY PRE-K
PROGRAMS THAT KIDS CAN GO LEARN
HOW TO WRITE THEIR
NAMES.
ACTUALLY, WHILE I WAS ON MY WAY
OVER HERE MY LYFT DRIVER WAS
TELLING ME THAT SHE USED TO BE A
PRE-K TEACHER AND SHE KNEW
THAT HER KIDS WERE LEARNING HOW
TO SPELL THEIR NAMES. AND
THEN WHEN THEY HIT KINDERGARTEN
SOME OF THEIR CLASSMATES DON'T
KNOW ANYTHING. THEY DON'T KNOW
HOW TO RECOGNIZE THE
FIRST LETTER OF THEIR NAME. AND
THAT CREATES A LOT OF
CHALLENGES GOING ON FOR THOSE
KIDS. THEY'RE ALREADY
STARTING BEHIND. SO THE MORE
TEXAS CAN DO TO SUPPORT EARLY
EDUCATION THE BETTER OUR STATE'S
GOING TO BE."
GOUDEAU: "LET'S TALK A LITTLE
BIT ABOUT HEALTHCARE. IT
REALLY COMES AS NO SURPRISE THAT
TEXAS IS TOWARD THE BOTTOM WHEN
WE'RE LOOKING AT HEALTH CARE.
TINGLE: "NOT AT ALL. SO, ONE OF
THE,
WELL I WILL SAY THAT THERE IS
SOME POSITIVE NEWS IN
HEALTHCARE THOUGH. I DON'T WANNA
MAKE IT ALL SOUND TOO BAD.
SO WE HAVE SEEN A BIG
IMPROVEMENT IN
CHILD-HEALTH INSURANCE RATES IN
TEXAS. THAT'S BEEN TRUE
AROUND THE COUNTRY. WE'VE SEEN
THAT IMPROVEMENT
SINCE 2010, IT'S LARGELY DUE TO
THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT. BUT,
LOOKING FORWARD, TEXAS STILL HAS
A HIGHER CHILD UNINSURED
RATE THAN OTHER STATES. AND WITH
POTENTIAL THREATS TO THE
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT, POTENTIAL
THREATS TO THE
CHILDREN'S HEALTH INSURANCE
PROGRAM, WE'RE MAYBE NOT
LOOKING AT EVEN MAINTAINING THE
GAINS WE'VE SEEN. ADDITIONALLY,
I
WOULD ADD THAT WHEN
PARENTS ARE INSURED THEIR
CHILDREN ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY
TO BE INSURED AS WELL. SO WHEN
WE ALSO HAVE A LARGE ADULT
POPULATION IN TEXAS THAT'S
UNINSURED IT'S NOT HELPING THEIR
KIDS."
GOUDEAU: "DOES TEXAS RANK LOWER
THOUGH BECAUSE OUR
POPULATION IS SO LARGE AND WE DO
HAVE CHILDREN WHO MAYBE HERE
ARE UNDOCUMENTED?"
TINGLE: "I DON'T THINK THAT'S
DRIVING THESE NUMBERS. SO FOR
ONE THING, UNDOCUMENTED CHILDREN
MAY OR MAY NOT BE FULLY
SHOWING UP IN THIS DATA DUE TO
THE WAY IT'S COLLECTED. ALSO,
A LOT OF OUR KIDS IN IMMIGRANT
FAMILIES HERE IN TEXAS ARE U.S.
CITIZENS THEMSELVES EVEN IF THEY
HAVE A FAMILY MEMBER
WHO'S UNDOCUMENTED. AND THEN,
YOU KNOW, THE SIZE OF
TEXAS IS A BIG CHALLENGE. KIND
OF TOUCHING ON THE EDUCATION
POINT,
ONE IN TEN SCHOOL CHILDREN IN
THE U.S. LIVES IN TEXAS. SO WE
HAVE A LOT OF THE COUNTRY'S
CHILDREN. BUT, OTHER STATES ARE
STILL DOING BETTER.
AND I WOULD JUST ADD THAT, KIND
OF THE NEGATIVE THINGS THAT
WE'RE
SEEING IN THE RANKINGS, IN THESE
NUMBERS, THOSE ARE
DERIVED NOT FROM POPULATION SIZE
BUT FROM POLICY CHOICES. WE CAN
MAKE POLICY CHOICES THAT ADAPT
TO THE STATE'S LARGE
NUMBER OF CHILDREN, OR 7.2
MILLION CHILDREN. ALL WE HAVE TO
DO
IS SHOW UP AT THE LEGISLATURE,
LOOK IN OUR COMMUNITIES AND
SAY 'WHAT CAN WE DO?'"
GOUDEAU: "ALRIGHT, LET'S TALK
ECONOMICS.
TALK TO US ABOUT WHAT THE REPORT
FOUND THERE."
TINGLE: "BASICALLY TOO MANY
TEXAS CHILDREN ARE LIVING IN
POVERTY.
WE HAVE 1.6 MILLION TEXAS
CHILDREN THAT ARE LIVING BELOW
THE POVERTY LINE AND EVEN FOR
CHILDREN WHO ARE ABOVE THE
POVERTY LINE, THEIR FAMILIES MAY
NOT REALLY BE MAKING ENOUGH
TO GET BY. THE POVERTY LINE,
RIGHT NOW, FOR EXAMPLE, IS ABOUT
$24,500 FOR A FAMILY OF FOUR. SO
YOU CAN IMAGINE EVEN
HERE IN AUSTIN THAT'S NOT A LOT
TO GET BY ON WHEN YOU'VE GOT
TWO PARENTS, TWO KIDS. SO ONE OF
THE OTHER ISSUES THAT WE
LOOK AT IN ECONOMIC WELL- BEING
IS IF KIDS ARE LIVING IN
NEIGHBORHOODS OF CONCENTRATED
POVERTY AND WE HAVE A LOT OF
KIDS
IN TEXAS THAT ARE IN THESE
NEIGHBORHOODS, I THINK ITS 27
PERCENT OF OUR CHILDREN, ARE
LIVING IN THESE NEIGHBORS WHERE
THEIR CENSUS TRACT IS IN POVERTY
ON AVERAGE. AND
WHAT THAT MEANS, IS THAT DUE TO
THE WAY OUR SCHOOL FINANCE
SYSTEM
WORKS, THEY ARE MORE LIKELY TO
NOT HAVE AS MUCH SCHOOL FUNDING
AT THEIR SCHOOLS, THEY'RE NOT
LIKELY TO HAVE AS MANY COMMUNITY
RESOURCES, THINGS LIKE THAT. SO
ALL OF THESE SUPPORTS THAT
KIDS IN AREAS WITH LESS POVERTY
SEE, THESE KIDS MIGHT NOT BE
GETTING."
GOUDEAU: "THE LAST FACTOR,
OVERALL COMMUNITY AND
FAMILY WELL BEING, HOW IS THAT
REALLY JUDGED?"
TINGLE: "THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION,
SO IT'S JUDGED BY SOME THINGS
LIKE
WHETHER PARENTS HAVE A HIGH
SCHOOL DIPLOMA OR NOT.
AND THAT AREA, THE FAMILY AND
COMMUNITY DOMAIN, IS
ACTUALLY ONE OF THE PLACES WHERE
TEXAS IS THE FARTHEST
BEHIND. WE'RE RANKED 47TH. WE
HAVE A LOT OF KIDS WHO ARE IN
FAMILIES WHERE AT LEAST ONE OF
THEIR PARENTS DOESN'T HAVE A
HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA. AND THAT
RANKING IS ACTUALLY ALSO
DRIVEN BY THE NEIGHBORHOODS OF
CONCENTRATED POVERTY. SO
THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
WE'RE SEEING REFLECTED IN THAT
NUMBER."
GOUDEAU: "SO HOW DOES THAT,
THERE SEEMS TO BE A
JUXTAPOSITION THEN RIGHT? WE
HAVE ALL THESE CHILDREN WHOSE
PARENTS DON'T HAVE HIGH SCHOOL
DIPLOMAS AND YET OUR ON-TIME
GRADUATION RATES ARE INCREASING
AND BETTER THAN THE NATIONAL
AVERAGE. HOW DOES THAT?"
TINGLE: "THAT'S A GREAT
QUESTION. I THINK THAT SPEAKS TO
THE FACT THAT
NO ONE DATA POINT CAN TELL THE
WHOLE STORY. WE SEE DIFFERENT
THINGS GOING ON IN DIFFERENT
PLACES, DIFFERENT POLICY CHOICES
IMPACTING DIFFERENT OUTCOMES.
AND THAT'S WHY IT'S
IMPORTANT TO TRY TO LOOK AT A
HOLISTIC VIEW AND THIS IS ONE OF
THE
WAYS OF DOING THAT."
WHEN TEXAS THIS WEEK CONTINUES
-- WE DISCUSS
WHAT ACTIONS CAN BE TAKEN TO
TURN THE TIDE ON CHILD
WELL BEING IN TEXAS.
BREAK
BREAK
BREAK THIS WEEK -- THE ANNIE E. CASEY
FOUNDATION RELEASED IT'S 2018 KIDS COUNT
DATABOOK.
RANKING TEXAS AS ONE OF THE TEN
WORST STATE'S FOR
OVERALL CHILD WELLBEING.
ASHLEY GOUDEAU: "NOW LET'S TALK
ABOUT SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE
POSITIVE WHICH IS WHAT WE CAN DO
TO CHANGE SOME OF THESE
NUMBERS. YOU GUYS AT THE CENTER
FOR PUBLIC POLICY
PRIORITIES, WORKING ON SOME OF
THOSE THINGS, WHAT WOULD YOU
LIKE TO SEE TO COMBAT SOME OF
THIS?"
KRISTIE TINGLE: "WELL, I HATE TO
KIND OF RAIN ON THE PARADE BUT
ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE WORRIED
ABOUT LOOKING TOWARDS
THE FUTURE ACTUALLY IS THE 2020
CENSUS. SO ONE OF THE KEY
WAYS TO IMPROVE SOME OF THESE
METRICS IS THROUGH EITHER
FUNDING FOR PROGRAMS, PROGRAMS
LIKE HEAD START, PROGRAMS LIKE
THE CHILDREN'S HEALTH INSURANCE
PROGRAM, LIKE MEDICAID. FUNDING
FOR THOSE SORT OF THINGS COMES
THROUGH OR IT COMES OUT OF
NUMBERS
NUMBERS FROM THE CENSUS BUREAU THAT ARE GATHERED IN THE DECENNIAL CENSUS. ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT WE'RE REALLY WORRIED