Every year, Kids Count in Michigan measures child well-being in four domain areas: economic security, education, health and safety, and family and community.

Data are available for the state of Michigan as a whole, each of the state’s 83 counties, and the three cities with the largest child populations: Detroit, Flint, and Grand Rapids.

Policymakers, parents, and organizations across the board can utilize those data as tools in creating and advocating for data-driven policies that will benefit all children.

Let’s take a look at the data!

We looked at trends from 2016 to 2021 (in some cases, 2022 data was used), and here is what we saw:

Over the past six years, the most improved areas of child well-being were:

∫ Overwhelmingly for all age groups, poverty rates improved.

Out of Michigan’s 83 counties, poverty rates improved in 76 and 75 counties, respectively, for children and young adults. All counties in the Alpena region (Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency, and Presque Isle) saw declines in child poverty over the last five years.

When we invest in children — as we did in 2021 through tax credits for families, larger monthly food benefits, and continuous Medicaid enrollment — we ensure that they are not experiencing the hardship that comes with economic insecurity so that they may better focus on building healthy life foundations.

∫ We also saw a reduction in births to teens in 77 counties.

That is a continued trend that we have seen reduce dramatically over the last few decades. Though those numbers have decreased tremendously in most counties, we must ensure strong support for teenage parents, allow access to a comprehensive health education for all students, and give all teenagers the right resources to excel in school.

∫ Graduation rates improved in over half of all counties.

However, more than one in four high schoolers aren’t graduating on time in Alpena county.

Children need to graduate on time if they want to ensure they obtain good-paying and in-demand jobs.

This year, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer created a new statewide department called the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP), with the goal of guiding children through their education careers from preschool to postsecondary education.

Those improvements show just how important those investments have been for our children. However, there are still some areas that need improvement:

∫ On the education front, the share of students reading proficiently in third grade declined in 70 out of 83 counties. Montmorency and Alcona counties had some of the most concerning English proficiency scores in the state, with more than 80% of students not reading proficiently. Fewer than half of all third-grade students were reading proficiently before the coronavirus pandemic, but school disruptions set students further back.

∫ Free and reduced-price lunch eligibility increased in 79 counties.

Students are eligible if they fall below 185% of the federal poverty line, or $55,500 for a family of four. So, although poverty decreased in most counties, more parents are still falling behind financially and are struggling to make ends meet.

∫ Preschool enrollment rates decreased in over half of all Michigan counties.

As children’s brains develop more from birth to age 5 than at any other time in life, it is crucial we make sure all 4-year-olds have access to high-quality pre-K education. School readiness — having the cognitive, behavioral, and social skills to succeed in school — is a strong predictor of a child’s future educational achievement.

Looking forward:

Those data offer a glimpse of how children are doing in each community across Michigan.

All children are entitled to a childhood in which they can learn, grow, and thrive, without barriers to access necessities like education, health care, and economic security.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw record investments in children like never before. Those COVID-19-era investments lifted children out of poverty, increased Medicaid coverage rates, and ensured children were fed when school wasn’t in session.

Those unprecedented levels of investment strongly helped mitigate the effects of COVID-19 on our most vulnerable populations, ensuring children and families were still able to stay afloat amid an unwaveringly frightening time.

We must continue to devote strong policies in favor of children, even after the pandemic has tapered, for they are the foundation of Michigan’s future.

Kelli Bowers is Kids Count in Michigan data analyst at the Michigan League for Public Policy.