Treasure Trove Of Newark Data Included In 2022 Kids Count Report – Newark, NJ Patch

NEWARK, NJ — A report that highlights a treasure trove of Newark data – including information on poverty, child care, education, employment and health – was released Tuesday: the Newark Kids Count 2022 Data Book.

A project of Advocates for Children of New Jersey, the effort is now in its 25th year, and includes data at the city, county and state levels. Read the full report here.

Among other trends, this year’s report is beginning to show the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the state’s largest city, researchers said.

“While we applaud the efforts made by Newark, COVID-19 has been devastating, particularly impacting low-income families and communities,” President and CEO Cecilia Zalkind said.

However – while early data is beginning to show some trends – Zalkind said it will likely be a long time before the city can determine the true effect the pandemic had on the physical and mental health, educational opportunities and overall stability of children, youth and families.

“We must acknowledge the critical state of child care, and the need to reimagine a system that is struggling to survive,” Zalkind said. “While we are still learning how Newark fared during COVID-19, we do know that the community was adversely affected by wage loss and unemployment.”

Some highlights from the report include:

DEMOGRAPHICS – “The city of Newark saw a slight increase in its child population from 2015 to 2019, growing from more than 68,000 children to just under 70,000. Between 2016 and 2020, births decreased by 10% in Newark, mirroring similar trends across the state and Essex County. In 2020, 50% of all births in Newark were to foreign-born mothers.”

LEAD – “Newark has made unprecedented efforts to address the concerning, pervasive problem of lead in the community. Though lead exposure continues to be a serious problem, the percentage of children ages 6-26 months with an elevated blood lead level has consistently declined between 2015 – 2019. The city has also made aggressive efforts to address one of the sources of lead – piping. Over three years, Newark replaced 23,000 lead service water lines through a program funded by Essex County. These replacements were provided free of charge to residents.”

FOSTER CARE – “The number of children living in foster care is down by nearly 50% in both Newark and New Jersey since 2017, and the number of Newark children receiving In-Home Child Protection and Permanency (CP&P) services is down by 58% since 2017. The joint efforts of the New Jersey Department of Children and Families (NJ DCF) leadership, committed staff and adequate funding by the Governor and NJ Legislature have enabled significant reforms to the state’s child welfare system.”

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