Growing up in Kentucky: Study finds discouraging trends for children

By Nick Tabor, New Era Senior Staff Writer

A new overview of Kentucky children’s advantages and disadvantages, from birth through high school, shows a heavy dependence on social safety nets, such as public preschools and subsidized meals.

Figures for Christian County reflect trends similar to the state’s.

They also show potentially discouraging gaps in parenting and education: low rates of college readiness, high rates of smoking during pregnancies.

The Kids Count County Data Book study, released by Kentucky Youth Advocates, consists of more than 100 datasets. It gives some broad recommendations but doesn’t delve far into causes. But walking through the numbers, in chronological sequence, gives a unique and useful perspective.

Birth indicators bode poorly for Todd’s future

Study: Nearly 40 percent of births to high school dropouts

By Nick Tabor, New Era Senior Staff Writer

Nearly 40 percent of children born in Todd County from 2007 to 2009 were born to mothers without high school diplomas, according to state records.

It’s a figure widely disproportionate to the percent of adults over 24 who have finished high school or gotten equivalency degrees — 74.9 percent, according to U.S. Census data.

Regardless, it doesn’t bode well for the future of Todd County’s population, according to literature from Kentucky Youth Advocates. Children born in these circumstances have higher rates of infant mortality, and it can hurt their school readiness skills, academic achievement and health outcomes, the Kentucky Youth Advocates study reports.