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EVERY KID COUNTS
in the District of Columbia
1 3 th A n n u a l F a c t B o o k 2 0 0 6
CFC #7404
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The D.C. KIDS COUNT Collaborative for Children and Families is a unique alliance of public and private organizations using
research to support advocacy for change in human, social, and economic policies and practices of government, the private sector,
individuals, families, neighborhoods, and communities. Its mission is to advocate for the interests and wellbeing of children and
families and to ensure their healthy development and future in the District of Columbia. An organizing goal of the Collaborative
is to build a strong and serious child and family support movement in the Nation’s Capital.
Since the formation in 1990 of the Collaborative’s predecessor organization, the Coalition for Children and Families, over 87
individuals and organizations representing a broad and diverse group of advocates, service providers, government policy makers,
universities, fraternal and volunteer organizations, and local citizens have been a part of the group.
The Collaborative supports a comprehensive approach to community building, but is focusing its research and advocacy efforts on
the Administration’s six citywide goals for children and youth: children are ready for school; children and youth succeed in school;
children and youth are healthy and practice healthy behaviors; children and youth engage in meaningful activities; children and
youth live in healthy, stable, and supportive families; and all youth make a successful transition onto adulthood.
The D. C. KIDS COUNT Collaborative for Children and Families consists of:
D.C. Children’s Trust Fund for the Prevention of Child Abuse
Overall fiscal and management responsibility
Data collection, analysis and evaluation
Production of publications
Partner Agencies*
Child and Family Services Agency
Children’s National Medical Center
D.C. Action for Children
D.C. Children and Youth Investment Trust Corporation
D. C. Department of Human Services Early Care and Education Administration
D.C. Learns
D.C. Office of the Deputy Mayor for Children, Youth, Families, and Elders
D.C. Public Charter School Association
D.C. Public Library
D.C. Public Schools
East River Family Strengthening Collaborative
Metropolitan Police Department-Office of Youth Violence Prevention
Office of D.C. City Councilmember Vincent Gray
So Others Might Eat
The Urban Institute, NeighborhoodInfo D.C.
Washington Hospital Center
For more information about our partner agencies, please visit www.dckidscount.org.
*The views and opinions expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the official position of the partner agencies,
their boards, or their funders.
The D.C. KIDS COUNT initiative and this publication have been made possible with generous support from the
Annie E. Casey Foundation. Support was also provided by Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) funds,
which are awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on
Children, Youth and Families, Office of Child Abuse and Neglect.
Copyright © 2006. D.C. KIDS COUNT Collaborative for Children and Families
Any or all portions of this report may be reproduced without prior permission, provided that the source is cited as:
Every KID COUNTS in the District of Columbia: Thirteenth Annual Fact Book, 2006,
D.C. KIDS COUNT Collaborative for Children and Families.
The data and analysis in this Fact Book were prepared by Jessica Cigna, Jennifer Comey, Elizabeth Guernsey, and Peter
Tatian of the Urban Institute’s NeighborhoodInfo DC. For more information, see: www.NeighborhoodInfoDC.org
or www.urban.org.
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We appreciate your comments!
Every KID COUNTS in the District of Columbia:
13th Annual Fact Book 2006 Survey
Please help us provide a high-quality Fact Book that meets your needs for information on the status of
children in the District of Columbia. Complete the following User Survey and
mail or fax it back to us at: D.C. CHILDREN’S TRUST FUND,
1616 P Street, NW, Suite 150, Washington, DC 20036; 202-667-2477 (fax), 202-667-4940 (phone).
1. Which of the following best describes your line of work?
Education
Research
Private Business
Elected Official
Non-Profit Organization
Government Agency
Media
Other
.
Health Care
2. Which of the following best describes your job duties?
Administrator
Service Provider
Marketing/Public Relations
Elected Official
Researcher/Analyst
Reporter
Educator/Trainer
Other
.
3. How are you planning to use the 2006 Fact Book?
(check all that apply)
Research
Program Development
Advocacy
Policy/Planning Development
Grant Writing
Articles/Public Education
Needs Assessment/Resource Allocation
General Information
Other
4. How often do you plan to use the 2006 Fact Book?
Daily
Occasionally
Weekly
Monthly
Once
5. Please rate the usefulness of the following aspects of the
2006 Fact Book on a scale from 1 to 5.
(1=Excellent, 2=Very Good, 3=Good, 4=Fair, 5=Poor)
Format of the 2006 Fact Book
1
2
3
4
5
3
4
5
3
4
5
Selected Indicators
1
2
Ward Charts
1
2
Neighborhood Charts/Maps
1
2
3
4
5
Data Definitions and Sources
1
2
3
4
5
6. What topics or information would you like to see
included in future Fact Books?
(Please be as specific as possible.)
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Thank you for your valuable feedback!
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EVERY KID COUNTS
in the District of Columbia
1 3 t h A N N UA L FAC T B O O K 2 0 0 6
TABLE OF CONTENTS
13th Annual Fact Book 2006 Survey
previous page
Letter from the D.C. Children’s Trust Fund
3
Purpose of the Fact Book
4
I.
Introduction
Overview - D.C. Report Card
5
7
II.
Recommendations & Strategies
2006 Essay - Connecting Disconnected Youth
2006 Recommendations and Strategies
9
11
III.
Major Trends & Changes Since Last Year’s Report
13
IV.
Selected Indicators of Child Well-Being in the District of Columbia
Children are Ready for School
Children and Youth Succeed in School
Children and Youth are Healthy and Practice Healthy Behaviors
Children and Youth Engage in Meaningful Activities
Children and Youth Live in Healthy, Stable, and Supportive Families
All Youth Make a Successful Transition to Adulthood
18
18
19
26
29
32
47
V.
Selected Indicators of Child Well-Being by Ward and Race/Ethnicity
50
VI.
Selected Indicators of Child Well-Being by Neighborhood Cluster
53
VII.
A Few Words About the Data
65
VIII.
Acknowledgments
69
1
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Table of Contents cont’d
L I S T O F G R A P H S A N D TA B L E S
Table 1:
Table 2:
Fig 1:
Fig 2:
Fig 3:
Fig 4:
Fig 5:
Fig 6:
Fig 7:
Fig 8:
Fig 9:
Fig 10:
Fig 11:
Fig 12:
Fig 13:
Fig 14:
Fig 15:
Fig 16:
Fig 17:
Fig 18:
Fig 19:
Fig 20:
Fig 21:
Fig 22:
Fig 23:
Fig 24:
Fig 25:
Fig 26:
Fig 27:
Fig 28:
Fig 29:
Fig 30:
Fig 31:
Fig 32:
Table 3:
Table 4:
Fig 33:
Fig 34:
Fig 35:
Fig 36:
Fig 37:
Fig 38:
Fig 39:
Fig 40:
Fig 41:
Fig 42:
Fig 43:
Table 5:
Table 6:
Map 1:
Map 2:
Map 3:
Map 4:
Map 5:
Vaccination Coverage – 3 of More Shots for Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, DC and the United States, 1999 – 2005
page 18
Number of Children Enrolled in Preschool and Pre-Kindergarten by Ward, School Year 2005-06, District of Columbia
19
Percent of DCPS Students Receiving Free or Reduced-Price Lunch, 1992-2005
20
Enrollment for DCPS and DC Public Charter Schools Combined, School Years 1990 – 91 to 2005 – 06
21
Racial/Ethnic Composition of DCPS and Public Charter School Student Body in DC, School Year 2005 – 06
22
Examples of DCPS Standards for Imaginative Writing in Grades 1, 3, and 5
22
Percent of Public School Students Testing Proficient or Above in Reading, Spring 2006
23
Percent of Public School Students Testing Proficient or Above in Math, Spring 2006
24
Comparison of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) for DC and Other Urban Cities, 2005, Grade 4
24
Comparison of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) for DC and Other Urban Cities, 2005, Grade 8
25
SAT Math and Reading Scores for Public School Students, DC and Nation, 2005 and 2006
26
Percent of Pregnant Women Receiving Adequate Prenatal Care, District of Columbia, 1999 – 2004
26
Percent of Low-Weight Births in DC, 1990 – 2004
27
Infant Mortality Rate Under 1 Year Old in DC, 1993 – 2004
27
Number of Child and Teen Deaths by Age Group in DC, 1999 – 2004
28
Cases of Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Syphilis Diagnosed in People Under Age 20 in DC, 1998 – 2005
28
AIDS Cases Diagnosed Among Children 12 Years Old and Younger in DC, 1990-2005
29
AIDS Cases Diagnosed Among Children 13 to 19 Years Old and Younger in DC, 1990-2005
30
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court, 1991 – 2005
30
Change in Proportions of Charges Against Juveniles in DC, 1994 and 2002 – 2005
31
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court for Offenses Against Persons, 1991 – 2005
31
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court for Acts Against Public Order, 1991 – 2005
32
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court for Acts Against Property, 1991 – 2005
32
Violent Deaths to Teenagers Age 15 to 19 Years Old (Accidents, Suicides, and Murders), 1990 – 2004
33
Population of Children and Adults in DC, 1960 – 2005
33
Racial/Ethnic Composition of Population of Children in DC, 2005
34
Births to DC Residents, 1990 – 2004
35
Number of Jobs in DC, 1991 – 2006
35
Number of Employed Residents in DC, 1995 – 2005
36
Unemployment Rate for DC, 1995 – 2005
36
Estimated Overall Poverty Rates with Confidence Intervals in DC, 2004 and 2005
37
Number of Children Who Applied and Were Eligible for TANF Assistance in DC, 1991 – 2006
38
Number of Children and Youth Who Applied and Were Eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP in DC, 2000 – 2006
39
Number of Children Who Applied and Were Eligible for Food Stamps in DC, 2001 – 2006
40
Subsidized Child Care Programs in DC, 2000 – 2005
40
Snapshot of the Number of Homeless in DC, January 2001 – January 2006
41
Families Applying for Shelter at Central Intake in DC, 1996 – 2005
42
Percent of Children Under Age 18 by Family Type, 2005
43
Number of Children and Youth in the Foster Care System in DC, FY 2003 to FY 2005
44
Percent of Births to Single Mothers in DC, 1988 – 2004
45
Percent of Births to Mothers Under Age 20 in DC, 1990 – 2004
45
Cases Filed for Child Abuse in DC, 1991 – 2005
46
Cases Filed for Child Neglect in DC, 1991 – 2005
46
Disposition of Civil Orders of Protection Against Domestic Violence, DC Superior Court, 2005
47
Cases of Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Syphilis Diagnosed in People Age 20 to 24 in DC, 1999 – 2005
48
AIDS Cases Diagnosed in People Age 20 to 24 in DC, 1990 – 2005
48
Violent Deaths to 20 to 24 Year Olds in DC, 1999 – 2004
49
Comparing District Wards on Indicators of Child Health, Mortality, and Child Welfare Recipiency, Washington, D.C.
51
Comparing Racial and Ethnic Groups on Indicators of Child Health, Mortality, and Child Welfare Recipiency, Washington, D.C. 52
Infant Mortality Rate by Neighborhood Cluster, Washington, D.C., 2004
54
Percent of Low-Weight Births by Neighborhood Cluster, Washington, D.C., 2004
56
Mortality Rates for 1- to 19- Year Olds by Neighborhood Cluster, Washington, D.C., 2004
58
Percent of Births to Mothers Under Age 20 by Neighborhood Cluster, Washington, D.C., 2004
60
Percent Change in Births from 2000 to 2004 by Neighborhood Cluster, Washington, D.C., 2004
62
2
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Dear Colleague:
We are pleased to provide the Every KID COUNTS in the District of Columbia, 13th Annual Fact
Book, 2006. The Fact Book is a comprehensive data source for indicators of child well-being in the
District, providing up-to-date accurate data in the areas of population trends, economic security,
family attachment and community support, homeless children and families, child health, safety and
personal security, education, and selected indicators by ward, neighborhood cluster and region.
This publication continues to reflect the input of an expanded number of partners and contributors.
With the help of the Urban Institute's NeighborhoodInfo DC, the Collaborative has continued to
expand the information we report in the Fact Book to include data on older youth aged 20-24 and
additional data on child abuse and neglect. The book and data indicators have been reorganized this
year according to the six citywide goals for children and youth in the District of Columbia. This will
mirror the format of the Children’s Budget and the Positive Youth Development Strategy making it
easier to see the impact of current efforts and match outcomes to the resources allocated to each goal.
To our new and on-going partners and contributors, thank you for your diligent work.
Due to the Collaborative’s access to more numerous local resources, the data contained in this Fact
Book is more comprehensive than the data presented in the 2006 National KIDS COUNT Data
Book, released in June by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Selected data in this book, therefore, may
show improvement and/or decline in some of the indicators of child well-being that were not captured in the national book. Based on the data in this book and in the previous year’s books, we
continue to be alarmed by the pattern of entrenched poverty in the District of Columbia, the continued rise in homelessness, and youth violence. Failure to lift residents out of poverty is negatively
impacting the gains made in other areas of child wellbeing. We urge you to examine the data and
recommendations, and use them to support and guide your efforts to enhance the conditions for
children and families in the community and in their homes.
To ensure continual enhancement of the data provided, please complete and return the enclosed user
survey (page 1). Your responses will greatly assist us in our efforts to provide a high quality fact book
year after year which meets your needs for information on the status of D.C.'s children. To order
more copies of the Fact Book or to inquire about joining the D.C. KIDS COUNT Collaborative,
please contact Ms. Kendra Dunn, Director of Public Policy, at (202) 667-4940 or kdunn@dcctf.org.
Also, please visit our D.C. KIDS COUNT website at www.dckidscount.org. The entire contents of
the Fact Book, as well as other KIDS COUNT related information, are available on our website.
Sincerely,
Kinaya C. Sokoya, Executive Director
DC Children’s Trust Fund
3
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Purpose of the Fact Book
T
his Fact Book is the 13th
annual report produced by
the D.C. KIDS COUNT
Collaborative on the lives of
children, youth, and their families in
the District of Columbia. The purpose
of the Fact Book is to provide data
annually about the well-being of children in the District of Columbia and
to place these statistics within a meaningful context. Ten of the indicators
presented were selected by the Annie
E. Casey Foundation and the Center
for the Study of Social Policy to mirror those reported in the National
KIDS COUNT Data Book that the
Casey Foundation produces annually.
The D.C. KIDS COUNT
Collaborative has continued to expand
the original list to include additional
indicators that are relevant to the
District. We encourage suggestions for
additions from our readers, which we
will try to fill if the needed data are
available.
This publication aims to provide a
broad perspective on the status of children and youth in the District. We
seek to inform and educate our readers
about the issues affecting children and
their families in the District. We
encourage community residents, policymakers, professionals, and others
who work with or on behalf of children and families to create conditions
that foster the optimal health and
development of children and youth.
As usual, we stress the importance of
family and community in the lives of
our children. We at D.C. KIDS
COUNT believe that an approach
based on systems theory is needed to
affect real change in the District.
Accordingly, children, families, communities, and government institutions
are viewed as an interconnected
whole. Thus, when family support
systems are dysfunctional in one area,
the entire system may be impacted.
In devising solutions to the problems
facing children and youth in the
District, the interactions and relationships among and between the
components of the system must be
understood and the systemic impact of
any changes considered.
We urge community leaders to use
this report, in conjunction with previous reports, for formulating strategic
plans and enacting policies that
support children, youth and families
in the District. We hope that the Fact
Book will serve as a catalyst for service
providers, business leaders, local
government, funders, and community
members to continue efforts to collectively address the issues presented in
this report so that, ultimately, all
families in this great city can function
optimally.
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4
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I.
INTRODUCTION
T
year’s report, however, and may not be
comparable to previous years. We will
track changes in these indicators in
future Fact Books.
The Annie E. Casey Foundation provides funding to all 50 states, the U.S.
Virgin Islands, and the District of
Columbia to produce annual statelevel KIDS COUNT reports. In
addition, the Foundation publishes a
national-level report every year
describing the well-being of children
across the United States.
Of the 41 indicators in this year’s
Report Card, 39 are compared to data
from previous years. Out of the 39
indicators, 19 changed for the better,
18 changed for the worse, and 2 indicators did not change at all. Of the 29
indicators in this year’s Report Card
that can be compared directly to indicators included in last year’s report
card, fewer indicators changed for the
better this year than last year (13 versus 18 indicators, respectively), while
more changed for the worse (15 indicators versus 10, respectively). The
Report Card serves as a reminder that
many of the District’s children and
their families continue to face serious
challenges.
his is the 13th edition of the
KIDS COUNT Annual Fact
Book for the District of
Columbia. The Fact Book brings
together a variety of indicators describing the well-being of the District’s
children and their families. We update
existing indicators each year and add
new indicators as they become available. For instance, this year’s Fact
Book includes newly available data
on foster care, child abuse, and child
neglect.
Following the Report Card is the
Recommendations and Strategies
section, developed by the D.C. KIDS
COUNT Collaborative and based on
data in the Fact Book. The recommendations are summarized in
another easy-to-read table and the
supporting text describes what the
collaborative would like to see accomplished in support of District’s
children and their families in the
coming years.
The next section, Major Trends and
Changes, is the executive summary
of the Fact Book. It provides a quick
overview of the main body of the
report.
Section IV, Selected Indicators on
Child Well-Being in the District of
Columbia, contains the majority of
information on the welfare of children
This year’s Fact Book has been reorganized to reflect the six citywide goals
for children and youth in the District
of Columbia. The new Children’s
Budget Report and the Positive Youth
Development Strategy are also structured according to the six goals so that
citizens of the District can track efforts
under way to support children and
youth and assess the resulting impact
of these efforts.
This Fact Book begins with a Report
Card, which provides an easy-to-read
summary of how the District compares to last year on selected indicators
of child well-being. The Report Card
shows whether each indicator changed
for the better, became worse, or
remained the same compared to the
previous year’s report. Some new indicators were added or revised for this
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5
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Photo by Stachaun Jackson
in the District. This section presents
and discusses the data in detail, mainly
for the District as a whole, along with
figures and tables showing trends. The
indicators are organized into six subsections, drawn from the Mayor’s six
citywide goals for the children and
youth: A) Children are ready for
school; B) Children and youth succeed in school; C) Children and youth
are healthy and practice healthy
behaviors; D) Children and youth
engage in meaningful activities; E)
Children and youth live in healthy,
stable and supportive families; and F)
All youth make a successful transition
to adulthood.
While section IV discusses the wellbeing of children across the city (that
is, on average), section V compares
several of the data indicators, such as
child health, mortality, and child
welfare, for children across the eight
District wards and across racial and
ethnic groups.
The following section, section VI,
presents maps showing the geographic
concentrations of infant mortality,
low-weight births, percent of change
in births from 2000 to 2004, deaths
for 1- to 19-year olds, and births to
teenage mothers in the city’s 39 neighborhood clusters. Accompanying the
maps are data tables with the values of
the indicators in each neighborhood
cluster.
Throughout the Fact Book, we
describe the sources of our data as well
as define what the indicators mean. In
compiling the indicators, we obtained
data from a variety of reliable District
6
and federal sources and endeavored to
use the most recent data available.
Data for the 2006 KIDS COUNT
Fact Book were compiled from many
sources, including the D.C. Child and
Family Services Agency; the D.C.
Department of Health, State Center
for Health Statistics Administration;
the D.C. Administration for
HIV/AIDS; the D.C. Bureau of
Sexually Transmitted Disease Control;
the D.C. Income Maintenance
Administration; the District of
Columbia Courts; the D. C. Early
Care and Education Administration;
D.C. Public Schools; the D.C. Public
Charter School Board; the
Community Partnership for
Prevention of Homelessness; the D.C.
State Education Office; the U.S.
Bureau of the Census; and the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. Some of the data we presented are complicated and may
require a more thorough explanation
than is provided in the main text. In
these cases, the reader is referred to
section VII, where we define and
describe the limitations of the more
complicated data sources.
Finally, we note that the figures
reported in this Fact Book may not
always match those shown for District
of Columbia in the national KIDS
COUNT Data Book published by the
Annie E. Casey Foundation. The data
sources for similar indicators may differ across the two reports, particularly
where we rely on data from District
agencies and the national book uses
data supplied by federal sources. These
two sources sometimes use different
methods for collecting and compiling
data, and neither sources is necessarily
superior to the other.
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Washington, D.C.’s ”Report Card” for 2006
change was for the better, for the worse, or has remained the
same. For some indicators, like employed residents of the
District, an increase will generally be a change for the better.
In other cases, such as increases in deaths to children and
teenagers, it will be a change for the worse. For a few indicators, such as children receiving food stamps, a decrease
will usually indicate an improving situation, with more children and their families rising out of poverty. But a decrease
might also mean that some children and families are not
getting the economic assistance they may need.
T
he District’s Report Card, inaugurated in 2000, is
meant to provide a quick snapshot of the changes
shown by several key indicators for the year, rather
than a complete summary of the situation. Before reaching
any conclusions based on information contained in the
Report Card, readers are advised to consult the full text.
The Report Card shows the most recent year for which we
have data on each indicator and whether that indicator has
increased, decreased, or stayed the same from the previous
reported year. Additional columns indicate whether the
Malcolm X Park on Meridian Hill
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7
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Washington, D.C.’s ”Report Card” for 2006
Changes Since 2005 Fact Book on Indices of Children’s Well-Being
Indicator (Year of Latest Data in Parentheses)
Increased (+),
Decreased (-),
or Same (=)
Children Are Ready for School
3+DTP Vaccination Rate (2005)
Head Start, Preschool, Pre-Kingergarten (2006)++
Children and Youth Succeed in School
Free and Reduced-Price Lunch Participation (2006)
DCPS and Public Charter School Enrollment (2006)
DCCAS Test - DCPS and Public Charter Schools (2006)++
Combined Math/Reading Scores on SAT (2006)
-
X
X
+
+
+
X
X
X
X
Children and Youth Engage in Meaningful Activities
Juvenile Cases Referred to Superior Court (2005):
For All Causes**
For Alleged Offenses against Persons
For Alleged Acts against Public Order
For Alleged Property Crimes
Violent Deaths to Older Teenagers (2004)
+
+
No Change
X
-
+
+
+
-
All Youth Make a Successful Transition to Adulthood
Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Young Adults 20-24 (2005):
Chlamydia
Gonorrhea
Syphilis
AIDS Cases Diagnosed in Young Adults 20-24 (2005)
Violent Deaths to Young Adults 20-24 (2005)
Changed
for the
Worse
X
-
Children and Youth Are Healthy and Practice Healthy Behaviors
Percent of Mothers with Adequate Prenatal Care (2004)
Percent of Low-Birth Weight Infants (2004)**
Infant Mortality Rate (2004)
Deaths to Children and Teenagers (2004)
Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Persons Under 20 (2005):
Chlamydia
Gonorrhea
Syphilis
AIDS Cases Diagnosed in Children 12 & under (2005)
AIDS Cases Diagnosed in Youth 13-19 (2005)
Children and Youth Live in Healthy, Stable, and Supportive Families
Population (2005)
Child Population (2005)
New Births (2004)
Employed Residents (2005)
Unemployment Rate (2005)
Poverty Rate - Overall (2005)
Poverty Rate - Children (2005)
Children Applied and Eligible for Federal Assistance (2006):
TANF
Medicaid/SCHIP
Food Stamps
Children Served by Subsidized Child Care (2005)
Homelessness in the District (2006)
Percent of Births to Single Mothers (2004)
Percent of Births to Teenage Mothers (2004)**
Cases Brought Against Parents in Superior Court (2005):
For Child Abuse
For Child Neglect
Changed
for the
Better
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
+
+
+
+
+
=
X
X
X
X
X
+
+
+
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
+
X
X
* No change based upon statistical
significance for CPS derived measure.
+
+
=
-
X
** Changed by only one person or 1 case,
or by no more than 1 point or one percent.
X
X
X
X
8
++ New data for 2006 Fact Book. No
comparison with earlier years possible.
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2006 ESSAY:
CONNECTING DISCONNECTED YOUTH
The scarcity of resources and preventive services
for families of teens who are presenting
behavioral challenges;
A perception that the environment is hostile
or unsafe.
T
his past year, the D.C. Mayor’s Advisory
Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect and
the D. C. Children’s Trust Fund, in cooperation with the D. C. KIDS COUNT Collaborative
for Children and Families, embarked on a research
project focusing on a specific segment of disconnected
youth in the District of Columbia. The study,
dubbed The Unemancipated Youth Project (UYP),
was designed to explore the needs and challenges of
youth aged 13 to 17 who are virtually living on their
own without formal parental or guardian supervision.
These youth were runaways, throwaways, living away
from home by mutual agreement, or alone due to
family disintegration.
Single and Blended Families
According to the 2005 KIDS COUNT Fact Book,
“Every Kid Counts in the District of Columbia,”
in 2004, 6 out of 10 children lived in a household
headed by a single person, 5 out of 10 living with a
single woman. 52% of the children living with
single women were poor. Single parents have adult
relationship desires and needs. The challenge is
providing support so that adult relationships do
not conflict with parenting. Based on the data,
many single women do not have the resources to
secure the support they need. Subsidized services
are needed. Respite care is needed for these parents and mentors are needed for their children.
When marriage or cohabitation is being considered
by a single parent, counseling on negotiation, discipline, boundaries, and conflicting loyalties of
children are needed. These services may prevent
youth from feeling (and being) neglected and running away from home.
After completing this research, the need for continued
research and data on disconnected youth in the
District of Columbia is clear. For this reason, we
made concerted efforts this year to find and analyze
data for the 13th Annual Edition of the D.C. KIDS
COUNT Fact Book that will illuminate how children aged 13-24 are faring. We will continue to
make this a priority in future editions.
There were additional implications from the study
findings that should be useful in guiding any future
program planning efforts for this population.
Therefore, the Implications Section from the
Unemancipated Youth Project Report has been
reprinted below.
Resources for Families in Crisis
Currently, there are minimal services and/or help
for parents who have children with special needs or
teens with challenging behaviors. There are also
limited preventive services available to help prevent
youth from leaving their home, being put out of
their home, or being placed in foster care or a
group home setting. To get help, some parents
believe they have no recourse but to give up their
rights and put the child into the child welfare system. The names of these parents are then placed
on a registry as neglectful.
Because of the small number of participants in this
study, it is recognized that there are limits in generalizing the findings. However, the findings provide
guidance for developing and/or enhancing policies
and practices that support both teens and families.
New non-punitive strategies are needed to help
teens in need and parents who have children with
challenging behaviors. Both preventive strategies
and intervention services are needed on the individual, relationship, community, and societal levels.
Some parents, stressed with the challenges of survival and raising younger children, may allow the
teen to go out on their own in an effort to maintain the current household. Other teens leave their
homes due to issues of violence against them,
In the report, three themes emerged that need to
be addressed:
The challenges of blended families and
families headed by single parents;
9
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parental drug use, witnessing domestic violence,
feeling neglected and abandoned, and living in a
“disorderly environment.” If the family received
the help they needed when they need it, placement,
criminal activity, and the teens abruptly leaving
their homes may have been prevented. More
front-end services that do not penalize parents who
ask for help are needed. A range of services should
be offered including resources for parents having
difficulty communicating with their teens to those
having difficulty accepting their child’s alternative
lifestyle.
ing strategies. All youth should receive life skills education to prepare them for successful adulthood. More
services should be available to reduce risky youthful
behaviors. More school and community-based counseling services should be available. Additional services are
needed in the areas of substance abuse and intimate
partner abuse.
On the relationship level: Adults and youth must learn
how to forge and maintain positive relationships.
Mentors should be assigned to all at-risk youth. Where
possible, estranged fathers should be urged to reconnect
with their children.
Safe Communities
Based on per capita violent deaths in 2005, the
District of Columbia was found to be the third
most dangerous city in the country. Parents are
responding to this danger by keeping their children
at home. For some youth, this is perceived as
being “locked up” (see page 20). Many of the
teens described not feeling protected by their parents or people in their communities, stating that
their protection was solely centered on their ability
to keep themselves safe. These reactions are connected to family and community stressors that
include high degrees of violence, drug selling and
use, and communities that disconnected with
young people. The young people requested greater
supports at school, more opportunities for adult
mentorship, and improved recreational activities for
the diverse interests of young people.
The District of Columbia must intensify its efforts
to reduce crime and provide more safe green spaces
for children and youth so they can go outside,
enjoy nature, and engage in constructive activities.
Recreational areas should be patrolled as are the
commercial areas. Adult mentorship programs
should be strengthened and increased. Schools
should end their “zero tolerance” policies and practices; and should be better utilized to provide
counseling and case management supports. The
young people interviewed also mentioned churches
as a viable place for help. Faith based communities
should be included in efforts to reach out to communities and help young people believe that we
can keep them safe again.
On the individual level: Parents and caregivers
must be educated and coached on positive parent-
On the community level: Youth must be heard and
their recommendations implemented. Safe neighborhoods with ample recreational centers and social services
must be a top priority. Gang intervention is needed.
Non-punitive family preservation services must be provided for parents who are having difficulty controlling
their children’s behavior. Opportunities for greater collaboration with faith-based communities should be
increased to help communities re-engage young people
and become more communal and connected.
On the societal level: Public officials should consider
modification of the child abuse mandated reporting
laws to ensure anonymity for youth in this circumstance
and more flexibility in service provision. The current
laws appear to be a deterrent to youth seeking help.
Parents should be held accountable for the health and
safety of their children but they also need support in
times of need. The District of Columbia should expedite implementation of strategies to achieve the six citywide goals in its positive youth development strategy:
Children are ready for school;
Children and youth succeed in school;
Children and youth are healthy and practice healthy
behaviors;
Children and youth engage in meaningful activities;
Children and youth live in healthy, stable, and
supportive families;
All youth make a successful transition to adulthood.
The full report can be downloaded at www.dcctf.org. The
Unemancipated Youth Project was made possible by funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
10
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Page 11
II.
The 13th Annual Every KID COUNTS in the District of Columbia Fact Book
2006 RECOMMENDATIONS & STRATEGIES
T
he 2006 recommendations
and strategies were developed
based on a review of the 2005
recommendations and research completed by the D.C. KIDS COUNT
Collaborative partner agencies. We
strongly believe that concerted joint
efforts can make these recommendations a reality for the betterment of
children, youth, and families in the
District of Columbia.
The Collaborative recommends that
the following strategies be incorporated in all services offered:
Service provided should be culturally competent and linguistically
accessible;
Offer services and programs for
families that foster parental
resilience, social connections,
knowledge of parenting and child
development, concrete support in
times of need, and social and
emotional competence of children.
I. Children are Ready for School
Expand and better coordinate
home visiting services to families;
Dedicate local funding to provide
early intervention services to more
infants and toddlers;
Support the professional development of infant and toddler child
care providers.
II. Children and Youth Succeed
in School
Ensure that all schools have adequate school health and mental
health services;
Increase students‚ test scores in
reading and math in comparison to
other urban areas;
Decrease the achievement gap
between ethnic groups of students
on standardized tests;
Collect and publish accurate data
on graduation rates;
Provide high-quality professional
development for teachers and
principles;
Require schools to develop engagement strategies to increase parent
involvement.
III. Children and Youth are
Healthy and Practice Healthy
Behaviors
Increase prenatal care for vulnerable
mothers, including teens, single
mothers, women with HIV/AIDS,
and women who abuse substances;
Continue to promote abstinence
and safe sex programs;
Enhance public education activities
on sexually transmitted diseases and
HIV/AIDS;
Improve educational programs educating children on proper nutrition
and exercise, as well as dental care;
11
Support the creation of a trauma
and injury registry at the
Department of Health to increase
understanding of how and why
children and youth get hurt.
IV. Children and Youth Engage
in Meaningful Activities
Implement the Positive Youth
Development Strategy;
Expand non-violent conflict resolution education programs;
Expand life skills education programs, including information on
healthy relationships;
Re-establish the PINS (Persons in
Need of Supervision) program to
include safe houses for youth in
jeopardy;
Support efforts to provide juvenile
offenders access to quality legal representation;
Provide professional education for
youth workers on substance abuse
prevention.
V. Children and Youth Live in
Healthy, Stable, and
Supportive Families
Develop a citywide plan to prevent
child abuse and neglect;
Educate public on the child abuse
and neglect laws, including new
immigrants and non-English
speaking residents;
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VI. All Youth Make a Successful
Transition to Adulthood
Continue to cross train child maltreatment, domestic violence,
family violence, and animal cruelty
providers to address the intersection
of these types of violence;
Provide parents with parenting
information, classes, and support;
Encourage the participation and
involvement of fathers in all family
support programs;
Increase shelter and housing
options for all homeless youth
(including GBLT youth);
Enhance preparatory services for
youth soon to be emancipated from
the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, including:
employment, internships/apprenticeships, higher education
guidance counseling, and independent living skills education;
Increase substance abuse treatment
services for youth, including the
number of beds available to young
women in treatment centers.
Support for grand families should
be expanded and extended to
include other family caregivers;
Open additional child care centers
to meet the need, including
increasing the capacity to care for
infants and toddlers and overnight
child care centers;
Expand respite care services for parents of children with special needs;
Increase substance abuse treatment
programs serving adolescents and
parents with their children;
Fully develop a continuum of services for the unemployed and
underemployed, including literacy,
job training and readiness, and job
placement services;
Increase the number of affordable
housing units for low and middle
income families;
Expand “second chance” homes for
teen parents on the brink of homelessness;
Develop strategies for serving
underage youth who are living on
their own;
Photo by Samaya Cristmas
Continue to provide housing with
necessary case management and
clinical support for persons struggling with addictions and mental
illness.
12
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Page 13
III.
MAJOR TRENDS AND CHANGES
SINCE LAST YEAR’S REPORT
Children Are Ready
for School
A
s in previous years, several
indicators of the well-being of
the District’s children and their
families worsened since the 2005 Fact
Book, while others improved.
Changes in the indicators presented
here should always be interpreted in
the larger policy and program context
of the city. For example, an increase in
the number of paternity cases filed
could indicate a growing problem, but
it may also mean that more mothers
are asserting their rights by filing
claims through the courts.
The 13th Annual KIDS COUNT
Fact Book is organized this year to
reflect the six citywide goals for children and youth in the District of
Columbia. The new Children’s Budget
Report and the Positive Youth
Development Strategy are also structured according to the six goals so that
citizens of the District can track efforts
under way to support children and
youth across documents and assess the
resulting impact of these efforts. The
six citywide goals are:
Children are ready for school
Children and youth succeed
in school
Children and youth are healthy
and practice healthy behaviors
Children and youth engage in
meaningful activities
Children and youth live in healthy,
stable, and supportive families
All youth make a successful
transition to adulthood
The 13th Annual KIDS COUNT
Fact Book contributes to the understanding of how children and youth
are faring in the District by showing
The picture of whether children are
ready for school is mixed. For the first
time in five years, immunization rates
fell in the District, indicating that
fewer young children are receiving
their basic immunizations. On the
positive side, almost 6,000 District
children enrolled in either Head Start,
preschool or pre-kindergarten in the
2005-06 school year, programs that
help prepare young children for future
schooling. Additionally, all DCPS and
public charter elementary schools now
offer pre-kindergarten classes.
Photo by Franklin Lesesne
trends in data supporting these six
goals. The data provide the context to
understand how children and youth
are thriving now and to judge what
progress has been made toward reaching each goal. All of the data regularly
reported in previous Fact Books are
included in this year’s report, but their
presentation has been reorganized to
line up with each of the six goals.
Since this is the first year we are presenting the data in this way, some
goals have more data supporting them
than others. We hope in future Fact
Books to expand the indicators and
data supporting each of the six citywide goals for children and youth in
D.C.
The following is a summary of trends
and changes in the indicators for the
six categories of child well-being.
These indicators are reported and discussed in greater detail in section IV.
13
The 3+DTP vaccination rate fell in
the District for the first time since
2000. In 2005, the District’s diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis
(3+DTP) immunization rate
decreased to 94.4 percent, 3.6 percentage points lower than in 2004
and 1.7 percentage points below
the 2005 national average. On a
positive note, there was no statistical difference between the
vaccination rates among white and
African American children.
During the 2005-06 school year,
5,896 District children enrolled in
preschool or pre-kindergarten, programs that help prepare young
children for future schooling.
Furthermore, all D.C. Public
School (DCPS) elementary schools
now offer pre-kindergarten classes.
The “Pre-K for All” campaign was
launched in June 2006, with the
goal of ensuring that every District
child has access to and enrolls in
high-quality pre-kindergarten.
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Page 14
ued to increase, countering some of
the DCPS decline, growing by 4
percent from the previous school
year and 360 percent since the
1998-99 school year.
Children and Youth
Succeed in School
Indicators of whether children and
youth succeed in school paint a more
pessimistic picture. To be able to learn,
children must be well fed, and the
District attempts to ensure this by
providing a free, universal breakfast
program for all DCPS students, as
well as free and reduced-price lunches
for all income-eligible students. The
strong presence of public charter
schools in the District means that
most families have choices as to where
to send their children to school.
Overall enrollment in the public
school system (DCPS and charters)
remained steady in the 2005-06
school year, with DCPS enrollment
continuing to decrease and public
charter school enrollment continuing
to increase. Nonetheless, on average,
District public school students continued to perform poorly on both local
and national assessment tests, and
average SAT scores for District high
school seniors decreased.
Good nutrition is essential to the
educational success of children and
youth. Almost two-thirds of DCPS
students received free or reducedprice lunches during the 2005-06
school year, down slightly from the
previous year. In addition, DCPS
offered a free, universal breakfast
program for the first time in the
2005-06 school year. The District
also leads the nation in the percentage of children served meals during
the summer who qualify for free or
reduced-price lunches during the
school year.
Overall, 76,427 students were
enrolled in DCPS and public charter schools in the District during
the 2005-06 school year.
Enrollment in DCPS schools continued to decline, dropping 4
percent from the previous school
year and 26 percent from the 199091 school year. However, public
charter school enrollment contin-
In the 2005-06 school year, 89 percent of all public charter school
students were African American,
compared to 83 percent of all
DCPS school students. DCPS
schools had a greater proportion of
Hispanic students compared to
public charter schools, however, 10
percent versus 8 percent, respectively.
In 2005-06, only 36 percent of all
DCPS and public charter school
students tested at a proficient or
advanced level in the new DCCAS
reading assessment test. Students
from Public Charter School Board
schools tested higher than their
DCPS or Board of Education
(BOE) school peers in five of the
seven grades.
In 2005-06, only 27 percent of all
DCPS and public charter school
students tested at a proficient or
advanced level in math, and, as
with reading, students from Public
Charter School Board schools tested higher than their DCPS or BOE
counterparts in five of the seven
grades.
college-bound high school seniors
decreased by 15 points.
Children and Youth Are
Healthy and Practice
Healthy Behaviors
Indicators of whether children and
youth are healthy and practice healthy
behaviors were also mixed. Setbacks
were noted in the share of mothers
who received adequate prenatal care,
which decreased for the second year in
a row, and the share who received
inadequate care, which nearly doubled. Infant mortality rates increased,
reaching the highest level since 2000.
Deaths to children and teenagers also
rose.
On the positive side, low-weight
births remained stable. Cases of three
common sexually transmitted diseases
decreased for youth under age 20,
although chlamydia cases went up.
The number of new AIDS cases diagnosed in children under age 12
remained low, and the number of new
AIDS cases diagnosed to youth 13 to
19 years old decreased. A new indicator this year—the share of obese high
school students—shows that the
District’s share decreased between
1999 and 2005 and is lower than the
national average.
According to the National
Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP), DCPS and public charter
school 4th and 8th grade students
scored the lowest, or tied for lowest, on reading and math
proficiency compared with public
school students tested in 10 other
cities.
The College Board reported that
the national average score of public
school students on the newly
designed SAT math and reading
sections decreased by six points
from 2005 levels. In comparison,
the average SAT score of DCPS
14
The share of mothers who received
adequate prenatal care continued to
slip in 2004 to 62 percent, the lowest level since 2000. The percentage
of those receiving inadequate care
nearly doubled, to 17 percent.
Only Ward 3, one of the most
affluent areas of the city, experienced improvements in levels of
prenatal care, increasing from 81 to
84 percent between 2003 and
2004. Wards 2 and 7 experienced
some of the largest declines in adequate levels of care, an 8 percentage
point decline for each.
Low-weight births remained stable
in 2004, making up 11 percent of
all births in the District, nearly
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identical to the 10.9 percent in
2003.
Infant mortality increased in 2004
after declining in the previous year.
Deaths to infants under age 1
increased to 11.8 deaths per 1,000
live births, up from 10.2 deaths per
1,000 births in 2003. This is the
highest level of infant mortality
since 2000.
Deaths to children and teenagers
rose by 28 percent in 2004. There
were 78 deaths to children and
youth 1 to 19 years old compared
to 61 deaths in 2003. This rate
comprised a 50 percent increase in
deaths to children age 1 to 14 and
a 17 percent increase in deaths to
older teenagers age 15 to 19.
The share of obese high school students in the District decreased
between 1999 and 2005, from 13
to 11 percent. The share of obese
high school students in the District
in 2005 was lower than the national average of 13 percent.
A total of 2,088 diagnosed cases of
chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis
were diagnosed among children
and youth under 20 years old in
2005, a net decrease of 52 cases
from the previous year. However,
chlamydia cases rose for the third
consecutive year, while gonorrhea
cases continued to decrease.
The number of new AIDS cases
diagnosed in children 12 years old
and younger remained small and
steady in 2005. The number of
new AIDS cases diagnosed in children and youth 13 to 19 years old
slightly decreased to 10 cases in
2005. However, over the past four
years, the number of new diagnoses
for this age group has been higher
than the number of new cases diagnosed during the 1990s.
Page 15
Children and Youth
Engage in Meaningful
Activities
Unfortunately, little information is
collected on the positive activities of
young people. Therefore, this year’s
Fact Book tracks indicators of children
and youth not meeting this goal,
namely those children and youth
involved in cases brought to D.C.
Superior Court. Juvenile crimes committed in the District remained
virtually unchanged in 2005.
However, crimes committed by juveniles against other persons did increase
for the third consecutive year and
made up the largest proportion of
juvenile crimes. Furthermore, violent
deaths (i.e., homicides, accidents, or
suicides) made up the overwhelming
majority of deaths to older teenagers
in the District. (In Future Fact books,
we hope to include data showing children and youth participation in
positive activities, such as parks and
recreation programs and summer
employment programs.)
The number of juvenile cases
referred to the D.C. Superior Court
held steady at 2,772 cases in 2005.
Crimes against persons increased
slightly to 1,073 cases and continued to constitute the largest share
of juvenile crimes. On the other
hand, the number of juvenile cases
for acts against the public order
decreased by 8 percent to 649
cases, the lowest level since 1991.
Acts against property cases declined
for the second consecutive year to
827 cases, making up 28 percent of
all juvenile cases.
Violent deaths to older teenagers
rose in 2004, matching the levels of
the late 1990s. There were 43 violent deaths to teenagers age 15 to
19, an increase of 23 percent compared to 2003. Violent deaths
made up 90 percent of all deaths to
this age group.
15
Children and Youth Live
in Healthy, Stable, and
Supportive Families
There are three indicator categories in
this section: population, economic
security, and family attachment and
support. The population and demographics of the District suggest
positive growth. Census estimates, as
well as birth rates, show that both
child and adult populations in the
District are on the rise. Economic
security, essential to providing a stable
and supportive environment for children, also seems to be improving.
With an increase in the numbers of
jobs and employed residents, and a
corresponding decrease in the unemployment rate, District residents
appear to have an improved level of
economic security. In addition, fewer
children are receiving federal economic assistance, such as TANF,
Medicaid/SCHIP, and food stamps.
Nonetheless, the data cannot tell us
whether these positive trends reflect an
improvement in status for long-time
District residents, or rather are the
result of new, wealthier residents moving into the city. Furthermore, other
data point to two major areas of concern: the fifth consecutive yearly
increase in the District’s homeless population and a slight rise in the overall
poverty rate.
The final indicator category under this
goal reports on the different family
structures in which children live and
the numbers of reported cases of child
abuse and neglect. Half of all children
in the District lived in single-femaleheaded households, and these children
were much more likely to live in
poverty than those living in other
types of families. Fewer cases of child
abuse were filed before the D.C.
Superior Court this past year, but the
number of child neglect cases rose.
Population
Revised estimates show that the
District’s population has begun to
grow after years of decline. The
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Page 16
new 2005 population estimate
indicates that the District has
grown by 9,900 persons, or 1.7
percent, since the last full census in
2000. The number of children has
increased by 2.0 percent—from
110,625 children in 2004 to
112,837 children in 2005, the second consecutive yearly increase in
the child population.
The number of children living in
the District increased across all
racial and ethnic groups in 2005.
Almost 7 out of 10 children were
African American. The shares of
white and Hispanic children
increased slightly, making up 15
and 11 percent of the District’s
child population, respectively.
The District reported 7,937 births
in 2004, an increase of 321 births,
or 4 percent, from 2003, and the
largest number of births in seven
years. As was reported in last year’s
Fact Book, births to white mothers
continued to drive the growth.
One-quarter of all District births
were to non-Hispanic white mothers, an increase of 153 births, or 8
percent, from 2003. In Wards 7
and 8, which have the largest numbers of children and are
predominantly African American,
the number of births decreased by
4 and 5 percent, respectively,
between 2000 and 2004.
Economic security
For children and youth to be able to
live in stable and supportive families,
the adults heading these families need
economic security. Most indicators of
economic security showed improvement in this year’s Fact Book,
although the poverty rate increased
slightly and child poverty remained
high. Again, it is not clear whether the
positive economic changes reported
represent improvement for long-term
District residents or are a result of an
influx of wealthier singles and families
into the city.
Photo by Aya Bonner
The number of jobs in the District
continued to grow, reaching
691,000 jobs in June 2006, an
increase of 1.2 percent compared to
June 2005. As in past years, the
growth was fueled by an increase in
private-sector jobs. The number of
employed District residents
increased to 277,000 in 2005, up
1.1 percent from 2004 and ending
a downward trend started in 2001.
Furthermore, the District’s unemployment rate dropped by 1
percentage point to 6.5 percent in
2005, reversing four consecutive
years of increases.
Overall poverty in the District
increased in the past year. The
2005 estimated poverty rate was
19.8 percent of all residents, or
98,069 persons, living below the
federal poverty level, an increase of
between 0.6 and 3.2 percentage
points in the poverty rate from the
previous year. Child poverty
remained high in 2005, with 36
percent of all children and 42
percent of all African-American
children living below the federal
poverty level in 2005.
16
The number of District children
benefiting from federal assistance
programs went down in 2005. The
number of children in families who
applied and were deemed eligible
for TANF subsidies decreased for
the second consecutive year to
29,741, the lowest level since 1991.
The number of children and youth
who applied and were deemed eligible for Medicaid/SCHIP dropped
for the first time in five years to
72,361. The number of children
in families who applied and were
deemed eligible for food stamps
decreased by 4 percent in 2006.
Homelessness increased for the fifth
consecutive year. A total of 9,369
homeless persons were counted in
the District in January 2006, an
increase of 392 persons, or 4.4 percent, since January 2005. The
January 2006 homeless count
included 3,485 homeless adults and
children in families. Despite the
increase in the enumerated homeless population, the number of
families applying for emergency
shelter in the District decreased for
the first time in six years to 2,936,
but it is still much higher than at
the start of the decade.
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Family attachment
and support
Page 17
Indicators of family attachment and
support paint a mixed picture. Some
indicators, such as the number of children in foster care, decreased, which
could be seen as a positive change,
while other indicators, such as births
to single mothers, rose, which most
people would interpret as a negative
change.
More than half (55 percent) of all
children in the District lived in
single-female-headed households,
while another 38.3 percent of children lived in married-couple
families. These numbers are not
significantly different from the previous year. Children in households
headed by a single woman were
more likely to be poor than those
in other family types—52 percent
of children in a single-female-headed family lived below the federal
poverty level in 2005, compared
with 12 percent of children living
in married-couple families. Over
half of all grandparents who lived
with their grandchildren in the
District were responsible for their
grandchildren’s care in 2005, and
about one-third of these grandfamilies were living below the federal
poverty level.
The number of District children
and youth in foster care decreased
by 7 percent between 2004 and
2005. Of the 2,554 children in foster care in 2005, 78 percent lived
within a family setting.
The share of births to single mothers increased for the first time since
1993, to 56.0 percent of all District
births in 2004, an increase from
53.7 percent in 2003. The average
age of new single mothers was 25
years old. Teenage births remained
low, with mothers under age 20
accounting for 11.2 percent of all
births in 2004.
The number of cases filed with the
D.C. Superior Court for child
abuse decreased by 32 percent in
2005 to 142 cases, the third straight
yearly decrease and the lowest level
since 1991. However, child neglect
cases increased sharply by 33 percent to 791 cases in 2005. New
with this year’s Fact Book, we
report the number of calls for suspected child abuse or neglect
received by the D.C. Child and
Family Services Agency hotline. In
fiscal year 2005, the hotline
received 2,590 calls for suspected
child abuse and 2,891 calls for suspected child neglect.
The number of court filings for
orders of protection against domestic violence continued to decline,
reaching 3,748 filings in 2005, a
decrease of 3 percent from 2004
and the lowest level since 2001.
The number of adjudicated protection cases dropped by 5 percent
from 2004.
All Youth Make a
Successful Transition
to Adulthood
Beginning this year, the Fact Book
examines indicators related to young
adults age 20 to 24 to try to measure
how well they have made the transition to adulthood. Reported levels of
infection for sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS remained stable for
this age group. On a positive note, the
number of deaths to young adults
decreased, but violent deaths still made
up the greatest share of deaths to persons age 20 to 24.
A total of 1,831 cases of chlamydia,
gonorrhea, and syphilis were
reported among District young
adults age 20 to 24 in 2005. From
1999 to 2005, cases of these three
sexually transmitted diseases among
young adults decreased by only 1.6
percent. Chlamydia cases continued to rise, however, increasing
44.7 percent since 1999, while
17
gonorrhea cases fell 35 percent over
this same period, reaching an alltime low in 2005.
The number of new AIDS cases for
District young adults remained
unchanged from the previous year,
with 33 new cases diagnosed in
2005. The D.C. Department of
Health’s Administration for HIV
Policy and Programs and the D.C.
Mayor’s Office kicked off the
“Come Together DC–Get Screened
for HIV” campaign this year, with
the goal of ensuring that all District
residents know their HIV status by
the end of 2006.
Young adults age 19 to 21 accounted for 11 percent of the foster care
population in 2005. The number of
young adults in the foster care system has risen slightly in recent
years. Many of young adults in foster care participate in programs
designed to prepare them for adulthood. The District placed 83 young
adults in college programs in 2005.
In 2004, there were 67 deaths to
young adults age 20 to 24 in the
District, a 34 percent decrease from
102 deaths in 2003. Most of these
2004 deaths occurred to males and
were violent (i.e., homicides, accidents, or suicides), and homicide
remained the leading cause of death
for young adults. In 2004, 73 percent of all deaths to young adults
were violent deaths; more than half
(55 percent) were the result of an
assault.
Photo by Paula Martinez
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IV.
SELECTED INDICATORS OF CHILD WELL-BEING
in the District of Columbia
The 13th Annual KIDS COUNT
Fact Book is organized this year to
reflect the Mayor’s six citywide goals
for children and youth in the District
of Columbia. The new Children’s
Budget Report and the Positive Youth
Development Strategy are also structured according to the six goals so that
citizens of the District can track efforts
under way to support children and
youth and assess the resulting impact
of these efforts. The six citywide
goals are:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Children are ready for school
Children and youth succeed in
school
Children and youth are healthy
and practice healthy behaviors
Children and youth engage in
meaningful activities
Children and youth live in
healthy, stable, and supportive
families
All youth make a successful transition to adulthood
The 13th Annual KIDS COUNT Fact
Book contributes to the understanding
of how children and youth are faring
in the District by showing trends in
data supporting these six goals. The
data provide the context to understand
how children and youth are thriving
now and to judge what progress has
been made toward reaching each goal.
All of the data regularly reported in
previous Fact Books are included in
this year’s report, but their presentation has been reorganized to line up
with each of the six goals. Since this is
the first year we are presenting the
data in this way, some goals have more
data supporting them than others.
We hope in future Fact Books to
expand the indicators and data supporting each of the six citywide goals
for children and youth in D.C.
Children Are Ready
for School
The first of the six goals states that all
children in the District should be prepared for school. In the District of
Columbia, kindergarten attendance is
mandatory (starting at age 5) and the
District offers opportunities such as
Head Start, preschool and pre-kindergarten classes for children to start
school even earlier. In order to attend
public school, children must be up-todate with their immunizations. In this
Fact Book, we track immunization
rates for one the most common vaccinations, the 3+DTP.
1. The 3+DTP vaccination rate fell
in the District for the first time
since 2000, falling 1.7 percentage
points below the 2005 national
average. (Table 1)
The federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) conducts the U.S. National Immunization
Survey each year to determine the
rates of immunization for major childhood diseases in all states and the
District of Columbia. The U.S.
National Immunization Survey tracks
the coverage of several vaccinations.
The vaccination most commonly
given to young children is called
“3+DTP” and protects against diph-
18
theria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough). It is generally given in
three or more doses to children from
19 to 35 months old.
The vaccination rate fell in the
District for the first time in five years.
In 2005, the District’s 3+DTP vaccination rate decreased to 94.4 percent,
3.6 percentage points lower than the
2004 rate, and it fell behind the 2005
national average by 1.7 percentage
points. During the 1990s, the
District’s vaccination rate for 3+DTP
was a percentage point or more below
the national level, and in 2000, it fell
more substantially behind. Each year
since, however, the District has made
steady gains on the national average.
In 2003, the District’s rate surpassed
the national average by half a percentage point, rising to 98 percent. In
2004, the District’s vaccination rate
Table 1
Vaccination Coverage – 3 or More
Shots for Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis
DC and the United States 1999-2005
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
District of
Columbia
United
States
94.4
90.8
91.6
94.2
96.5
98.0
94.4
95.9
94.1
94.3
94.9
96.0
95.9
96.1
Source: U.S. National Immunization Survey
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Table 2
Number of Children Enrolled in Preschool and Pre-Kindergarten by Ward,
School Year 2005-06, District of Columbia
Number of Schools
Ward
Preschool
Number of Students Enrolled
Pre-K
Ward
Preschool
Pre-K
1
12
16
1
229
459
2
5
11
2
96
158
3
1
9
3
9
171
4
9
19
4
259
594
5
10
19
5
260
625
6
12
19
6
194
423
7
13
22
7
314
712
8
16
22
8
514
784
______________________________________________________________
Total
78
139
Total
1,913
3,983
Sources: DCPS, PCSB and BOE
Note: A small number of students could not be matched to a ward because of missing addresses
or geocoding problems.
was 2.1 percentage points above the
national average. The 2005 rate reverts
back below the national average.
While the vaccination rate over the
past decade has differed among racial
groups, the CDC for the first time in
2005 found no statistically significant
difference in national vaccination rates
among African American, white,
Asian, and Hispanic children age 19
to 35 months. Furthermore, the vaccination rate for the District mirrors this
national trend. There is no statistical
difference in the 2005 vaccination
rates for 3+DTP between African
American and white children. This is
good news as it means that all children
regardless of race or ethnicity are
equally protected against childhood
diseases.
2. In 2005, nearly 5,896 District
children enrolled in preschool or
pre-kindergarten, helping them
to prepare for future schooling.
(Table 2)
The District offers Head Start, preschool (age 3), and pre-kindergarten
(age 4) classes for children of all
income levels to prepare them for
kindergarten, which is mandatory for
all children at age 5. Research shows
that children who attend preschool
and pre-kindergarten are better prepared for elementary school and
consistently perform better as they
progress through school.
Head Start, established in 1964 and
supported with federal funds, is
administered by the Administration
on Children, Youth and Families in
the Department of Health and
Human Services. Head Start serves
children up to age 5 and focuses on
school readiness for low-income families through preschool and
pre-kindergarten programs. Head
Start in the District offers programs to
low-income children through seven
different organizations, including
D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) and
Nation’s Capital Child & Family
Development. According to the Early
Care and Education Administration,
19
there were over 100 Head Start campuses in the District located at DCPS
schools, D.C. Park and Recreation
facilities, and other child care organizations, serving 3,992 children during
the 2004-05 school year (the most
recent data available). Many Head
Start sites (42 percent) are located in
Wards 7 and 8.
DCPS and public charter schools also
offer preschool and pre-kindergarten
to those children who do not qualify
for or are not enrolled in Head Start.
More than half (56 percent) of DCPS
and public charter elementary schools
(78 in total) offered preschool classes
in 2005-06, enrolling 1,913 students
(see Table 2). All DCPS schools
offered pre-kindergarten classes in
2005-06 (totaling 139 schools),
enrolling 3,983 students. In addition,
828 children or 43 percent of District
preschool children and 1,496 children
or 38 percent of District pre-kindergarten children resided in Wards 7 or
8 during the 2005-06 school year.
In June 2006, the “Pre-K for All”
campaign was launched with the goal
of ensuring that every District child
had access to and enrolled in highquality pre-kindergarten. The principal partners of the campaign are the
Universal School Readiness
Stakeholder Group and the Early Care
and Education Administration in the
Department of Human Resources.
Children and Youth
Succeed in School
The second goal for children and
youth is that they succeed in school.
Since good nutrition is a prerequisite
for school success, the Fact Book
tracks the number of free and
reduced-price meals provided to public school students. This report also
shows enrollment trends in the DCPS
and public charter schools, as well as
the racial and ethnic composition of
public school students. We report the
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Page 20
standardized test scores that federal
No Child Left Behind legislation
requires of all public school students,
which reflect whether students are
testing at proficient levels, and we
show how District public school students’ test scores compare to other
public students nationally. Finally, we
provide the average District SAT test
scores of college-bound students compared to how they have performed in
the past.
to learn. The percentage of students
receiving free or reduced-price lunches
is often used to indicate the percentage of school children at or near the
poverty level, since student participation has an income requirement.
Income requirements are derived from
the federal poverty level and are
updated annually. For the 2005-06
school year, the income eligibility for
free and reduced-price lunches was
$25,155 and $35,798, respectively, for
a student from a
family of four.
1. Almost two-thirds of DCPS
students received free or reducedprice lunches during the 2005-06
school year, down slightly from
the previous year. (Figure 1)
In the District, there are a total of 57
local education agencies (LEA) that
administer the subsidized food program for public and private school
children. DCPS administers the
National School Lunch Program for
all DCPS school children, while the
46 public charter schools and 10 private schools administer their own
programs. During the 2005-06 school
year, over 6 million of the 7.6 million
lunches (79 percent) served by LEAs
went to students who qualified for free
or reduced-price lunches.
The Food and Nutrition Service
(FNS) of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) has operated the
National School Lunch Program since
1946, reimbursing states and the
District of Columbia to serve subsidized lunches to all school children,
both public and private. The purpose
of the program is to ensure that school
children do not go hungry and thus
are provided with the best opportunity
Figure 1
Percent of DCPS Students Receiving Free or Reduced-Price Lunch
1992-2005
80
Percent of DCPS Students
67
66
61
60
73
70
70
70
70
67
65
62
61
64
63
55
50
40
30
According to DCPS, 63 percent of its
students received free or reduced-price
lunches during the 2005-06 school
year. (The percentage of public charter
and private school students who
receive free and reduced-price lunches
was not available.) This was a 7 percentage point decrease from the
previous year, when 70 percent of
DCPS students received free or
reduced-price lunches. The share of
DCPS students who receive subsidized
lunch has fluctuated between 61 and
73 percent since 1993. One source of
this variability is that the number of
eligible students who sign up for the
program can vary substantially from
year- to -year.
2. DCPS offered a free, universal
breakfast program for the first
time in the 2005-06 school year.
The 2005-06 school year was the first
year that DCPS offered free breakfast
to all students attending DCPS
schools before the official start of the
school day. As motivation for introducing this program, the Mayor’s
Office and DCPS officials noted that
students who eat breakfast regularly
perform better in school. Although in
prior years, free and reduced-price
breakfast had been served to qualifying
children (the income requirements
were the same for breakfast and
lunch), officials noted that children
who arrived before the start of the
school day to eat breakfast at school
were stigmatized as being poor. To
eliminate this stigma, the free breakfast program now serves all DCPS
students, regardless of income.
3. The District led the nation in the
percentage of children served
meals during the summer who
qualify for free or reduced-price
lunches during the school year.
20
10
0
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Sources: 1992-1996 DCPS report to DC Council; 1997-1998 DCPS school profiles;
1999-2003 DCPS Weighted Student Formula calculations;
2004 DCPS Food and Nutrition Services report; 2005 DCPS, Office of Planning
20
2005
The Summer Food Service Program
(SFSP), administered by the USDA
and funded by federal funds through
state agencies, provides free meals to
11/29/06
11:33 AM
any child, regardless of income, in the
summer. Children can go to any eligible SFSP site (known in the District as
the Free Summer Meals Program or
FSMP) to receive meals. These sites
are usually at parks and recreation centers, schools, and community-based
organizations running summer camps.
During 2006, the District had 376
sites across all eight wards serving at
least lunch and, in most cases, breakfast. While the FSMP is offered to any
child, one of its most important functions is to feed those children who
qualify for free or reduced-price lunches when they are not in school.
According to research from the Food
Research and Action Center (FRAC),
the District’s FSMP led the nation in
achieving this goal, serving meals to
76.8 percent of children who usually
receive free or reduced-price lunches
during the school year.
4. Enrollment in DCPS schools
continued to decline. (Figure 2)
The District’s public school
system includes two types of schools:
the District of Columbia Public
Schools (DCPS) and public charter
schools. Overall, 76,427 students were
enrolled in DCPS and public charter
schools in the District for the 2005-06
school year. This was a small decline
of 2 percent or 1,720 students from
the previous year. For nearly two
decades, the District’s total student
population has hovered around
80,000, declining marginally each year
with fewer students attending DCPS
schools and more students enrolling at
public charter schools.
DCPS, the traditional public school
system, is headed by a school superintendent who is appointed by the
District of Columbia Board of
Education, the official policymaking
body. There were 180 DCPS schools
and special programs as of the 200506 school year: 100 elementary
schools; 21 middle and junior high
schools; 23 senior high schools and
academies; and 36 other.
Page 21
The latest figures from DCPS indicate
that student enrollment has continued
to decline. In the 2005-06 school year,
59,897 students were enrolled, a
reduction of 2,409 students or a
decrease of 4 percent from the previous school year and a decline of 26
percent from the 1990-91 school year.
As stated in previous reports, this dramatic decline has been mostly offset
by increases in public charter school
enrollment.
5. Public charter school enrollment
continued to increase, countering
some of the DCPS decline.
(Figure 2)
Public charter schools first opened in
the District in 1996 after passage of
the District of Columbia School
Reform Act, which authorizes individual groups to apply for charter school
status. Public charter schools are publicly funded, and District students do
not pay tuition to attend. Charter
schools receive the same per pupil
Figure 2
stipend and per pupil facilities funding
as DCPS schools and, like traditional
DCPS schools, public charters must
accept all students. Two organizations
have the authority to grant charters.
The Public Charter School Board
(PCSB) has jurisdiction over about
two-thirds of the charter school locations, while the District of Columbia
Board of Education (BOE) oversees
the remaining schools.
Since the inception of public charter
schools, enrollment has increased
annually, seeming to absorb some of
the loss in student population from
DCPS schools. (Another factor in the
declining enrollment of DCPS schools
is the drop in the child population
since the 1990s.) As of the 2005-06
school year, 16,530 students were
enrolled in public charter schools, an
increase of 4 percent from last year, or
689 more students, and more than
quadrupling since the opening of the
first public charter schools. Enrollment has increased by 360 percent
Enrollment for DCPS and DC Public Charter Schools Combined
School Years 1990-91 to 2005-06
85,000
80,000
Number of Students
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
75,000
70,000
65,000
60,000
55,000
50,000
1990-91 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06
Public Charter only
*
3,594
6,980
9,881
10,195 11,603 13,743 15,841 16,530
80,694 80,618 80,937 80,678 80,450 79,802 78,648 77,111 71,889 70,762 68,925 68,449 67,522 65,099 62,306 59,897
DCPS only
Total w/Public Charter
75,483 77,742 78,806 78,644 79,125 78,842 78,147 76,427
Sources: 1990-2004 data for DCPS enrollment and 1998-2004 data for public charter enrollment from previous Kids
Count Fact Book.
2005-06 school year enrollment from DCPS and public charter enrollment from PCSB and BOE.
*1997 enrollment data for public charters not available.
21
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Page 22
Figure 3
Racial/Ethnic Composition of DCPS Student Body in DC
School Year 2005-06
5%
Racial/Ethnic Composition of Public Charter School
Student Body in DC
School Year 2005-06
3,210 White
10%
2%
305 White
8%
5,947 Hispanic
1,390 Hispanic
1%
2%
83%
49,683 African American
89%
Total Enrollment = 59,897
No reliable local data on graduation
rates was available this year. We will
work to publish data on this indicator
in the next edition of the DC KIDS
COUNT Fact Book.
6. African Americans made up a
slightly larger share of students in
public charter schools than in
DCPS schools, while Hispanics
and whites are a larger share of the
student population in DCPS
schools than in charter schools.
(Figure 3)
The racial breakdown of the student
populations differs slightly between
DCPS and public charter schools. In
the 2005-06 school year, 89 percent of
all public charter school students were
African American, compared to 83
percent of all DCPS students. DCPS
schools had a greater proportion of
Hispanic students compared to public
charters, however; 10 percent versus 8
percent, respectively. DCPS also had a
larger percentage of white students
14,640 African American
Total Enrollment = 16,530
Source: DCPS
since the 1998-99 school year. As of
October 2005, there were 51 public
charter schools on 65 campuses.
184 Asian/Other
1,057 Asian/Other
Source: Public Charter School Board and Board of Education
compared to charters, 5 percent versus
2 percent, respectively. The Asian and
all other races student population in
DCPS was 2 percent compared to 1
percent of all students in public charter schools.
7. The DC Comprehensive
Assessment System (DCCAS), a
new local exam to assess No Child
Left Behind standards in the
District’s public schools, debuted
in the spring of 2006. (Figure 4)
Figure 4
Examples of DCPS Standards for Imaginative Writing
in Grades 1, 3, and 5
By end of Grade 1 students should be able to:
Write or dictate stories that have a beginning, middle, and end, and
arrange ideas in a logical way.
By end of Grade 3 students should be able to:
Write stories that have a beginning, middle, and end and contain
details of setting and characters.
Write short poems that contain simple sensory details.
By end of Grade 5 students should be able to:
Make distinctions among fiction, nonfiction, and dramatic literature,
and use these genres selectively to produce stories or scripts.
Write poems using poetic techniques (alliteration, onomatopoeia),
figurative language (simile, metaphor), and graphic elements (capital
letters, line length).
Source: Excerpts from the DCPS
Reading/English Language Arts Pre-K through Grade 12 Standards
Website accessed October 2006.
http://www.k12.dc.us/dcps/Standards/standardsHome.htm
22
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Page 23
In last year’s Fact Book we noted that
new academic standards had been legislated by the District of Columbia
Board of Education in 2004. The
culmination of this legislation was
unveiled in early 2006, which
included new grade-level standards for
each academic area and a new student
assessment test to measure student
achievement in line with the District’s
No Child Left Behind standards.
A committee of teachers, Board of
Education members, parents, and
community stakeholders designed the
new grade-level standards, and the
Massachusetts Comprehensive
Assessment System (MCAS) was chosen as a model. The local standards
committee modified the MCAS standards to align with the new District
standards. These new grade-level standards clearly describe what students
should know and be able to do in
each subject and at each grade-level
(figure 4 provides examples from the
new standards). The new grade level
standards have been nationally recognized as rigorous. After the committee
finalized the standards, the Board of
Figure 5
Education contracted with CTDMcGraw Hill to create the DC
Comprehensive Assessment System
(DCCAS).
8. In 2005-06, only 36 percent of all
DCPS and public charter students
tested at a proficient or advanced
level in reading. (Figure 5)
The DCCAS replaces the Stanford-9
assessment tool, a national test that
had been given each year to D.C.
public school students. The Stanford-9
was “norm-referenced,” which allowed
for comparisons between school districts across the country that were
using this same test. Since the
DCCAS uses District-specific standards, however, results of this new test
cannot be used to compare the performance of D.C. school children to
those in other school districts.
According to the federal No Child
Left Behind (NCLB) Act, public
schools must meet basic proficiency
standards, which affect whether
schools meet their Adequate Yearly
Progress (AYP) requirements. AYP is
based in part on the percentage of students performing at a “proficient” or
“advanced” level on the DCCAS.
Students in grades 3 through 8 and in
grade 10 will be assessed with the
DCCAS each year. (Last year we
reported that students in grades 4, 6,
and 7 were not tested; this was due to
the transition to the new exam.) In
the Spring of 2006, students were
given DCCAS comprehension exams
in reading and math. In the future,
science and social studies exams will
be added to the assessment package.
Percent of Public School Students Testing Proficient
or Above in Reading
Spring 2006
50
50
50
PCSB charters
BOE charters
44
Percent of Students Testing
Proficient or Above
42
40
DCPS
40
40
42
40
38
34
37 36
36
36
33
33
30
30
31
33
32
31
20
10
0
3
4
5
6
7
8
10
Grade Level
Source: DCPS, Public Charter School Board and Board of Education
Note: Test scores are the average test scores of the schools in each category weighted
by the number of students tested.
23
On average, only 36 percent of all
public school students (which includes
both DCPS and public charter school
students) tested as proficient or
advanced across the seven grades in
2005-06. Looking at the average share
of proficient or advanced students by
school type, 35 percent of students
from DCPS schools, 43 percent of
students from Public Charter School
Board (PCSB) schools, and 34 percent
of students from Board of Education
(BOE) public charter schools tested at
a proficient level. (The average share
of proficient students across grades is
not shown on figure 5.)
However, these averages hide the wide
variation across schools in the different school systems. For instance,
the shares of proficient or advanced
students ranges from 0 percent to
94 percent at DCPS schools, between
14 percent and 66 percent at PCSB
schools, and between 18 percent and
49 percent at BOE schools.
Looking at the percentage of students
that test proficient or above in reading
by individual grade, students from
PCSB schools tested higher than their
DCPS or BOE counterparts in five of
the seven grades. In grades 7 and 8,
the proportion of PCSB students
testing proficient or above was approximately 20 percentage points greater
than the other two systems.
As discussed earlier, the standards to
meet the proficiency thresholds are
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Page 24
more rigorous in the DCCAS test
compared to the Stanford-9 test used
in previous years, so it was expected
that the share of students testing as
proficient or advanced would decrease.
In addition, students and teachers were
unaccustomed to the DCCAS test.
Figure 6
PCSB charters
46
45
BOE charters
40
33
32
30
29
29
31
30
29 29
27
27
25
24
23
23
23
12
21
21
20
12
10
0
4
3
5
6
7
8
10
Grade Level
Source: DCPS, Public Charter School Board and Board of Education
Note: Test scores are the average test scores of the schools in each category weighted
by the number of students tested.
Figure 7
Comparison of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)
for DC and Other Urban Cities
2005 - Grade 4
250
221
229
217
233
221
220
216
232
231
220
211
213
208
207
201
200
National Averages
244
242
211
198
197
238 - Math
219 - Reading
196
191
Reading
Average Score
Like the average reading test scores,
the math averages also hide the wide
variation across schools in the different
school systems. For instance, the
shares of proficient or advanced students ranges from 0 percent to 91
percent at DCPS schools, between 8
percent and 76 percent at PCSB
schools, and between 0 percent and 38
percent at BOE schools.
DCPS
50
9. In 2005-06, only 27 percent of all
DCPS and public charter students
tested at a proficient or advanced
level in math. (Figure 6)
On average, only 27 percent of all
public school students (which includes
both DCPS and public charter students) tested as proficient or advanced
across the seven grades in 2005-06.
Looking at the average share of proficient or advanced students by school
type, 26 percent of students from
DCPS schools, 36 percent of students
from PCSB schools, and 22 percent of
students from BOE public charter
schools tested at a proficient level.
(The average share of advanced students
across grades is not shown on Figure 6.)
Percent of Public School Students Testing Proficient
or Above in Math
Spring 2006
Percent of Students Testing
Proficient or Above
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
Math
150
100
50
Looking at the percentage of students
that test proficient or above in math
by individual grade, students from
PCSB schools again tested higher than
their DCPS or BOE counterparts in
five of the seven grades. And once
again, in grades 7 and 8, the proportion of PCSB students testing
proficient or above was approximately
20 percentage points greater than the
other two systems.
10. District public school students
tested lower in math and reading
when compared to other urban
cities. (Figures 7 and 8)
0
District of
Columbia
Atlanta
Austin
Boston
Charlotte
Chicago Cleveland Houston
Los
Angeles
New York San Diego
City
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Statistics,
National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP)
As school districts across the country
are modernizing their accountability
systems to comply with recent No
Child Left Behind legislation, many
are creating their own evaluation systems. This is the case for the District,
as described above. However, the variation in new educational standards
24
nationally makes it difficult to compare student performance between
different school systems.
The National Assessment of
Educational Progress (NAEP) is a
standard exam that is given to a sample of students nationally, including
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Figure 8
Comparison of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)
for DC and Other Urban Cities
2005 - Grade 8
300
281
257
Average Score
250
245
238
240
270
249
267
267
258
259
253
245
National Averages
281
270
249
240
250
248
251
253
279 - Math
262 - Reading
239
200
150
Reading
Math
100
50
The SAT was reformatted in 2006
and now has three sections, a revised
verbal section (now called the reading
section), a math section, and a new
writing section, which requires writing
an essay. The possible score for each
section is 800 points, with the new
maximum test score being 2,400
(instead of the former 1,600). The
College Board (responsible for the
test) reported that the scores from the
class of 2006 (from all types of
schools) on the math and reading sections fell by seven points on average
nationally, the largest decrease since
2002 and the largest decrease in the
reading section in 31 years.
0
District of
Columbia
Atlanta
Austin
Boston
Charlotte
Chicago Cleveland Houston
Los
Angeles
New York San Diego
City
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Statistics,
National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP)
charter schools. Because the same test
is being given to students across the
country, it is possible to compare student performance consistently using
the NAEP. In addition, the NAEP
sample includes urban school districts,
making a comparison of city school
systems more closely resembling the
District’s possible.
As in years past, District public school
students tested lower in math and
reading when compared to other
urban cities where the NAEP was
administered. In 2005, the NAEP was
administered to 11 urban areas,
adding Austin, Texas, to the original
10 cities from the 2003 exam. DCPS
and public charter 4th and 8th grade
students scored lowest, or tied for lowest, on both exams when compared to
public school students tested in the
other 10 cities. On the math exam,
District 4th graders had an average
score of 211; the next lowest city was
Chicago with an average score of 216.
The national average, which includes
both urban and nonurban schools,
was 238. Charlotte, North Carolina,
had the highest average 4th grade
score at 244. District students in the
8th grade had an average math score
of 245, matching Atlanta’s 8th grade
average score for lowest among the 11
cities. Eighth grade students in Austin
and Charlotte far surpassed their peers
with average math scores of 281, scoring even higher than the national
average of 279.
The District’s 4th grade NAEP reading score of 191 fell narrowly behind
Los Angeles at 196 for lowest among
the 11 cities. The national average was
219, and the highest score, again
obtained by Charlotte, was 221. The
average reading score for District 8th
graders, 238, was also the lowest
among all 11 cities. Los Angeles was
one point higher at 239, followed by
Cleveland at 240. The national average for 8th graders was 262, and
Charlotte again was a top performer,
with an average score of 259.
11. DCPS college-bound seniors’
average SAT score (for the math
and reading sections) decreased,
by a greater amount than the
national average, from 2005
levels. (Figure 9)
25
According to the College Board, the
national drop in SAT scores can be
explained by two primary factors.
First, the length of the test increased,
with the addition of the writing section, to three hours and forty-five
minutes, which may have hindered
the performance of students toward
the end of the test. In addition, the
College Board reported a “significant
decrease” in the percentage of students
taking the SAT more than once.
Students who take the test more than
once, on average, report a 30-point
increase in their score.
Consistent with national trends,
DCPS college-bound seniors taking
the SAT in 2006 scored lower in the
math and reading sections than those
who took the test in 2005. With the
average math score falling from 404 to
394 and the average reading score
falling from 414 to 409, DCPS students averaged a combined score of
803, 15 points lower than last year.
This was a larger drop in test scores
than occurred nationally. The national average SAT score of college-bound
seniors enrolled in public schools
decreased by six points between 2004
and 2005. In addition, the new writing score of college bound DCPS
students was 401, compared to a
national average test score of all public
school students of 492.
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Children and Youth Are
Healthy and Practice
Healthy Behaviors
Figure 9
SAT Math and Reading Scores for Public School Students
DC and Nation
2005 and 2006
600
1. The share of mothers who
received adequate prenatal care
continued to slip in 2004, while
the percentage of those receiving
inadequate care nearly doubled.
(Figure 10)
514
515
505
500
500
404
414
394
400
409
300
200
100
0
2006
2005
2006
2005
DC
2005
2006
2005
DC
US
2006
US
Reading*
Math
Source: The College Board SAT, Summary Reporting Service
*Formerly the Verbal Section. Renamed after the SAT revision in 2006.
Figure 10
Percent of Pregnant Women Receiving Adequate Prenatal Care
District of Columbia
1999-2004
75
Percent of Births with Adequate Care
The third goal is that children and
youth are healthy and practice healthy
behaviors. Ensuring that children are
healthy starts in utero, and the Fact
Book tracks the share of mothers who
receive adequate prenatal care during
their pregnancy. Pregnant mothers
that receive adequate levels of prenatal
care have a better chance of delivering
healthy babies. Related to prenatal
care, the Fact Book also tracks trends
in low-weight births or infants born
under 5.5 pounds, who are at a greater
risk of death within the first month of
life and are at an increased risk for
developmental disabilities and illness
throughout their life. Very low birth
weight infants (those about 3.3
pounds) are also at higher risk for
SIDS, or Sudden Infant Death
Syndrome. The Fact Book also provides data about the number of infant,
children, and youth deaths in the
District. Finally, in this section, the
Fact Book tracks trends in the sexual
health of District youth including
common sexually transmitted diseases
and AIDS. The AIDS rate in the
District is significantly higher than the
national AIDS rate, as well as the rates
of other cities with populations of
500,000 or more.
69
70
66
64
65
62
60
60
55
55
50
45
40
35
30
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Adminstration
In 2004, the percentage of mothers
who received an adequate level of prenatal care dropped for the second year
in a row. After a peak of 69 percent in
2002, the percent of mothers who
received adequate levels of prenatal
care dropped to 66 percent in 2003.
By 2004 the percentage had decreased
further to 62 percent, the lowest level
since 2000 and a decline of 4 percentage points from 2003.
Previously, when levels of adequate
care dropped, the level of intermediate care rose. This was not the case in
2004. A 4 percentage point decline in
adequate care was coupled with a 3
percentage point decline in intermediate care, from 24 percent in 2003
to 21 percent in 2004. The percent-
26
age of those who received inadequate
care rose sharply to 17 percent in
2004. This is nearly double the 9 percent receiving inadequate care in
2003 and rose back to the high levels
of 1990 and 2000 (20 percent and
17 percent, respectively).
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Page 27
Figure 11 Percent of Low-Weight Births in DC
1990-2004
Percent of All Births Under 5.5 Pounds
20
15.2
15.3
15
14.2
14.7
14.2
14.2
13.5
13.5
13.1
13.2
11.9
12.1
11.5
10.9
11.0
10
5
0
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998* 1999* 2000* 2001* 2002* 2003* 2004
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
*Data revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book.
Figure 12
20
18.2
Deaths per 1,000 live births
16.1
15
14.4
15
13.1
12.5
11.9
11.8
11.5
10.6
10.2
10
5
0
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003 2004
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
Only Ward 3, one of the most affluent
areas of the city, experienced improvements in levels of prenatal care. Ward
3 increased in births with adequate
levels of prenatal care from 81 percent
to 84 percent between 2003 and
2004, while the average adequate prenatal care level for the city dropped by
4 percent. Wards 2 and 7 experienced
the largest declines in adequate levels
of care, a decline of 8 percentage
points for each between 2003 and
2004. The percentage of mothers who
received intermediate care declined to
21 percent, a 3 percentage point drop
for the city overall. Ward 5 experienced the largest decline at 5
percentage points between 2003
and 2004.
27
2. Low-weight births remained
stable in 2004. (Figure 11)
Low-weight births, those infants born
weighing 5.5 pounds or less, were 11
percent of all births in the District of
Columbia in 2004. This is nearly
identical to the 10.9 percent in 2003
and follows a declining trend beginning in the early 1990s. Due to
advances in medical technology, we
expect to see a plateau of low-weight
births over time. Even the smallest
infants have a high chance of survival
with access to this improved care.
Infant Mortality Rate Under 1-Year Old in DC
1993-2004
16.7
Inadequate care levels rose in all wards
across the city between 2003 and
2004. Although the percentage started
off relatively low in Ward 2, the share
of births to mothers who received
inadequate care increased from 4 percent to 13 percent between 2003 and
2004, ending at a level comparable to
those in the late 1990s. In Wards 1
and 7, the percentage of births with
inadequate care doubled as well. Ward
3 saw the smallest rise in inadequate
care. About 4 percent of all births to
mothers living in Ward 3 received
inadequate care in 2004, up from 3
percent in 2003.
3. Infant mortality increased in
2004 after declining in the
previous year. (Figure 12)
In 2004, deaths to the District’s
youngest children rose from the previous year. According to data from the
D.C. State Center for Health
Statistics, deaths to infants under age 1
increased to 11.8 deaths per 1,000 live
births, up from 10.2 deaths per 1,000
births in 2003. This is the highest
level of infant mortality since 2000.
4. Deaths to children and teenagers
rose by 28 percent in 2004.
(Figure 13)
After a small drop in 2003, there were
17 more cases of children and teenage
deaths in 2004 or an increase of 28
percent. There were 78 deaths to
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Page 28
youth age 1- to 19- years old compared to 61 in 2003. This was due to
10 more deaths to children age 1 to
14 (a 50 percent increase), and 7 more
deaths to older teenagers (a 17 percent
increase) than the previous year.
Figure 13
Number of Child and Teen Deaths by Age Group in DC
1999-2004
120
100
5. The share of obese high school
students in the District decreased
between 1999 and 2005 and was
lower than the national average.
6. Chlamydia cases rose in 2005 for
the third consecutive year, while
gonorrhea cases continued to
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
94
91
86
81
Number of Deaths
The Center for Disease Control and
Prevention surveys 9th through 12th
grade students at public and private
high schools across the country, asking
questions related to their health, social
activities, and experiences with violence. This survey, called the National
Youth Risk Behavior Survey
(NYRBS), is conducted every two
years and provides a nationally representative sample of teenagers.
78
80
102
91
94
73
67
63
60
53
44
40
48
46
41
40
30
28 27 28
19 20
20
0
1 - 14 Years
< 1 Year
20 - 24 Years
15 - 19 Years
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
Figure 14
Cases of Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Syphillis
Diagnosed in People Under Age 20 in DC
1998-2005
1,500
1,480
1,469
1,393
1,305
1,331
1,297
1,294
1,272
1,228
Number of New Diagnoses
According to the NYRBS, 11 percent
of District high school students were
overweight in 2005, a 2 percentage
point decrease from 13 percent of students in 1999. These shares are
slightly lower than the national average of 13 percent for 2005 and 11
percent for 1999. Data from the
NYRBS indicate that poor eating
habits and inactivity contribute to the
obesity problem for District teenagers.
On average, 80 percent of District
high school students, a percentage
identical to the national average, ate
fewer than the recommended
allowance of five fruits and vegetables
a day. One-fifth of District high
school students (21 percent) had not
participated in any vigorous physical
activity within the past seven days,
compared to 10 percent of high school
students nationally. Still, nearly half
(45 percent) of all District high school
students said they participated on one
or more sports teams in the past year,
although this was lower than the
national average of 56 percent.
113
1,200
Chlamydia
1,007
Gonorrhea
Syphilis
900
758
758
745
735
655
604
600
300
0
26
1998
20
1999
27
2000
18
2001
17
2002
16
2003
12
2004
15
2005
Source: D.C. Bureau of STD Control, Surveillance Unit
decrease among youth under
age 20. (Figure 14)
According to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 75 percent of
women and 50 percent of men infected with chlamydia and 80 percent of
women and 10 percent of men infect-
28
ed with gonorrhea have no symptoms.
Thus, the reporting of sexually transmitted diseases does not include all
those infected but only those diagnosed.
The total number of diagnosed cases
of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis
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Figure 15
AIDS Cases Diagnosed Among Children 12-Years Old
and Younger in DC
1990-2005
25
22
21
Number of New Cases
20
16
15
16
15
14
12
10
10
7
6
5
<5
<5
<5
<5
<5
<5
information on a child’s ward of residence when they are first diagnosed
with AIDS. As of 2004, 48 children,
or 27 percent of District children 12
years old and younger, infected with
AIDS lived in Ward 8 at the time of
their initial AIDS diagnosis, the largest
number and percentage of cases
among children in this age group.
Ward 5 had the next largest percentage of children under 12 and younger
infected with AIDS at 18 percent, and
16 percent of this age group lived in
Ward 1. Wards 6 and 7 both had
shares of 11 percent, and the remaining wards had less than 10 percent.
0
1990 1991* 1992 1993* 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998* 1999 2000 2001* 2002* 2003 2004 2005
Source: Government of the District of Columbia, Department of Health, Administration for
HIV Policy and Programs, Bureau of Surveillance and Epidemiology; HARS database, 9/2006
*Data revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book
Note: Numbers not shown for years with fewer than 5 new cases.
among youth under age 20 decreased
in 2005, although the number of
chlamydia cases rose for the third
consecutive year. There were a total
of 2,088 diagnosed cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis in 2005
among those under 20 years of age.
These sexually transmitted diseases
had a net decrease of 52 cases, driven
by a 18 percent decrease in the cases
of gonorrhea. However, while the
number of cases of gonorrhea substantially decreased, chlamydia cases
continued to rise. Diagnosed
chlamydia cases rose by 76 cases (or 5
percent) to 1,469, the largest number
of cases diagnosed since 1998. In
addition, syphilis cases rose slightly
from 12 to 15 cases in 2005 (an
increase of 25 percent).
7. The number of new AIDS cases
diagnosed in children 12 years
old and younger remained small
and steady in 2005. (Figure 15)
According to the D.C. Administration
for HIV Policy and Programs, there
were six new AIDS cases diagnosed
among children 12 years old and
younger in 2005, a slight increase
from previous years. All six cases were
children under 5 years old. From 1999
through 2004, the number of AIDS
cases diagnosed in children 12 years
old and younger remained less than
five. (For confidentiality reasons, the
exact figure is not shown when the
number of cases is less than five.)
Comparing the District to national
figures, the CDC reported that the
AIDS rate for children age 12 and
younger in the District of Columbia
was 52.8 cases per 100,000 children in
2004, while the national rate was a
much lower 3.2 cases per 100,000
children.
The most common way young
children contract AIDS is through
infection from their pregnant mothers
who are HIV positive. The dramatic
decline in the number of cases since
the mid-1990s is due largely to the
widespread use of Zidovudine or AZT
in pregnant women who test positive
for HIV. This procedure began in
1994, when clinical trials in the U.S.
and abroad showed that this medication reduced maternal-child
transmission of HIV by two-thirds.
The D.C. Administration for HIV
Policy and Programs also collects
29
8. New AIDS cases for District children and youth age 13 to 19 in
2005 declined to 10, a slight
decrease from 2004 but still high
compared to other years.
(Figure 16)
According to D.C. Administration for
HIV Policy and Programs, 10 new
AIDS cases were diagnosed in youth
age 13 to 19 in 2005. Over the past
four years, the number of new diagnoses for this age group has been
higher compared to the 1990s. For the
first half of the 1990s, the number of
AIDS cases remained five or less
among District of Columbia youth
age 13 to 19. However, in 1995 and
1998, nine AIDS cases were diagnosed
in youth age 13 to 19. After 2001,
when fewer than five cases were
reported, the number jumps between
8 and 13 new cases.
Children and Youth Engage
in Meaningful Activities
The fourth goal is that children and
youth engage in meaningful activities.
Unfortunately, little information is
collected on the positive activities of
young people. Therefore, this year’s
Fact Book tracks indicators of children
and youth not meeting this goal,
namely those children and youth
involved in cases brought to D.C.
Superior Court. It should be noted,
11:33 AM
Page 30
however, that cases before the court
are for crimes that occurred in the
District of Columbia, and they were
not necessarily committed by District
residents. This also does not include
crimes committed by District youth in
other jurisdictions. The number of
violent deaths that occur to teenage
District youth are also included in this
section. Deaths caused by violent
means (that is, murders, accidents,
and suicides) consist of 90 percent of
all deaths to youth in 2004. For future
Fact Books, we would like to include
data showing children and youth participation in positive activities such as
District parks and recreation programs
and summer employment programs.
1. The number of juvenile cases
referred to the D.C. Superior
Court held steady in 2005.
Crimes against persons continued
to constitute the largest share of
juvenile crimes.
(Figures 17 and 18)
In 2005, 2,772 new criminal cases
were filed against juveniles under 18
years old in the D.C. Superior Court,
according to the Research and
Development Division of the District
of Columbia Courts. The number of
new criminal charges against juveniles
remained virtually unchanged from
the recent high level of 2,783 cases
recorded in 2004. The cases in 2004
and 2005 are the largest number filed
against juveniles in the District since
1998, part of a recent increase in
charges filed against juveniles starting
in 2002. Nevertheless, the current
number of juvenile cases is much
lower than the number filed annually
in the early 1990s. Between 1991 and
1994, the average annual number of
juvenile cases was 4,592.
Along with the volume of cases, the
types of juvenile cases filed did not
change appreciably between 2004 and
2005. Crimes against persons made
up the largest proportion (39 percent)
of all juvenile crimes in 2005, almost
Figure 16
AIDS Cases Diagnosed Among Children 13- to 19- Years Old in DC
1990-2005
15
13
12
Number of New Cases
11/29/06
10
9
10
9
9
8
7
6
6
5
5
5
3
<5
<5
<5
<5
<5
0
1990 1991 1992* 1993* 1994* 1995 1996 1997 1998* 1999* 2000 2001* 2002* 2003* 2004 2005
Source: Government of the District of Columbia, Department of Health, Administration for
HIV Policy and Programs, Bureau of Surveillance and Epidemiology; HARS database, 9/2006
*Data revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book
Note: Numbers not shown for years with fewer than 5 new cases.
Figure 17
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court
1991-2005
5,000
4,767
4,646
4,461
4,492
3,931
4,000
Number of Juvenile Cases
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
4,012
3,395
3,080
3,000
2,783
2,772
2003 2004
2005
2,748
2,495
2,412
2,390
2,241
2,000
1,000
0
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
Source: District of Columbia Courts, 1991-2005 annual reports
the same share as in 2004 (38 percent). This continued a shift from
earlier years when crimes against property and public order crimes were the
largest shares of charges against juveniles. Property crimes and crimes
against public order constituted 28
and 23 percent, respectively, of all
30
charges against juveniles in 2005, both
smaller shares than in 2004. The
largest change was for Interstate
Compact and Persons in Need of
Supervision (PINs) referrals, which
increased from 7 percent of all juvenile
cases in 2004 to 10 percent in 2005.
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Figure 18
Change in Proportion of Charges Against Juveniles in DC
1994 and 2002-2005
100
30%
30%
32%
Percent
80
60
25%
38%
39%
Crimes Against Person
33%
36%
30%
Crimes Against Property
28%
Crimes Against the Public Order
40
Interstate PINS
35%
31%
20
0
31%
25%
23%
10%
6%
4%
7%
10%
1994
2002
2003
2004
2005
3. The number of juvenile cases
referred to D.C. Superior Court
for acts against public order
decreased to their lowest level
since 1991. (Figure 20)
Sources: District of Columbia Courts, 1994, 2002, and 2003; 2004-2005 data provided
by Research and Development Division, District of Columbia
Figure 19
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court for
Offenses Against Persons
1991-2005
1500
Number of Juvenile Cases
1,337 1,355 1,352
1200
1,125 1,102
1,108
1,075
1,046
1,073
893
900
760
719
676
675
664
2000
2001
2002
600
300
0
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997 1998
1999
2003
2004
2005
Source: District of Columbia Courts, 1991-2003 annual reports; 2004-2005 data provided
by Research and Development Division, District of Columbia Courts
More detail on changes in specific
types of juvenile cases are provided
below. For a fuller explanation of the
categories of crimes, refer to section
VII, “A Few Words About the Data.”
2. The number of juvenile cases
referred to D.C. Superior Court
for offenses against persons
increased slightly in 2005, making it the third consecutive yearly
increase and the highest number
since 1997. (Figure 19)
In 2005, District youth were charged
with a total of 1,073 “acts against persons,” the third consecutive year that
these cases increased. The increase
31
was driven largely by a rise in robbery
cases, which made up 25 percent of all
juvenile acts against persons in 2005.
The number of charges against juveniles for robbery increased by 100
cases, a 58 percent rise from 2004.
While assault cases still made up the
largest proportion of juvenile acts
against persons (63 percent of all
cases), assault cases fell to 671 in
2005, a drop of 47 cases or 7 percent
from 2004. Homicides committed by
juveniles made up an extremely small
proportion of juvenile acts against
persons. In 2005, charges were filed
against juveniles for 5 homicides, a
decrease from 9 homicides in 2004.
In 2005, 649 cases were referred to the
Superior Court for acts against public
order, a decrease of 57 cases, or 8 percent, from 2004 and the lowest
number of cases since 1991. Public
order crimes include a variety of
offenses. As in 2004, drug sale, distribution, and manufacture cases
constituted the largest share (38 percent) of public order cases against
juveniles in 2005. The number of
such cases dropped from 278 in 2004
to 248 in 2005, an 11 percent decline.
Another one-quarter (25 percent) or
165 acts against the public order cases
filed against juveniles in 2005 were
weapons offenses. This is an increase
from 143 cases in 2004, when
weapons cases were only 20 percent of
all acts against public order. Drug
possession or use accounted for the
third largest share of public order cases
against juveniles in 2005, with a total
of 96 cases (15 percent of public order
cases), a decrease from 112 cases in
2004. The remaining new cases in
2005 were distributed among disorderly conduct, nonviolent sex offenses,
other drug law violations, and other
unspecified violations.
11:33 AM
Page 32
4. The number of juvenile cases
referred to D.C. Superior Court for
acts against property declined for the
second consecutive year. (Figure 21)
The number of property crimes committed by juveniles in the District
decreased by 6 percent reaching 775
cases in 2005, compared with 827
cases in 2004. The proportion of
offenses making up acts against property changed substantially. Of the 775
acts against property cases, the largest
shares were for larceny theft (47 percent of property cases filed) and
unauthorized use of a vehicle (UUV),
that is, automobile theft or joy riding
(29 percent). While larceny theft case
increased by 223 cases in 2005, a 157
percent increase, UUV cases decreased
by 242 cases, a 52 percent decrease.
This is the third consecutive year that
UUV cases decreased–they composed
75 percent of all acts against property
in 2003. In addition, stolen property
cases, making up only 2 percent of
acts against property in 2005,
decreased by 36 cases or 67 percent
from 2004. The remaining cases were
distributed among property damage,
burglary, unlawful entry, and other
unspecified offenses.
5. Violent deaths to older teens rose
in 2004. (Figure 22)
Violent deaths to teenagers increased
to levels matching those in the late
1990s. Violent deaths to teenagers age
15 to 19 rose to 43 cases in 2004, an
increase of 8 cases or 23 percent compared to 2003. It is the largest number
of teen murders, accidents, and cases
of suicides since 1999, and violent
deaths make up 90 percent of all
deaths to this age group. While the
previous five years showed an overall
decline, there was a slight rise in 2002.
After dropping again in 2003, the
2004 increase reverses that trend.
While high, these figures are still half
the number of deaths that were seen
in the mid-1990s.
Figure 20
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court for
Acts Against Public Order
1991-2005
2000
1,875
1,629
1,548
Number of Juvenile Cases
11/29/06
1,579
1,441
1500
1,307
1,180 1,183
1,081
1000
940
795
696
688
706
2002
2003
2004
649
500
0
1991
1992 1993 1994
1995
1996
1997 1998
1999
2000
2001
2005
Source: District of Columbia Courts, 1991-2003 annual reports; 2004-2005 data provided
by Research and Development Division, District of Columbia Courts
Figure 21
Total Number of Juvenile Cases Referred to DC Superior Court for
Acts Against Property
1991-2005
2000
Number of Juvenile Cases
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
1,506
1500
1,417
1,343
1,145 1,110
1,168
992
1000
864
798
766
866
803
827
742
775
500
0
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997 1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
Source: District of Columbia Courts, 1991-2003 annual reports; 2004-2005 data provided
by Research and Development Division, District of Columbia Courts
Children and Youth Live
in Healthy, Stable, and
Supportive Families
The fifth goal of children and youth
living in healthy, stable, and support-
32
ive families encompasses the greatest
number of indicators in the report.
The first section describes the demographics of the District of Columbia,
that is, the population of adults and
children living in the District and
their racial and ethnic makeup. The
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
Figure 22
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dren has increased for the second
straight year. (Figure 23)
Violent Deaths to Teenagers Age 15- to 19-Years Old
(Accidents, Suicides and Murders)
1990-2004
120
Number of Violent Deaths to Teens
106
100
89
80
88
87
86
76
78
62
60
46
44
43
37
40
39
36
35
20
0
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
1. Revised population estimates indicate that the District’s population
has begun to grow after years of
decline, and the number of chil-
Figure 23
Population of Children and Adults in DC
1960-2005
800,000
700,000
600,000
Population
next section tracks the economic security of families in the District or the
changes in resident employment,
application and eligibility for programs providing financial assistance,
poverty rates, and homelessness. The
final section reports on the different
family structures in which children
live in the District, that is, married
families and families headed by a single woman or a single man, and the
poverty rates for each of these family
types. The final section also shows the
number of instances where District
courts or agencies had to intervene to
protect individuals in families in cases
of child abuse and neglect and to issue
orders of protection for domestic
violence victims.
In August 2006, the U.S. Census
Bureau estimated the District’s total
population to be 550,521 persons in
2005, a drop of 3,718 persons or a less
than 1 percent decrease compared to
2004. The D.C. Office of Planning
officially contested the Census estimate, arguing that it was too low
based on the District’s recent boom in
housing construction, tax filings, and
the conversion of vacant buildings
into occupied units. The Census
Bureau accepted the District’s challenge and increased the estimated
2005 population to 582,049, a 31,528
person increase over the original
Census estimate. The new 2005 population estimate would mean that the
District’s population has increased by
9,990 persons, or 1.7 percent, since
the last full census in 2000. The
increase in population is promising for
the District, especially after decades of
decline in the 1980s and 1990s.
500,000
400,000
300,000
200,000
Population
Changes in the population of the
District may be the result of either
new residents moving into the District
or current residents having more children and growing as families.
Therefore, this section includes the
number of births in the District.
100,000
0
1960
Adults (≥ 18-years old)
1970
1980
1990
2000 2001* 2002* 2003* 2004* 2005†
544,738 532,404 494,973 490,275 457,067 457,526 455,100 448,468 443,614 437,684
Children (< 18-years old) 219,218 224,106 143,355 116,625 114,992 111,795 109,524 109,378 110,625 112,837
Total
763,956 756,510 638,328 606,900 572,059 569,321 564,624 557,846 554,239 550,521
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division
*Data revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book.
†Annual Estimates of the Population by Sex and Age for District of Columbia: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2005 (SC-EST2005-02-11)
33
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The Census Bureau will not re-issue
previously released population estimates, however, meaning that all
officially published population numbers will remain at 550,521 for 2005.
For that reason, figure 23 reports this
lower estimate, which includes population by age. Nonetheless, even using
the lower, official population estimate
for 2005, the number of children in
the District has increased by 2 percent
from the prior year—from 110,625
children in 2004 to 112,837 children
in 2005. This is the second consecutive increase in the child population in
the District after several years of
decline.
Figure 24
Racial/Ethnic Composition of Population of Children in DC
2005
11%
4%
15%
71%
The Census Bureau will incorporate
the revised 2005 population into subsequent population estimates starting
in 2006.
2. In 2005, the number of children
increased across all racial and ethnic groups. Almost 7 out of 10
children living in the District were
African Americans. The shares of
white and Hispanic children
increased slightly. (Figure 24)
According to the Census Bureau’s
Population Estimates, the number of
children in each racial/ethnic group in
the District increased from 2004 to
2005. The number of non-Hispanic
African American children grew by
1,101 in 2005, a 1 percent increase
from 2004. The number of nonHispanic white children grew by
1,025 children (a 6 percent increase),
and the number of Hispanic children
grew by 957 children (a 9 percent
increase). The number of nonHispanic Asian and Pacific Islander
children grew by 68 children (a 4 percent increase), while the number of
non-Hispanic American Indian or
Alaskan Natives remained the same
between the two years. The number of
non-Hispanic children of two or more
races increased by 139 children (or a 7
percent increase).
Hispanic
Asian/Other
White
African American
Source: Population Estimates, U.S. Census Bureau
Note: The 2005 estimate is based on the average of the 2004 and 2005 estimates.
Percentages do not add to 100 because of rounding.
The majority of children living in the
District are African American,
although the proportion of children
by race and ethnicity continues to
shift slightly. The share of children
under 18 years old in the District who
are non-Hispanic African American
decreased from 72 percent in 2004 to
71 percent in 2005. The share of
non-Hispanic white children increased
slightly from 14 percent in 2004 to 15
percent in 2005, while over the same
period the share of Hispanic children
increased from 10 percent to 11 percent.
3. The District reported the largest
number of births in seven years.
Births to white mothers continued
to drive the growth. (Figure 25)
The D.C. State Center for Health
Statistics reported 7,937 births in
2004 (the latest available data), the
largest number of births in the District
in seven years. This is an increase of
321 births or 4 percent from 2003,
the largest number of births since
1996, and part of a rising trend in
births starting in 2000. Since 2000,
births in the city have increased by
4 percent.
34
The increase in births over the past
five years have been concentrated west
of Rock Creek Park, while decreases in
births have been in wards east of the
Anacostia River. For instance between
2000 and 2004, births in Ward 3,
with a sizeable white population, grew
by 22 percent. In Wards 7 and 8 that
have historically the highest number
of children and are predominantly
African American, the number of
births decreased by 4 and 5 percent,
respectively, between 2000 and 2004.
Births to non-Hispanic white women
continued to drive the growth in
births. In 2004, one-quarter (25 percent) of all District births were to
non-Hispanic white mothers, up from
24 percent in 2003. Births to nonHispanic African American women
declined from 60 to 59 percent
between 2003 and 2004. The share of
births to Hispanic mothers remained
unchanged from 2003 at 13 percent
of all births. Asians and women of
other races accounted for 3 percent of
births in 2004, down from 4 percent
the previous year.
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these jobs may be filled by people living in the suburbs—similar increases
in the number of employed District
residents and a decrease in the
District’s unemployment rate this
past year suggest that more of the
local job growth is going to District
residents than has been the case in
the past.
Figure 25
Births to DC Residents
1990-2004
11,806
12,000
11,650
10,939
10,614
9,911
10,000
8,993
Number of Births
8,377
7,916
8,000
7,678
7,513
7,666
7,937
7,621
7,494
7,616
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002 2003
2004
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
4. The total number of jobs in the
District of Columbia continued
the steady annual increases that
began in 1999. (Figure 26)
compared to June 2005). The
increase in job growth—which began
in 1999—is a positive trend for the
city because more jobs signal better
financial strength and greater job
opportunities for District residents.
While jobs located in the District will
not necessarily go to city residents—
Figure 26
Number of Jobs in DC
1991-2006
700
691
682.5
677.3
680
673.6
676.9
670.7
664.8
Number of Jobs (1000s)
Economic security
In order for children and youth to live
in stable and supportive families, adults
heading these families need economic
security. This section tracks the economic health of District residents
including the number of jobs and the
number of employed residents, as well
as unemployment rates and poverty
rates. This section also reports trends of
federally subsidized program assistance
such as TANF (or welfare), Medicaid/
SCHIP, and food stamp subsidies, as
well as the number of children enrolled
in subsidized child care that allows
poor families with young children to
work. In addition, this section reports
on the number of homeless individuals
and families and the number of families applying for shelter, indications of
families in the most dire need.
As in past years, the growth in the
total number of jobs was fueled by an
increase in private-sector jobs.
Private-sector jobs totaled 458,200 in
June 2006, an increase of 2.2 percent
from June 2005, while the number of
total government jobs stayed approximately the same at 232,800 jobs, a
decrease of less than 1 percent.
Private-sector jobs continue to outnumber government jobs nearly two
to one. The increase in private-sector
jobs as of June 2006 was the result of
service industry increases such as professional and business services
(namely scientific research and development), education and health
services (mainly health care and social
assistance), and leisure and hospitality
services (mostly restaurants, bars, and
hotels).
658.8
660
666.5
650.3
642.6
650.9
640
627.3
618.4
620
623.1
613.4
600
580
560
According to the D.C. Department
of Employment Services, the number
of jobs in the District continued to
grow reaching 691,000 jobs in June
2006 (an increase of 1.2 percent
1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun
2002* 2003* 2004 2005* 2006
Source: D.C. Department of Employment Services, Labor Market Information & Research
Note: 1991-2001 data are the averaged annual number of jobs, and 2002-2006 data are the
number of jobs in June of each year.
*Data revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book.
35
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5. The number of employed
District residents increased in
2005, ending a downward trend
started in 2001. (Figure 27)
Figure 27
Number of Employed Residents in DC
1995-2005
295
The number of employed District residents grew to 277,000 in 2005,
increasing 1.1 percent compared to
2004—breaking a four-year decline,
according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics. The increase in employed
residents mirrors the increase in the
number of new jobs in the District
and the decrease in unemployment
rate. The positive nature of both indicators bodes well for the city and
District residents.
292
Employed Residents (1000s)
290
288
285
280
280
275
277
277
274
274
270
270
266
265
263
260
255
250
245
1995
The increase in employment in the
District follows regional and national
growth. Nationally, the number of
employed residents increased by 1.8
percent between 2004 and 2005,
while regionally, the number of
employed residents increased by 3.0
percent.
288
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002 2003* 2004
2005
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS
*Data Revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book
Figure 28
Unemployment Rate for DC
1995-2005
10
6. The District’s unemployment rate
dropped to 6.5 percent in 2005,
reversing four consecutive years
of increases. (Figure 28)
While the overall decrease in the
District’s total unemployment rate is
good news, unemployment rates vary
widely across the District’s eight
wards. For instance, according to the
DC Networks Analyzer, the 2005
unemployment rates in Wards 2 and
3, which include some of the city’s
8.5
8.3
8
7.5
6.7
6.5
Percent
According to the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics, the District’s estimated unemployment rate dropped by 1
percentage point in 2005 to 6.5 percent, down from 7.5 percent in 2004
and the lowest unemployment rate
since 2001. This decrease reverses a
four-year steady climb in unemployment for District residents. The
District’s unemployment rate is still
above the national average for 2005
(5.1 percent), as well as the average for
the Washington, D.C., metropolitan
region (3.4 percent).
8.6
8
7
6.3
6.5
5.7
6
4
2
0
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000* 2001* 2002* 2003* 2004*
2005
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS
*Data Revised from 2005 Kids Count Fact Book
most affluent neighborhoods, were
2.9 and 1.4 percent, respectively. In
contrast, Wards 7 and 8, located East
of the Anacostia River and including
areas with high concentrations of
poor families, had unemployment
rates of 9.4 and 15.6 percent, respectively. Ward 1, located in the center
of the city and home to a high pro-
36
portion of Hispanic residents, had
the highest unemployment rate across
all the wards in 2005 at 16.9 percent.
7. Overall poverty in the District
is estimated to have increased
in the past year. (Figure 29)
To determine the District’s poverty
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Page 37
rate, we used the Census Bureau’s
Current Population Survey (CPS).
Because CPS data are based on a sample rather than the entire population,
estimates from the CPS are subject to
uncertainty from sampling error. To
deal with this uncertainty we applied
two techniques. First, we report twoyear averages of poverty rates, which
increases the sample size, thereby
reducing potential inaccuracies.
Second, we perform statistical tests to
calculate confidence intervals around
poverty estimates and to determine
whether differences between poverty
rates are statistically meaningful. (For
a fuller explanation of all issues related
to the CPS, including the confidence
intervals noted in the text and shown
in the figures, readers are referred to
section VII, “A Few Words About the
Data.”)
below the federal poverty level. The
2004 estimated poverty rate (an average of the 2003 and 2004 estimates)
was 17.9 percent (±0.9 percentage
points), or an estimated 99,209 persons living in poverty. The difference
between the 2004 and 2005 estimates
was 1.9 percent points, a statistically
significant difference but only accurate
to within ±1.3 percentage points. This
means that the actual overall poverty
rate increased within a range of 0.6
and 3.2 percentage points.
The 2005 estimated poverty rate (an
average of the 2004 and 2005 CPS
estimates) was 19.8 percent (±0.9 percentage points) of all District
residents, or 109,003 persons living
8. One out of three children in the
District lives in poverty.
It is not possible for the CPS to determine updated poverty levels in the
different neighborhoods in the city.
Previous research using the decennial
census suggests that poverty has been
increasing in already poor neighborhoods, primarily those east of the
Anacostia River in Wards 7 and 8.
More than one-third of all children in
the District live in poverty, a share that
While the percentage of children living in poverty has not changed, the
fact that one out of three children are
poor in the District is troubling, as is
the fact that children are over two
times more likely than adults to live in
poverty. Research shows that child
poverty is linked with other negative
outcomes such as poor nutrition in
infancy, increased chances of poor
school performance, emotional distress,
and unwed childbirth in adolescence.
9. More than one-third of AfricanAmerican children live in poverty.
Figure 29
Estimated Overall Poverty Rates with Confidence Intervals in DC
2004 and 2005
25
20
19.8
17.9
Poverty Rate
has remained steady over the past few
years. The 2005 child poverty rate (an
average of the 2004 and 2005 CPS
estimates) was 35.5 percent (±2.3 percentage points) of all children under
age 18 living in the District, or
40,057children living below the federal poverty level. The 2004 estimated
child poverty rate was 33.4 percent
(±2.4 percentage points), a difference
of 2.1 percentage points compared to
2005, which was not statistically different. This means that there was no
significant change in poverty between
the two periods.
15
10
5
0
2004
2005
Source: Current Population Survey, U.S. Census Bureau
Note: The lines represent the confidence intervals for the estimated poverty rates.
The estimated poverty rates for the 2004 estimate and the 2005 estimate are statistically
significant at the 90 percent level.
37
A greater share of African American
children lives in poverty compared to
other racial and ethnic groups. The
2005 two-year average poverty rate for
non-Hispanic African American children indicates that 41.6 percent (±3.0
percentage points) lived below the federal poverty level. In comparison, 33
percent (±6.4 percentage points) of
Hispanic children, 10.6 percent (±3.6
percent) of non-Hispanic white children, and 34.7 percent (±12.8
percentage points) of all other nonHispanic children (which includes
Asian, Native American, Alaskan, and
mixed-race children) lived below the
federal poverty line in 2005. None of
the 2005 estimates were statistically
different from the 2004 two-year estimates, which means that there was no
significant change in any of the child
racial and ethnic categories between
the two periods.
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10. The number of children in
families who applied and were
deemed eligible for TANF
subsidies decreased for the
second consecutive year, the
lowest level since 1991.
(Figure 30)
In 1996, Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families (TANF), more informally referred to as “welfare,” replaced
the earlier cash assistance program,
Aid to Families with Dependent
Children (AFDC). The federal TANF
program has more stringent program
requirements to receive cash assistance
than AFDC, such as work requirements and a 60-month or five-year
time limit to receive the subsidy. The
District, like other states, can make
exceptions to these federal standards,
which are explained below. To determine if families are eligible to receive
TANF assistance, a complex set of
income, resource, and expense calculations are made. Generally, families are
deemed eligible if a family’s net
income for the month (minus the
accepted work expense and child care
deductions) does not exceed the
monthly TANF payment level. This
means that a family of four could be
eligible to receive a maximum benefit
of up to $498 a month, although not
all eligible families receive the maximum amount due to their income or
resources. (This maximum amount is
the first increase in 20 years, up from
the previous amount of $463).
The District has implemented several
non-punitive policies to assist families
receiving TANF. Children continue to
receive their portion of the benefits
even if their parent was sanctioned for
not meeting work participation
requirements. There are also exceptions to the five-year time limitation.
In households where children receive
the cash assistance and adults do not
(i.e., child-only cases), these children
are not subject to the five-year time
limit. For adults that are recognized as
unable to work due to physical disabilities, mental health problems,
learning disabilities, or substance
abuse problems, the District implemented the Program on Work,
Employment, and Responsibility
(POWER), which is financed through
local funds and is not subject to the
federal time limit. Other recipients
can be exempted from work participation requirements because of a
temporary medical condition or
because they are needed to care for a
young child or disabled family member. In addition, the District created
the TANF Employment Program
(TEP), which helps TANF recipients
find jobs. Through fiscal year 2006,
Figure 30
11. The number of children and
youth who applied and were
deemed eligible for Medicaid/
SCHIP decreased for the first
time in five years.
(Figure 31)
Medicaid is a federally sponsored
health care program administered by
the District of Columbia. Medicaid is
generally available to families with
children living in households with
incomes between 100 and 185 percent
of the poverty level, or $20,000 to
$37,000 for a family of four in 2006,
depending on the age of the children.
This includes many working poor
families who do not have health insurance provided by their employers and
who cannot afford adequate medical
care on their own. Medicaid is also
available to those who are age 65 and
older or who are disabled, and there
are special provisions called Medicaid
“spend-down” for families with
incomes over the limit but with a certain amount of medical bills.
Number of Children Who Applied and Were Eligible for
TANF Assistance in DC
1991-2006
60,000
50,423 50,735
Number of Children
50,000
As of June 2006, 29,741 children
applied and were deemed eligible for
TANF subsidies, according to the
D.C. Department of Human
Services, Income Maintenance
Administration, which administers
the TANF program. This was a
decrease of 7 percent, or 2,204 children, compared to June 2005, and
the second consecutive yearly decrease
in the TANF caseload. This decrease
brings the TANF child caseload to the
lowest level of any year recorded in
previous Fact Books.
TEP placed more than 13,000 TANF
recipients in unsubsidized employment.
46,693
42,649
40,000
38,817
48,992
46,556
41,165
37,283
33,049
30,000
33,211
31,945
31,292 31,562 32,225
29,741
20,000
10,000
0
1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Source: Income Maintenance Administration, D.C. Department of Human Services
Note: 1991-1999 data are the averaged number of children, and 2000-2006 data are the
number of children eligible in June of 2000-2006
38
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As part of the Medicaid program, the
District also administers the State
Children’s Health Insurance Program
(SCHIP). SCHIP is a federally funded
program intended to expand health
insurance to children whose families
earn too much money to be eligible
for Medicaid but not enough to purchase private insurance. SCHIP is
available to families with incomes up
to 200 percent of the poverty level, or
$40,000. SCHIP is the single largest
expansion of health insurance coverage
for children since the initiation of
Medicaid in the mid-1960s.
The data provided in figure 31 include
children and youth under age 21 in
both the Medicaid and the SCHIP
programs. As of June 2006, 72,361
children and youth in families applied
and were deemed eligible for
Medicaid/SCHIP, according to the
D.C. Department of Human Services,
Income Maintenance Administration.
This was a decrease of 953 children
and youth, or 1.3 percent, compared
to June 2005—the first decrease in
five years. Up to this point, Medicaid
and SCHIP caseloads had been steadily growing. In 2000, 63,535 children
applied and were deemed eligible for
the programs. The number increased
between 1 and 5 percent every year
between 2000 and 2005 until it finally
decreased in 2006.
12. The number of children in families who applied and were deemed
eligible for food stamps decreased
by 4 percent in 2006. (Figure 32)
The Food Stamp Program attempts to
ensure that low-income households
have access to a healthy diet by providing them with electronic benefits
that can be used like cash at most grocery stores. To qualify for food stamp
benefits, most households must have a
gross monthly income at or below 130
percent of the federal poverty level, or
$26,000 for a family of four in 2006.
In addition, most able-bodied adult
applicants must meet specific work
requirements. The number of children
Page 39
Figure 31
Number of Children and Youth Who Applied for and Were
Eligible for Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance
Program (SCHIP) in DC
2000-2006
80,000
70,000
63,535
64,320
June-00
June-01
67,282
69,003
71,953
73,314
72,361
June-04
June-05
June-06
60,000
Number of Children
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
June-02
June-03
Source: Income Maintenance Administration, D.C. Department of Human Services
Note: 2001-2006 data are the number of children eligible in June of each year.
in families who applied and were
deemed eligible for food stamps
decreased for the first time in three
years, although the decrease was small.
As of June 2006, 37,370 children in
families applied and were deemed eligible for food stamp benefits,
according to the D.C. Department of
Human Services, Income
Maintenance Administration, which
administers the Food Stamp Program.
This number decreased by 4 percent
from June 2005, one year earlier. The
number of children deemed eligible
for food stamps hovered near 40,000
children between June 2003 and June
2005. Earlier in the decade, June 2001
and June 2002, the number of children was 10 percent lower at 35,902
and 35,412 children, respectively.
The District has a successful history in
enrolling eligible participants in the
Food Stamp Program. For fiscal years
2004 and 2005, the District was
awarded financial bonuses for being
among the top jurisdictions in the
nation in terms of participation in the
Food Stamp Program. Specifically, the
District had one of the four highest
participant access rates, a measure of
participation in the Food Stamp
39
Program among those potentially eligible. This suggests that most of those
eligible are currently receiving food
stamps.
13. The number of children
served by subsidized child
care rose in 2005.
(Table 3)
(Note that the information reported
here is identical to the narrative in last
year’s Fact Book since updated data
from the Early Care and Education
Administration were not available for
this report.)
Many poor, working families in the
District of Columbia must rely on
subsidized child care programs supported by the Department of Human
Services Early Care and Education
Administration (ECEA). By using
these services, parents can obtain
extended hours of care for their children at a lower cost. The total number
of children receiving subsidized child
care increased by 4,531, or 26 percent,
between 2004 and 2005. This is the
first year of growth in subsidized child
care in four years (the number of chil-
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increased by 7 percent from 2004 to
2005, totaling 7,617 children. Only
one school site dropped this program
from the previous year; there were 60
providing aftercare services in 2005.
Figure 32
Number of Children Who Applied and Were Eligible for
Food Stamps in DC
2001-2006
38,990
38,884
40,000
35,902
35,412
June-01
June-02
38,878
37,370
35,000
Number of Children
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0
June-04
June-03
June-05
June-06
Source: Income Maintenance Administration, D.C. Department of Human Services
Note: 2001-2006 data are the number of children eligible in June of each year.
dren served had been declining since
2001).
The first section of table 3, “D.C.
Public Schools Care for All,” refers to
those children who attended subsidized after-school care (i.e., aftercare)
during the school year and those
attending care at school during the
Table 3
summer months when school is out.
The District of Columbia Public
Schools’ After Care for All program
serves children who are of school age
through 12 years old. The figure is a
snapshot of the number of children
served at the highest attendance
month for the year. The number of
children served at DCPS aftercare
The figures in the second section of
table 3, “Early Care and Education
Administration,” represent the total
unduplicated number of children who
received subsidized child care at any
time during the year from programs
offered by the ECEA. ECEA’s programs serve children from 6 weeks
through 12 years of age, or through
18 years old for disabled children. The
number of children served in 2005
increased by 41 percent. In 2005,
14,060 children received subsidized
child care, 4,059 more than the previous year. This drastic growth was due
to new local funding intended to
reduce the waiting list for subsidized
child care. The additional resources
allowed ECEA to give the family of
each child on the waiting list cash
assistance needed for care. As a result,
the waiting list had no children on it
as of September 2005. At the same
time, however, the number of available
child care centers was decreasing. By
2005, there was a net loss of 72 ECEA
child care centers from the previous
Subsidized Child Care Programs in DC
2000-2005
Program Area
2000
2001
2002
2003*
2004
2005
7,000
56
12,350
100
10,000
130
7,040
62
7,145
61
7,617
60
7,653
112
216
15
34
11,451
124
222
14
31
11,947
140
235
7
33
11,396
144
231
9
53
10,001
124
228
3
52
14,060
129
148
5
53
14,653
23,801
21,947
18,736
17,146
21,677
D.C. Public Schools After Care for All
Number of children served
Number of school sites
Early Care and Education Administration
Number of children served
Number of family child care homes
Number of child development centers
Number of in-home providers
Number of relative providers
Total number of children served
Source: Department of Human Services, Early Care and Education Administration
* December 2003 – does not include summer program
40
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
11/29/06
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Page 41
year. While eight new centers opened
(including five family child care
homes, two in-home providers, and
one relative provider), another 80
child development centers closed. One
explanation of this dramatic drop in
the number of centers is that while the
waiting list was in existence, many
providers were unable to maintain
enrollment figures and subsequently
closed. As a result, many centers are
now experiencing overcrowding, and
it may take some time for the supply
of child care centers to catch up with
the higher demand.
The HSPCC attempts to count the
entire homeless population in the
region during one day in January of
each year. The month of January was
selected because people are most likely
to be in shelters at this time of the
year, rather than living on the streets,
and are therefore easier to count. In
January 2006, homelessness increased
for the fifth consecutive year. The
HSPCC counted a total of 9,369
homeless persons in the District in
January 2006, an increase of 392 persons, or 4 percent, since January 2005,
and an increase of 2,311 persons, or
33 percent, since January 2001.
While this is the fifth consecutive year
that the number of homeless persons
has increased, the annual rate of
change has slowed from the previous 9
percent increase between 2004 and 2005.
14. Homelessness in the District
increased for the fifth
consecutive year. (Table 4)
The Homeless Services Planning and
Coordinating Committee (HSPCC)
of the Metropolitan Washington
Council of Governments has taken a
yearly snapshot of homeless persons in
the region since 2001. The survey
includes two baseline numbers: the
“literally-homeless” and the “permanently-supported homeless.” The
literally homeless are those who are on
the streets, in emergency shelters temporarily, and in precarious housing at
imminent risk of loss and are looking
into shelters. The permanentlysupported homeless are people who
live in permanent-supportive housing
but who would be at risk of becoming
homeless again without this housing
because of extreme poverty or serious
mental or physical disabilities.
Table 4
HSPCC also collects information on
the number of homeless families, a
family defined as an individual linked
to a dependent under the age of 18. In
January 2006, one-third of the literally
homeless and almost one-half of the
permanently-supported homeless were
families with children. Of the 9,369
homeless people in D.C. counted by
HSPCC in January 2006, 6,157 were
literally-homeless, of which 33 percent
(2,045 people) were persons in families
(individuals and children) and 67 percent (4,112 persons) were individuals.
The number of people who were
counted as permanently-supported
homeless was 3,212, of which 45 percent (1,440 people) were persons in
families and 55 percent (1,772 persons) were individuals. In comparison
to the Washington, D.C., metro area
where HSPCC surveys (defined as
Washington, D.C., Montgomery
County, Prince George’s County,
Alexandria, Arlington County, Fairfax
County/City & Falls Church,
Loudoun County, Prince William
County, and Frederick County), 51
percent of the literally-homeless
and 74 percent of the permanentlysupported homeless are located in
the District.
While it is a valuable indicator of the
level of homelessness in the city, the
HSPCC estimate is only a single
point-in-time count of the number of
persons who were homeless on a specific day. Since people may move in
and out of homelessness, the number
of persons who may have been homeless at any time during the year is likely
to be three to five times higher than
this estimate, according to experts.
15. The number of families applying
for shelter in the District
decreased for the first time in six
years, but is still much higher
than at the start of the decade.
(Figure 33)
Families seeking shelter through cityfunded services must apply at the
District’s central intake facility, the
Virginia Williams Family Resource
Center. The number of families applying for shelter captures not only
families who are already homeless and
living in nonpermanent housing (i.e.,
on the street or in a shelter), but also
those living in a crowded situation
Snapshot of the Number of Homeless in DC
January 2001-January 2006
Change over 5 Years
Annual Rate of Change
Total Number Counted
2001
District of Columbia
2002
2003
7,058 7,468 7,950
2004
2005
2006
8,253 8,977 9,369
Past 2 Yrs Past 3 Yrs Past 4 Yrs Past 5 Yrs
2001-2002 2002-2003 2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006
5.8%
6.5%
3.8%
8.8%
Source: Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, The Homeless Services Planning and Coordinating Committee
41
4.4%
2004-2006
2003-2006
2002-2006
2001-2006
13.5%
17.8%
25.5%
32.7%
11/29/06
3:16 PM
Page 42
that puts them at future risk of homelessness.
According to the Community
Partnership for the Prevention of
Homelessness (CPPH), the agency
managing the central intake facility,
the number of families applying for
emergency shelter decreased for the
first time in six years. The number of
families decreased by 11.7 percent
from 3,326 families in 2004 to 2,936
in 2005. This was the first year since
1999 that the number of families
applying for emergency shelter has
decreased, although the number is still
much higher than at the start of the
decade. Between 1999 and 2004, the
number of families applying for emergency shelter increased by over 200
percent.
The families applying for shelter in
2005 included an estimated 6,100
children, 893 fewer children than in
2004. Of the families with children
applying for shelter in 2005, 37 percent had children 5 years old or
younger, an increase of 2 percentage
points from 2004.
Of the 2,936 families applying for
shelter during 2005, 332 families,
which included 713 children, were
provided with emergency shelter
apartments or alternative services
through the central intake facility.
The majority of the families applying
for shelter are precariously housed in
overcrowded living situations. While
they were indeed at imminent risk of
being homeless, they were not literally
homeless at the time of their application. The Virginia Williams Family
Resource Center works with many of
these overcrowded families to help
them find affordable housing and
improve their current living situation.
Many of these families do find housing solutions that meet their needs
better than emergency shelter.
However, as of January 2006, 123
families remained on the emergency
shelter waiting list. (The number of
families on the list frequently changes
Figure 33
Families Applying for Shelter at Central Intake in DC
1996-2005
3,500
3,326
3,100
2,936
3,000
2,613
Number of Families
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
2,500
2,278
2,000
1,500
1,406
1,074
989
962
1998
1999
1,000
1,276
500
0
1996
1997
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
Source: The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness
because families are constantly coming
on and off the list based upon the
severity of their need for emergency
shelter.) The 332 families served with
emergency shelter in 2005 were
deemed to have the greatest need of
assistance and, for the most part, to
have exhausted all other housing
options, such as living with relatives.
In addition, 492 individuals served in
2005 were in two emergency programs that serve victims of domestic
violence. We note that the total number of individuals served by domestic
violence shelters most likely exceeds
these figures, since CPPH only has
data available for two shelters.
Family attachment and support
This final section under the fifth goal
describes the types of families children
live in, that is, married couples, households headed by single women and
men, or other nonfamilial situations
such as foster care or institutionalized
care. This is important to understand
as households headed by single
women tend to be poorer than other
families on average. This section also
describes instances where the courts or
District agencies had to intervene to
42
protect children from abuse or neglect
and partners from domestic violence.
16. Over half of all children in the
District live in single-femaleheaded households. (Figure 34)
Of the District’s 112,837 children
under age 18, 55 percent (+/-3.4
percentage points) lived in a family
headed by a single woman in 2005
(an estimate based on the average of
the 2004 and 2005 Current
Population Surveys). (For a fuller
explanation of why we average two
years worth of estimates together,
readers are referred to section VII, “A
Few Words About the Data.”) This
statistic includes children living with
single mothers as well as those living
in households headed by a female relative, such as a grandmother or aunt.
Another 38.3 percent of children
(±3.8 percentage points) lived in married-couple families, and another 4.7
percent of all children (±4.9 percentage points) lived in a family headed by
a single male. The remaining 2 percent (±5.3 percentage points) lived
with nonrelatives, including foster care
arrangements.
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
Figure 34
11/29/06
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Page 43
Percent of Children Under Age 18 by Family Type
2005
Single-Male-Headed Family
5%
Extended and Other Families
2%
Married-Couple
Family
38%
Single-FemaleHeaded Family
55%
Source: Current Population Survey, U.S. Census Bureau
Note: The 2005 estimate is based on the average of the 2004 and 2005 estimates.
These percentages are not statistically
different from those reported in 2004
(the 2003 and 2004 average), indicating there was no real change in the
types of families where children lived
in the previous period.
17. Half of all children living in
households headed by single
women in the District were
poor in 2005.
Children living in households headed
by a single woman are more likely to
be poor than other family types. The
CPS estimated that 51.5 percent (±3.4
percentage points) of children in single-female-headed households lived
below the federal poverty level in 2005
(which is the 2004 and 2005 estimates
averaged together). This was not statistically different from the 2004
estimate of 48.3 percent (±3.5 percentage points), meaning that the
proportion of children living in poverty in these families has not changed
during the past two periods.
For children living in families headed
by a single male, the poverty rate for
2005 is substantially lower. Only 13.3
percent (±8.0 percentage points) of
children living in these families live in
poverty, and this estimate is not statistically different from the 2004
estimate. Children living in marriedcouple families have similarly low
poverty rates; 12 percent of children in
these families (±2.5 percentage points)
lived in poverty in 2005. Again, these
estimates are not statistically different
from the previous period, meaning
that there has been no real change in
the poverty rate for these families.
18. Approximately half of all grandparents who lived with their
grandchildren in the District
were responsible for their grandchildren’s care in 2005, and about
one-third of these grandfamilies
were living below the federal
poverty level.
The phenomenon of grandparents caring directly for their grandchildren has
become so widespread that the term
“grandfamily” has been coined to refer
to this living arrangement. Urban
Institute research based on the
43
National Survey of America’s Families
suggests that grandparents take
responsibility for their grandchildren
most often through private arrangements within the family, but such
arrangements can also come about
when child welfare agencies intervene
in cases of imminent or ongoing risk
of child abuse and neglect.
According to the American
Community Survey, 3.5 percent of all
persons over 30 years old in the
District, or 11,078 persons, were
grandparents living with their grandchildren in 2005. Of these
grandparents, 52 percent, or 5,764,
were directly responsible for caring for
their grandchildren. This was higher
than the national average of 43 percent. About 44 percent of District
grandparents providing care did so
with no parent of the child present in
the household; 43 percent had been
caring for at least one grandchild for
five years or more. Approximately
one-third (37 percent) of District
grandparents who cared for their
grandchildren lived below the federal
poverty level.
19. The number of children and
youth in foster care decreased by
7 percent between 2004 and
2005. Most children in foster
care lived within a family setting.
(Figure 35)
According to the D.C. Child and
Family Services Agency (CFSA) there
were 2,554 children and youth under
the age of 22 in the foster care system
at the end of fiscal year 2005, a
decrease of 189 children and youth, or
7 percent, since the end of fiscal year
2004. This represents a further
decline in the foster care population
since the end of fiscal year 2003, when
2,945 children and youth were in the
District’s foster care system.
The decrease in the District’s foster
care population may be partially related to CFSA’s Family Team Meetings
for children and youth entering foster
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Page 44
care. Implemented in January 2005,
Family Team Meetings are based on
the principle that families have a right
to a voice and engagement in the lives
of their children. Of the 649 children
entering foster care between January 1,
2005, and September 30, 2005, 70
percent, or 454 children, were members of a family participating in a
Family Team Meeting (FTM).
Children from families participating in
FTMs were able to return to their parents at a significantly faster rate than
those not participating in FTMs. Of
the children from families participating in an FTM, 35 percent were
discharged within six months of
removal compared to only 12 percent
of children from nonparticipating
families.
Children served by CFSA can be in
two primary placement types: a family
setting or a congregate care (group)
setting. In fiscal year 2005, 78 percent
of all children in foster care lived in a
family setting, while the remaining 22
percent lived in a group setting.
Within the family setting children and
youth can be placed in either kinship
care arrangements (with a family
member who agrees and is licensed to
care for the child) or with non-kinship
or pre-adoptive foster parents. (This
may include relatives who apply for
adoption of the child.)
Congregate care placements (i.e.,
group placement settings) for foster
care include three categories: youth
can be placed in group homes, in
independent living programs, or in
residential treatment centers, hospital
settings, or substance abuse treatment
centers that address a child’s specific
treatment need. In addition, some
youth in foster care may be remanded
to a correctional facility. At the end of
fiscal year 2005, 20 percent of youth
in the District’s foster care system were
placed in a congregate care facility.
Group home placements accounted
for 7 percent of the youth placements,
a drop since fiscal year 2003 when 10
percent were placed in group homes.
Figure 35
Number of Children and Youth in the Foster Care System in DC
FY-2003 to FY-2005
2,945
3,000
2,743
2,554
2,500
Number of Children
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0
2003
2004
2005
Source: DC Child and Family Services
Note: Children and youth in foster care system are from 0- to 22-years old.
Since fiscal year 2003, CFSA has
made a concerted effort to decrease
the numbers of children and youth in
congregate care settings, particularly
children under the age of 12. It is
CFSA policy that children and youth
entering foster care are placed in congregate care settings only on an
emergency basis or for purposes of a
short term diagnostic evaluation.
CFSA has also made great strides in
achieving permanency for children
and youth in foster care through
adoption. In fiscal year 2004 the
District of Columbia earned
$1,078,000 from the federal
Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) for being one of four
states to dramatically increase the
number of children adopted from foster care between fiscal years 2003 and
2004. By the end of fiscal year 2005,
the agency had finalized 327 adoptions. The achievement of
permanency for this many children
and youth in foster care has also contributed to the reduction in the
District’s foster care population.
In fiscal year 2005, the population of
44
youth in foster care placed in independent living programs (ILPs)
increased from 4 to 7 percent since fiscal year 2003. With an increasing
number of older youth in the foster
care system, the number placed in
ILPs may continue to rise. The number of children and youth in
residential treatment increased slightly,
from 4 to 6 percent, over the same
period. Those in the care of a hospital,
correctional facility or substance abuse
treatment center remained low, 1 percent of foster care children and youth
in fiscal year 2003 and 2 percent in
fiscal year 2005.
20. The share of births to single
mothers increased in 2004, the
first year since 1993. (Figure 36)
For over a decade, the share of births
to single mothers has decreased annually. However, according to vital
statistics data from the D.C. State
Center for Health Statistics, 56.0 percent of all births in 2004 were to
single mothers, an increase from 53.7
percent in 2003. Most of these single
mothers are adults. In 2004, 81 per-
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
11/29/06
11:33 AM
Page 45
the age of 20 accounted for just 11.2
percent of the District births, a small
decrease from 11.4 percent in 2003. As
reported last year, the average age of all
District mothers remained high, at 28years old for all women giving birth.
Figure 36
80%
70%
Nationally, teenage births also
declined, but the National Center for
Health Statistics noted a much slower
pace than in previous years. The
downward trend in births to teens has
been attributed to population loss.
However, recent population estimates
from the Census Bureau note slight
growth in the population of women
under age 20 from 2003 to 2005,
almost a 3 percent rise. This slight
growth in the population of younger
women may be the reason for slower
paced drops in teens birth locally and
nationally.
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
22. Paternity and child support cases
Figure 37
Percent of Births to Mothers Under Age 20 in DC
1990-2004
20
17.8
17.2
17.1
Percent of Total Births
16.2
16.8
15.6
15.6
15.5
15.3
15
14.8
14.2
13.3
12.8
11.4
11.2
2002 2003
2004
10
5
0
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
cent of single mothers were 20 years
or older, averaging 25- years old.
In years past the District benefited
from the USHHS awards for reducing
out-of-wedlock births. Unrelated to
the slight increase in births to single
mothers, this was the first year in
seven years that bonuses were not
awarded. HHS has suspended this
high-performance reward program
indefinitely.
21. Teenage births remained low in
2004. (Figure 37)
Births to teenage mothers dropped
very slightly in 2004. Mothers under
45
In previous years, the KIDS COUNT
Fact Book has tracked the numbers of
paternity cases and child support cases
brought before the D.C. Superior
Court. The court published separate
counts for both types of cases in its
annual report through 2003 but then
began publishing only the combined
number of paternity and child support
cases after that. While the Research
and Development Division of the
court provided separate counts of
paternity and child support cases for
the 2005 Fact Book, the court was
unable to supply these data this year.
We hope to be able to once again
track child support and paternity cases
in future Fact Books.
23. The number of court cases filed
for child abuse decreased for the
third straight year in 2005, reaching their lowest level since 1991.
Child neglect cases increased
sharply in 2005.
(Figures 38 and 39)
In 2005, the number of child abuse
cases filed in D.C. Superior Court
decreased by 32 percent to 142 cases,
11/29/06
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Page 46
down from 208 cases in 2004 and the
lowest level since 1991. This continues
a downward trend in child abuse
cases, which have fallen each year since
2003. Court-filed child abuse cases
are now at their lowest level in the
past 15 years.
Cases filed for child neglect, however,
increased sharply from the previous
year, breaking the steady downward
trend recorded from 1998 to 2004.
The number of child neglect cases in
2005 was 791, an increase of 33 percent (or 197 cases) from 2004. The
number of child neglect cases in 2005
remains well below the numbers
recorded between 1992 and 2001.
Figure 38
Cases Filed for Child Abuse in DC
1991-2005
400
397
304
300
274
273
268
253
244
250
239
208
202
192
189
200
156
142
150
100
50
0
1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
24. In 2005, 2,590 hotline calls were
received for suspected child abuse,
and 2,891 calls were received for
suspected child neglect.
Source: District of Columbia Courts, 1991-2004 annual reports
2005 data provided by the Research and Development Division, District of Columbia Courts
Figure 39
Cases Filed for Child Neglect in DC
1991-2005
2000
1,512
Number of Cases Filed
Court cases filed for child abuse and
neglect represent only one part of a
system designed to protect the safety
and well-being of children in the
District. The CFSA maintains a 24hour hotline for reporting suspected
child abuse or neglect. Anyone can
call to report suspected cases of child
abuse or neglect. In addition to calls
from the general public, any person or
agency involved in the care and treatment of children under the age of 18
is considered a “mandated reporter”
when child abuse or neglect is suspected. (See section VII, “A Few Words
About the Data” for further explanation.) New with this edition of the
Fact Book, we report data on the
number of calls received by the CFSA
hotline.
After receiving a hotline call, CFSA
conducts an investigation to determine the nature, extent, and cause of
child maltreatment and to assess the
possible risk to a child if left in the
current situation. When CFSA’s Child
Protective Services conducts an investigation, they determine whether the
report is “substantiated” or “unfounded.” Once that determination is
made, the investigation is considered
400
350
Number of Cases Filed
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
1500
1,323
1,343
1,386
1,381
1,268
1,261
1,222
1,131
954
1000
903
791
614
500
594
432
0
1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Source: District of Columbia Courts, 1991-2004 annual reports
2005 data provided by the Research and Development Division, District of Columbia Courts
complete. A “substantiated” report
means the investigation has determined that child abuse or neglect has
occurred, leading CFSA to various
actions and interventions, depending
on the situation.
In fiscal year 2005, CFSA received
2,590 hotline calls alleging child phys-
46
ical or sexual abuse and 2,891 calls
alleging child neglect. These numbers
exclude all calls or referrals related to
child fatalities. Of these hotline calls,
CFSA completed investigations of
1,739 allegations of child physical
abuse, 537 investigations of alleged
child sexual abuse, and 2,588 investigations of alleged child neglect. Of the
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
11/29/06
11:33 AM
completed investigations, 627, or 24
percent, of the reports of child abuse
and 1,060, or 41 percent, of neglect
investigations were substantiated.
Comparing the number of hotline
calls received alleging child abuse or
neglect (5,381), the number of completed investigations (4,864), and the
number of substantiated investigations
(1,687) to the number of new child
abuse and neglect cases filed in the
D.C. Superior Court (933), it is clear
that most alleged reports of child
abuse or neglect do not culminate in
cases in the D.C. Superior Court.
According to CFSA, most abuse and
neglect cases that reach D.C. Superior
Court involve the removal of a child
from home and placement in foster
care. In instances where CFSA assesses
that children can remain safely in their
own homes, the agency provides “in
home services,” working with families
of abused or neglected children to
ensure the safety and well-being of
children and to avert the additional
trauma to the child of removal from
the family.
25. In 2005, the number of court
filings for orders of protection
against domestic violence continued to decline to their lowest
level since 2001. The number
of adjudicated protection cases
decreased by 5 percent from
2004. (Figure 40)
In 2005, 3,748 new requests for civil
orders of protection against domestic
violence were filed with the D.C.
Superior Court, a decrease of 97 filings, or 3 percent, from 2004. A
majority of filings were for a temporary order of protection (88 percent)
and virtually all of those (91 percent
or 2,988 filings) were granted by the
court.
In 2005, 4,545 cases for protection
against domestic violence were adjudicated by a judge, a decrease of 257
cases (or 5 percent) from 2004.
(Adjudicated cases include those filed
Page 47
in the current year as well as cases filed
in prior years.) The proportion of dismissals increased by 3 percentage
points from 2004 to 49 percent of all
adjudicated cases in 2005. Orders by
default and orders to comply
remained at the 2004 levels of 7 percent and 17 percent of adjudicated
cases, respectively. Orders of consent
agreement dropped for the fourth
consecutive year to 21 percent of adjudicated cases, a decrease from 23
percent of cases in 2004. Orders that
were denied by the judge or withdrawn by the parties decreased slightly
to 6 percent in 2005, down from 7
percent of adjudicated cases in 2004.
All Youth Make a
Successful Transition
to Adulthood
In response to the sixth goal for children and youth, the Fact Book now
examines indicators related to young
adults age 20 to 24, to try to measure
how well they have made the transi-
tion to adulthood. Specifically, we
include indicators for the most commonly diagnosed sexually transmitted
diseases, AIDS diagnoses, foster care,
and causes of death.
1. Chlamydia cases continued to rise
in 2005, while gonorrhea cases fell
to an all-time low among young
adults age 20 to 24. (Figure 41)
A total of 1,831 cases of chlamydia,
gonorrhea, and syphilis were reported
among young adults in the District in
2005. Since 1999, the number of
cases of these three sexually transmitted diseases has changed very little
among this age group. From 1999 to
2005, there was only a 1.6 percent
decrease in the total number of
chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis
cases for persons 20 to 24. However,
the number of cases of chlamydia
diagnosed has generally increased since
1999, while the cases of gonorrhea
have decreased. The number of
chlamydia cases reached their highest
level in 2005, an increase of 370 cases
or 45 percent since 1999.
Figure 40
Disposition of Civil Orders of Protection Against Domestic Violence
DC Superior Court
2005
Denied or Withdrawn
6%
(281)
Total number of
dispositions in
2005 = 4,545
Petition
Dismissed
49%
(2,211)
Consent Agreement
21%
(977)
Number of New
Filings for Civil Orders
of Protection in
D.C. Superior Court
Order to Comply
17%
(757)
Order by Default
7%
(319)
Source: D.C. Superior Court, Domestic Violence Unit
47
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
3,481
3,715
3,738
3,895
4,194
3,845
3,748
11:33 AM
Page 48
The number of gonorrhea cases has
decreased by 35 percent since 1999,
dropping to 603 cases in 2005, a
decline of 325 cases. The number of
syphilis cases for young adults 20 to
24 years old rose for the first time
since 2002, increasing from 20 to 30
cases between 2004 and 2005.
2. The number of new AIDS cases
for young adults age 20 to 24
remained unchanged in 2005.
(Figure 42)
According to the Center for Disease
Control (CDC), the United States has
over 45,000 new AIDS infections
diagnosed every year, with 50 percent
of those cases in people under 25 years
old. Beginning this year, the Fact
Book reports the number of newly
diagnosed AIDS cases for young
adults 20 to 24 years old in the
District. According to the D.C.
Administration for HIV Policy and
Programs, the average number of new
young adult cases diagnosed between
1990 and 2005 was 31 a year, with
the smallest number of cases (18)
reported in 1999 and the largest number of cases (44) reported in 1996. In
2005, 33 new AIDS cases were diagnosed for young adults in the District.
While the number of new AIDS cases
remained unchanged from 2004, this
number still represents a 23 percent
decrease in new cases from 2003.
However, AIDS cases for young adults
have generally been on the rise since
their recent low levels in 1999 and
2000.
To respond to the continuing challenge of lowering the District’s HIV
infection rate, the D.C. Department
of Health’s Administration for HIV
Policy and Programs and the D.C.
Mayor’s Office kicked off the “Come
Together DC–Get Screened for HIV”
Campaign on June 27, 2006, which
was National HIV Testing Day. In
acknowledging that the District had
the highest rate of AIDS cases in 2004
(179.2 cases per 100,000 people)
Figure 41
Cases of Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Syphillis
Diagnosed in People Age 20 to 24 in DC
1999-2005
1,198
1,200
1,158
1,136
1,047
1,011
1,005
1,000
Number of New Diagnoses
11/29/06
Chlamydia
928
Gonorrhea
828
800
Syphilis
761
713
698
683
654
603
600
400
200
46
35
36
27
24
1999
2000
2001
2002
30
20
0
2003
2004
2005
Source: D.C. Bureau of STD Control, Surveillance Unit
Figure 42
AIDS Cases Diagnosed in People Age 20 to 24 in DC
1990-2005
50
44
40
Number of New Cases
346784_DCC:346784_DCC
43
37
37
33
33
30
28
26
33
31
30
29
27
24
21
20
18
10
0
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Source: Government of the District of Columbia, Department of Health, Administration for
HIV Policy and Programs, Bureau of Surveillance and Epidemiology; HARS database, 9/2006
among U.S. cities with populations
over 500,000, the campaign has seven
goals centered around AIDS prevention, screening, and treatment in the
District. The campaign primarily
seeks to ensure that every D.C. resident knows his or her HIV status by
48
December 31, 2006. Presently, the
D.C. Administration for HIV Policy
and Programs estimates that between
17,806 and 25,405 District residents
are living with HIV.
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Figure 43
Violent Deaths to 20 to 24 Year Olds in DC
1999-2004
All Other Deaths
Violent Deaths
120
Total = 102
100
Total Number of Deaths
Total = 91
Total = 94
18
29
20
80
Total = 73
Total = 63
Total = 67
12
60
18
19
76
40
71
73
61
49
20
44
0
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration
3. Young adults age 19 to 21
accounted for 11 percent of the
foster care population in 2005.
The D.C. CFSA is unique in that it
allows young adults up to the age of
21 to remain in the foster care system.
CFSA is committed to preparing
young adults who may have grown up
in the foster care system for life on
their own. The agency provides training programs and independent living
programs designed to teach necessary
life skills. Further, CFSA provides
tuition assistance for those students
interested in attending college.
Temporary allowance may also be
provided to help with the transition
from being a student to life as a working adult.
placed 83 young adults in college
programs in 2005.
4. The number of deaths to young
adults age 20 to 24 dropped by
one-third in 2004. Homicide
remained the leading cause of
death for young adults in the
District. (Figure 43)
In 2004, there were 67 deaths to
young adults age 20 to 24 in the
District, a 34 percent decrease from
102 deaths in 2003. The D.C. State
Center for Health Statistics reported
that deaths to young adults averaged
150 deaths per year between 1990 and
1995, with a peak of 170 deaths in
1995. As the decade progressed,
young adult deaths declined by more
than half to 63 deaths in 1999.
However, after 1999 the trend
reversed, with deaths to young adults
rising again. By 2003 the number
totaled 102, still less than a decade
previous but the highest total in recent
years. The decrease in 2004 represents
a welcome change from this upward
trend. Most of the 2004 deaths to
young adults in the District were
males and most were violent (i.e.,
homicides, accidents, or suicides).
Between 1999 and 2004, nearly 90
percent of the deaths to young adults
were male victims and 76 percent were
violent. In 2004, 73 percent of all
deaths to young adults were violent
deaths; more than half (55 percent)
were the result of an assault.
In 2005, 275 young adults age 19 to
21 were cared for in the CFSA population. The number of young adults in
the foster care system has risen slightly
in recent years. Between 2003 and
2005, the share of young adults in
foster care rose from 8 to 11 percent.
Many of these young adults participate in the programs designed to
prepare them for adulthood. CFSA
Photo by Alexander Bonilla
49
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V.
SELECTED INDICATORS BY WARD
AND RACE/ETHNICITY
I
n this section, we compare the
District’s eight wards with the city
as a whole and with each other on
various measures of child well-being.
We also compare these selected indicators by race and ethnicity. The
indicators shown here are among the
few for which we could obtain usable
data at the ward level or for those
where racial data were collected.
There are two tables plus a map. The
map on this page shows the locations
of each of the eight wards as of 2002.
The tables present statistics on certain
indicators-both numbers of children
affected and rates, usually in terms of
percentages-for the city as a whole and
for each ward or each racial/ethnic
group.
Comparing the Wards
The table on page 54 compares the
city total to the eight wards. The first
three rows are general demographic
indicators (estimated population, children under 18, and live births). The
rest are indicators of children’s health
and well-being and those receiving
public assistance.
LOCATIONS OF WARDS IN THE
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
To compare the health indicator data,
please note the following pattern for
many of the indicators (using births to
single mothers as an example):
First we list the total number of
births to single mothers: 4,442 in
the entire city, 584 in Ward 1.
Second, the percentage of all live
births in the city or ward that were
to single mothers: 56 percent of all
births in the city were to single
mothers, as were 54 percent of
those in Ward 1.
Third, the percent of all single
births in the city or ward that
occurred in that location: 100 percent occurred in the city as a
whole, and 13 percent of them
occurred in Ward 1.
Indicators by Race and Hispanic
Ethnicity
The table on page 55 shows how each
race/ethnicity groups ranks among the
others. The indicators are formed in
the same way as the ward table. In
many areas, the racial/ethnic gap is
stark compared to the ward divisions,
while in others it is more modest.
Photo by Angelo Alfaro
50
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TABLE 5
Comparing District Wards on Indicators of Child Health, Mortality and Child Welfare Recipiency
Washington, D.C.
District of Columbia
Ward 1
Ward 2
Ward 3
Ward 4
Ward 5
Ward 6
Ward 7
Ward 8
Total Population, 2000
% of Total Population
572,059
100%
72,978
13%
69,351
12%
73,804
13%
74,939
13%
71,504
12%
68,038
12%
70,545
12%
70,900
12%
Children Under 18, 2000
% of Population that is under 18
% of City’s Child Population
114,332
20%
100%
13,029
18%
11%
5,445
8%
5%
8,725
12%
8%
15,332
20%
13%
15,272
21%
13%
11,739
17%
10%
19,425
28%
17%
25,364
36%
22%
Babies Born Alive, 2004
% of Live Births in City
7,937
100%
1,077
14%
577
7%
865
11%
1,138
14%
933
12%
874
11%
1,006
13%
1,467
18%
Births to Single Mothers
% of Live Births
% of Births to Single Mothers in City
4,442
56%
100%
584
54%
13%
172
30%
4%
70
8%
2%
560
49%
13%
620
66%
14%
434
50%
10%
833
83%
19%
1169
80%
26%
Births to Teen Mothers (Under 20)
% of Live Births
% of Teen Births in City
887
11%
100%
86
8%
10%
30
5%
3%
8
1%
1%
114
10%
13%
130
14%
15%
96
11%
11%
184
18%
21%
239
16%
27%
Birth to Child Mothers (Under 18)
% of Live Births
% of Child Births in City
350
4%
100%
33
3%
9%
10
2%
3%
3
0%
1%
43
4%
12%
47
5%
13%
47
5%
14%
75
7%
21%
92
6%
26%
Percent of Births with Adequate Care
62%
59%
70%
84%
61%
59%
66%
52%
53%
Low-Birth-Weight Babies (Under 5.5 Pounds)
% of Live Births
% of Low-Birth Weights in City
871
11%
100%
109
10%
12%
57
10%
7%
45
5%
5%
98
9%
11%
119
13%
14%
98
11%
11%
141
14%
16%
204
14%
23%
Infant Deaths (Under 1 Year
Rate (per 1,000 Live Births)
% of Infant Deaths in the City
94
11.8
100%
13
12.1
14%
4
6.4
4%
1
1.5
1%
10
8.8
11%
14
15.0
15%
18
20.6
19%
17
16.9
18%
14
9.5
15%
Deaths to Children and Youth (1-19 Years)
% of Child and Youth Deaths in City
78
100%
1
1%
1
1%
1
1%
5
6%
9
12%
16
20%
19
24%
26
33%
Deaths to Teens (15-19 Years)
% of Teen Deaths in City
48
100%
1
2%
0
0%
0
0%
4
8%
8
17%
6
13%
12
25%
17
35%
Teen Murders (15-19)
% of Teens Murders in City
37
100%
1
3%
0
0%
0
0%
3
8%
4
11%
5
14%
9
24%
15
41%
Children Who Applied and Were Eligible for TANF 29,741
% of Children
100%
2,095
7%
2,434
8%
24
0%
2,316
8%
4,036
14%
4,080
14%
6,586
22%
8,170
27%
Children Who Applied and Were Eligible
for Food Stamps
% of Children
37,370
100%
2,775
7%
2,996
8%
40
0%
3,065
8%
4,838
13%
4,989
13%
8,487
23%
10,180
27%
Children Who Applied and Were Eligible
for Medicaid/SCHIP
% of Children
72,361
100%
7,626
11%
11,183
15%
338
0%
8,231
11%
8,761
12%
7,754
11%
13,133
18%
15,328
21%
Health and Mortality Indicators (2004)
Welfare Indicators (June 2006)
Sources: U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2000; District of Columbia State Center for Health Statistics, 2004.
Note: Due to lack of geographical data columns may not add to the total.
51
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TABLE 6
Comparing Racial and Ethnic Groups on Indicators of Child Health, Mortality and Child Welfare Recipiency
Washington, D.C.
Non-Hispanic
White
Non-Hispanic
Black
Hispanic
Non-Hispanic
Other
Unknown
Total
Total Population, 2005
% of Total Population
550,521
100%
171,273
31%
306,517
56%
47,272
9%
25,459
5%
-
Children Under 18, 2005
% of Population that is under 18
% of City’s Child Population
112,837
20%
100%
16,834
10%
15%
79,833
26%
71%
12,100
26%
11%
4,070
16%
4%
-
7,937
100%
1,966
25%
4,656
59%
1,028
13%
271
3%
16
0%
Births to Single Mothers
% of Live Births to Race/Ethnicity Group
% of Births to Single Mothers in City
4,442
56%
100%
122
6%
3%
3,613
78%
81%
649
63%
15%
48
18%
1%
10
63%
0%
Births to Teen Mothers (Under 20)
% of Live Births to Race/Ethnicity Group
% of Teen Births in City
887
11%
100%
5
0%
1%
756
16%
85%
118
11%
13%
5
2%
1%
3
19%
0%
Birth to Child Mothers (Under 18)
% of Live Births to Race/Ethnicity Group
% of Child Births in City
350
4%
100%
1
0%
0%
299
6%
85%
47
5%
13%
1
0%
0%
2
13%
1%
62%
86%
53%
47%
65%
67%
Low-Birth-Weight Babies (Under 5.5 Pounds)
% of Live Births to Race/Ethnicity Group
% of Low-Birth Weights in City
871
11%
100%
111
6%
13%
649
14%
75%
83
8%
10%
26
10%
3%
2
13%
0%
Infant Deaths (Under 1 Year)
Rate (per 1,000 Live Births)
% of Infant Deaths in the City
94
11.8
100%
11
5.6
12%
75
16.1
80%
4
3.9
4%
2
7.4
2%
2
125.0
2%
Deaths to Children and Youth (1-19 Years)
% of Child and Youth Deaths in City
78
100%
2
3%
75
96%
1
1%
0
0%
0
0%
Deaths to Teens (15-19 Years)
% of Teen Deaths in City
48
100%
0
0%
48
100%
0
0%
0
0%
0
0%
Teen Murders (15-19)
% of Teens Murdered in City
37
100%
0
0%
37
100%
0
0%
0
0%
0
0%
Children Who Applied and Were Eligible for TANF
% of Children
29,741
100%
40
0%
28,887
97%
723
2%
78
0%
13
0%
Children Who Applied and Were Eligible
for Food Stamps
% of Children
37,370
100%
73
0%
34,235
96%
1,275
4%
150
0%
31
0%
Babies Born Alive, 2004
% of Live Births in City
Health and Mortality Indicators (2004)
Percent of Births with Adequate Care
Welfare Indicators (June 2006)**
Sources: U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2000; District of Columbia State Center for Health Statistics, 2004; NeighborhoodInfo DC, Urban Institute
* The non-Hispanic other category includes multiple races.
** The racial categories for the welfare indicators are white, black, Hispanic, other and unknown. They are not explicitly ethnically-exclusive (i.e., non-Hispanic white,
non-Hispanic black, etc.) as for the other indicators. Racial breakdowns were calculated by applying proportions obtained from July 2006 TANF and Food Stamp client data
to June 2006 totals; racial breakdowns were not available for the Medicaid recipients.
52
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Page 53
VI.
SELECTED INDICATORS
OF CHILD WELL-BEING
BY NEIGHBORHOOD CLUSTER
I
n this section, we present five maps and data tables on selected
indicators of child well-being at the neighborhood level. The
maps are infant mortality rate, percent of low-birth-weight births,
deaths among children age 1- to 19- years old, percent of births to
mothers under age 20, and the percent change in births.
The neighborhood-level data reported here are based on 39 neighborhood clusters into which the District has been divided by the
D.C. Office of Planning. The Mayor’s office developed and released
39 Strategic Neighborhood Action Plans (SNAPs) based on these
cluster designations. The following tables list these clusters and the
three to five neighborhoods they encompass. The report, tables, and
maps refer to clusters by number and neighborhood names. Since
not all neighborhoods clusters follow census tract boundaries, the
report and maps use groupings of census blocks and tracts defined by
the Office of Planning to approximate official cluster areas.
The cluster-level data in this section provide an opportunity for
members of the community to review the situation of children in
their own neighborhoods.
Each cluster is identified with a number on the maps. These cluster
numbers can be used in connection with the table accompanying
each map. The table shows the ward in which the cluster is located,
the cluster number, and the names of the individual neighborhoods
contained in each cluster. (Cluster boundaries sometimes overlap
ward boundaries, and in such cases the ward containing the largest
part of the cluster is given as its location.)
With these clearly marked and shaded maps, along with the detailed
data charts accompanying each, readers will be able to identify where
in the city specific problems exist and determine what level of each
problem exists in their own neighborhood. Equipped with this information, we hope that they will be in a position to act and advocate
more effectively for the well-being of the District’s children.
53
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Page 54
MAP 1
Infant Mortality Rate by Neighborhood Cluster
Washington, D.C.
2004
16
11
10
17
12
18
19
20
13
14
15
02
01
06
04
03
03
21
07
05
24
22
29
23
08
30
25
32
26
09
33
27
37
31
34
28
35
36
38
39
Infant Mortality Rate per 1,000 Births
Zero
Less than 10
10-20
Over 20
No Data Available
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
54
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Page 55
2004
Ward
Neighborhood
Cluster Number
Neighborhood Cluster Name
Infant Mortality Rate
(per 1,000 Live Births)
1
01
Kalorama Heights, Adams Morgan,Lanier Hights
11
1
02
Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights, Park View
13
1
03
Howard University, Ledroit Park, Cardozo/Shaw
10
2
04
Georgetown, Burleith/Hillandale
11
2
05
West End, Foggy Bottom, GWU
0
2
06
Dupont Circle, Connecticut Ave., K St.
0
2
07
Logan Circle, Shaw
7
2
08
Downtown, Chinatown, Penn Quarters, Mt.Vernon Square, North Capitol St.
16
6
09
Southwest Employment Area, Waterfront, Fort McNair, Buzzard Point
0
4
10
Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase
0
3
11
Friendship Heights, Tenleytown, American University Park
0
3
12
North Cleveland Park, Forest Hills, Van Ness
0
3
13
Springs Valley, Palisades, Wesley Heights, Foxhall Crescent, Foxhall Village, Georgetown Reservoir
0
3
14
Cathedral Heights, McLean Gardens, Glover Park
0
3
15
Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Massachusetts Heights, Normanstone Terrace
0
4
16
Colonial Village, Shepard Park, North Portal Estates
0
4
17
Takoma, Brightwood, Manor Park
14
4
18
Brightwood Park, Crestwood, Petworth
9
4
19
Lamond Riggs, Fort Totten, Queens Chapel, Pleasant Hill
0
5
20
North Michigan Park, Michigan Park, University Heights
24
5
21
Edgewood, Bloomingdale, Truxton Circle, Eckington
23
5
22
Brookland, Brentwood, Langdon
0
5
23
Ivy City, Arboretum, Trinidad, Carver Langston
24
5
24
Woodridge, Fort Lincoln, Gateway
0
6
25
Union Station, Stanton Park, Kingman Park
21
6
26
Capitol Hill, Lincoln Park
20
6
27
Near Southeast, Navy Yard
55
8
28
Historic Anacostia
16
7
29
Eastland Gardens, Kenilworth
19
7
30
Mayfair, Hillbrook, Mahaning Heights
9
7
31
Deanwood, Burrville, Grant Park, Lincoln Heights, Fairmont Heights
14
7
32
River Terrace, Benning, Greenway, Dupont Park
20
7
33
Capitol View, Marshall Heights, Benning Heights
24
7
34
Twining, Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Penn Branch, Fort Davis Park
10
7
35
Fairfax Village, Naylor Gardens, Hillcrest, Summit Park
12
8
36
Woodland/Fort Stanton, Knox Hill, Garfield Heights
0
8
37
Sheridan, Barry Farms, Buena Vista
20
8
38
Douglass, Shipley Terrace
10
8
39
Congress Heights, Bellevue, Washington Highlands
7
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
55
MAP 2
Percent of Low-Weight Births by Neighborhood Cluster
Washington, D.C.
2004
16
11
10
17
12
18
19
20
13
14
15
02
01
06
04
03
03
21
07
05
24
22
29
23
08
30
25
32
26
09
33
27
37
31
34
28
35
36
38
39
Births Under 5.5 Pounds
Less than 5 Percent
5 to 10 Percent
10 to 15 Percent
Greater than 15 Percent
No Data Available
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
56
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2004
Neighborhood Cluster Name
Ward
Neighborhood
Cluster
Number
Total
Number
of Births
Number of
Low-Weight
Births
Percent of
Low-Weight
Births
1
01
Kalorama Heights, Adams Morgan, Lanier Hights
180
14
7.8%
1
02
Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights, Park View
826
87
10.6%
1
03
Howard University, Ledroit Park, Cardozo/Shaw
96
13
13.3%
2
04
Georgetown, Burleith/Hillandale
176
15
8.5%
2
05
West End, Foggy Bottom, GWU
29
2
6.6%
2
06
Dupont Circle, Connecticut Ave., K St.
101
9
9.0%
2
07
Logan Circle, Shaw
267
27
10.1%
2
08
Downtown, Chinatown, Penn Quarters, Mt.Vernon Square, North Capitol St.
122
20
16.4%
6
09
Southwest Employment Area, Waterfront, Fort McNair, Buzzard Point
103
13
12.6%
4
10
Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase
193
12
6.2%
3
11
Friendship Heights, Tenleytown, American University Park
172
8
4.7%
3
12
North Cleveland Park, Forest Hills, Van Ness
170
4
2.4%
3
13
Springs Valley, Palisades, Wesley Heights, Foxhall Crescent, Foxhall Village, Georgetown Reservoir
195
12
6.2%
3
14
Cathedral Heights, McLean Gardens, Glover Park
108
10
9.3%
3
15
Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Massachusetts Heights, Normanstone Terrace
125
5
3.9%
4
16
Colonial Village, Shepard Park, North Portal Estates
38
4
10.5%
4
17
Takoma, Brightwood, Manor Park
288
22
7.6%
4
18
Brightwood Park, Crestwood, Petworth
639
55
8.6%
4
19
Lamond Riggs, Fort Totten, Queens Chapel, Pleasant Hill
131
16
12.2%
5
20
North Michigan Park, Michigan Park, University Heights
83
7
8.4%
5
21
Edgewood, Bloomingdale, Truxton Circle, Eckington
256
36
14.1%
5
22
Brookland, Brentwood, Langdon
140
17
12.1%
5
23
Ivy City, Arboretum, Trinidad, Carver Langston
249
41
16.5%
5
24
Woodridge, Fort Lincoln, Gateway
92
8
8.7%
6
25
Union Station, Stanton Park, Kingman Park
379
42
11.1%
6
26
Capitol Hill, Lincoln Park
246
18
7.3%
6
27
Near Southeast, Navy Yard
55
10
18.2%
8
28
Historic Anacostia
193
35
18.1%
7
29
Eastland Gardens, Kenilworth
53
11
20.8%
7
30
Mayfair, Hillbrook, Mahaning Heights
104
9
9.1%
7
31
Deanwood, Burrville, Grant Park, Lincoln Heights, Fairmont Heights
222
40
17.8%
7
32
River Terrace, Benning, Greenway, Dupont Park
197
26
13.2%
7
33
Capitol View, Marshall Heights, Benning Heights
208
30
14.4%
7
34
Twining, Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Penn Branch, Fort Davis Park
193
22
11.4%
7
35
Fairfax Village, Naylor Gardens, Hillcrest, Summit Park
86
8
9.3%
8
36
Woodland/Fort Stanton, Knox Hill, Garfield Heights
74
13
17.6%
8
37
Sheridan, Barry Farms, Buena Vista
202
31
15.3%
8
38
Douglass, Shipley Terrace
204
30
14.7%
8
39
Congress Heights, Bellevue, Washington Highlands
586
77
13.1%
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
57
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MAP 3
Mortality Rates for 1- to 19- Year Olds by Neighborhood Cluster
Washington, D.C.
2004
16
11
10
17
12
18
19
20
13
14
15
02
01
03
03
06
04
05
24
22
21
07
29
23
08
30
25
32
26
09
33
27
37
31
34
28
35
36
38
39
Deaths per 1,000 Age 1 to 19
Zero
Less than 1
1 to 3
No Data Available
Sources: District of Columbia Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics Administration,
2004 and Bureau of the Census, 2000
58
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Ward
Neighborhood
Cluster Number
Neighborhood Cluster Name
2004
Death Rate Age 1
to 19 (per 1,000)
1
01
Kalorama Heights, Adams Morgan, Lanier Hights
0.5
1
02
Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights, Park View
0.1
1
03
Howard University, Ledroit Park, Cardozo/Shaw
0.0
2
04
Georgetown, Burleith/Hillandale
0.0
2
05
West End, Foggy Bottom, GWU
0.0
2
06
Dupont Circle, Connecticut Ave., K St.
0.0
2
07
Logan Circle, Shaw
0.0
2
08
Downtown, Chinatown, Penn Quarters, Mt.Vernon Square, North Capitol St.
1.5
6
09
Southwest Employment Area, Waterfront, Fort McNair, Buzzard Point
2.0
4
10
Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase
0.0
3
11
Friendship Heights, Tenleytown, American University Park
0.0
3
12
North Cleveland Park, Forest Hills, Van Ness
0.0
3
13
Springs Valley, Palisades, Wesley Heights, Foxhall Crescent, Foxhall Village, Georgetown Reservoir
0.0
3
14
Cathedral Heights, McLean Gardens, Glover Park
1.1
3
15
Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Massachusetts Heights, Normanstone Terrace
0.0
4
16
Colonial Village, Shepard Park, North Portal Estates
1.3
4
17
Takoma, Brightwood, Manor Park
0.3
4
18
Brightwood Park, Crestwood, Petworth
0.3
4
19
Lamond Riggs, Fort Totten, Queens Chapel, Pleasant Hill
0.4
5
20
North Michigan Park, Michigan Park, University Heights
0.0
5
21
Edgewood, Bloomingdale, Truxton Circle, Eckington
0.0
5
22
Brookland, Brentwood, Langdon
0.0
5
23
Ivy City, Arboretum, Trinidad, Carver Langston
1.0
5
24
Woodridge, Fort Lincoln, Gateway
1.7
6
25
Union Station, Stanton Park, Kingman Park
0.9
6
26
Capitol Hill, Lincoln Park
0.8
6
27
Near Southeast, Navy Yard
2.4
8
28
Historic Anacostia
0.5
7
29
Eastland Gardens, Kenilworth
2.0
7
30
Mayfair, Hillbrook, Mahaning Heights
0.5
7
31
Deanwood, Burrville, Grant Park, Lincoln Heights, Fairmont Heights
0.7
7
32
River Terrace, Benning, Greenway, Dupont Park
0.8
7
33
Capitol View, Marshall Heights, Benning Heights
1.4
7
34
Twining, Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Penn Branch, Fort Davis Park
0.0
7
35
Fairfax Village, Naylor Gardens, Hillcrest, Summit Park
0.5
8
36
Woodland/Fort Stanton, Knox Hill, Garfield Heights
0.8
8
37
Sheridan, Barry Farms, Buena Vista
1.8
8
38
Douglass, Shipley Terrace
0.2
8
39
Congress Heights, Bellevue, Washington Highlands
1.3
Sources: District of Columbia Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2000
59
MAP 4
Percent of Births to Mothers Under Age 20 by Neighborhood Cluster
Washington, D.C.
2004
16
11
10
17
12
18
19
20
13
14
15
02
01
06
04
03
03
21
07
05
24
22
29
23
08
30
25
32
26
09
33
27
37
31
34
28
35
36
38
39
Percent of Births to Mothers Under Age 20
Less than 5 Percent
5 to 10 Percent
10 to 15 Percent
Greater than 15 Percent
No Data Available
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics Adminstration, 2004
60
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2004
Ward
Neighborhood Cluster
Number
Neighborhood Cluster Name
Number of Births to
Teen Mothers
(Under 20 Years Old)
Percent of Births
to Teen Mothers
(Under 20)
1
01
Kalorama Heights, Adams Morgan, Lanier Hights
7
3.9%
1
02
Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights, Park View
74
9.0%
1
03
Howard University, Ledroit Park, Cardozo/Shaw
9
9.3%
2
04
Georgetown, Burleith/Hillandale
0
0.0%
2
05
West End, Foggy Bottom, GWU
0
0.0%
2
06
Dupont Circle, Connecticut Ave., K St.
3
3.0%
2
07
Logan Circle, Shaw
23
8.6%
2
08
Downtown, Chinatown, Penn Quarters, Mt.Vernon Square, North Capitol St.
15
12.3%
6
09
Southwest Employment Area, Waterfront, Fort McNair, Buzzard Point
15
14.5%
4
10
Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase
1
0.5%
3
11
Friendship Heights, Tenleytown, American University Park
0
0.0%
3
12
North Cleveland Park, Forest Hills, Van Ness
1
0.6%
3
13 Springs Valley, Palisades, Wesley Heights, Foxhall Crescent, Foxhall Village, Georgetown Reservoir
3
1.5%
3
14
Cathedral Heights, McLean Gardens, Glover Park
2
1.9%
3
15
Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Massachusetts Heights, Normanstone Terrace
1
0.8%
4
16
Colonial Village, Shepard Park, North Portal Estates
0
0.0%
4
17
Takoma, Brightwood, Manor Park
31
10.7%
4
18
Brightwood Park, Crestwood, Petworth
80
12.5%
4
19
Lamond Riggs, Fort Totten, Queens Chapel, Pleasant Hill
12
9.2%
5
20
North Michigan Park, Michigan Park, University Heights
7
8.4%
5
21
Edgewood, Bloomingdale, Truxton Circle, Eckington
33
12.9%
5
22
Brookland, Brentwood, Langdon
25
17.9%
5
23
Ivy City, Arboretum, Trinidad, Carver Langston
41
16.5%
5
24
Woodridge, Fort Lincoln, Gateway
14
15.1%
6
25
Union Station, Stanton Park, Kingman Park
45
11.8%
6
26
Capitol Hill, Lincoln Park
8
3.3%
6
27
Near Southeast, Navy Yard
14
25.5%
8
28
Historic Anacostia
24
12.4%
7
29
Eastland Gardens, Kenilworth
13
24.5%
7
30
Mayfair, Hillbrook, Mahaning Heights
18
17.0%
7
31
Deanwood, Burrville, Grant Park, Lincoln Heights, Fairmont Heights
39
17.6%
7
32
River Terrace, Benning, Greenway, Dupont Park
39
19.8%
7
33
Capitol View, Marshall Heights, Benning Heights
46
22.1%
7
34
Twining, Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Penn Branch, Fort Davis Park
39
20.2%
7
35
Fairfax Village, Naylor Gardens, Hillcrest, Summit Park
10
11.6%
8
36
Woodland/Fort Stanton, Knox Hill, Garfield Heights
17
23.0%
8
37
Sheridan, Barry Farms, Buena Vista
43
21.2%
8
38
Douglass, Shipley Terrace
30
14.7%
8
39
Congress Heights, Bellevue, Washington Highlands
101
17.2%
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
61
MAP 5
Percent Change in Births from 2000 to 2004 by Neighborhood Cluster
Washington, D.C.
16
11
10
17
12
18
19
20
13
14
15
2
1
4
21
3
6
5
24
22
3
7
29
23
8
30
25
32
26
9
31
33
27
34
37
28
35
36
38
39
Percent Change in Births, 2000-2004
Decline Greater than 15 Percent
Decline 14 to 5 Percent
Decline 5 to 0 Percent
Growth 0 to 5 Percent
Growth 5 to 15 Percent
Growth Greater than 15 Percent
No Data Available
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004
62
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Neighborhood
Ward
Cluster
Number
1
01
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Page 63
Neighborhood Cluster Name
Kalorama Heights, Adams Morgan, Lanier Hights
Total Births
in 2000
Total Births
in 2004
Change in
Percent
Number
Number
2000-04
169
180
6.5
1
02
Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights, Park View
860
826
-4.0
1
03
Howard University, Ledroit Park, Cardozo/Shaw
115
96
-16.5
2
04
Georgetown, Burleith/Hillandale
156
176
12.8
2
05
West End, Foggy Bottom, GWU
28
29
5.7
2
06
Dupont Circle, Connecticut Ave., K St.
88
101
14.1
2
07
Logan Circle, Shaw
270
267
-1.1
2
08
Downtown, Chinatown, Penn Quarters, Mt.Vernon Square, North Capitol St.
103
122
18.4
6
09
Southwest Employment Area, Waterfront, Fort McNair, Buzzard Point
133
103
-22.2
4
10
Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase
153
193
26.1
3
11
Friendship Heights, Tenleytown, American University Park
156
172
10.3
3
12
North Cleveland Park, Forest Hills, Van Ness
121
170
40.4
3
13
Springs Valley, Palisades, Wesley Heights, Foxhall Crescent, Foxhall Village, Georgetown Reservoir
167
195
16.8
3
14
Cathedral Heights, McLean Gardens, Glover Park
89
108
21.3
3
15
Cleveland Park, Woodley Park, Massachusetts Heights, Normanstone Terrace
98
125
27.6
4
16
Colonial Village, Shepard Park, North Portal Estates
31
38
22.6
4
17
Takoma, Brightwood, Manor Park
244
288
18.0
4
18
Brightwood Park, Crestwood, Petworth
574
639
11.3
4
19
Lamond Riggs, Fort Totten, Queens Chapel, Pleasant Hill
105
131
24.8
5
20
North Michigan Park, Michigan Park, University Heights
81
83
2.5
5
21
Edgewood,Bloomingdale, Truxton Circle, Eckington
279
256
-8.2
5
22
Brookland, Brentwood, Langdon
140
140
0.0
5
23
Ivy City, Arboretum, Trinidad, Carver Langston
222
249
12.2
5
24
Woodridge, Fort Lincoln, Gateway
108
92
-14.8
6
25
Union Station, Stanton Park, Kingman Park
358
379
5.9
6
26
Capitol Hill, Lincoln Park
160
246
53.8
6
27
Near Southeast, Navy Yard
70
55
-21.4
8
28
Historic Anacostia
194
193
-0.5
7
29
Eastland Gardens, Kenilworth
37
53
43.2
7
30
Mayfair, Hillbrook, Mahaning Heights
99
104
4.9
7
31
Deanwood, Burrville, Grant Park, Lincoln Heights, Fairmont Heights
223
222
-0.4
7
32
River Terrace, Benning, Greenway, Dupont Park
208
197
-5.3
7
33
Capitol View, Marshall Heights, Benning Heights
238
208
-12.6
7
34
Twining, Fairlawn, Randle Highlands, Penn Branch, Fort Davis Park
198
193
-2.5
7
35
Fairfax Village, Naylor Gardens, Hillcrest, Summit Park
100
86
-14.0
8
36
Woodland/Fort Stanton, Knox Hill, Garfield Heights
56
74
32.1
8
37
Sheridan, Barry Farms, Buena Vista
243
202
-16.9
8
38
Douglass, Shipley Terrace
210
204
-2.9
8
39
Congress Heights, Bellevue, Washington Highlands
626
586
-6.4
Source: District of Columbia Department of Health, State Center for Health Statistics Administration, 2004.
63
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VII.
A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE DATA
Data Definitions and
Sources
(in alphabetical order)
W
e attempted to define our indicators clearly and adequately in
the Fact Book and to indicate
data sources in the text and in all figures
and tables. However, some data sources
may need more description, and certain
limitations to the data may need to be discussed. Therefore, in this section we
provide additional information on definitions, sources, and data limitations for a
number of the indicators presented.
The D.C. KIDS COUNT Fact Book
strives to report the most recent data available. For some indicators, like those on
the District’s economy and the TANF,
Food Stamp, and Medicaid programs, the
data published are from 2006. Some
health data, such as common sexually
transmitted diseases and vaccinations, are
from 2005.
Vital statistics data (which include all indicators pertaining to births and deaths) are
collected by the D.C. Department of
Health, State Center for Health Statistics
Administration and are current as of
2004. Vital statistics are reported with a
longer delay than other sources because
birth and death records must be collected
on all District residents, regardless of
where they were at the time of the birth or
death. These data must be gathered
through an interstate network and are not
available until the second year following
their collection.
Wherever possible, we provide ward-level
statistics for data reported (see sections V
and VI). Data not presented in this
manner are generally not available for
subareas of the city, such as wards or
neighborhoods.
Births to All D.C. Mothers
Births to Teenage Mothers
How Defined: Birth records are part of the
vital statistics system and are collected for
all District residents, even if the mother
gives birth in another jurisdiction.
How Defined: The annual number and
percentage of births to mothers under 20
years old.
Source: D.C. Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics Administration. Data are current as of 2004.
Source: D.C. Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics
Administration. Data are current as of
2004.
Births to Single Mothers
Further Information: Note that mothers
who are 18 or 19 years old, included in
this indicator, are legally adults.
How Defined: The annual number and
percentage of births to mothers who did
not report themselves as married when
registering for the birth.
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State
Center for Health Statistics Administration. Data are current as of 2004.
Births with Adequate Prenatal Care
How Defined: The annual number and
percentage of infants born to mothers
who received adequate, intermediate, or
inadequate care, as defined by the Kessner
criteria, shown in the adjoining table.
KESSNER CRITERIA FOR ADEQUACY OF PRENATAL CARE
Category
If Gestation Is
(in Weeks):
Adequate
13 or Less
14 to 17
18 to 21
22 to 25
26 to 29
30 to 31
32 to 33
34 to 35
36 or More
(care initiated in
the 1st trimester and)
And Number of Prenatal
Visits Is at Least:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
And Number of Prenatal
Visits Is No More Than:
Inadequate
(care initiated in
the 3rd trimester or)
Intermediate
14 to 21
22 to 29
30 to 31
32 to 33
34 or More
0
1
2
3
4
All Combinations Other Than Above
65
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Page 66
Source: Department of Health, State
Center for Health Statistics
Administration. Kessner criteria for individual births were calculated by the Urban
Institute. Data are current as of 2004.
Limitations: Reporting of prenatal care is
voluntary, usually at the mother’s discretion, and while many hospitals link
doctor’s office visit records with selfreported data, the level of reporting varies
widely from year to year. In 2004, prenatal care levels could be determined for 87
percent of all births to mothers living in
the District.
D.C. Public School Enrollment
How Defined: The number of children
enrolled as of October 7th of each year.
Source: The D.C. Public Schools web site
(http://www.k12.dc.us/dcps/home.html).
Data are current as of the 2005-06 school
year.
Limitations: This number is used to
approximate the number of children
enrolled for the entire school year. Data
for the 2005-06 school year do not match
the official DCPS count, as they were
gathered earlier.
Child Abuse and Neglect Cases
Foster Care
How Defined: The annual number of new
cases filed with the D.C. Superior Court
alleging child abuse or neglect.
How Defined: The number of children and
young adults under the supervision of the
D.C. Child and Family Services Agency.
Source: Research and Development
Division, District of Columbia Courts.
Data are current as of 2005.
Source: D.C. Children and Family
Services Agency. Data are from the 2005
fiscal year (October 1, 2004-September
30, 2005).
Limitations: All cases of child abuse or
neglect do not make it to court; the
majority of court cases involve the
removal of a child from a home. Many
more cases of suspected child abuse or
neglect are monitored and resolved by the
Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA)
without resorting to formal legal proceedings. Both measures rely on persons
reporting possible abuse or neglect to an
official agency, and therefore likely understate the extent of the problem. These
indicators serve better as measures of the
change in the incidence of abuse and neglect over time, rather than as measures of
the exact magnitude of the problem in a
particular year.
Child Support and Paternity Cases
How Defined: The annual number of
new cases filed for paternity and child
support in the D.C. Superior Court.
Source: Data in previous years provided
by Research and Development Division,
District of Columbia Courts.
Limitations: Court statistics broken down
separately for paternity cases and child
support cases were not available for 2005
and so are not reported in this year’s Fact
Book
Limitations: These figures are the total
number of children and young adults
served by CFSA during the entire fiscal
year. This includes persons placed in temporary care, which will often last less than
the full year.
Hotline Calls for Abuse and Neglect
How Defined: : The number of calls
received to the D.C. CFSA 24-hour hotline reporting suspected child abuse or
neglect.
Source: D.C. Children and Family
Services Agency. Data are from the 2005
fiscal year (October 1, 2004-September
30, 2005).
Further Information: Anyone can call
the CFSA hotline (202-671-SAFE) if they
wish to report a suspected case of child
abuse or neglect. DC Code 16-2301(9)(23)
defines child abuse or neglect as “the
intentional, physical or mental injury,
sexual abuse, negligent treatment, or maltreatment of any child under the age of
eighteen by a person who is responsible
for the child's welfare under circumstances
which indicate the child’s health or welfare is harmed or threatened.” Anyone
involved in the care and treatment of children under 18 is considered a “mandated
reporter” of suspected child abuse and
neglect. Mandated reporters include chiropractors, counselors, day care workers,
66
dentists, law enforcement officers, licensed
nurses, medical examiners, mental health
professionals, physicians, psychologists,
registered nurses, school officials, social
workers, and teachers.
Homeless Children and Families
How Defined: Data are a yearly count of
the “literally homeless” and the “permanently supported homeless.” The literally
homeless are those who are on the streets,
in emergency shelters temporarily, in transitional housing temporarily, or in
precarious housing at imminent risk of
losing it and looking into shelters. The
permanently supported homeless are those
who live in permanent supportive housing
but who would be at risk of becoming
homeless again without this housing
because of extreme poverty or serious
mental or physical disabilities.
Source: The Homeless Services Planning
and Coordinating Committee of the
Metropolitan Washington Council of
Governments and the Community
Partnership for the Prevention of
Homelessness. Data are current as of
January 2006.
Limitations: This estimate is only a single
point-in-time count of the number of persons who were homeless on a specific day.
Since people may move in and out of
homelessness, the number of persons who
may have been homeless at any time during the year is likely to be three to five
times higher than this estimate, according
to experts.
Infant Mortality Rate
How Defined: The number of deaths to
infants under age 1 per 1,000 live births.
Note that this is not a percentage.
Source: D.C. Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics
Administration. Data are current as of
2004.
Juvenile Cases
How Defined: The annual number of new
cases filed against juveniles (under age 18)
in the D.C. Superior Court. The court
classifies cases filed against juveniles in
seven categories: acts against persons, acts
against property, acts against the public
order, drug law violations, persons in need
of supervisions, interstate compacts, and
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other offenses. Drug law violations are
included as part of the “acts against the
public order” category.
Source: Data provided by Research and
Development Division, District of
Columbia Courts. Data are current as of
2005.
Low-Birth-Weight Babies
How Defined: The annual number of
babies weighing under 5.5 pounds (2,500
grams) at birth.
Source: D.C. Department of Health, State
Center for Health Statistics
Administration. Data are current as of
2004.
Poverty Rate
How Defined: The number of children living in families with incomes below the
federal poverty level. The Social Security
Administration (SSA) developed the original poverty definition in 1964, which
federal interagency committees subsequently revised in 1969 and 1980.
Poverty status is based on a family’s total
income with the poverty threshold appropriate for the family size and composition.
If the total family income is less than the
threshold amount, then every person in
the family, including all children, is considered poor. Poverty thresholds are
adjusted annually for changes in the cost
of living as reflected in the Consumer
Price Index (CPI-U). The poverty thresholds are the same for all parts of the
country—they are not adjusted for regional, state, or local variations in the cost of
living. (For a detailed discussion of the
poverty definition, see U.S. Census
Bureau, Current Population reports,
“Poverty in the United States: 1999,” p.
60–210.)
Source: The U.S. Census Bureau, Current
Population Survey (CPS).
Limitations: The federal poverty rate is
one of the most widely used and recognized measures of economic security
nationally and is therefore very useful in
tracking the economic well-being of children and families over time. It should be
noted, however, that many experts—
including Mollie Orshansky, who
developed poverty levels decades ago—
believe them to be based on outdated
concepts and far too low. For instance, in
2004, the poverty threshold for a single
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parent with one child under 18 was only
$13,020—slightly over $1,000 per
month—while the threshold for a twoparent, two-child family was $19,157. In
comparison, the recently revised Wider
Opportunities for Women (WOW) SelfSufficiency Standard indicates that most
families in the Washington, D.C., region
must earn three to four times the federal
poverty level to meet basic needs like
housing, child care, health care, food,
transportation and taxes.
was 35.5 percent (±2.3 percentage points).
This means that the true poverty rate fell
between 33.2 and 37.8 percent.
The U.S. Census Bureau collects national
poverty data every 10 years. To obtain
poverty rates for years between decennial
censuses, we use the U.S. Census Bureau’s
Current Population Survey (CPS). Results
from the CPS are not directly comparable
to those from the decennial census, as in
the past the CPS has often yielded considerably lower poverty estimates. This is
mainly because the CPS is based on a
smaller sample and less effort is made to
reach respondents than in the decennial
census. Poor people are generally harder to
contact, and thus are more likely to be
missed in the CPS.
Source: The D.C. Board of Education and
the D.C. Public Charter School Board.
Data are current as of school year
2005–06.
However, the CPS expanded its sample in
2002 from 50,000 to 80,000 people to
add more households with children.
Furthermore, the CPS collects a greater
amount and more detailed information on
households, income, and employment,
information important to the determination of poverty levels. For these reasons,
the CPS has been considered the most
reliable source of poverty estimates
between decennial censuses.
Unlike most other data in this report, the
CPS provides estimates based on a sample
of the population, which introduces
uncertainty from sampling error. To
reduce the uncertainty we averaged two
years worth of population estimates
(which increases the sample size thus
reducing potential inaccuracies), as well as
performing statistical tests to determine
whether differences between poverty rates
from different years could be attributed to
sampling error and therefore were not
meaningful. We also report the confidence
interval to indicate the precision of a particular CPS-derived estimate. Confidence
intervals are shown as “±(number of percentage points),” and they provide a range
in which the true value most likely falls.
For example, the CPS estimated poverty
rate for children in the District in 2005
67
All confidence intervals in this report were
calculated at a 90-percent confidence
level.
Public Charter School Enrollment
How Defined: The number of children
enrolled in the public charter schools for
the school year.
Limitations: The two boards responsible
for overseeing public charter schools collect and provide data on their schools
separately. No one centralized location
provides consistent data on public charter
schools, and therefore estimates of student
enrollment sometimes differ among
sources.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
How Defined: The number of reported
cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and
syphilis. The number of syphilis cases
includes early, late, and congenital cases.
Source: D.C. Bureau of Sexually
Transmitted Disease Control, Surveillance
Unit. Data are current as of 2005.
Student Performance
How Defined: The percentage of public
school students in grades 3 through 8 and
grade 10 who performed at the proficient
or advanced levels on the District of
Columbia Comprehensive Assessment
System (DCCAS) exam.
Sources: D.C. Public Schools, Academic
Performance Database System; the D.C.
Board of Education; and the D.C. Public
Charter School Board. Data are current as
of school year 2005–06.
Further information: The DCCAS
replaces the Stanford-9, a national test
that had been given each year to District
public school students. The No Child Left
Behind (NCLB) Act requires states to categorize student performance according to
four levels: below-basic, basic, proficient,
and advanced. The NCLB Act’s Adequate
Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements specify that all students in the state must be
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performing at the proficient or advanced
levels no later than 12 years after the new
standards have been put in place. (For
more detail on AYP requirements, see:
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/accountability/
schools/accountability.html.) The student
performance measures presented in the
Fact Book are intended to track progress
towards meeting the District’s AYP goals.
TANF (Welfare), Food Stamp, and
Medicaid Cases
How Defined: The number of children
who were listed on the Temporary
Assistance to Needy Families (TANF),
Food Stamp, and Medicaid rolls as being
eligible to receive benefits in a given time
period (month and year).
Source: D.C. Department of Human
Services, Income Maintenance
Administration. Data are current as of
June 2006.
Photo by Nathaniel Lawrence
Limitations: The data do not indicate the
number of children who are eligible to
receive benefits out of the entire District
population, only among those children
whose families have formally applied for
benefits in each program.
Violent Deaths
How Defined: The annual number of
deaths from violent causes (accident,
homicide, or suicide) to older teenagers
(15 to 19) and young adults (20 to 24).
Source: D.C. Department of Health,
State Center for Health Statistics
Administration. Data are current as of
2004.
Photo by Keith Betz
68
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VIII.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
C
ongratulations are extended to
advocates of the District’s
Children, including individuals, families, neighborhoods,
organizations and communities who
have advocated for children and who
have made thepublication of this
annual Fact Book possible.
We are particularly grateful to the
following people and organizations,
which contributed their efforts this
year:
Peter Tatian, Jennifer Comey, Jessica
Cigna, and Elizabeth Guernsey of the
Urban Institute, for their expert data
collection, analysis, reporting, and
dedication;
Kendra Dunn, Director of Public
Policy, D.C. Children’s Trust Fund
and Project Director, D.C. KIDS
COUNT Project, for her text contributions and for editing and managing
the production of the Fact Book;
Kinaya C. Sokoya, Executive
Director, D.C. Children’s Trust Fund
for the Prevention of Child Abuse for
her skillful editing and contributions
to the production of the Fact Book;
Alison Dixon of Image Prep Studio for
the design and layout of the Fact Book;
Photos provided by CentroNía.
Photos selected from a 2006 exhibit
titled On the Green Line: Photographs
of the Columbia Heights & Anacostia
Neighborhoods by Community
Youth. Each child is acknowledged
with a byline on their photograph.
To learn more about the exhibit,
please visit the CentroNía website
at www.centronia.org.
Dr. Fern Johnson-Clarke, Chief,
Research and Statistics Division, and
Biva Chowdhury of the D.C.
Department of Health, State Center
for Health Statistics Administration;
Mary Levy, Consultant to Parents
United for the D.C. Public Schools;
Dileep Rajan of the D.C. State
Education Office; Kim Beverly,
Statistical Officer, Research and
Development Division, District of
Columbia Courts; Terri Thompson,
D.C. Department of Human
Services, Income Maintenance
Administration; Darlene Mathews
from The Community Partnership for
the Prevention of Homelessness; Paul
Roddy, Director, Domestic Violence
Unit, D.C. Superior Court; Gail
Hansen, Epidemiologist, D.C.
Administration for HIV/AIDS,
Epidemiology Division; Gonzalo
Saenz of the D.C. Department of
Health, Bureau of STD Control,
Surveillance Unit; Peter Tatian, Senior
Research Associate, The Urban
Institute, NeighborhoodInfo DC;
Ellen Yung-Fatah of the Early Care
and Education Administration of the
D.C. Department of Human
Services; Sarah Latterner of the
Nutrition Services Department of the
D.C. State Education Office; Jim
Myerberg from D.C. Public Schools;
Virginia Monteiro of D.C. Child and
Family Services Agency; for contributing the excellent data without which
the Fact Book could not exist.
Members of the D.C. KIDS
COUNT Collaborative for Children
and Families for their continued
support and assistance with dissemination of the Fact Book: Linda
Wilson from the D.C. Child and
Family Services Agency; Elva
69
Photo by Roberto Gorostieta
Anderson of Children’s National
Medical Center; Susie Cambria,
Deputy Director Public Policy, DC
Action for Children; Mark Oulette,
DC Children and Youth Investment
Trust Corporation; Monica Villalta,
Senior Policy Advisor, Office of D.C.
Deputy Mayor for Children, Youth,
Family and Elders; Nicole Streeter,
Legislative Council, Office of
Councilmember Vincent C. Gray;
Cesar Watts of D.C. Learns;
Nechama Masliansky, Director of
Advocacy and Social Justice, So Other
Might Eat; Latisha Atkins,
Community Services Director, East
River Family Strengthening
Collaborative; Dr. Michael Williams,
Washington Hospital Center; Audrey
Fields, D.C. Public Library; Marc
Clark, Health Operations HIV/AIDS
Education Program, D.C. Public
Schools; Ellen Yung-Fatah, Early Care
and Education Administration, D.C.
Department of Human Services; JoAnne Hurlston, Associate Director for
Membership Services, D.C. Public
Charter School Association; Janice
Sullivan, Director, Metropolitan
Police Department's Office of Youth
Violence Prevention; Peter Tatian,
Senior Research Associate, The Urban
Institute, NeighborhoodInfo D.C.;
and Jennifer Comey, The Urban
Institute.
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D.C. CHILDREN’S TRUST FUND
1616 P Street, N.W.
Suite 150
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: 202-667-4940
Fax: 202-667-2477
E-mail: dckidscount@dcctf.org
Website: www.dcctf.org & www.dckidscount.org
CFC #7407
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Photographs in this publication were provided by CentroNía and were part of a larger exhibit titled
On the Green Line: Photographs of the Columbia Heights & Anacostia Neighborhoods by Community Youth.
For more information visit www.centronia.org.
Photo by Adidiana Gorostieta
Photo by Paula Martinez
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Page 72
The Children’s
Charities
Foundation
is proud to support the
DC Children’s
Trust Fund
and their fabulous work
in supporting children
and families.
Well Deserved Attention.
Verizon is proud to support
the DC Children’s Trust Fund.
©2006 Verizon. All rights reserved.
Celebrating
13 years of making
KIDS COUNT
in the District
of Columbia.
The Victoria Casey
and Peter Teeley
Foundation