Alaska ranks among the worst states for overall well-being of children. That’s the finding of a report released Wednesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a national charity focused on child welfare.
Organizers of the 2023 Kids Count Data Book used several metrics to measure the welfare of children in each state, including economic well-being, education, overall health and supportive family and community connections.
Trevor Storrs is president and CEO of the Alaska Children’s Trust, a statewide organization that advocates for families. He said he thinks there are many factors impacting Alaska families, including economic stress and personal trauma, that need to be addressed collectively.
“Our perspective is when we get to parents and children and communities the knowledge, skills, support and resources to lessen that tension, we reduce the risk of not just only child abuse and neglect but homelessness,” Storrs said.
The Kids Count report is released annually, and Alaska has consistently ranked in the bottom third for overall child well-being in recent years. This year it ranked a little better — at 38th in the nation, up from 41st. It’s just above Arizona, and below Georgia. New Hampshire ranked the highest.
As for economic well-being and education, Alaska ranked in the bottom five this year. It’s below average in health, but above average in family and community connections.
Storrs said another potential driver of Alaska’s low rankings has to do with the availability and accessibility of child care. The study found that roughly 13% of Alaska children lived in families where a parent changed, quit or refused a job because of child care access or affordability.
“Basically, when you look at the annual cost of child care, it is actually higher than attending university,” Storrs said.
Storrs said there needs to be a concerted effort across multiple agencies and departments to address child care strains in urban communities and a lack of access in rural communities.
“One thing won’t solve this, because we do not have a centralized universal system, that is ensuring child care for everybody,” Storrs said. “And when you don’t have a universal system, like we have for K-12, everybody doesn’t have access.”
Storrs applauded recent efforts made by the state and local governments to tackle the child care crisis. He cited millions of dollars appropriated by the Legislature to bolster child care worker wages and Head Start programs, and the creation of a child care task force by Gov. Mike Dunleavy. Anchorage voters this spring also approved allocating marijuana taxes toward child care and early education.
Wesley Early covers Anchorage life and city politics for Alaska Public Media. Reach him at wearly@alaskapublic.org and follow him on X at @wesley_early. Read more about Wesley here.
