Lafayette County ranks 23rd among all counties in Missouri based on a composite score of key indicators of child welfare, according to a new report.

The “2007 KIDS COUNT in Missouri Data Book,” a publication of Citizens for Missouri’s Children, outlines positive changes across the state in several areas of child well-being. These include child abuse and neglect, child deaths, violent teen deaths, births to mothers without a high school diploma, and juvenile law violation referrals. However, 2007 also saw a decline in the measures of children enrolled in free/reduced price lunch, children receiving food stamps, annual high school dropouts, births to teens, and infant mortality.

“By reviewing annually the status of Missouri’s children, we hope to educate the public about whether our children have the resources and supports needed to develop into healthy, well-rounded adults,” explained Munnie Pacino, CMO’s board president. “Together as a community we can work to develop policies to ensure that our children do count.”

Lafayette County mirrored statewide trends in many categories, showing improvement in six areas and a decline in four other categories.

On the positive side in Lafayette County, the percentage of births to mothers without a high school diploma dropped from a rate of 20 percent in 2002 to 18 percent in 2006. Meanwhile, the percentage of low birth weight infants fell from 6.5 percent between the base years of 1997-2001 to 6.3 percent during the current period of 2002-2006. Infant mortality dropped from 6.6 per 1,000 children to 6.2 during this same span.

In addition, child deaths dropped sharply from a rate of 21 per 1,000 from 1997-2001 to 3.3 per 1,000 from 2002-2006. Also, out of home placements dropped from 5.2 per 1,000 in 2002 to 2.2 per 1,000 in 2006, while violent deaths among youths age 15-19 fell from 114.8 per 1,000 teens from 1997-2001 to 74.1 per 1,000 from 2002-06.

Now for the bad news: the number of students in the county enrolled in free/reduced lunch increased from 30 percent in 2002 to 34.2 percent in 2006; child abuse and neglect rose to a rate of 29.4 per 1,000 in 2006, up from 26 in 2002; and the high school dropout rate rose from 2.8 percent in 2002 to 3 percent in 2006. Also, the number of births to teens increased slightly from 45 per 1,000 teens in 2002 to 47.7 per 1,000 in 2006.

The percentage of children receiving food stamps in Lafayette County rose from 22.4 percent to 29.1 percent from 2002 to 2006.

“The percentage of students enrolled in the free/reduced price lunch program is a strong indicator of a family’s poverty status,” said Pacino. “We’ve also seen a 5.1 percent increase in the number of children receiving food stamps since 2002. As families struggle to make ends meet, it becomes harder for them to provide basic necessities for their children, such as health and dental care, quality child care and early education, and a safe and secure place to live.”

For the second year in a row, St. Charles County, a suburb of St. Louis, was ranked as the state’s most kid-friendly area based on all KIDS COUNTS measures. Platte County, just north of Kansas City, was second.

The city of St. Louis ranked last in the composite rankings.

Other rankings from the Kansas City region are: Ray County, 17th; Clay, fourth; Cass, sixth; Johnson, 12th; and Jackson, 77th.

“Overall, the region is faring fairly well for our children,” said Tom Vansaghi, chairman of the CMC’s Public Policy Committee and a Kansas City resident. “To have five of these six counties ranked among the top 25 in the state shows that we value our children and are focused on making a better life for them.”

Citizens for Missouri’s Children is Missouri’s leading statewide child advocacy organization.

The organization’s mission is to advocate for the rights and well-being of all Missouri’s children, especially those with the greatest need.