Racial Equity
Children Living in Poverty by Race/Ethnicity

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Children Living in Poverty by Race/Ethnicity

What does this measure?

The estimated number of children under 18 living below the federally defined poverty line, expressed as a percentage of all children under 18 and reported by various racial and ethnic groups. Poverty thresholds vary by family composition and year. In 2023, the threshold for a four-person family was $30,900.

Why is this important?

Children raised in impoverished environments are at higher risk for a wide variety of health and social problems, including poor performance in school. The challenges they face in childhood can diminish their chances for successful adult lives.

How is the region performing?

In 2019-23, poverty was highest among African American (19%) and Hispanic (16%) children in the Mid-Hudson Valley region. The rate was lower for white children (14%). Since 2009-13, the rates decreased by 9 percentage points for African American children and 5 points for Hispanic children. There were similar racial and ethnic disparities in New York State (excluding New York City) and the nation, but the region's poverty rate for African American and Hispanic children was lower than both the state and the nation, while the region's poverty rate for white children was slightly higher than both.

Among individual counties in the region, Orange had a relatively high rate for white children (21%). Reliable data for the cities, towns and villages in the region was sparse in 2019-23. Child populations for most local areas, when broken down by race and ethnicity, were too small to yield reliable survey results.

Why do these disparities exist?

As people of color have historically and contemporaneously been locked out of economic opportunity in many ways, poverty crosses generations, and child poverty rates are higher. Factors include: living in a single-parent household, especially if the single parent is female; having parent(s) who are unemployed, employed and/or underemployed in low-wage jobs or incarcerated; and living in communities that have experienced disinvestment and have ineffective and/or under-resourced schools.

Notes about the data

The multiyear figures are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. The bureau combined five years of responses to the survey to provide estimates for smaller geographic areas and increase the precision of its estimates. However, because the information came from a survey, the samples responding to the survey were not always large enough to produce reliable results, especially in small geographic areas. CGR has noted on data tables the estimates with relatively large margins of error. Estimates with three asterisks have the largest margins, plus or minus 50% or more of the estimate. Two asterisks mean plus or minus 35%-50%, and one asterisk means plus or minus 20%-35%. For all estimates, the confidence level is 90%, meaning there is 90% probability the true value (if the whole population were surveyed) would be within the margin of error (or confidence interval).

The survey provides data on characteristics of the population that used to be collected only during the decennial census. Poverty status is not reported for people in institutions, including college dormitories and military barracks, and people in living situations without conventional housing.









INDICATORS
Children Living in Poverty
Children Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity
Single-Parent Families
Single-Parent Families, by Race/Ethnicity
Rate of Child Abuse and Neglect
Rate of Foster Care Admissions
Teen Pregnancy
Voter Registration Rate
Voter Participation Rate
Total Population
Population by Age
Population by Race/Ethnicity
Household Types
Change in Total Jobs
Foreign-Born Population
Employment by Sector
Spending for County Government
Tourism Revenue
Preschoolers Receiving Special Education Services
Prekindergarten Participation
Students Receiving Special Education Services
Per-Student Spending
Student Performance on Grade 4 English, by Student Group
Student Performance on Grade 4 English, by Race/Ethnicity
Student Performance on Grade 4 Math, by Student Group
Student Performance on Grade 4 Math, by Race/Ethnicity
High School Cohort Graduation Rate
High School Cohort Dropout Rate
High School GED Rate
Education Levels of Adults
Education Levels of Adults, by Race/Ethnicity
Median Household Income
Median Household Income, by Race/Ethnicity
People Living in Poverty
People Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity
Seniors Living in Poverty
Veterans Living in Poverty
Children Receiving Subsidized Child Care
Economically Disadvantaged Students
Earned Income Tax Credit Participation
Living Wage Rate by Household Type
Income in Relation to Poverty Level
Households Receiving SNAP
People Without Health Insurance
Early Prenatal Care, by Mother's Race/Ethnicity
Food Insecurity
Deaths from Drug Overdoses
Babies with Low Birth Weights
Newly Diagnosed Cases of HIV
People Living wth HIV
Mental Health Clinic Visits
Homeownership Rates
Homeownership Rates, by Race/Ethnicity
Cost of Homeownership
Cost of Rent
Cost of Rent, by Race/Ethnicity
Violent Crimes
Homeless Persons
Domestic Violence
Arrest Rates, by Race/Ethnicity
Incarceration Rates, by Race/Ethnicity
Children Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity
Single-Parent Families, by Race/Ethnicity
Population by Race/Ethnicity
Student Performance on Grade 4 English, by Race/Ethnicity
Student Performance on Grade 4 Math, by Race/Ethnicity
Education Levels of Adults, by Race/Ethnicity
Median Household Income, by Race/Ethnicity
People Living in Poverty, by Race/Ethnicity
Early Prenatal Care, by Mother's Race/Ethnicity
Homeownership Rates, by Race/Ethnicity
Cost of Rent, by Race/Ethnicity
Arrest Rates, by Race/Ethnicity
Incarceration Rates, by Race/Ethnicity


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