New Jersey's poorest and most vulnerable children--those living in the cities--suffer even more disproportionately in many ways now than a decade ago. From the 1990s to early 2000s, children living in 25 of New Jersey's largest urban areas fared worse than statewide averages on many indicators of child well-being. In this, the Association for…

For at least 40 years, Newark's name has been practically synonymous with poverty and crime. Its troubled image had roots in reality. For too many families, Newark has been a hard place to raise children. For too many children, it has been a rough place to grow up. But there are signs of change, as found in "Newark Kids Count 2007," an…

This paper presents the "New Jersey Kids Count 2007: The State of Children in Our State." Gained ground on the state of children for 2007 include: (1) The number of low-income households earning federal tax credits increased 33 percent since 2001, while the average amount of the checks they received jumped 44 percent to $1,804 for tax…

This document presents the personal narratives of 19 participants in the National Fellowship/Leadership program. In their narratives, the Kellogg fellows recount their experiences developing leadership knowledge, skills, and competencies while addressing human, societal, and community issues. The following papers are included: "Preface"…

Over the past five years, Newark has seen creeping gains in several indicators of child and family well-being, particularly economics, education and health. Even though there is some good news to report, the fact remains that Newark children still suffer disproportionately compared to children growing up in other parts of Essex County, New Jersey…

For the 8th year, "Newark Kids Count 2005" paints a statistical portrait of city children, who are born with so much promise and given so few chances to fulfill that promise. As the city, and indeed the state, labor to build a child welfare system that keeps children safe and families together, everyone must remember that real children…