Rationale: The well-being of children is an important determinant of their success as adults. Supportive and nurturing relationships promote children's emotional security, social development and academic achievement.

About this indicator: In 2009, Minnesota was second on the Kids Count state rankings. Overall state rankings are based on 10 measures: low birth weight, infant mortality, child death rate, teen death rate, percent of 16-19-year-olds who are high-school dropouts, percent of 16-19-year-olds who are not attending school and not working, percent of children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment, percent of children in poverty, and percent of children in single-parent families.

Since 2000, Minnesota has ranked between first and fourth among all states. There is no trend towards a higher or lower ranking.

For comparison: Of the ten indicators used, Minnesota ranked in the top five on four of them: low birth-weight babies (3rd), teen high school dropout rate (2nd), teens not attending school and not working (1st), and percent change in single-parent families (5th).

Minnesota’s lowest ranks on the indicators were for the death rate for children ages 1 to 14 (9th) and for birth rate for teens ages 15 to 19 (9th).

Local data: