WARSAW — The Indiana Youth Institute and the Kosciusko County Community Foundation hosted a seminar on Thursday, June 29, designed to facilitate discussion about the state of children in Kosciusko County.

Katie Kincaid, data and research analyst for IYI, shared statistics to propel a data-driven conversation about local issues with youth. Youth workers and other adults who attended were encouraged to share how they felt the data reflected their work.

The session provided the latest data from IYI’s 2017 KIDS COUNT in Indiana Data Book and county snapshots, as well as best practice research on successful approaches to key issues. Currently, Kosciusko County has a child population of 19,260, this number has fallen seven percent in the last 15 years. Three out of four children live in a married couple family.

Kincaid shared that graduation rates for Kosciusko County students are slightly higher than the state average. The graduation rate in Kosciusko County is 92 percent, versus the state average of 89 percent. More students are opting for Core 40 diplomas.

Though the graduation rate is high for the county, the group discussed effective ways to raise the graduation rate. Accelerated middle schools, assisting students who enter high school behind, close monitoring of at-risk students and helping students who have dropped out to obtain their GED were mentioned.

Issues with child poverty were discussed. One in seven children live in poverty in Kosciusko County. Nearly half of children in single parent homes are living in poverty.

Kincaid mentioned these statistics show children in poverty are not getting the resources they need. Kincaid suggested solutions of offering support in times of need, increasing family resources such as housing vouchers, child care subsidies and increasing the maximum SNAP benefit. It was mentioned many eligible families don’t take advantage of safety net programs in part because they are not aware they are eligible and also because the stigma of these programs.

Kincaid mentioned a huge issue with kids in the county and the state is lack of adequate childcare. She stated 66 in 100 children between the ages of 0-5 are likely in need of care, however, there is only enough space in licensed programs for 13 in 100 children.

High quality chid care is not affordable for many families as the average cost in Kosciusko County is $6,884. That is 34 percent of income for a family in poverty with one child.

The solutions discussed with this issue were to target early childhood expansion to low-income families and recruitment, development and the retention of early childhood workforce. It was noted many individuals opt not to work in childcare, not because they don’t enjoy it, but because it doesn’t pay well.

A serious issue Kincaid brought to the attention of the workers was suicide. One in five Indiana high school students seriously considered suicide last year. Suicide often goes untreated and 90 percent of those who die by suicide have a diagnosable mental illness such as depression.

Open dialogue is key to help prevent suicide. Youth workers should pay attention to concerning behaviors by teens and be able to offer helpful resources if they are not a licensed counselor.

Kincaid shared the number of abuse/neglect reports have been increasing steadily in Indiana. In 2012, there had been 155,867 reports to the Indiana Department of Child Services of child abuse or neglect, by 2015, that number had jumped to 202,493.

Kincaid stated by Indiana law, everyone is a mandatory reporter for child abuse. If any individual believes there may be abuse or neglect occurring, they must report to authorities.

The IYI expects to hold additional forums for youth workers in the future.