Amy Swann, Author at Kentucky Youth Advocates

Census Prep: For the Love of Country

Census Prep: For the Love of Country

Did you know today is Constitution Day? On September 17th of 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the United States Constitution in Philadelphia. Most Americans know that this document established the framework of our government and the rights and freedoms that “We the People” enjoy today. A lesser known fact is that the Constitution requires the decennial census that we’ve been blogging about for the past few months. In fact, Article 1, Section [...]

By Amy Swann|2018-09-17T13:59:34+00:00September 17th, 2018|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education, Health, Kids Count, Medicaid|

Step #1 Toward an Accurate Census: Creating Complete Count Committees

Step #1 Toward an Accurate Census: Creating Complete Count Committees

Photo provided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation Last month, we blogged on the various ways the data from the decennial census are used and why it is therefore critically important to make sure everyone in Kentucky is counted in the #2020Census. Spring of 2020 may feel far away, but it takes a lot of planning to achieve an accurate count – planning that can’t start soon enough! The single best action [...]

By Amy Swann|2018-09-17T13:48:41+00:00August 23rd, 2018|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education, Health, Kids Count, Medicaid|

A New Approach for Kentucky KIDS COUNT: Past, Present, Future

A New Approach for Kentucky KIDS COUNT: Past, Present, Future

The dashboard in a car tells us how far we’ve gone (the odometer), what our current situation is (the speedometer) and, in eco-conscious vehicles, how to achieve greater energy efficiency. Similarly, a focus on where we’ve been, where we are now, and how to achieve future improvement guided the creation of the new KIDS COUNT Data Dashboard, which was unveiled with the release of the 2017 County Data Book earlier this month. By providing the [...]

By Amy Swann|2017-11-28T11:03:09+00:00November 28th, 2017|Blog, Kids Count|

Looking Back: 28 Years of the National KIDS COUNT Project

Looking Back: 28 Years of the National KIDS COUNT Project

As Kentucky Youth Advocates celebrates its 40th birthday, we’re looking back at our history and how it has shaped the organization we are today. A big part of KYA’s history is the KIDS COUNT project, begun in 1989 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation to strengthen public action on behalf of children and families and promote public accountability for their outcomes. When the Casey Foundation released the first edition of the national KIDS COUNT Data [...]

By Amy Swann|2017-07-19T10:16:40+00:00July 19th, 2017|Blog, Kids Count|

Getting the Most out of the KIDS COUNT Data Center

Getting the Most out of the KIDS COUNT Data Center

Our annual County Data Book has quite a bit of county level data on how kids are faring across Kentucky’s counties, yet it represents a small fraction of the approximately 100 indicators we have posted to the KIDS COUNT Data Center. If you’re not using the KIDS COUNT Data Center, you’re missing out on important information about the children and families in your community. The KIDS COUNT Data Center puts the power of data at [...]

By Amy Swann|2017-03-09T14:14:58+00:00March 9th, 2017|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education, Health, Kids Count, Youth Justice|

Apply for the National Juvenile Justice Network’s Youth Justice Leadership Institute

Apply for the National Juvenile Justice Network’s Youth Justice Leadership Institute

As Kentucky continues implementing the juvenile justice reforms passed in 2014 and seeks to build upon that work with additional policy changes during the 2017 Kentucky legislative session, it is imperative that the perspectives and input of people of color are sought and incorporated, as youth of color are over-represented throughout our youth justice system. The Youth Justice Leadership Institute is one opportunity to grow emerging advocates of color into strong leaders who can help [...]

By Amy Swann|2017-03-09T10:14:54+00:00March 9th, 2017|Blog, Youth Justice|

Teen Suicide: A Difficult but Important Conversation

Teen Suicide: A Difficult but Important Conversation

Teen deaths are not easy to talk about, especially violent and unexpected deaths. But in order to stop preventable teen deaths, we need to examine and understand the data. For a long time, accidents, homicides and suicides have been the leading causes of teen deaths in the United States, in that particular order. A different picture emerges when you break out the data by race and ethnicity, though. In 2014, 7 percent of the deaths of [...]

By Amy Swann|2016-07-27T16:46:10+00:00July 27th, 2016|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Health|

The 2016 National KIDS COUNT Data Book: Is Kentucky Top Dog or Rock-bottom?

The 2016 National KIDS COUNT Data Book: Is Kentucky Top Dog or Rock-bottom?

This week, we co-released with the Annie E. Casey Foundation the national 2016 KIDS COUNT Data Book. We get pretty excited about this release because the Data Book provides the best assessment of how Kentucky’s children and youth are faring in comparison to those across the nation. Let’s face it, we live in a very competitive state – think basketball and horse racing – so we eagerly await the Data Book to see if Kentucky [...]

By Amy Swann|2016-06-21T16:58:16+00:00June 21st, 2016|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety, Economic Security, Education, Health, Kids Count|

Apply Today for the National Juvenile Justice Network’s Youth Justice Leadership Institute

Apply Today for the National Juvenile Justice Network’s Youth Justice Leadership Institute

As Kentucky continues implementing the juvenile justice reforms passed in 2014 and seeks to build upon that work with additional policy changes, such as SB 270, it is imperative that the perspectives and input of people of color are sought and incorporated, as youth of color are over-represented throughout our youth justice system. The Youth Justice Leadership Institute is one opportunity to grow emerging advocates of color into strong leaders who can help fulfill that [...]

By Amy Swann|2016-03-22T11:06:38+00:00March 22nd, 2016|Blog, Youth Justice|

As a Child, Where Did You Want to Be on Christmas Morning?

As a Child, Where Did You Want to Be on Christmas Morning?

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or Ramadan, I think most of us would say “With family!” when reflecting on where we wanted to be during special holiday moments. The sentiment is no different for children in Kentucky’s child welfare system. Earlier this month we released a new issue brief, Every Kentucky Kid Needs a Family, focused on these children. We highlight the importance of keeping families together whenever possible and placing children who cannot stay with [...]

By Amy Swann|2015-12-14T13:54:00+00:00December 14th, 2015|Blog, Child Welfare & Safety|

ACTION ALERTS!

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ALERTS!

About Amy Swann