Jeffersontown, KY - More than 1 in 4 children in Kentucky are now living in poverty, according to new Census Bureau data from the American Community Survey, released today. Child poverty in Kentucky increased to 26.5 percent in 2012 from 25.6 percent in 2009, bringing the total number of children who live in poverty to 263,819. The poverty threshold in 2012 for a family of four with two children means making an income below $23,283. [...]

Jeffersontown, KY – Kentucky Youth Advocates joins the First Five Years Fund today in releasing the results of a national survey of voters which finds that a significant majority of Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike support a plan to help states and local communities provide better early childhood education programs to parents of children from birth to age five, ensuring that all children get a strong start in life. Conducted by the bipartisan research team of [...]

Advocates organize State Call-In Day to speak out against the cuts to children's programs On Monday, July 1, the state is set to reduce the income eligibility for families to receive child care assistance from 150 percent of the federal poverty level to 100 percent of the federal poverty level, making Kentucky’s eligibility rate the lowest in the nation. According to state estimates, these cuts will immediately cause 8,700 families to lose child care assistance [...]

The news about Kentucky’s graduation rate is, indeed, good for Kentucky’s kids today and for Kentucky’s future. Beyond the numbers announced by the Governor today, there awaits both opportunities and obligations around the recent passage of SB 97 by the Kentucky General Assembly. This bill gives school districts throughout Kentucky the discretion to raise the high school dropout age to 18. After 55 percent of school districts choose to raise the dropout age to 18 from the current requirement of [...]