Child and Familywell-Being

Tri-County 2015

Needs Assessment

& Strategies

for

Child and FamilyWell-Being

Caroline, Dorchester, and Kent Counties

in Maryland

Caroline County Edition

Caroline Human Services Council, Inc.

317 Carter Avenue, Suite 100

Denton, MD21629

410-479-4446 (phone)

410-479-4617 (fax)

Website:

Point of Contact – Susan Runnels, Director

Commissioned By:

Caroline, Dorchester, and Kent County

Local Management Boards

August 2015

Table of Contents

TOPIC / PAGE
INTRODUCTION / 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY / 6
CAROLINECOUNTY DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE / 11
CAROLINE COUNTYQUALITY OF LIFE SURVEY RESULTS / 14
HEALTH INDICATORS / 20
Infant Mortality / 21
Low Birth Weight / 22
Births to Adolescents / 23
Early Prenatal Care / 24
Late Prenatal Care / 25
Hospitalizations / 26
Child Deaths / 27
Health Insurance / 28
Obesity / 29
Substance Use – Youth Risk Behavior Survey / 30
Behavioral Health / 32
EDUCATION INDICATORS / 34
Kindergarten Assessment / 35
Kindergarten Readiness Assessment / 38
Maryland School Assessment / 39
High School Assessment / 45
School Attendance / 47
Truancy / 48
Bullying & Harassment / 49
Dropout Rate / 51
Graduation Rate / 52
High School Program Completion / 53
Educational Attainment / 54
Youth Employment / 55
Post Graduation Plans / 56
COMMUNITY/FAMILY STABILITY INDICATORS / 57
Child Maltreatment / 58
Juvenile Intakes/ Nonviolent Offence Referrals / 59
Juvenile Violent Offence Referrals / 60
Juvenile Intake Recidivism / 61
Child Poverty / 62
Out of Home Placement / 63
Hunger/ Food Insecurity / 64
Homelessness / 66
Strategic Plans / 67
Resource/ Asset Mapping

Introduction

Tri-County Community Needs Assessment & Strategic Plans

In January 2015, the Local Management Boards (LMB) for Caroline, Dorchester and Kent Counties collaborated to launch a community needs assessment to compare key data across three counties and Maryland and to gather information about quality of life concerns shared by citizens. A core team consisting of the LMB Directors (Susan Runnels, Nancy Shockley, Rebecca Lepter) and the assessment consultant (Linda R. Walls) worked together to plan the assessment format and timeline. Initially, the assessment was intended as one document with blended information about the three counties. Later it was decided to create three separate documents to highlight each county’s demographics, survey results, strategic plan, and resources.

NEEDS ASSESSMENT FORMAT

Demographic Profile: Each assessment begins with a demographic profile. The profile includes population figures, demographics, school system enrollment, economic information, and characteristics of the county culture.

Executive Summary: A summary of data to indicate the status of children and families in the tri-county area follows the demographic profile. This summary is divided by three theme areas (Health, Education, and Family/Community Environment) and features the key findings from the review of the indicator data.

Indicator (Hard) Data: The Local Management Boards utilized the format recommended by the Maryland Governor’s Office for Children to track progress for indicators pertaining to three child well-being overarching themes and their associated eight result areas as follows:

Theme 1: HEALTH

Result Areas: Babies Born Healthy, Healthy Children

Theme II: EDUCATION

Result Areas: School Readiness, School Success, School Completion, School Transition

Theme III: FAMILY-COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT

Result Areas: Safety, Stability

The Governor’s Office for Children maintains a list of indicators corresponding to each result area for the purpose of describing and reporting the status of children statewide, developing plans to respond in areas where a child’s status might be threatened, and to better understand to what extent the results are being achieved, once strategies have been fully implemented. Indicator data spreadsheets are located on their website (goc.md.gov) for use by local jurisdictions in tracking trends. For several indicators specific to this assessment, the data was supplemented with local information (to examine subgroups) or more contemporary sources. Whatever the source, the data was organized in most cases to provide a three-year look or trend line, from which analysis of progress toward a result area could be achieved.

The indicator data is divided according to the three overarching themes (Health, Education, and Family-Community Environment) and the eight child well-being result areas identified by the Maryland Governor’s Office for Children as being known to affect a child’s ability to grow up healthy and secure. For each result area is there is a set of measures or indicators. An indicator is information and data that helps to demonstrate a county’s progress toward meeting a result. Along with the presentation of the individual indicators for each result area, a trend summary is provided. Information on each indicator page is organized as follows:

Indicator = A brief description of the measure

Data = A title of the data accompanied by a table and/or graph to display the data

Definition = A detailed description of the indicator

Source = The source for the most recent data presented

Significance = A brief discussion of the importance of the indicator and how it relates to child and family well-being

Analysis = A brief explanation of data trends and findings

For the indicator data, there are data sets for the three examined counties and the State of Maryland and for the three most recent years of data available.

Soft Data: In addition to collecting quantifiable or “hard” indicator data, the LMBs chose to gather qualitative or “soft” data to gain a fuller understanding of the story behind child well-being indicator trends. Soft data was collected via an on-line survey titled “The Quality of Life Survey.” The survey consisted of 12 questions asking citizens to identify concerns corresponding to the theme areas of Health, Education, and Community. The timeframe for hard data collection was February to June and for soft data collection was May 2015. More detail about individuals participating in the soft data collection and the key findings is provided under the topic of “Quality of Life Survey Results,” later in this report.

PROCESS

Both the hard data and soft data findings were summarized by the eight result areas and presented to Local Management Board members for consideration during half day retreats held in each county in June. During the retreat, board members reviewed the data, chose data points that seemed particularly significant, then confirmed their desired priority result areas and potential strategies for focus in their county.

The last section of this assessment includes strategic plans developed by the LMB using the Results Accountability framework and a list of local area resources for children and families. This list of assets was prepared by staff at Chesapeake Helps! for inclusion in this document.

It is hoped by the LMB staff and volunteers that public agencies and non-profit organizations are able to use this document to help identify their agency priorities, to justify funding requests, to maximize resources, and to strengthen opportunities for collaboration.

Executive Summary

Results Accountability

The work of the Local Management Boards in Caroline, Dorchester, and Kent County is accomplished using the Results Accountability framework, created by Mark Friedman. This approach focuses planning, decision-making, and resources on desired results and outcomes. Results Accountability identifies a result to achieve, selects indicators that act as progress measures for the result, tells the “story behind the data,” identifies necessary partners and effective strategies, and develops an action plan and resource strategy. When evaluating the effectiveness of programs or services, this approach is used to analyze data through three main questions: How much did we do? How well did we do it? Is anyone better off?

What is a Result?

Maryland focuses on eight results for child well-being. A result is a goal that Maryland has established for its children, families, and/or communities. Each result describes the general well-being of Maryland’s children and families in an area known to affect a child’s ability to grow up healthy and secure. The Local Management Boards in Caroline, Dorchester and Kent Counties annually select 2-3 priority results from the eight Maryland results, depending on issues of greatest need or greatest progress.

What is an Indicator?

Indicators are information and data that demonstrate progress toward meeting a result. Maryland has selected 21 indicators for the eight results. This report for the tri-county region includes 31 indicators and 33 measures (Kindergarten Readiness and Substance Use have two measures). Indicators are most useful in helping stakeholders identify children’s needs and evaluate trends when:

The data come from automated systems, like health or social services records, which are recorded consistently and updated constantly;

The indicator is measured statewide, so that the local county trends can be compared to the state and those of other counties;

The indicators have been measured for many years, which yields an analysis of trends over time that is less susceptible to outliers and fluctuations.

From the trends in indicators and the comparison to the state and between mid-shore counties, we are able to monitor both promising trends and areas needing improvement. From there we can adjust our strategies and/or implement new strategies.

PROMISING TRENDS

Health

Infant mortality rates have decreased dramatically in Dorchester County. In 2008, there were eight infant deaths and in 2009, there were nine infant deaths and recently the number of deaths has been as low as three. The percentage of low birth weight babies in the tri-counties tends to be higher than the Maryland rates, but is improving. Caroline’s percentage dropped considerably between 2012 and 2013. Kent’s peaked in 2012 and Dorchester’s has fluctuated within a 2.2 range from 2011 to 2013. For all three counties, there is a forecasted downward trend. Except in Kent County, births to teens have generally decreased between 2011 and 2013. Kent County has the lowest rate of births to teens ages 15-19 and their rate is below the Maryland average. All three of the counties in the tri-county group are showing a higher percentage of early prenatal care than the Maryland average. The number of hospitalizations for non-fatal child injuries has decreased in Kent County. The percentage of children with health insurance has increased for all jurisdictions examined. For Kent County, the percent of children who are obese dropped from 18.4 in 2010 to 16.1 in 2013. In Dorchester County, tobacco use has declined substantially for Grade 8 and Grade 10 students since 2002. A decline is also (potentially) noted for Grade 12, except between 2013 and 2015. Alcohol use has declined steadily for Grades 8 and 10.

Education

When measuring Kindergarten Readiness, students in Caroline County had the highest percentage of full readiness for the composite assessment, ranging from 91-93%. For the new assessment conducted in 2015, Caroline and Kent Counties consistently achieved better scores than the Maryland average overall and for most subgroups and for three of the four domains. Overall, mid-shore students have improved their Grade 5 MSA reading performance between 2012/2013 and 2014. Caroline is the only county of the three regional counties that is exceeding the state average for MSA Reading Grade 8. Caroline also has the highest percent of students who passed MSA Math Grade 8 (at 62.8%) followed by Maryland at 58.7%. The trend lines for Caroline and Kent County high school students show an upward progression for passing English between 2013 and 2014. Improvements in the percentage of students passing the High School Math Assessment were noted for Caroline and Kent Counties, with both counties achieving results greater than the Maryland average. At the high school level, Caroline, Dorchester, and Kent Counties achieved higher school attendance rates than the 2014 Maryland average. Kent County’s number of bullying and harassment incidents decreased significantly from 99 to 47 during the same time period. Dorchester and Kent’s drop out rates have decreased to below 3.0. Dorchester and Kent, both had higher graduation rates in 2014 than Maryland’s rate. Caroline exceeds the state average in the percent of 16-19 and 20-24 year olds who are employed. Dorchester exceeds the state average for the percent of 20-24 year olds who are employed.

Community

For Dorchester County, the number of referrals to Juvenile Services for nonviolent offences decreased significantly between 2012 and 2014. Caroline and Kent Counties experienced a decline in Juvenile Services referral numbers for nonviolent offences between 2013 and 2014. For Kent County, the number of referrals to Juvenile Services for violent offences decreased significantly between 2012 and 2014. Dorchester County experienced a decline in referral numbers for violent offences between 2013 and 2014. In three of the four jurisdictions (including Maryland), the out-of-home placement rate of entry is on a descending trend. Kent County has the lowest rate of entry for out-of-home placements in the region (at 8.1 in 2014).

AREAS NEEDING IMPROVEMENT

Health

Caroline County experienced an increase in infant deaths in 2012, yielding a rate of 13.6 deaths per 1,000 births, compared to Maryland at 6.3 for the same year. Dorchester has the highest rate of births to teens in the tri-county area where in 2012, nearly half (46.6) of all births were to adolescents. Dorchester had two (2) births to women under age 15 in 2012. Caroline had one (1) in 2011. The three county jurisdictions examined are showing a forecasted upward trend for late or no prenatal care, with Caroline County showing a marked increase. The number of hospitalizations for non-fatal child injuries has increased in Caroline County. Caroline and Dorchester Counties’ child death rates exceed the rates for Kent and Maryland, by a considerable margin. The percentage of children and teens in Caroline County who are obese increased between 2010 from 13.3% to 15% in 2013. The three Eastern Shore Counties had obesity rates far above the Maryland average of 11%. For nearly every county and substance (see shaded areas), high school students from the three counties were using substances and/or practicing substance-related risky behaviors (drinking and driving) at a higher rate than the Maryland averages. Kent County tended to have higher alcohol use rates than the other mid-shore counties (at 38.5%). For most substances other than alcohol, Dorchester students revealed rates greater than Caroline and Kent Counties. In Dorchester County, Marijuana use has shown an increase for Grade 8 and a possible marked increase for Grade 12. Prescription drug use seems to be on the rise for Grades 8 and 12. For nearly all of the behavioral health conditions listed in the Youth Risk Behavior Survey administered in 2013, tri-county high school students self-reported the condition listed in the survey at higher levels than the Maryland average. This was especially true for students who reported that they carried a weapon to school, where the tri-county rate ranged from 20-25%, while Maryland’s rate was just under 5%. The percentage of students who reported feeling sad or hopeless almost every day (for two weeks or more in a row) ranged from 22.9% in Kent County to 27.6% in Caroline County. On average, Maryland students were more likely to make plans for attending a four year college or enter part-time employment and/or school than Caroline, Dorchester, and Kent County students.

Education

Composite kindergarten readiness scores for the three mid-shore counties show declines in the percentage of fully ready students, while Maryland scores (on average) have remained steady between 2012 and 2014. Consistently across the subgroups of African American, FARMS (Free and Reduced Meals), and Head Start (except in Caroline County), the percentage of students fully ready to learn lagged behind the overall population. Reading scores for Grade 3 students decreased across all jurisdictions from 2012 to 2014. Compared to Maryland, mid-shore Grade 3 students are not reaching the same performance level. Kent’s percentage of students passing the Reading MSA decreased by over 20% between 2013 and 2014. With the exception of Dorchester County, the other jurisdictions are trending downward for Grade 8 MSA Reading performance. For the three mid-shore counties and Maryland, the percentage of students who achieved proficient or advanced scores on their Grade 3 Math assessment decreased from 2012 to 2014. The forecast shows a continued decline in scores for all jurisdictions. A downward trend in the percent of students who achieved a Proficient or Advanced score on their Grade 5 Math assessment is noted for all jurisdictions. Caroline County has demonstrated a 22% drop in the percentage of students passing. Grade 8 Math scores for the three counties and Maryland have dropped significantly. For Caroline County, the decrease is 25% between 2013 and 2014. Comparing the three jurisdictions, Dorchester has the lowest percent of students passing the High School English Assessment, but there was a slight improvement from 2012 to 2013. Dorchester’s percentage of students who passed the High School Math Assessment, declined slightly from 2013 to 2014. When compared to Maryland averages, school attendance for the tri-county elementary and middle school students is slightly lower and this trend has been consistent from 2012-2014. All three mid-shore counties had truancy rates higher than the Maryland rate. Students in Caroline, Kent, and Dorchester County reported higher rates of bullying, when compared to Maryland. Caroline County has experienced a marked increase in the incidents of bullying and harassment between 2011 and 2013. Caroline County’s dropout rate has crept upward. Caroline and Dorchester Counties have significantly lower percentages of residents ages 25 and above with a high school diploma or a Bachelor’s degree, compared to the Maryland average.