Poverty, Quality of Life and Child Development Data for Kalamazoo Prepared by Tim Ready Director, Walker Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnic Relations Western Michigan University September 26, 2016
1.What should be done short-term and long-term? 2.How should an effort be organized? 3.Who is accountable? 4.How can the effort be sustained? 5.How can impact be assured and measured? History The idea of creating a Kalamazoo County Poverty Reduction Initiative began after the November 2001 Kalamazoo city elections sparked a heated debate about a proposed living wage ordinance. Although the proposed ordinance was defeated, the campaign raised community awareness about the prevalence of poverty and the need to address this issue in a comprehensive and focused manner with clear lines of accountability. A group of concerned individuals and 14 organizations, including the Community Task Force on Poverty and the Coalition for a Living Wage, came together with the Kalamazoo Regional Chamber of Commerce for the purpose of taking measures to address the issue of poverty. The resultant joint effort raised significant questions about:
Meanwhile, 15 years later...here we are asking ourselves the same questions, as Kalamazoo s poverty and inequality have gotten worse and our quality of life indicators and youth development outcomes have barely budged.
Poverty Trends 2000 to 2014* Note that the latest poverty data for Kalamazoo from the 2015 American Community Survey show some improvement over, 2014, consistent with national trends. However, over the past several years, Kalamazoo has consistently had higher rates of poverty than about 90% of cities in the US.
Kalamazoo Residents in Poverty: Total and by Race, 2000 to 2014 50% 45% 47% 47% 44% 40% 40% 39% 39% 35% 30% 33% 33% 32% 34% 32% 36% 33% 25% 24% 26% 25% 27% 20% 20% 15% 10% all persons white all black all 5% 0% 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016
80% Kalamazoo Kids in Poverty: Total and by Race: 2000 to 2014 70% all kids white kids black kids 74% 60% 50% 53% 54% 53% 47% 57% 40% 41% 41% 37% 38% 39% 30% 20% 27% 32% 27% 23% 10% 14% 15% 9% 0% 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016
Percent of Children in Poverty for City Census s, 2000 and 2008-12 Percent 90 80 81 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 65 30.1 1 43.2 37.7 36 2.01 2.02 53 54 41.5 34.8 35.1 36 3 5 6 64 35.8 9 67 30 21.8 23.9 10 11 4 2 12 14.6 9 14.01 57.1 15.04 20.4 9 15.06 66 45.3 15.07 36 34 35 40 18 12 13.9 10.5 7.5 7.8 16.01 16.03 16.04 17.01 17.02 17 11 9.4 18.01 24 18.02
Access to Well-Paying Jobs (Following is one chart among many important facts that could be assembled)
60% Poverty Rate of Kalamazoo Adults by Work Status, 2014 53% 50% 40% 67% of Kalamazoo adults In poverty in 2014 worked. 11,956* 41% 30% 6,500* 20% 10% 7% 0% 1,303* Full-Time Part-Time did not work * Number of individuals in poverty.
100% 90% 4% 5% 3% 5% Percent of All Persons 16 and Older in Kalamazoo who Are Poor by Work Status 9% 12% 5% 6% 7% 7% 11% 80% 70% 26% 35% 31% 31% 38% 30% 45% 38% 41% 33% 37% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 71% 59% 66% 64% 53% 58% 50% 56% 52% 61% 52% 10% 0% 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Part-Time None Full-Time
60% poverty rate by work experience for Kalamazoo Residents, 16 and Older 50% 48% 54% 49% 47% 45% 53% 46% 45% 45% 53% 45% 40% 42% 40% 42% 42% 38% 42% 41% 40% 34% 36% 30% 30% 20% 13% 9% 9% 6% 6% 6% 7% 7% 5% 3% 4% 10% 0% 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Full-Time Part-Time None
Youth Development
100% Third Graders in Kalamazoo and Statewide who are Proficient in Reading by Economic Status*, 2009-10 to 2013-14 90% 88% 80% 70% 81% 78% 79% 77% 76% 80% 81% 76% 60% 50% 40% 30% 52% 54% 50% 47% 49% 47% 48% 42% 39% 35% 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 * In 2013-14, 74% of KPS third graders * were economically disadvantaged, compared to 51% statewide. Kalamazoo Disadvantaged State Disadvantaged Kalamazoo Not Disadvantaged State Not Disadvantaged
Figure 3. Progression of Cohort of First-time Ninth Graders through High School to Attainment of Any Postsecondary Credential, Six or More Years after Graduation, for Kalamazoo High School Classes of 2006-2008 1200 1118 1000 800 992 100% 811 82% 100% 702 9th grade cohorts for graduating classes of 2006-08 high school graduates, 2006-08 Earned any post-secondary credential 600 400 443 45% 63% 200 0 151 148 84 13% 100% 57% white black Hispanic 21 14% Ninth grade enrollment data from Michigan Department of Education. High school and post-secondary completion data from the Kalamazoo Promise. Data compiled by T. Ready from mischooldata.org and from the Kalamazoo Promise, 2015
Strong, Economically Secure Families
45% 40% Family Poverty Rate by the Number of Workers in Family, 2014 39% 41% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% none one two three + 3% 0%
Number and Percent* of Kalamazoo Families in Poverty by Number of Workers in the Family, 2014 Three +, 15, 1% Two, 425, 14% Zero, 974, 33% One, 1533, 52% Percentages in pie chart refer to the percent of all Number of Families in Poverty: 2,947 (23% of all families) families in poverty. Number of Families with Children in Poverty: 2,354 (36% of all families with children)
* Rate per 1,000 Source: Child Protective Services, Michigan Dept. of Human Services, as reported by Michigan League for Public Policy Confirmed Cases of Abuse and/or Neglect*, Ages 0 to 8, for Michigan Urban Counties, 2013 45 42 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 35 29 28 23 21 19 16 14 11 9 5 0
Arrest Rate per 1,000 Juveniles, 2012, for Kalamazoo and Statewide 80 70 60 50 40 73 39 Kalamazoo Statewilde 30 25 20 10 17 14 13 0 All Black White
Violent Crime in Kalamazoo* Kalamazoo consistently is above the 90 th percentile for violent crime among Michigan cities. In 2010, there were 1,005 violent crimes per 100,000 residents, placing Kalamazoo s among the highest crime rates in the state for homicide, robbery, aggravated assault and rape. * Source: Uniform Crime Reports of the FBI, as compiled by the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety.
Kalamazoo Poverty in National Perspective 2014 data
All Residents 92 nd Percentile All Families with children in poverty 2,354 or 36% of all Kalamazoo families with children are in poverty Only 44 of 564 cities of at least 65,000 people have higher poverty rates for families with children 98 th Percentile All Individuals in Poverty 2,4695 or 36% of all residents of Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 12 of 484 US cities of at least 65,000 higher poverty rates for individuals 90 th Percentile All Children in Poverty 1,799 or 40% of all children in Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 55 of 584 US cities of at least 65,000 have higher child poverty
Black Residents 72 nd Percentile Black Families with Children in Poverty 1,257 or 45% of black families with children in Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 70 of 253 cities of at least 65,000 and sizeable black populations have higher poverty rates for black families with children 92 nd Percentile Black Individuals in Poverty 7,126 or 44% of all black residents of Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 18 of 224 cities with at least 15,000 black residents have higher poverty rates for black individuals 85 th Percentile Black Children in Poverty 2,395 or 57% of black children in Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 33 of 224 US cities with at least 15,000 black residents have higher poverty rates for black children
White Residents 95 th PercentileWhite (not Hispanic) Families with Children in poverty Family 1,012 or 28% of non-hispanic white families with children are in poverty Only 26 of 516 US cities of at least 65,000 have higher poverty rates for non-hispanic white families than Kalamazoo 99 th PercentileWhite (not Hispanic) Individuals in Poverty 13,898 or 33% of non-hispanic white residents of Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 5 of 570 cities of at least 65,000 have higher poverty rates for non-hispanic white individuals 87 th PercentileWhite (not Hispanic) Children in Poverty 1,421 or 23% of non-hispanic white children in Kalamazoo are in poverty Only 75 of 570 cities of at least 65,000 people have a higher percentage of non- Hispanic white children in poverty