Politics & Government
NOLA Office Of Youth And Families Releases New Tools To Track Child Well-Being
Although all of the data was collected pre-COVID, officials say it provides an important baseline against which to measure future growth.
October 5, 2020
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NEW ORLEANS — The Mayor's Office of Youth and Families, in partnership with the Children and Youth Planning Board (CYPB), New Orleans Youth Alliance (NOYA), and the Children’s Funding Project, released a suite of resources that describe how children are faring in New Orleans and what financial investments are being made to improve child well-being.
The toolkit was developed to help members of the public, policy makers, advocates and community-based organizations develop a common understanding of the critical challenges and opportunities facing young people in the city. Although all of the data contained in the project was collected pre-COVID, it provides an important baseline against which to measure future progress.
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New Orleans is second in the country to produce a toolkit this extensive. The project consists of three separate tools: 1) a child well-being index and a youth data dashboard that describe how kids are faring across health, economic security and education variables; 2) a fiscal map categorizing every dollar the City spends on children and youth from birth through age 24; and 3) a community resource map that inventories programs and services across the city.
“With these tools, we now have the ability to delve into the dynamic factors shaping youth opportunity and compare that across neighborhoods. For the first time ever, we can also tie our financial investments in children and youth to tangible outcomes,” said Emily Wolff, Director, Office of Youth and Families. “As New Orleans recovers from COVID-19, these tools will help us understand where we need to focus our investments and supports to ensure children and families thrive.”
“New Orleans has been doing critical data work to examine how kids are faring at the neighborhood level and to understand how city resources are being deployed to help,” said Elizabeth Gaines, Executive Director of Children's Funding Project. “Believe it or not, they are one of the only cities in the nation with this level of data. It's time for cities to dissect their budgets to ensure that they represent the values of the people, and New Orleans is leading the way.”
“The New Orleans Youth Alliance is excited to contribute to this project through the development of the Youth Well Being Data Dashboard,” said Rashida Govan, Executive Director of the New Orleans Youth Alliance. “The Dashboard provides data on 30+ indicators or youth well-being for various youth subgroups, that should help the community to get a stronger sense of how all of our children are really doing in New Orleans. We aim to provide community stakeholders with the type of information that can help them to better target their advocacy and interventions to address the needs of our children.”
This data toolkit serves as a springboard for conversations taking place through the youth master planning process — which is bringing together young people, parents, educators, community leaders, and other key stakeholders to set the stage for all children and youth to achieve their full potential. The plan will cover the next 10 years (2020-2030) and it will include all the sectors of our community that have responsibility for improving the future of children and youth, birth to 24 years, across Orleans Parish.
“The New Orleans Youth Master Plan will build action strategies intended to help the children and youth of the city succeed,” said Karen Evans, Executive Director of the New Orleans Children and Youth Planning Board (CYPB). These data tools will directly inform where the action strategies are most needed and what levels of investment must be paired with action strategies to achieve results. This toolkit demonstrates the power of informed, intentional investing in youth, planning in partnership with youth leaders, and delivering the supported actions to build the paths for greater youth success.
About Children’s Funding Project
Children's Funding Project is a social impact organization that uses strategic financing to close equity and opportunity gaps for children. They provide research, coaching, and facilitation to state and local leaders on leveraging existing funding, generating new revenue, and administering funds. Founded in 2018 by Elizabeth Gaines, one of the country's leading experts on child and youth financing, Children's Funding Project is a nonprofit based in Washington, DC.
About Children and Youth Planning Board
The Children and Youth Planning Board (CYPB) is a planning board made up of 11 to 25 thoughtful, committed members; a Youth Advisory Board of 15 to 25 members; and two staff members who plan and move together to deliver change that improves outcomes for children and youth in Orleans Parish.
About New Orleans Youth Alliance
The New Orleans Youth Alliance (NOYA) is the youth development intermediary for the Greater New Orleans area. NOYA works to cultivate a system of high-quality, well-resourced youth development organizations that center youth leadership and racial equity in their work with young people. NOYA achieves its mission through three key areas of service: program quality and professional development, policy and advocacy, and organizational effectiveness.
View the NOLA Kids Data Book here: https://nola.gov/office-of-youth-and-families/nola-kids-data-book/
View NOYA’s Youth Well-Being Dashboard here: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5a5fb5adb1ffb6cb741dbee5/t/5f2dc0d9ba32c5488ebc8b30/1596834048510/New+Orleans+Youth+Well-Being+Data+Dashboard.pdf
This press release was produced by the City of New Orleans. The views expressed are the author's own.