Monmouth County Ranks 4th in Child Health and Education; among Top 10 for Economic Well‐ Being and Safety

Monmouth County ranked fourth for both child health and education among all 21 counties but was
ninth in the area of child and family economics, according to the annual New Jersey Kids Count county
profiles and pocket guide released today.

View County Profiles and Ranking

View pocket guide, New Jersey Kids Count 2017: The State of Our Counties

(county-by-county trend data on 40 indicators of child health and well-being)

As New Jersey elects a new governor and legislature this fall, ACNJ encourages voters to use the data proactively and engage with candidates to make kids' issues a part of the conversation. To learn more about the #NJVotes4Kids campaign, please visit njvotes4kids.org.

The rankings, which compare counties on 12 measures of child well‐being, and across four domains –
economics, health, safety and well‐being, and education – provide a closer look at how children are
faring in various parts of the state, often revealing a range of outcomes depending on where they live.
The pocket guide, NJ Kids Count 2017: The State of Our Counties provides county‐by‐county child trend
data across 40 measures of child well‐being.

“Some counties have seen encouraging progress, but the reality is that more than half of Monmouth
County households spend 30 percent or more of their income on rent,” said Cecilia Zalkind, president
and CEO of Advocates for Children New Jersey, which produces the state Kids Count reports.
“From increasing lead testing for young children to addressing child hunger with school breakfast,
community leaders can use the data to recognize areas of concern and target resources to improve the
lives of children in their county.”

Monmouth County Ranks:
Ninth in Child and Family Economics: For the 138,000 children that call Monmouth County home, 10
percent live in poverty, compared to the state average of 16 percent. Unemployment is 4.4 percent,
compared to New Jersey’s 5 percent. Monmouth County ranks 14th in rent burdened households with
52 percent paying more than 30 percent of their income on rent.

Fourth in Child Health: About 17 percent of Monmouth County children under age 6 received a blood
lead test in 2015, placing the county 11th overall on this measure. The percentage of kids without health
insurance is 2.7 percent, well below the state’s average of 3.7.

Seventh in Safety and Well‐Being: The percentage of teens not in school and not working, sometimes
referred to as idle or disconnected youth, is 4 percent, which is lower than the state average of 6
percent. In addition, 7.7 percent of reported cases of child abuse or neglect were substantiated or
established in 2015, down from 9.5 in 2011. Monmouth County also saw a decrease in juvenile arrest
rates from 18.1 arrests per 1,000 in 2011 to 11.1 in 2015.

Fourth in Education: Monmouth’s high school graduation rate is at 94 percent, the fourth highest in the
state. Forty‐one percent of low‐income Monmouth County students start the day with school breakfast,
placing the county 12th on this indicator. In addition, 9 percent of students are chronically absent,
meaning they miss 10 percent or more of enrolled school days.

In addition to the county rankings, Advocates for Children of New Jersey also released New Jersey Kids
Count 2017: The State of Our Children, in May, which provides state‐level data in all areas of child well‐
being.

To read the reports, visit www.acnj.org.
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KIDS COUNT is a national and state‐by‐state statistical effort to track the state of children in the United
States, sponsored by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Advocates for Children of New Jersey is a statewide
child research and action organization and the New Jersey Kids Count grantee.