NJ Kids Rank High For Well-Being In Nationwide Study

NEW JERSEY - New Jersey ranks seventh overall across the nation in the 2025 Kids Count Data Book — a study done by the Annie E. Casey Foundation that measures children in multiple categories, including health and eduction.

The following four indicators were assessed in the study: Economic Well-Being, Education, Health and "Family and Community." The KIDS COUNT Data Center draws from national resources, and more than 50 KIDS COUNT state organizations that provide state and local data, as well as publications providing insights into trends affecting child and family well-being.

The Garden State came out second in education and sixth in health, but fell to the middle for economic well-being and a collection of family and community factors. Across the country, seven of the 16 key indicators used across those four categories showed improvement since 2019, with six getting worse and another three staying stagnant.

“Our annual budget is a reflection of our values and, here in New Jersey, we value a quality education for every student,” said Governor Phil Murphy in a recent announcement regarding school budgets for 2026. “The funding we provide to support school communities translates to stronger, safer, and more dynamic learning environments. We remain committed to working in close collaboration with local school districts to provide our students with the opportunities they need to succeed and to help build a stronger, fairer New Jersey.”

In New Jersey and the United States as a whole, the Casey Foundation study attributes the signs of progress to the following factors:

• reductions in child poverty and the number of children living in high-poverty areas;
• fewer teen births;
• more children with health insurance;
• increases in secure parental employment and parental education; and
• a rise in on-time high school graduation."

In 2023, only 5 percent of children in the United States did not have health insurance. While education saw the biggest decline among the four categories on a national scale, high school graduation rates are continuing to rise.

Rooms For Growth (According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation)

"We know what helps kids thrive: stable homes, strong schools, nutritious food, supportive relationships and real opportunities to learn and grow. These aren’t luxuries, they’re basic needs, shared by all children in all communities, and meeting them is a shared responsibility. We need action at every level — backed by data, shaped by what families say they need and committed to ensuring that all young people have the chance to succeed."

The Annie E. Casey Foundation is a private philantrhopic group based in Baltimore that makes grants to develop a brighter future or children and families in the areas of educational, economic, social and health factors. The Casey Foundation says their work helps federal agencies, states, counties, cities and neighborhoods create more efficient and cost-effect respones to challenges facing children.
"Kids Count" is its initiative that strives to give legislators, public officials and child advocates reliable data, policy recommendations and tools to better the lives of children.

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