Mississippi has improved its ranking in education, according to the latest KIDS COUNT Data Book released Monday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The state now ranks 16th nationally in education, up from a lower position, despite being 50th overall across four domains of child well-being.
The 37th edition of the report introduces a new scoring system that evaluates child well-being across 16 indicators in four categories: economic well-being, education, health, and family and community. Each state receives a score from 0 to 1,000, based on data mostly from 2024, with a baseline from 2019 to measure progress over time.
According to the report, Mississippi improved by 17 points in education, thanks to investments in literacy, teacher training, and early childhood programs. The state ranks 16th nationally in education despite increases in children aged 3 and 4 not attending school and more eighth graders failing math assessments.
However, Mississippi continues to face significant challenges in health and economic stability. The state ranked 50th in health and 49th in economic well-being, with increases in low birth weight infants, child and teen deaths, and obesity rates among children and teens. The report also noted that children living in households with high housing costs and those in households with insecure employment faced worsening conditions.
In the family and community category, Mississippi ranked 49th but showed improvements across all measured indicators, including rates of children in single-parent homes and teen birth rates. Overall, 29 states experienced declines in child well-being since 2019, while 15 states saw improvements, according to the report.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
