Just Starting Out and Already Behind:
Newark Babies Face Harmful Poverty, Other Risks

More than 150 people attended the release of Newark Kids Count yesterday. This year’s report focused on the needs of very young children in New Jersey’s largest city. The report found that at the time of life when strong families, healthy starts and positive learning environments are most important, Newark’s youngest children face daunting odds that can damage their development..

Read the news release.
Read the report.
View event pics.

Booker, Facebook Fund Respond to Newark Kids Count

“Saying Newark is in a state of “crisis” because it is “losing its children,” Mayor Cory Booker responded to ACNJ’s Kids Count report with a plan to get Newark children off to a strong start, prenatally and through their first three years. At the same time, the Foundation for Newark’s Future promised a $250,000 seed grant to jump-start action and challenged other foundations to match those funds.

ACNJ Executive Director will lead efforts to create the mayor’s Early Childhood Council with a specific charge and measurable outcomes within the next month.

Read more on Booker’s response to the report.

A Strong Support System Helps Parent Succeed

After escaping an abusive relationship, Laura Medina returned to her home state of New Jersey, with a resolve to start fresh and build a new life for herself and her two small children – a daughter, then age seven months, and a son, age 2.

Healthy Families, a home visitation service operated by the VNA Health Group, gave her the support she needed to succeed, Medina said at the release of Newark Kids Count.  Today, she has an associate’s degree, is working on her bachelor’s degree, is employed in the education field and plans to become a teacher and buy her own home.

Read Laura’s story.

Register today for ACNJ’s first Newark Kids Count Forum!

ACNJ’s invites you to join us on Wednesday, March 13, from 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m., as we delve deeper into the 2013 Newark Kids Count data. We will engage in an important in-depth conversation about issues facing Newark’s children, with a special focus on helping Newark’s youngest children get off to the right start.  Your input from the day’s events will be used to help inform the priorities of the Mayor’s newly-created Early Childhood Policy Council.  Lunch will be provided.

Register online for this free forum to be held at Rutgers’s University, Newark. Space is limited.