Last Thursday, NCLR held its first-ever live Twitter chat! We talked with Nayda Rivera-Hernandez, a NCLR senior research analyst and the author of the 2011 KIDS COUNT Data Book–Puerto Rico report. You can follow Nayda @nayda4prkids on Twitter. NCLR publishes the Puerto Rico report with generous support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
This year, the report showed that kids in Puerto Rico are much worse off than kids in the mainland United States. You can read the report here, or check out our blog post, where you will find some handy tools to help you navigate the entire KIDS COUNT Data Book.
And, don’t forget to follow @NCLR on Twitter and “Like” our page on Facebook!
Finally, if you want to learn more about the entire KIDS COUNT report, join the Annie E. Casey Foundation tomorrow at 2:30 EDT. The foundation will be also be hosting a live chat about the report, with a focus on the recession’s impact on children. You can use the hashtag #KCChat to join the conversation.
@NCLR: Hello and Welcome to NCLR's Live Twitter chat on the 2011 KIDS Count Databook-Puerto Rico. #KCDATA11.
@NCLR: Our guest today is @nayda4prkids, Senior Research Analyst here at NCLR & the author of the KIDS Count Databook for Puerto Rico #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: Hello everyone and thank you for your interest on #KCDATA11
@NCLR: Thanks for being here @nayda4prkids. 1st q: Can you tell us a little about some of the most striking findings from the report? #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: 1 of the most striking findings of report is that PR children are faring worse than any other state jurisdiction #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: 4 Ex. PR has the highest rates of low birth weight babies (12.5%), teens not attending school and not working (15%) #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: children without secure parental employment (52%), and children in single-parent families (54%) of all states in the US #KCDATA11
@NCLR: 2nd q from @HealthyKara: What are some of the health indicators for kids in Puerto Rico? #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: Health indicators on this report are low birth weight babies, infant, child, & teen deaths, & teen births #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: Another health concern is that PR still faces high rates of premature births which can lead more problems in the long run #KCDATA11
@NCLR: Next q from @aecfkidscount: How well do U think the US poverty lvl measures economic stress for children in PR? #KCData11
@nayda4prkids: More than half (57%) of the children in Puerto Rico live in poverty. This is almost three times the rate in the US #KCDATA11
@NCLR: The next q comes from @Hepburnisms: Is any work being done by US & PR government to better these numbers/lives? #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: We r thrilled teen birth rates have decreased & hope that this research helps US & PR gov direct resources to effective programs #KCDATA11
@NCLR: Next q from @4aNewAmerica: why are PR #kids #poverty rates so high? #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: It's hard to pinpoint the exact reason, but we know that more than 1/2 of PR's kids have parents who do not have full time jobs #KCDATA11
@NCLR: Next q from @aecfkidscount: Does 57% child #poverty rate accurately portray child econ stress on PR? #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: Yes, the poverty rate calculated by American Community Survey is the only available & reliable economic measure to date in PR. #KCDATA11
@NCLR: Alright, folks. Thx to everyone who participated today & thx @nayda4prkids for joining. For more info, visit: http://ow.ly/6cQGP #KCDATA11
@nayda4prkids: Thank you for your questions & interest to improve PR children's lives. #KCDATA11