NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth released its 2023 County Profiles of Child Well-Being in Tennessee on Tuesday. Out of 95 counties, Knox County ranked 20th in overall child well-being.
According to TCCY, each profile takes into account 52 indicators in areas affecting child development. This includes economic well-being, education, health, family and community.
The commission said that each profile provides an analysis of the county's strengths and weaknesses as well as policy recommendations.
Notable findings for Knox County included:
- Knox County ranked 5th for children living in poverty with 12.6%. It's an improvement over last year when Knox County ranked 8th, and well below the state's average of 18.4%.
- Knox County saw a drop in both reading and math proficiency among 3rd to 8th-grade students. The county dropped from 11th to 14th for reading and 40th to 45th for math from last year.
- The county also saw a dip in high schoolers graduating on time at 89.7%. Knox County dropped in rank from 74th to 79th. Across the state, that rate was 89.9%.
- Knox County was 8th in the state when it came to food insecurity. The county rate of children suffering from food insecurity was 8.3%, which was below the state's average of 12.8%.
- The commission also noted Knox County saw a 10.4% increase in chronically absent children. Knox County dropped from 70th to 80th ranked in the state.
The commission noted child health was Knox County's greatest strength -- ranking 2nd across all of Tennessee.
The report said Knox County's greatest challenges were chronic absenteeism among students, lower high school graduation rates, and households experiencing severe housing cost burdens.
TCCY recommended early warning prevention and intervention among students before their absences become chronic. The commission also recommended pro-housing policies to ensure affordable housing for families in Knox County to deal with high housing costs.
Among Tennessee's most populous counties of Davidson, Shelby, Knox, Hamilton and Rutherford counties -- Knox and Rutherford were the highest ranked. Shelby and Davidson counties were among the lowest-ranked counties in the state for child well-being, and Hamilton County fell in the middle of the pack.
TCCY said in its report that counties ranked in the top 10 were Williamson, Wilson, Sumner, Rutherford, Blount, Moore, Weakley, Cheatham, Smith and Decatur.
The lowest-ranked counties in the report were Lake, Haywood, Shelby, Hancock, Hardeman, Lauderdale, Madison, Davidson, Campbell and Grainger.