When childhood ends: Nevada youths at high risk, national study finds

By Camalot Todd

Monday, June 12, 2017 | 2 a.m.

In terms of harmful disruptions during the average childhood, the United States ranks 36th out of 172 countries, falling between Bosnia and Russia and lagging well behind France, Norway, the United Kingdom, Lithuania and Greece — some of which have experienced far more economic instability and a slower recovery from the recession than the U.S.

Domestically, Nevada is among the bottom 10 states (No. 42) where childhood is most threatened, according to Save the Children’s 2017 End of Childhood Report.

“Every child deserves a childhood,” said Rich Bland, Save the Children’s national director of policy and advocacy, adding that conditions for the youngest and most vulnerable citizens determines our larger outlook. “Kids are 25 percent of the population and 100 percent of the future. (And) there are gaping holes in society’s safety net.”

The report compares states across five societal problems — infant mortality, child suicide/homicide, child food insecurity, adolescent motherhood and failure to graduate from high school. Nevada ranks in the bottom half for four of these indicators.

Bland said there were moral and economic cases for investing significantly in improving outcomes. His moral argument is that society — that humanity — owes children the best it has to give. Regarding economics, he connected the dots between low-achieving individuals and the ability of a nation or a state to compete.

“Nevada cannot afford to not invest in its children,” Bland said.

No. 15 for infant mortality

This ranking was the outlier for Nevada, where 5.2 infants die per 1,000 births.

Another report that measures infant mortality, America’s Health Rankings, found that higher rates across the country were “driven by low socioeconomic status” and that improving access to prenatal care and encouraging reductions in maternal smoking and drinking were key strategies.

No. 33 for suicides/homicides of those 19 or younger

Statistics generally point to poverty as a major threat to child welfare and healthy development. And lack of opportunity can occur in clusters within a community, amplifying the effects.

“Your childhood depends on the ZIP code you’re born in,” Bland asserted.

For those without homes, outcomes are worse, and tendencies toward substance abuse and criminal behavior increase. This is a concern in Nevada, which has the highest rate of unsheltered homeless youth, according to the 2016 Homeless Assessment Report to Congress.

Such factors lead to life circumstances that can contribute to rates of children losing their lives.

No.38 for adolescent pregnancy

This metric ties back into Nevada’s education problem. Those without access to early childhood education are 40 precent more likely to become teen parents, according to the report.

No.39 for Childhood malnutrition and food instability

In Nevada, nearly 1 in 4 children grows up in food-insecure households, compared with about 1 in 5 nationally, Save the Children’s Richard Bland said.

In the Clark County School District, more than 205,000 students are receive free or

No.49 for high school dropout rate

About 30 percent of Nevada students leave high school without completing requirements to graduate.

“We know how to solve dropouts,” Bland said.“Early childhood education and after-school programs are two of the best ways.”

Youths without access to early childhood education are 25 percent more likely to drop out of high school, 60 percent more likely to never attend college and 70 percent more likely to be arrested for a violent crime or become victims of a violent crime, according to Save the Children’s “Early Childhood Education in the U.S.” report.

A snapshot of Southern Nevada’s most vulnerable youth

In examining routes to improving outcomes for all children in Nevada, those in foster care deserve special attention. A subset of that group is so traumatized that private agencies are the best chance for recovery, and there are several that work in conjunction with Clark County’s Department of Family Services (DFS).

“These are worst-case scenarios. We’re dealing with a lot of children you see in news stories,” said Michael Flynn, director of operations for private agency Bamboo Sunrise.

The foster care facility specializes in addressing the trauma endured by many foster youths, often due to abandonment, homelessness and witnessing or being subjected to violence and addiction.

“Trauma-informed care doesn’t ask why a child is doing what they’re doing, but what pushed the child to the point to act the way they’re acting,” Flynn said. “How can we resolve that trauma so the child can have a better outcome?”

Flynn said unaddressed emotions are what cause foster children to ‘blow up’ in placements with parents who may decide they can’t handle it, plunging the youth into a cycle of rootlessness and lack of support.

Success stories depend on resources, Flynn said. Agencies like Bamboo Sunrise depend on funding from both county and state sources, including DFS and Medicaid.

This month, a proposed change in Medicaid policy threatened to close the few specialized foster care agencies in the area. After a postponement, the agencies will continue to operate at least until September.