Tennessee ranks 37th for child well-being, according to the 2025 Kids Count Data Book, released Monday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The 50-state report analyzes recent data on how kids across the country are faring in four categories: economic well-being, education, health, and community and family. The report found improvements in education and some challenges in other categories. Comments from Grace Baron, director of external relations, The Sycamore Institute; and Leslie Boissiere (boss-EE-air), vice president for external affairs, Annie E. Casey Foundation…

This year’s report ranks Tennessee 35th in economic well-being. The state did see improvements in family and community, and the number of children living in high-poverty areas and children in single-parent families decreased.

Baron says Tennessee’s rankings slipped for several key health measures reaching a 14-year low. She points out Tennessee is 41st place for child health, with mental health a key concern. She adds that recent data from her group shows that Tennessee's youths are faring better in their mental health than a lot of other states...

Baron adds Sycamore's work led to a new state law aimed at improving coordination among nine agencies overseeing children's mental health to boost outcomes for Tennessee kids.

Leslie Boissiere with the Casey Foundation says federal lawmakers are debating the future scope of safety-net programs such as Medicaid and SNAP, with those decisions likely to impact state budgets. Boissiere says she hopes the unbiased data in this report gets a strong look ahead of any final moves….

Boissiere emphasizes the importance of recognizing ongoing racial disparities in child well-being, noting that Native American children fall below the national average on 15 of 16 indicators, while Black children lag on 8 of the 16 measures. She says those results are similar for Latino children.