Dear residents of Northwest Louisiana - Step Forward · 2019-04-22 · 2 Dear residents of Northwest Louisiana: Things are not always what they appear to be. The truth can be blurred

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DearresidentsofNorthwestLouisiana:

Thingsarenotalwayswhattheyappeartobe.

Thetruthcanbeblurredbythingslikeone-sidedperspectives,viralposts,orsimplyalackofinformation.Makingdecisionsbasedonsuchillusionsnotonlywastestimeandresourcesbutcanhavecatastrophicresults.

AtStepForward,weaspiretoknowandsharethetruthaboutthewell-beingofourchildrenandourcommunity.Wedothisthroughcarefulanalysisofreliableandpublicly-availabledataindicators.Theresultofthisfact-findingeffortisourannuallyupdatedReporttotheCommunity.

TheReporttotheCommunityisourgifttoeverycitizeninNorthwestLouisiana,particularlythosewhoarechargedwithpublicservicethroughtheireffortstocreateandmaintainahealthycommunityforall.Thisunprecedentedreportservesasaguideforpolicy-makers,publicservants,businessleaders,andotherdecision-makerstobetterunderstandtheneedsofourneighbors.

Whenweexaminethesecriticalindicatorswithoutbias,wefindsomeverygoodnews.Forexample,inthefallof2018,kindergartenreadinessratesforNorthwestLouisianaimprovedforthefirsttimeinfiveyears.Inonehigh-povertyschool,thenumberofkindergartenersmeetingbenchmarkreadinessstandardsmorethandoubledintwoyears,withagrowthrateof133%.Similarly,thenumberofthreeandfour-yearoldchildrenenrolledinpreschoolprogramsincreased,asdidthequalityratingsofthoseprograms.Theseearlyindicatorsrepresentrealandsubstantivehopeforcommunity-widechange.

Nobel-prizewinningeconomistJamesHeckmanwouldagree,ashestates,“communitiesreapa13%annualreturnbyinvestinginpositiveearlyexperiencesfordisadvantagedchildren.”

Thosedisadvantagescanincludepoverty,abuse,andothertypesofadversechildhoodexperiences,allofwhichcanrepresentrealroadblocksforlifesuccess.Sadly,datafromthe2019reportsuggeststhatadversityremainsaconcernformanychildren,withtherateofpovertyforchildrenunderagesixnowat36percentinNorthwestLouisiana.Researchtellsusthatchildreninpovertyareatriskforpooroutcomes.

However,householdincomedoesnotdefineachild’spotential.Thegoodnewsaboveprovidesclearevidencethatthechallengesofpovertycanandwillbeovercomebyqualityearlyexperiences.Byclearlydefiningtheproblemthroughdata,communityleadersarenotonlyworkingtochangenegativetrends;theyaresucceeding.Withtherightsupports,theskyisthelimitforeverychild.

Preparationforlifesuccessstartsonthefirstdayoflifeanditcanbeaccomplishedregardlessofafamily’sfinancialcircumstances.Startingschoolreadytolearnwillresultinmorechildrenreadingproficiently,morechildrengraduatingontime,andmoreyoungadultsreadyforsustainable,living-wagejobs.

Thingsarenotalwayswhattheyappeartobe.TofindoutmoreabouthowchildrenandyoungadultsaredoinginNorthwestLouisiana,pleasetakethetimetoreviewourfullreport.Ratherthanguessingatthetruth,let’susethisreliabledatatolearnexactlywhereweneedimprovement.Finally,let’stakethetimetodevelopsolutionstoimprovethoseoutcomes,sothateverychildcansucceed.

Gratefully,

LauraAlderman,ExecutiveDirectorStepForward

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STEPFORWARDBOARDOFDIRECTORS

Ms.WaynetteBallengeeCommunityVolunteer

BishopLarryBrandon

Pastor,PraiseTempleFullGospelBaptistChurch

Mr.JohnDean,PresidentPartnerofCounsel,Heard,McElroyandVestal

Dr.JanaDeBenedetti

Rabbi,B’naiZionCongregation

Dr.ToyaGraham,VicePresidentExecutiveDirector,TheBeairdFamilyFoundation

Ms.KristiGustavson–exofficio

ExecutiveDirector,TheCommunityFoundationofNorthLouisiana

Ms.CherylMcGowenRetiredEducator

Mr.KyleMcInnis

Attorney,AndersonFeazelManagement,Inc.

Mr.JohnPeakRetiredPresidentofChaseCommercialBankingNLA

4

STEPFORWARDLEADERSHIPCOUNCIL

Mr.ReggieAbramsPresident,CommitteeofOneHundred

Ms.SonjaBailes

PublicRelationsLiaison,BossierParishSchoolsStepForwardCommunicationsandOutreachAdvisor

Dr.RickBateman

Chancellor,BossierParishCommunityCollegeStepForwardPost-SecondaryAdvisor

Dr.JosephBocchiniJr.,MD

ProfessorandChairman,DepartmentofPediatricsLSUHealthSciencesCenterStepForwardHealthAdvisor

Ms.RosalynGloverBryant

SupervisorofCompliance/ParentalCommunityInvolvement,CaddoParishSchoolsTitleIStepForwardParentAdvisor

Ms.SandyCimino

VicePresident,BusinessDevelopmentCommunityBankofLouisiana

Dr.LarryClark

Chancellor,LouisianaStateUniversityShreveport

Mr.ClayCorleySuperintendent,DeSotoParishSchools

Mr.MitchDowney

Superintendent,BossierParishSchools

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Dr.RodneyEllisChancellor,SouthernUniversityShreveport,LA

Ms.LeVetteFuller

CouncilMemberDistrictB,ShreveportCityCouncilStepForwardBuildingFuturesNetworkCo-Chair

Mr.ChrisGabriel

ExecutiveVicePresidentVolunteersofAmericaNorthLouisiana

Dr.LamarGoree

Superintendent,CaddoParishSchools

Dr.RaymondHicksStepForwardMyBrother’sKeeperNetworkChair

Ms.LisaJohnson

President/CEO,BossierChamberofCommerce

Dr.TerrieJohnsonSupervisorGrades9-12,BossierParishSchools

StepForwardHighSchoolAdvisor

Mr.JacquesLasseigneRegionalIndustryCoordinator,LouisianaWorkforceCommission

StepForwardBuildingFuturesNetworkCo-Chair

Dr.TimMagnerPresident,GreaterShreveportChamberofCommerce

Dr.EarlMeador

Director,NorthwestLouisianaTechnicalCollege

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Dr.RodneyEllisChancellor,SouthernUniversityShreveport,LA

Ms.LeVetteFuller

CouncilMemberDistrictB,ShreveportCityCouncilStepForwardBuildingFuturesNetworkCo-Chair

Mr.ChrisGabriel

ExecutiveVicePresidentVolunteersofAmericaNorthLouisiana

Dr.LamarGoree

Superintendent,CaddoParishSchools

Dr.RaymondHicksStepForwardMyBrother’sKeeperNetworkChair

Ms.LisaJohnson

President/CEO,BossierChamberofCommerce

Dr.TerrieJohnsonSupervisorGrades9-12,BossierParishSchools

StepForwardHighSchoolAdvisor

Mr.JacquesLasseigneRegionalIndustryCoordinator,LouisianaWorkforceCommission

StepForwardBuildingFuturesNetworkCo-Chair

Dr.TimMagnerPresident,GreaterShreveportChamberofCommerce

Dr.EarlMeador

Director,NorthwestLouisianaTechnicalCollege

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Mr.RodrigoMondragonOwner,OperatorKi’Mexico

Ms.MandyPerdue

ProgramDirector,EarlyChildhoodEducation,BossierParishCommunityCollegeStepForwardBuildingFoundationsNetworkCo-Chair

JohnnyRowland

Superintendent,WebsterParishSchools

Dr.PhillipRozeman,MDCardiovascularConsultants

Dr.TimWilcox

AdministratorofPsychiatricandClinicalSupportServicesWillisKnightonHealthSystem

TimWilhite

CFOandGeneralCounsel,WilhiteElectric

Dr.JaniceWilliamsPrincipal,MeadowviewElementary

StepForwardBuildingFoundationsNetworkCo-Chair

Dr.BruceWilsonPresidentandCEO,UnitedWayofNorthwestLouisiana

AlexisYoung

LicensedClinicalSocialWorker,WebsterParishPublicSchools

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NORTHWESTLOUISIANADASHBOARD

INDICATOR CURRENTLEVEL

TRENDFROMPREVIOUSYEAR

KindergartenReadiness 41.2% Improved

3to4YearOldsEnrolledinSchool 49.6% Improved

EarlyChildhoodProgramProficiency 69.2% Improved

Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevel 36.3% Worsened

3rdGradeELAProficiency 62.3% Worsened

6thGradeMathProficiency 53.9% Improved

6thGradeScienceProficiency 62.4% NoChange

Age16to19Idleness 9.2% Improved

Age17andunderArrestsforTheft 312 Worsened

Age17andunderArrestsforAssault 594 Improved

FertilityRateforFemalesAge15to19 31.6 Improved

AverageACTCompositeScore 19.4 Worsened

CohortGraduationRate 78.3% NoChange

Age18to24EnrolledinCollege 25.2% Worsened

Age24andunderCollegeFallEnrollment 8,225 Worsened

CollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwarded 3,314 Worsened

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduate 20.4% Improved

Age18to24SomeCollegeorAbove 43.5% Worsened

Age20to24LaborForceParticipationRate 72.4% Worsened

Age20to24EmploymenttoPopulationRatio 57.1% Worsened

Age20to24UnemploymentRate 12.7% Improved

Kindergarten Readiness

3 to 4 Year Olds Enrolled in School

Early Childhood Program Proficiency

Age 5 and under Below Poverty Level

3rd Grade ELA Proficiency

6th Grade Math Proficiency

6th Grade Science Proficiency

Age 16 to 19 Idleness

Age 17 and under Arrests for Theft

Age 17 and under Arrests for Assault

Fertility Rate for Females Age 15 to 19

Average ACT Composite Score

Cohort Graduation Rate

Age 18 to 24 Enrolled in College

Age 24 and under 2-Year College Fall Enrollment

2-Year College Degrees and Certificates Awarded

Age 18 to 24 Less than High School Graduate

Age 18 to 24 Some College or Above

Age 20 to 24 Labor Force Participation Rate

Age 20 to 24 Employment to Population Ratio

Age 20 to 24 Unemployment Rate

41.2%

49.6%

69.2%

36.3%

62.3%

53.9%

62.4%

9.2%

312

594

31.6

19.4

78.3%

25.2%

5,585

1,737

20.4%

43.5%

72.4%

57.1%

12.7%

Improved

Improved

Improved

Worsened

Worsened

Improved

Same

Improved

Worsened

Improved

Improved

Worsened

Same

Worsened

Worsened

Worsened

Improved

Worsened

Worsened

Worsened

Improved

INDICATOR CURRENT LEVEL TREND

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TABLEOFCONTENTS

STEPFORWARDBOARDOFDIRECTORS..................................................3

STEPFORWARDLEADERSHIPCOUNCIL...................................................4

DATA-DRIVENPROGRAM......................................................................12

INDICATORS...........................................................................................13

ABOUTTHECOMMUNITY.....................................................................14

EARLYCHILDHOOD................................................................................21

EARLYLITERACY.....................................................................................31

MIDDLEGRADESTEM...........................................................................33

GRADUATIONANDCITIZENSHIP...........................................................37

WORKFORCEDEVELOPMENT................................................................50

NEXTSTEPS............................................................................................68

APPENDIXA:TABLES.............................................................................69

APPENDIXB:MAPS................................................................................92

NOTES....................................................................................................97

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LISTOFFIGURES

AnnualEstimatesoftheComponentsofPopulationChange......................................................15

PopulationofMetroShreveport-BossierCitybyAgeandSex,2017...........................................16

Ageunder18YearsbelowPovertyLevelbyRaceandEthnicity..................................................17

Age25YearsandoverwithLessthanHighSchoolDiplomabyRaceandEthnicity....................18

Age25andoverwithBachelor’sDegreeorHigherbyRaceandEthnicity..................................19

Age16andoverinManagement,Business,Science,andArtsOccupationsbyRaceandEthnicity......................................................................................................................................................20

KindergartenReadiness...............................................................................................................21

3to4YearOldsEnrolledinSchool..............................................................................................22

Age3andoverEnrolledinNurserySchool,PreschoolbyRace...................................................23

NumberofLicensedEarlyLearning(DayCare)CentersbyType.................................................24

PubliclyFundedEarlyChildhoodProgramsbyDomainRating....................................................25

PretermBirths..............................................................................................................................26

Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevel..........................................................................................27

Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevelbyRaceandEthnicity......................................................28

ChildProtectionInvestigationsbyFinding...................................................................................29

ChildreninFosterCare.................................................................................................................30

3rdGradeEnglishLanguageArtsProficiency...............................................................................32

6thGradeMathProficiency.........................................................................................................33

6thGradeScienceProficiency......................................................................................................34

ComputerProgrammers,SoftwareDevelopers,andWebDevelopersbyAge............................35

AllComputerandMathematicalOccupationsbyAge.................................................................36

Age16to19Idleness...................................................................................................................37

Age16to19IdlenessbyRaceandEthnicity................................................................................38

Age17andunderShreveportPoliceDepartmentArrestsforTheftandAssault........................39

ShreveportPoliceDepartmentCallsforService:JuvenileComplaint..........................................40

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YouthundertheSupervisionoftheOfficeofJuvenileJusticeorCaddoParishJuvenileDetentionCenterIntake................................................................................................................................41

MetroAreaFertilityCountsandRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19.....................................42

CaddoandBossierParishFertilityRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19byRaceandEthnicity43

CaddoandBossierParishBlackorAfricanAmericanFertilityRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19.................................................................................................................................................44

CaddoandBossierParishHispanicorLatinoFertilityRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19.....44

AverageACTCompositeScore.....................................................................................................45

AverageACTCompositeScore,BlackorAfricanAmerican..........................................................46

DropoutCountandRate..............................................................................................................47

CohortGraduationRate...............................................................................................................48

CohortGraduationRatebyRaceandEthnicity............................................................................49

ImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRate............................................................................................50

ImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRatebyRace...............................................................................51

Age18to24EnrolledinCollegeorGraduateSchool..................................................................52

Age18to24EnrolledinCollegeorGraduateSchoolbyGender.................................................53

Age24andunderPublicCollegeFallEnrollment.........................................................................53

Age24andunderPublicCollegeFallEnrollmentbyRace...........................................................54

PublicCollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwarded........................................................................55

PublicCollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwardedbyRace..........................................................56

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduate..............................................................................57

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduatebyGender............................................................58

Age18to24SomeCollegeandAbove.........................................................................................58

Age18to24SomeCollegeandAbovebyGender.......................................................................59

Age20to29Associate’sDegreeorAbovebyRaceandGender.................................................60

Age20to24LaborForceParticipationRate................................................................................61

Age20to29LaborForceParticipationRatebyRaceandGender...............................................62

Age20to24EmploymenttoPopulationRatio............................................................................63

Age20to29EmploymenttoPopulationRatiobyRaceandGender...........................................64

Age20to24UnemploymentRate...............................................................................................65

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Age20to29UnemploymentRatebyRaceandGender..............................................................66

Age20to29AverageAnnualWageandSalaryIncomebyRaceandGenderinCurrentDollars67

SuggestedCitation:

Hinze,WesleyM.,andLauraL.Alderman.(2019).ReporttotheCommunity:PrognosisforOurChildren,2019(ReportNo.5).RetrievedfromtheStepForwardNorthLouisianawebsite:https://www.stepforwardnla.org/report-to-the-community/

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DATA-DRIVENPROGRAM

StepForwardusesdatatodriveprojectplanning,goalsetting,andevaluation.Thisreportusesinformationfromthefollowingsourcesandwouldnotbepossiblewithoutthedatatheyprovidefreelytothepublic:

ACT;AnnieE.CaseyFoundationKidsCountDataCenter;CaddoParishJuvenileServices;CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention;LouisianaBoardofRegents;LouisianaCommunityandTechnicalCollegeSystem;LouisianaDepartmentofChildrenandFamilyServices;LouisianaDepartmentofEducation;LouisianaStateCenterforHealthStatistics;NationalCenterforEducationStatistics;ShreveportPoliceDepartment;andtheU.S.BureauoftheCensus.

SomeofthemostimportantcommunityindicatorscomefromtheU.S.CensusBureau,includingmeasuresofpoverty,schoolenrollment,educationalattainment,andemployment,inadditiontopopulationstatisticsforthearea.ThisinformationisavailableannuallyasaresultoftheAmericanCommunitySurvey(ACS),whichbeganin2005andtooktheplaceofthedecennialcensus“longform”in2010.1TheAmericanCommunitySurvey5-yearestimatesusedinthisreportarerollingannualaveragesbasedonasampleofhouseholds.2Theunweightedmetroareasamplecountofpopulationforthe2013-2017ACS5-yearestimatesis29,625.

Rapidchangeiscapturedslowlybythemulti-yearmethod,butthelargersamplesizereducesthemarginsoferror,narrowingtheconfidenceintervalsaroundtheestimates.Thisproducesmorereliablefiguresandshouldbeusedforplanning.TheACS1-yearestimates,acompanionproducttotheACS5-yearestimates,aremorecurrent,buttheyarecalculatedfromasmallersamplesize.Withanunweightedsamplecountof5,457in2017,thesamplesizebecomesfairlysmallwhendisaggregatingthedataintonarrowagerangesandraceorgendercategories.Asaresult,someofthesefiguresmaydifferslightlyfromthosereportedinotherpublicationsaboutsimilartopicsinthemetroarea.

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INDICATORS

Inthespringof2013,theStepForwardteamdevelopedasetofindicatorstotrackprogresstowardthestatedgoalsoftheproject.TheseindicatorswereselectedbasedoncriteriadevelopedbytheStriveTogetherNetwork.

Istheproposedindicator:

Avalidmeasureoftheoutcome?Easilyunderstandabletolocalstakeholders?Reasonablysimilaracrosstheregionandschooldistricts?Producedbyatrustedsource?Affordabletogatherandreport?Availableconsistentlyovertime?Abletobeimprovedthroughlocalaction,andusefulinthedaytodaywork?

The2013baselinereportincludednineindicators.Inthe2015updatesixteenadditionalindicatorsfittingthecriteriaabovewereadded.Someoftheseindicatorsarenolongerreportedbythestateorareotherwiseunavailableandhavebeendiscontinued.

Thefiguresbelowpresentthe21populationlevelindicatorsandotherinformation.Tableswithcountsandpercentagescanbefoundattheendofthereport.SomeStepForwardprojectswillimpacttheseindicatorsdirectlyandotherswillimpactthemindirectly.Morethanoneprojectisnecessarytochangeconditionssuchasschoolenrollmentoremploymentratesinametroarea.Currently,9of21indicatorswithdataavailablebeyondtheirbaselinesaretrendingpositivefromtheirbaselines(43percent),and9of20indicatorswithnewdataaretrendingpositivefromthepreviousyear(45percent).Themoreoftheseindicatorsthatareheadingintherightdirection,themorelikelythenecessaryconditionsexistforfuturesuccess.Fourteenofthe21indicators(67percent)aredisaggregatedbyrace,gender,orboth.

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ABOUTTHECOMMUNITY

Followingthisintroduction,aprofilewillbebuiltoftheyoungresidentsofmetroShreveport-BossierCityinfivestages,fromtheearlydaysofthecradletothebeginningofacareer.Thissectioncoversthemetroareapopulationandpopulationdynamics,thepovertystatusofallpersonsunder18yearsofage,andtheeducationalattainmentandoccupationsofadults.

TheShreveport-BossierCityMetropolitanStatisticalAreacontainsfourparisheswiththefollowingpopulationsizesaccordingtothelatestavailableCensusestimates:Caddo(246,581),Bossier(127,634),Webster(39,378),andDeSoto(27,340).Assurroundingcommunitiesbecomesociallyandeconomicallyintegratedwiththeurbancore,theboundariesofthemetroareacanchange.PatternsofcommutingtoworkalsofigureintothefederalOfficeofManagementandBudget’sdelineationdecisions.3DeSotoParishreplacedWebsterParishaspartofthemetroareain2000,andWebsterwasaddedagainin2013.Thelatestestimateofthetotalmetroareapopulationis440,933in2017,downfromitspeakof444,486in2015.Ofthetotal382metroareasintheUnitedStates—fromAbilene,TXtoYuma,AZ—Shreveport-BossierCityisthe123rdmostpopulous.ThelargestisNewYork-Newark-JerseyCity,NY-NJ-PA(20.3million)andthesmallestisCarsonCity,NV(54,745).

Themetropopulationisspreadacrossfiveplaceswithpopulationsofabout5,000ormore,andintomanysmallersurroundingtowns.Thefiveplacesandtheir2017populationtotalsareShreveport(192,036)inCaddoParish;BossierCity(68,554)inBossierParish;Minden(12,319)andSpringhill(4,936)inWebsterParish;andMansfield(4,771)inDeSotoParish.Alltogether,these282,616residentsofthefivelargestplacesmakeupalmosttwothirdsofthemetropopulation.Shreveportaloneis44percent.Althoughtheremaining158,317individualsdonotliveinplacesof5,000ormore,theyarenotformallyruralbecausetheyarewithinthemetropolitanstatisticalareageography.Manyplacesinthemetroareaarecomparativelysmall,buttheyareallsociallyandeconomicallyintegratedwithShreveportandBossierCity.

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AnnualEstimatesoftheComponentsofPopulationChange

U.S.CensusBureau,PopulationDivisionData:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html

Thecomponentsofpopulationchangearekeydemographicmeasuresandincludebirths,deaths,andmigration.Themetroareagainsabout1,800personsperyearthroughnaturalincrease(about6,300birthsminusabout4,500deaths).Thisnaturalincreaseistrendingdownlatelyasbirthshaveslightlydeclinedanddeathshaveslightlyincreased,likelyduetolowerteenagefertility,laterageatfirstmarriage,andanagingpopulation.ThesetrendsarecommonacrossmanyAmericancommunities.Inthemostrecentyear,themetroareagained1,500individualsthroughnaturalincrease.

Themetroareaisanetsenderofmigrantsandthishasbeenthemaincontributortorecentpopulationdecline.AccordingtoannualestimatesfromtheCensusfortheyears2013to2017,themetroareasendseachyearabout3,300moreindividualsasout-migrantsthanitreceivesasin-migrants.4Thisimprovedsomewhatinthemostrecentyear,fromanetmigrationtotalofnegative3,748in2016toanettotalofnegative2,972in2017.

Themostrecentmigrationflowsbyageareavailableforyears2011to2015.5Theagerangeswiththelargestnetlossesforthemetroareaare18to19and30to34.Theagerangeswiththelargestnetgainsfortheareaare20to24and65to69.Concerningtheagerange18to24ofparticularinterestinthisreport,themetroareareceivesabout3,200individualseachyearandsendsabout3,400,foranetlossofabout200peryear.6Thedestinationoftheseout-migrantsisabout70percentothermetroareasand30percentnonmetroareas(micropolitanorrural).Thetopmetrodestinations(and2011to2015annualestimates)areBatonRouge

-10,000

-8,000

-6,000

-4,000

-2,000

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Births Deaths NetInternationalMigration NetDomesticMigration

16

(330),Dallas-FortWorth-Arlington(273),Houston-TheWoodlands-SugarLand(195),Monroe(169),Longview(83),NewOrleans-Metairie(68),andLafayette(59).

PopulationofMetroShreveport-BossierCitybyAgeandSex,2017

U.S.CensusBureau,PopulationDivisionData:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html

Thecombinationofnaturalincreaseandnetmigrationovertimeproducesthepopulationdistributionseenhereinthepyramidfigure.Thebulgeinthethreecohortsage50to64includesmostoftheBabyBoomergeneration(born1946to1964,age53to71in2017).MostoftheMillennialgeneration(born1981to1996,age21to36in2017)isincludedinthethreecohortsage20to34.7Whatappearsinthefiguretobesomemissing20to24year-oldsareMillennialswhohaveout-migratedfromthemetroarea,probablyforworkorschool.Somewillreturnlater.Manyofthereturning20to24year-oldsfromthe2011to2015datamentionedabovehaveagedintotheage25to29cohort,thelargest5-yearcohortinthemetroarea(32,197).Eachoftheyounger5-yearagecohorts—0to4,5to9,10to14,and15to19—includebetweenabout30,000and27,500individuals.

20 15 10 5 0 5 10 15 20

0-45-9

10-1415-1920-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-6465-6970-7475-7980-8485+

Thousands

Age Males Females

17

Ageunder18YearsbelowPovertyLevelbyRaceandEthnicity

AmericanCommunitySurvey5-yearestimatesData:http://factfinder.census.gov/

Povertyratesforchildrenandyouthvaryconsiderablyacrossracegroups.ThedisparityisespeciallysevereinthemetroareawhencomparedtotheUnitedStatesasawhole,andevenwhencomparedtothestateofLouisiana.Therateofpovertyforwhitechildrenandyouth(under18years)is15.5percent,comparedto50percentforAfricanAmericanchildrenandyouth.Thisamountstoasubstantialgapofalmost35percentagepoints,morethan3timesasmanyindividualsbynumber,or16,592moreAfricanAmericanchildrenandyouthinpovertythanwhitechildrenandyouth.Thisgapatthestatelevelis33pointsandatthenationallevelis24points.PovertyratesforHispanicorLatinochildrenandyouthareinbetween,andallarerising.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

BlackorAfricanAmerican HispanicorLatino White,notHispanic

18

Age25YearsandoverwithLessthanHighSchoolDiplomabyRaceandEthnicity


Disparitiesinchildandyouthpovertyshowuplaterasdifferencesinadulteducationalattainmentandinthedisparatedistributionsofworkersintomiddleclassoccupations.Themostrecentbestestimateofadultswithlessthanahighschooldiplomais9percentforwhites,19percentforAfricanAmericans,and29percentforLatinos.Thesevaluesareinbetweenthestateandnationallevelsforwhites(12percentand8percent)andAfricanAmericans(22percentand15percent)andaboutevenwiththestatebutbelowthenationallevelforLatinos(28percentand33percent).Theselevelsareonthedecline,andatthecurrentpacewhiteandAfricanAmericanratesinthisattainmentcategorywouldconvergeat9percentin2032.StepForwardisworkinghardtoclosethegapsooner.

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


19

Age25andoverwithBachelor’sDegreeorHigherbyRaceandEthnicity


Ontheotherendofeducationalattainmentarethosewithabachelor’sdegreeorhigher.Currentbestestimatesplacemetroareawhitesage25andoverat28percent,aboutevenwiththestateandlowerthanthenationalaverageof35percentforthiscategory.About15percentofAfricanAmericanadultsintheareaholdabachelor’sdegreeorhigher,evenwiththestatelevelbutbelowthenationalaverageof21percent.Latinosareinthemiddleat17percent,evenwiththestateaverageandhigherthanthenationalaverageforthisgroup(15percent).Allarerising.

Thesedisparitiesculminateingenerallydifferentworklives,onaverage,fortheadultsindifferentracegroups.Thiscanberepresentedbytheoccupationaldistributionofthecivilianemployedpopulationage16yearsandover.Mostoftheoccupationsheldbythemiddleclassesareprofessionaloradministrativeandarecapturedinthebroadoccupationalclassificationofmanagement,business,science,andartsoccupations.8Medianannualearningsfortheseoccupationsinthemetroareaare$48,130.Thisisaboutone-thirdhigherthanthenexthighestcategory.Thefourotherbroadclassificationsandtheir2017medianearningsare:serviceoccupations($16,803);salesandofficeoccupations($25,340);naturalresources,construction,andmaintenanceoccupations($36,086);andproduction,transportation,andmaterialmovingoccupations($30,834).

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


20

Age16andoverinManagement,Business,Science,andArtsOccupationsbyRaceandEthnicity


Thepercentageofemployedwhitesage16andoverinthesejobsis40percent,slightlyhigherthanthestatelevelandslightlylowerthanthenationallevelforthisgroup(38percentand42percent).Thisisnearlydoubletheshareofemployednonwhitesinthesejobs.About23percentofmetroareaemployedAfricanAmericansworkintheseoccupations,verynearthestatelevelof24percentandlessthanthenationallevelof29percentforthisgroup.Similarly,about26percentofLatinosareintheseoccupations,higherthanboththestateandnationallevelsforthisgroup(22percentand21percent).Whereas2outof5whiteworkersareemployedinthesejobs,theratiosforAfricanAmericansandLatinosarecloserto1in4.

Americanshaveapenchantforaddressingsocialproblemsthroughvolunteerismandcharitablegiving.Longagointhe1830s,theFrencharistocratAlexisdeTocquevillevisitedtheUnitedStates—therewere24statesatthetime—onassignmentfromhisgovernment.9ThoughTocquevilleatfirstdoubtedtheabilityofthemiddleclassestoeffectivelygovernasociety,heobservedthisinpersonandattributedittoahighlevelofcivicengagementandpracticalintelligence.StepForwarddependsheavilyonthecreativityandengagementofstakeholdersandthecommunitytoaddresstheimportantlocalissuesoftoday.Inthepagesbelow,weaimtosharetheprogressthecommunityhasmadeandthechallengesthatremain.

0% 5%

10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


21

EARLYCHILDHOOD

Beingreadyforkindergartenallowschildrentobeabletotakefulladvantageoftheeducationalopportunitiesavailabletothem.Thisdecade,morethanhalfofincomingkindergartenersinthemetroarealackedtheletterandnumberawareness,understanding,andfluencyexpectedofstudentsatthisgradeleveluponschoolentry.Thismeansthatabout3,1505-yearoldsinthemetroarea,onaverageeachyear,werenotpreparedwhentheybeganschoolinthefall.Thisfigurehadbeengrowingrecently,butisnowbeginningtodeclineasschoolreadinessimproves.In2018,about3,110students(58.8percent)wereunpreparedtobegintheirformaleducations.Notlongagothismeasurewasnear50percent(2012).Therecentimprovementfrom37percentto41percentkindergarten-readyispromising.A1percentincreaseinthismeasurewouldrepresentabout53students.Byincreasingkindergartenreadiness1percentperyear,thecommunitycangetbackontrackandreach43percentbytheyear2020.Thestateaveragein2017is50percent.

KindergartenReadiness

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedondistrictlevelfallDIBELSoralternativeassessmentscoresweightedbydistrictkindergartenenrollmentData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

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3to4YearOldsEnrolledinSchool


Childrendonotdevelopnaturallyintoschool-readystudents;thenecessarylanguage,literacy,andnumeracyskillsmustbelearnedininteractionwithothers.Higherpreschoolenrollmentwouldhaveapositiveimpactonkindergartenreadinesscommunity-wide.Thisisalsotrueofthestateandthecountry,whichhaveaboutthesamelevelofpreschoolenrollmentastheShreveport-BossierCitymetroarea.Afterfallingforseveralyears,themetroarearateofenrollmentfor3and4yearoldsisnowrising.

AccordingtothemostrecentdatafromtheCensus,abouthalfofmetroarea3and4-year-oldsareenrolledinschool.Thisamountstosome3,000childreneachyearwhoarenotinteractingwithothersinastructurededucationalsettingduringtheyearprecedingtheirenrollmentinkindergarten.10ThefigureabovepresentsestimatesusingdatacollectedfrommetroarearesidentsbytheAmericanCommunitySurvey,administeredbytheCensusBureau.Thefigurealsopresentstheseresultsforthestate(51.2percent)andthecountry(47.5percent).A1percentincreaseinthismeasurerepresentsabout125childrenage3to4years.At1percentperyear,thecommunitycanreach53percentby2020.

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2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

MetroArea State U.S.

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Age3andoverEnrolledinNurserySchool,PreschoolbyRace


About7,600childrenage3andoverareenrolledinnurseryschoolorpreschoolinthearea.Theincreaseinnumberfrom2012to2013islikelyduetotheuniversalpre-KprograminDeSotoParishthatbeganaround2011.11ThebenefitstoKindergartenReadinessinDeSotowerebeingfeltby2013,thoughtheyarenotobservableinthemetroenrollmentpercentagesinthefigureabovebecausetheyareweightedagainstthelargerparishes.Disaggregatingenrollmentbyraceandethnicityshows3,230AfricanAmericanchildren,240HispanicorLatinochildren,andabout3,660whitechildrenenrolledinnurseryschoolorpreschoolin2017.Thisamountstolessthanone-thirdofHispanicorLatinochildren(30percent),morethanhalfofAfricanAmericanchildren(58percent),andjustovertwo-thirdsofwhitechildreninthe3to4yearsagerange.12

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NumberofLicensedEarlyLearning(DayCare)CentersbyType

TheAnnieE.CaseyFoundationKidsCountDataCenter,LouisianaDepartmentofChildrenandFamilyServicesData:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

ThestateofLouisianadefinesaChildDayCareCenterasanyfacilitythatprovidescareto7ormorechildrenonaregularbasisforatleast12.5hoursaweek.13SometypesoffacilitiesareexemptfromLouisianaDepartmentofEducationlicensingregulations,suchasprivateorpublicdayschoolsoperatingprekindergartenorkindergartenprogramsandcertifiedMontessorischools.Therestarerepresentedinthechartabove.Afterdecliningforseveralyears,thetotalnumberisnowrising.Abouttwo-thirdsofthesecentersin2017and2018areType3,whichmakesthemeligibletoreceivemostsourcesofgovernmentfundingforearlylearningcenters.14

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PubliclyFundedEarlyChildhoodProgramsbyDomainRating

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedonparishlevelEarlyChildhoodProgramscoresweightedbynumberofsitesData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

In2018,thestateofLouisianabeganreportingearlychildhoodprogramperformancesummarydataontheDepartmentofEducationinformationsite,louisianabelieves.com.Thetotalnumberofstate-ratedearlychildhoodprogramsitesinmetroareaparishesincreasedfrom122in2017to127in2018,andthepubliclyfundedenrolledstudentcountincreasedfrom5,110to5,457.Thisisabout18percentoftheestimated30,350childrenunder5yearsinthemetroarea.NotallnurseryschoolandpreschoolstudentsareenrolledinpubliclyfundedearlychildhoodprogramsandthisisreflectedinthelargerstudentcountsreportedintheACSestimatesabove.Inthesecondyearofreporting,82areasiteshaveanoverallrating(outof120soscored,or69percent)ofproficientorabove,andaveragescoresformetroareacentersincreasedinallcategories.

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PretermBirths

TheAnnieE.CaseyFoundationKidsCountDataCenter,CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention,NationalCenterforHealthStatisticsData:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

Pretermisdefinedaslessthan37completedweeksofpregnancy.Inadditiontoincreasingtheriskofbreathing,feeding,vision,andhearingproblems,outcomesforpretermbirthscanalsoincludedevelopmentaldelay.15Thisdoesnotmeanthateachindividualwhoisbornpretermwillfallshortintheclassroom.Itdoesmeanthatagroup-leveltendencycomparedtofull-termpeersforpoorerperformancedoesexist.Inthemostrecentyearavailable(2016),about16percentofbirths,964,werepreterm.Thisisdownfromalmost16.5percent,1,043births,in2015.Thecurrentlevelforthestateis12.6percent,andforthenationis11percent.

Themetroarea’srelativelyhighrateofbirthsthatarepretermmaybeoneofmanysourceswhichcontributestothelackofacademicpreparednessingradeschoolandbeyond.Somepretermbirthsarenotpreventable,butothersare.Loweringtheteenagefertilityrate,reducingtobaccouseandsubstanceabuse,andincreasingtheuseofprenatalcarearewaysthatthemetroareacanimprovethisoutcome.

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Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevel


Onedrivingforcebehindlaggingchildhealthandeducationoutcomesinthemetroareaisthepersistentlyhighlevelsofchildpoverty.Afterfallingfrom2009to2013,theannualrateofchildpovertyintheareahasbeenrisingeachyearsince2014.About13,200childrenunderage6(36percent)liveinfamilieswithannualincomesbelowtheofficialpovertythreshold.Thisiscurrentlyjustover30percentforthestateofLouisianaand22percentforthecountry,quitehighforadevelopedsocietyintheworldtoday,thoughthenationalrateisimproving.Nochildisdeservingofthiscondition.A1percentdecreaseintheunderage6childpovertyrateforthemetroarearepresentsabout360children,andwithanannualdecreaseof1percentthecommunitycouldsee33percentchildpovertyby2020.

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Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevelbyRaceandEthnicity


Thelargegapinchildpovertybyraceshouldbeconsideredunacceptableandtreatedlikeanyotherhealth-relatedemergency.Large,persistentdisparitiesinlivingstandardsacrosssociodemographicgroupsinasociety,especiallyraceinAmerica,createinequitiesandmayerodethepublictrustininstitutions’abilitiestoservetheirconstituents.Thechildpovertygapinanygivenyearthisdecadeaverages41percentagepointsbetweenAfricanAmericanandnon-Hispanicwhitechildren,thoughitisslightlybelowthisat40pointsin2017(57percentand17percentinpoverty).ThecurrentgapinthemetroareaismuchhigherthanitisintheUnitedStates(27points)andtheSouth(25points).16HispanicorLatinochildrenareinbetweenat35percentinpovertyin2017.ThecurrentgapbetweenHispanicorLatinoandnon-Hispanicwhitechildrenis17.8percentagepoints,aboutthesameasthemetroareaaverageforthedecadeanddownfrom22pointsin2016.ThisisjustbelowthegapbetweenHispanicorLatinoandnon-HispanicwhitechildrenintheUnitedStates(18points)andtheSouth(18.1points).

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ChildProtectionInvestigationsbyFinding


In2017,therewere2,328investigationsofchildabuseandneglectinthemetroareaandsurroundingparishes,862ofwhichwerefoundtobevalid.17Thisisdownfrom2,565totalcases,941valid,in2016.InBossierandCaddoalonethe2017totalis1,793with660determinedtobevalid,downfrom2,005totalwith758validin2016.

Oneofthelargeststudiesofchildabuseandneglectfoundthatsuchchildmaltreatmentcanhavelife-longadverseeffects.From1995to1997,KaiserPermanentesurveyedmorethan17,000healthmaintenanceorganizationmembersabouttheirchildhoodexperiencesandcurrenthealthstatusandbehaviors.18ThestudydefinesAdverseChildhoodExperiences(ACEs)asanyofthefollowing:emotionalabuse,physicalabuse,sexualabuse,emotionalneglect,physicalneglect,mothertreatedviolently,householdsubstanceabuse,householdmentalillness,parentalseparationordivorce,andincarceratedhouseholdmember.OftheKaiserstudyparticipants,26percentreportedexperiencingatleast1ACE,and12.5percentreportedfourormore.

NotonlydoesfrequentorprolongedexposuretoACEscreatetoxicstresswhichimpactsachild’sdevelopingbrain,theKaiserstudyfindingsalsoindicatethatthenumberofACEsinchildhoodincreasestheriskfornegativehealthstatusandbehaviorsinadulthoodaswell.19Specifically,thereisagraded“dose-response”inthatastheintensityofthestressorsincreases,sothendoestheoutcome.HighnumbersofACEsinchildhoodispredictiveofpooradultsocial

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andhealthoutcomes,includingdisease,disability,mentalillnessandearlydeath.20Childmaltreatmentandotheradverseexperiencesimpactnotonlychildren’shealthydevelopmentandtheirlateradultwell-being,butalsotheentirecommunityinwhichtheylive.

ChildreninFosterCare


Childreninfostercareareanothervulnerablepopulationatriskofpoorhealthoutcomesthatcanaffecteducationalexperiencesandthequalityofadulthood.21Thetotalnumberofchildreninfostercareinthemetroareafellto981in2017,or9.2per1,000childrenunderage18,downfrom1,116(or10.4per1,000)in2016.TheseareadjudicatedChildinNeedofCarecases,orcasesofabuseorneglectconfirmedbyjuvenilecourt.

In2016,StepForwarddevelopedanACEinitiativetoraiseawarenessofACEs,promotetrauma-informedresponses,andconnectchildrenandfamiliestoresourcesinthecommunity.AcurrentprojectistoincreasethenumberofACEtrainersavailabletoeducateourcommunity.Inthespringof2017,30ACEeducatorsweretrainedtoprovidepresentationsatnocosttoanygroupororganization.Faithcommunities,K12schools,healthcareandnonprofitsarepartnersinthisinitiative.Thegoalistoprovidechildrenwithprotectivefactors,bothinternalandexternal,thatwillbuildresiliencyandminimizetheadverseeffectsofchildhoodtrauma.

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EARLYLITERACY

Booksinthehomeareimportantfortheliteracydevelopmentofchildren,asisavisiblepatternofreadingandlearningbytheadultsaroundthem.Howchildrenspendtheirtimeathomemaybejustasimportantashowtheyspenditatschool.Morethan20yearsago,BettyHartandToddRisleypresentedresearchfindingsfromtwoandahalfyearsofmonthlyhomeobservationsin42families.22Thisresearchdemonstratedwhathascometobeknownasthe“3omillionwordgap.”Thisisthedifferenceinthetotalnumberofwordsaddressedtochildrenbyagefourinfamilieswithprofessionallyemployedparentscomparedtofamilieswithchildreninlow-incomehouseholds.

Inadditiontothisenormousgapinthequantityofwordsspokentoyoungchildren,HartandRisleyalsofoundadifferenceintheratioofencouragingtodiscouragingfeedbackbetweenthesegroups(6:1inprofessionalfamiliesand1:2inlow-incomefamilies).Thisamountstosome560,000moreinstancesofencouragementthanprohibitioninprofessionalhouseholdsand125,000moreprohibitionsthanencouragementsinlow-incomehouseholdsbyagefour.

ThisimportantresearchisreminiscentofAnderson,WilsonandFielding,whowhenstudyingfifthgradersfoundagapof2.3millionwordsreadperyearoutsideofschool.23Thisgapwasfoundbetweenthoseinthe90thpercentileoftimespentreadingoutsideofschool(40minutesperday)andthoseinthe10thpercentile(lessthantwominutesperday).

Thesetwoclassicsintheeducationalresearchliteratureshowthemagnitudeoftheinterventionsthatarestillnecessaryinordertoprovideequalexperienceinschool,equalopportunityinthelaborforce,andpersonalenrichmentthroughacademicstudyforallyoungpeopleinNorthwestLouisiana.

32

3rdGradeEnglishLanguageArtsProficiency

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroannualaveragesbasedondistrictlevelspringLEAPscoresweightedbydistrict3rdgradeenrollmentData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

Inthethirdgrade,aroundageeightandwiththreeyearsofformaleducation,studentsareexpectedtotransitionfromlearning-to-readtoreading-to-learn.Thosewhocompletethisshifthaveamuchgreaterchanceofcontinuedsuccessinschool.ThestateassessestheEnglishLanguageArtsproficiencyofstudentsthroughtheLouisianaEducationalAssessmentProgram,giveninthespringingrades3through8.TheshareofNorthwestLouisianametroareathirdgradersatbasic,mastery,oradvancedlevelsisaveragingjustover63percentthisdecade,butfellfrom66.5percentin2017to62percentinthespringof2018.Thisrepresentsabout2,110childrenwhodonotmeetthebasiccriteriainEnglishforastudentfinishingthirdgrade.A1percentincreaseinthismeasurewouldrequire56additionalthirdgradersatbasiclevelorabove.Atanincreaseof1percentperyear,thecommunitycanreach65percentproficiencyby2020.

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MIDDLEGRADESTEM

Practicingmathematicshelpsyoungpeopledevelopimportantskillstheywillneedincollegeandcareerwork.SomeoftheseskillsidentifiedbyCollegeBoardinclude:theabilitytoidentifyandanalyzepatterns,logicandcriticalthinking,theabilitytoseerelationships,andproblemsolving.Agrowingbodyofresearchisdemonstratingthatmathanxietycannegativelyimpacthowstudentsperforminmathcourses,andthatparentalencouragementplaysakeyroleininfluencingachild’slearningexperienceandattitudetowardmath.24

Whilethedirectionoftherelationshipbetweenmathanxietyandlowachievementremainsunclear,researchshowsthatitbeginsinearlyadolescence—preciselythetimestudentsbeginmakingcourse-takingandcareerdecisions.InordertopositionyoungpeopleintheareatobeabletotakeadvantageoflocalcareeropportunitiesintheSTEMdisciplines,StepForwardcreatedanactionteamin2017tofocusonmiddlegrademathandscience.

6thGradeMathProficiency

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedondistrictlevelspringLEAPscoresweightedbydistrict6thgradeenrollmentData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

Currently,about54percentofsixthgradersinthemetroareaareproficientinmathneartheendoftheirfirstyearinmiddleschool,upfrom52percentin2017.Around2,500studentsarenotproficientinmathatthisgradelevel.A1percentincreaseinthismeasurerepresentsabout

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55students,andat1percentperyearthecommunitycanreach56percentproficiencyby2020.Thecurrentstatelevelofmathproficiencyis60percent.

TheUnitedStatesranksfairlylowinmathematicsliteracybasedonresultsfromtheProgramforInternationalStudentAssessment(PISA).ComparedtootherOECDcountriesinthemostrecentyear(2015),theU.S.averagescorefor15-year-oldswaslowerthan36othereducationsystems,andtheU.S.shareof15-year-oldsbelowbaselineproficiency(29percent)washigherthan35othereducationsystems.25,26Perhapsthecauseoflowachievementinthemetroarea,thestate,andthenationhastodowithlowlevelsofparentalandcommunityengagement;perhapsitisacultureofeducationalcomplacencyandlowexpectationspermeatingAmericansociety;orperhapsitistheeducationsystemitself,andaweakmathcurriculum,thathasbeenunabletoinspirestudents.27Whateverthecauses,wecanallbepartofthesolutionbydiscardingfalsenotionsthatonlysomepeoplehaveamathematicalmindandthatmathisunrelatedtoourlives.28

6thGradeScienceProficiency

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedondistrictlevelspringLEAPscoresweightedbydistrict6thgradeenrollmentData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

Scienceisthepreferredformofknowledgecreationinthemodernera,betterthanreceivedwisdomorcommonsenseataddressingmostoftoday’schallenges.Thismethodofworkingthroughproblemssystematicallyisnotautomaticandmustbedevelopedthroughdeliberate

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study.Allyoungpeopleneedexposuretothistypeofthinkinginordertorefinetheirhumanintuition,andtheeconomicfuturesoftheirfamiliesandthelargercommunitydependonit.

Metroareascienceproficiencyinthesixthgradeisunchangedfrom2017becausethestatedidnotpublishscienceassessmentscoresfor2018.Scienceproficiencyinthemetroarearemainsat62percent,thesameastheareaaverageforthisdecade.Thestatelevelremainsat66percent.About2,000studentsarenotproficientinscienceatthisgradelevel.A1percentincreaseinthismeasurerepresentsabout55students,andincreasing1percentperyearwouldbringscienceproficiencyto65percentby2020.

ComputerProgrammers,SoftwareDevelopers,andWebDevelopersbyAge

AmericanCommunitySurvey5-yearPUMSestimates,author’scalculationData:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

CodingjobsgenerallyincludeoccupationsclassifiedbytheSOCsystemundercomputerprogrammer,softwaredeveloper,andwebdeveloper.29Theestimatednumberofciviliansemployedinthesejobsintheareahasgrownfromalmost300in2010toalmost800in2017.Theshareofthesejobsheldbyyoungerpeopleisalsorising.Onlyabout20percentofcodingjobswenttoworkersunderage40in2010;by2015theirsharegrewtoover60percent.

About70percentofindividualsintheseoccupationsinthemetroareahaveanassociate’sdegreeorabove.Withastrongbackgroundinmathandscience,youngpeopleinthearea

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todaycandevelopthenecessaryskillstoattractSTEMbusinessestoNorthwestLouisiana,orbetterstill,createthemhereontheirown.

AllComputerandMathematicalOccupationsbyAge


ThecodingjobsdiscussedaboveareincludedinthebroaderoccupationalcategoryofComputerandMathematicaloccupations,whichalsoincludesjobssuchascomputersystemsanalysts,computersupportspecialists,andnetworkandcomputersystemsadministrators.Currently,morethan2,800metroareaciviliansareemployedinthisoccupationalcategory.30Employmentintheseoccupationshasbeengrowingbuthasnotbeengettingyounger.Unlikethecodingjobsabove,thecurrent58percentofworkersunderage40isaboutthesameastheaveragethisdecadeof60percent.However,thenumberofyoungerpeopleintheseoccupationscontinuestogroweachyearandreachedover1,600in2017.

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GRADUATIONANDCITIZENSHIP

Whenindividualsageintotheteenageyears,theybegintoexperiencemorepersonalfreedombymakingmoredecisionsforthemselves.Mostyoungpeoplegenerallymakegooddecisions.However,adolescentdecisionmakingcanbeshort-sighted,impactingeducationandlifeoutcomes.Thissectionwillpresentindicatorsofteenageidleness,delinquency,andchildbearinginthemetroarea,mostofwhichareimproving.TrendsinACTscoresandcohortgraduationrateswillalsobepresented.

Age16to19Idleness


Thosewhodropoutofhighschoolforreasonsotherthanpaidworkarelikelytobecomeidle–notinschoolandnotinthelaborforce.Someteenagerswhoareidleandnotinvolvedinafamilyactivitysuchascaringforaninfantoranagingrelativemaybeatriskfordelinquentbehavior.About2,000metroarearesidentsage16to19yearsareidle,about9percentofthisagecategory,downfrom10percentin2016.Thisfigureisstillalmostdoublethenationalaverageof4.8percent,butitcontinuestofallfromitspeakof11percentin2015.

MostofthisdeclineisduetofallingidlenessamongAfricanAmericanyouth,whichisdownfivepercentagepointssince2015.In2016,threetimesasmanyAfricanAmericanyouthwereidlecomparedtotheirwhitepeers.Thisfelltotwotimesasmanyin2017,themostrecentyearof

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data.EstimatesofHispanicorLatinoyouthidlenesshavefluctuatedquiteabitthisdecade,from9percentto1percentto7percentof16to19-year-olds.Thisisprobablyduetothesmallsamplesize,eveninthemorereliableACS5-yearestimates.31Evenasthesecondlargestminoritypopulationinthemetroarea,residentsofHispanicorLatinooriginrepresentjust4percentofthetotalpopulation.

Age16to19IdlenessbyRaceandEthnicity


Reducingtheoverallrateofidlenessby1percentrequires230feweridleteenagers,andat1percentperyearthecommunitycansee6percentidlenessby2020.Evenatthecurrentlevelofidleness,morethan20,000youngpeopleinthisagerangeareeitherinschooloremployed,orboth.

Truancyandidlenesscancreatetheconditionsthatsometimesresultinyouthcriminalactivity.TheShreveportPoliceDepartmentparticipatesintheFBIUniformCrimeReportingprogram(UCR)throughtheLouisianaCommissiononLawEnforcement,andreleasesdetailedarrestandotherstatisticsannuallytothepublicthroughtheshreveportla.govwebsite.Ofcourse,notallcrimesendinanarrestandnotallcrimesarereportedtothepolice.Althoughcrimeratesaregenerallylowerthesedayscomparedtothe2000s(currentmetroarearatesper100,000are607violent/3,832propertycrimesin2017comparedtoratesof1,124violent/4,579propertycrimesin2007),andhalfofwhattheywereinthepeakyearsofthelate1980sandearly1990s,

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thecommunityshouldcontinuetobuilduponpastsuccessandworktowardreducingthemfurther.32

Age17andunderShreveportPoliceDepartmentArrestsforTheftandAssault

ShreveportPoliceDepartmentData:https://www.shreveportla.gov/426/Crime-Reports

ArrestsandsummonsesissuedbytheShreveportPoliceDepartmentareclassifiedperUCRguidelinesaccordingtothetypeofcrimecommitted.Index,orpart1,crimesincludetheeightcrimetypesthatareusedtocreatetheFBI’sannualcrimeindex.33Thesecrimesincludeseriousviolentcrimes(murder,rape,robbery,andaggravatedassault)andseveraltypesoftheft(larceny,burglary,andautomobile).34Allotherlawenforcementagenciesinthemetroareaeitherdonotreleasedetailedannualcrimereportstothepublicordonotreportcrimestatisticsbyagecategory.Ofthe512totalarrestsforindexcrimeviolationsofindividualsage17andunderin2017,312(61percent)wereforlarceny-theft,orcommonstealing.Thisrepresentsanincreaseof60theftsfromthepreviousyearandadecreaseof21percentsince2012.Reducingthisby3percentperyearwouldbringjuvenilearrestsfortheftdownto285by2020.

Allotherarrestsofpersonsage17andunderarefornon-indexcrimes.Thesecrimetypesaccountforthemajorityofalldelinquency(68percentin2017)anddonotincludeanyoftheseriousviolentcrimesgreatlyfearedbythepublic.Themostcommoncrimetypeinthiscategoryis“otherassault,”accountingfor56percentofthesearrests.Muchofitislikely

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ordinaryfighting.TheShreveportPoliceDepartmentreports594sucharrestsforage17andunderin2017,representingadeclineofabout17percentfromthepreviousyear.Areductionof3percentperyearwouldbringthisdownto542by2020.

ShreveportPoliceDepartmentCallsforService:JuvenileComplaint

ShreveportPoliceDepartmentData:https://www.shreveportla.gov/426/Crime-Reports

CallsforserviceinvolvingjuvenilecomplaintstotheShreveportPoliceDepartmentaredownabout1percentfromthepreviousyear.About4,000suchcallsweremadein2017,down27percentfromtherecenthighof5,486in2012.Theaverageforthedecadeis4,732,about2percentoftotalannualcallsforservice.Areductionof3percentperyearwouldbringthisto3,653callsby2020.

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YouthundertheSupervisionoftheOfficeofJuvenileJusticeorCaddoParishJuvenileDetentionCenterIntake

TheAnnieE.CaseyFoundationKidsCountDataCenter;CaddoParishJuvenileServicesData:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0;specialcorrespondencewithCPJS

ThenumberofyouthunderthesupervisionoftheLouisianaOfficeofJuvenileJusticefellineachmetroareaparishinthemostrecentyear,toatotalof677in2017.Thistotalincludesyoutheitherinsecureornon-securecustodyaswellasthoseundersupervisionintheformofprobationorparole.AddingtothisyouthtakentotheCaddoParishJuvenileDetentionCenterbyanofficer(thoughnotnecessarilyheldpendingtrial)bringsthecurrenttotalto1,087.Thisisequaltoametroarearateof19.2per1,000youthage10to19,orjustunder2percent.Youthintheadultcriminaljusticesystemarenotincludedinthesetotals.Thecurrenttotalisdownabout70youthfromthepreviousyearanddown23percentsince2011.Areductionof3percentperyearwouldbringthetotaltounder1,000by2020.

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MetroAreaFertilityCountsandRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19

TheAnnieE.CaseyFoundationKidsCountDataCenter,CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention,NationalCenterforHealthStatisticsData:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

Thefertilityrateisameasureoftheincidenceofchildbearinginapopulation.Therateofbirthstowomenage15to19intheUnitedStateshasdeclined79percentsince1957,fromahighof96per1,000(thepeakoftheBabyBoom)to22per1,000in2016.Accesstoeffectivecontraceptionandchangingsocialconditionsforwomenexplainmuchofthedeclineinthismeasureovertime.Althoughthemetroarearateis58percenthigherthanthenationalrateand4percenthigherthanthestaterate,ithasdeclined50percentfrom2009.Thecurrent(2016)rateofteenagefertilityinthefour-parishmetroareais31.6per1,000.35Birthstoteenagemothersdeclinedmorethan7percentperyearduringthepastdecade,andifthiscontinues,thecommunitycanseeteenbirthsbelowthe2014nationallevelby2020.

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70

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2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

MetroAreaCount MetroAreaRate StateRate U.S.Rate

43

CaddoandBossierParishFertilityRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19byRaceandEthnicity

CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention,WONDERData:https://wonder.cdc.gov/natality.html

Disaggregatingteenagefertilityratesbyraceandethnicityshowsasteepdeclineinminoritychildbearing,almost47percentforAfricanAmericansinCaddoParishsince2007.36Thedeclinehasalsobeensteep,almost62percent,forwhitesinCaddoParish.Thesedeclinesaresimilartothoseexperiencedbythestate(52percentforAfricanAmericansand47percentforwhites)andthenation(57and54percent)duringthistimeperiod.ThedeclineforteenagewomenofHispanicorLatinoorigininthemetroareahasbeenamoremodest8percent,butthetotalnumberofbirthstothiscategoryislow,averaging9birthsperyearsince2007.Thesedeclinesforthestateandnationare25and62percent.

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2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

BossierBlk/AfrAmr BossierHsp/Ltn BossierNHWhite

CaddoBlk/AfrAmr CaddoHsp/Ltn CaddoNHWhite

44

CaddoandBossierParishBlackorAfricanAmericanFertilityRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19


CaddoandBossierParishHispanicorLatinoFertilityRatesper1,000FemalesAge15to19


0

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90

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

BossierBlk/AfrAmr CaddoBlk/AfrAmr

StateBlk/AfrAmr U.S.Blk/AfrAmr

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2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

BossierHsp/Ltn CaddoHsp/Ltn StateHsp/Ltn U.S.Hsp/Ltn

45

AverageACTCompositeScore

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroannualaveragesbasedonparish-levelACTdataweightedbycountofstudentstested(through2016)or11thgradefallenrollment(2017tocurrent)Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://www.act.org/content/act/en/newsroom.html

Beginningin2013,thestateDepartmentofEducationnowrequiresallhighschooljuniorstotaketheACT.ThedeclineintheaverageACTscoreofthatyearrepresentstheadditionofscoresfromstudentswhowouldnototherwisetakethetest.Sincethen,themetroaveragescoreimprovedeachyearuntiladeclineofhalfapointinthemostrecentyear,from19.8in2017to19.3in2018(meetingthestateaverage).ThestateandthenationasawholealsoexperiencedaverageACTscoredeclinesin2018.Withanincreaseof1percentperyear,themetroareacanreachanaverageof20inyear2021,andthelongtermnationalaverageof21by2026.EligibilityforawardsfromTOPS(TaylorOpportunityProgramforStudents),nowinits21styear,beginatanACTscoreof17(TOPSTech).

17.5

18.0

18.5

19.0

19.5

20.0

20.5

21.0

21.5

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018


46

AverageACTCompositeScore,BlackorAfricanAmerican

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedonparish-levelACTdataweightedbyfallAfricanAmericanenrollment,allgradesData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://www.act.org/content/act/en/newsroom.html

DisaggregatingaverageACTscoresbyraceshowsthatscoresforAfricanAmericansincreasedeachyearforfouryearsafter2013to17.4beforefallingto16.9in2018.ThegapbetweenthemetroareaaverageforallstudentsandforAfricanAmericanstudentsaverages2.3pointsthisdecade.ThecurrentmetroareaaverageisequaltothenationalaverageforAfricanAmericansandslightlybelowthestateaverageof17.3forthisgroup.Increasingtheaveragebyabout1percentperyearwouldbringtheaveragescoreto18by2024and19by2030.

In2013,researchersatMichiganandTexasA&Mlookedatreasonsforhighschooldropoutoverthepasthalfcenturyinacomparativeanalysisofsevennationallyrepresentativestudies.37Fromthe1950sthroughthe1980sstudentsreportedmostoftenthattheywerepulledawayfromschool,oftenbyworkorfamily(60percentin1955).Inthemostrecentstudy,theseandother“pull”factorswerethecausefordropoutforonly37percentofthosewholeftschool.Thetopthreerankedreasonswere:“missedtoomanydaysofschool”(43percent),“thoughtitwouldbeeasiertogetaGED”(40percent),and“wasgettingpoorgrades/failingschool”(38percent).Thissuggeststhatreasonsfordropoutarenolongerprimarilyrelatedtoworkandfamily,butareincreasinglyrelatedtopoliciesorstudentdisinterest(labeled“push”factorsand“fallout”factors).

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

MetroAreaBlackorAfricanAmerican MetroAreaAverage

StateBlackorAfricanAmerican U.S.BlackorAfricanAmerican

47

DropoutCountandRate

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaweightedaveragesData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

Thetotalgrade9to12dropoutcountreportedtothestatebythefourmetroareaparishschooldistrictsin2018is670,downfrom725inthepreviousyear.Thisrepresentsabout3percentofthetotalnumberofstudentsenrolledatthebeginningoftheschoolyear(21,357infall2017).Thenumberofmetroareahighschooldropoutscontinuestodecreasealmosteveryyear,andhasdeclined60percentfrom1,647in2008.Oncehigherthanthestate,themetroareahighschooldropoutrateisnowalmost1fullpercentagepointlower.Thiscontinuestobeapromisingdevelopmentforthearea’shighschools.

0%

1%

2%

3%

4%

5%

6%

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15

2015-16

2016-17

2017-18

MetroAreaCount MetroAreaPercent StatePercent

48

CohortGraduationRate

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedonparish-levelgraduationdataweightedbyparish12thgradefallenrollmentData:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/

ThemostrecentdatafromthestateDepartmentofEducationshowsametroareacohortgraduationrateof78.3percent,essentiallyunchangedfrom78.4percentinthepreviousyear.ThecurrentrateisaboutequaltotheU.S.overallin2010.Thisisupquiteabitfromtherecentmetroarealowof65percentin2010,andisslightlyhigherthanthecurrentstateaverageof78.1percent.Thetotalnumberofhighschoolgraduatesin2017,4,287,isupfromthetotalof4,011inthepreviousyear.Or,using9thgradeenrollmentnumbersfromfouryearsprior,anestimated4,541youngpeoplegraduatedhighschoolontimeinthemetroareainthespringof2017.38About1,250didnotgraduateontime;however,thereisnodatatoindicatethenumberoflategraduatesorthosewhowillgoontoearnanequivalency.A1percentincreaseinthisraterequiresabout64additionalgraduates,andat1percentperyearthecommunitycanreach81percentby2020andthecurrentnationalrateof84percentby2023.

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


49

CohortGraduationRatebyRaceandEthnicity

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation,author’scalculationofmetroareaannualaveragesbasedonparish-levelgraduationdataweightedbysubgrouppercentofpopulation39Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/

Thestaterecentlybeganreportingcohortgraduationratesbyraceandethnicity,nowavailablefor2016and2017.ThemostrecentcohortgraduationrateforAfricanAmericanstudentsis72percent,down1.5percentagepointsfromthepreviousyearandaboutevenwiththestateaverage.TherateforHispanicorLatinostudentsis84percent,up2pointsfromthepreviousyearandwellaboveboththestateaverageoftwo-thirdsandthe2016nationalaverageof76percent.Theratefornon-Hispanicwhitestudentsis83percent,uphalfof1pointandaboutevenwiththestaterateforthisgroup.Nationalcohortgraduationratesfor2017arenotyetavailable.

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

MetroArea

State

U.S.

MetroArea

State

U.S.

MetroArea

State

U.S.

Blacko

rAfric

an

American

Hispan

icor

Latin

oWhite,not

Hispan

ic

2016 2017

50

WORKFORCEDEVELOPMENT

Theknowledge,skills,andabilitiesneededforeconomicsuccesstodaymustbedevelopedovermanyyearsinthehome,intheschool,andintheworkplace.Throughtheseinteractionswithothersanindividualbuildsuphumancapital,andsomeofthisbecomesrepresentedbyformaleducationalcredentials.StepForwardkeepsa“cradletocareer”orientation,andworkforcedevelopmentisafinalstepinthelinkedprocessofchildandyouthdevelopmentinpreparationforsuccessincollegeandcareer.Humancapitalformationisessentialtoworkforcedevelopment.40A2-yearor4-yearcollegedegreeisanimportantmilestoneforanincreasingshareofthelaborforce,andthefirststeponthispathisenrollinginpostsecondaryschool.

Theannualpercentageofhighschoolcompleterswhoenrollin2-or4-yearcollegesinthefallimmediatelyfollowinghighschoolcompletioniscapturedbytheImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRate.ThemetroareaandstatenumbersreportedherearebasedonLouisianaDepartmentofEducationStudentInformationSystemgraduationdataandNationalStudentClearinghousecollegeenrollmentdata.41,42Thesemetroareaandstatenumbersincludeonlypublichighschoolgraduates.TheU.S.numbersarebasedonCurrentPopulationSurvey(CPS)datacollectedbytheCensusBureauandreportedbytheNationalCenteronEducationStatistics.43

ImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRate

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation;NationalCenterforEducationStatisticsData:https://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cpa.asp

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


MetroArea2yr State2yr U.S.2yr

51

Inthefallof2017,about2,650metrohighschoolgraduatesfromthespringofthatyearenrolledin2-or4-yearcollegesintheU.S.(about90percentenrolledinaLouisianacollegeoruniversity).Thisrepresents62percentofallmetroareapublichighschoolgraduates,up1percentfromthepreviousyearand2pointshigherthanthemetroareaaveragethisdecade.Theimmediatecollegeenrollmentrateforthestateis58percentandfortheU.S.is67percent.Ofthosemetroarearesidentswhoenrolledimmediatelyafterhighschoolcompletion,38percentchosea2-yearcollege,comparedto29percentinthestateand23percentinthenation.Thatsuchacomparativelylargeshareofhighschoolgraduatesarechoosing2-yearcollegesreflectstheimportanceoftheseschoolstotheregionaleconomy.

ImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRatebyRace

LouisianaDepartmentofEducation;NationalCenterforEducationStatisticsData:https://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cpa.asp

Thestaterecentlybeganreportingtheimmediatecollegeenrollmentratebyrace,nowavailablefor2016and2017.Thisinformationisnotdisaggregatedbyethnicity,sodataonmetroarearesidentsofHispanicorLatinooriginisnotavailable.ThemetroarearateforAfricanAmericanstudentsincreasedto58percentin2017,higherthanthestateaverageand1percentagepointbelowthenationalaverageforthisgroup.Themetroarearateforwhitestudentsdeclinedto66percent,nowinbetweenthestateandnationalaveragesof61and69percent.

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

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U.S.

MetroArea

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U.S.

Blacko

rAfrican

Am

erican

White

2016 2017

52

Age18to24EnrolledinCollegeorGraduateSchool


Manyhighschoolgraduateswhodonotenrollincollegegodirectlyintothelaborforce.Someenrollincollegelater.Othersdobothstraightoutofhighschoolandworkwhiletheyareenrolledincollegecourses.Currently,ofallmetroresidentsage18to24,25percentareenrolledinpostsecondaryschool,about10,100ofthe40,190personsinthisagerange.Thisisfairlylowcomparedtothestate(37percent)andthecountry(43percent),andthepost-recessionenrollmentboomisoverandgone.A1percentagepointincreaseinpostsecondaryenrollmentwouldrepresentabout400individuals.Atanincreaseof1percentperyear,thecommunitycansee28percentofthisgroupincollegeby2020.

About2,000morewomenthanmeninthisagerangeareenrolledincollege,orabout31percentofareawomenandabout20percentofareamen.Theshareofmetroareameninthisagerangeenrollingincollegehasdeclinedfromahighof25percentin2014.Currently,thereareabouttwo-thirdsasmanymenaswomeninthisagerangeenrolledincollege,belowtheaverageof69percentthisdecade.

0% 5%

10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


53

Age18to24EnrolledinCollegeorGraduateSchoolbyGender


Age24andunderPublicCollegeFallEnrollment

LouisianaBoardofRegents;LouisianaCommunityandTechnicalCollegeSystemData:http://www.regents.la.gov/page/data-and-publications;specialcorrespondencewithLCTCS

0% 5%

10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

MetroAreaFemale StateFemale U.S.Female

MetroAreaMale StateMale U.S.Male

0

2,000

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2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

BPCC,NWLTC,SUSLA LSUS,LSUHSC

54

Everyonestandstobenefitagreatdealbyencouragingyoungpeopletopursueeducationbeyondhighschool,andthe2-yearcollegesareoneofthestrengthsofthearea.Manyofthejobsthatwillbecreatedinthisregionoverthenextdecadewillrequirethedegreesandcertificatesconferredbytheseinstitutions.44AccordingtothemostrecentdatacompiledbytheLouisianaBoardofRegents,5,585studentsage24andunderareenrolledinthethree2-yearcollegesinthearea(BossierParishCommunityCollege,NorthwestLouisianaTechnicalCollege,andSouthernUniversityinShreveport).45Anadditional2,640studentsunder25areenrolledatLSUSandLSUHSC,forametroareatotalof8,225.Thisisa7percentdeclineoverthepreviousyearanda21percentdeclinefrom2012.Therateofaverageannualgrowthsince2012isaboutnegative4percent.Sincepeakingat10,601in2014,thisfigurehasfallentoitslowestlevelthisdecade.With1percentgrowthperyear,thecommunitycouldsee8,390studentsenrolledinthefallof2020.

Age24andunderPublicCollegeFallEnrollmentbyRace


Lookingatage24andundercollegeenrollmentbyraceshowsaboutevennumbersofAfricanAmericansandwhitesenrolledatareapubliccollegesinthefallof2018.Attwoyearcollegesalonethereareabout45percentmoreAfricanAmericanthanwhitestudentsenrolled.Since2014,abanneryearforarea2-yearcolleges,thisagegroup’senrollmenttotalinallpubliccollegeshasfallen27percentforAfricanAmericans,22percentforwhites,and10percentfor

0

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6,000

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

BlackorAfricanAmerican White Other

55

allothers.Between2017and2018,AfricanAmericanenrollmentforthisagecategoryfell14percent,whiteenrollmentfell4percent,andtheenrollmentofallothersincreasedby3percent.AfricanAmericanenrollmentisnowunder3,400studentsafteraveragingabout4,000peryearthisdecade.IncreasingAfricanAmericanenrollmentby3percentperyearwillbringthisgroupbackupto4,476,thehighesttotalthisdecade,by2028.

PublicCollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwarded


Thetotalnumberofdegreesandcertificatesawardedbythepubliccollegesinthemetroareafellinthe2017-18academicyearto3,314,down100credentialsfromthepreviousyear.Thistotalincludespostgraduatedegrees,bachelor’sdegrees,associate’sdegreesandvariousdiplomasandcertificatesofferedbythesecolleges.AlthoughthetotalforLSUSgrewbyonethirdoverthepreviousyeartomorethan1,300,thetotalforthe2-yearcollegesfellby20percent.Thecurrenttotalislargerthanboththe2014-15and2015-16academicyears.

Thecurrentandprioryeartotalsinthisreportnowalsoincludetheshort-termTechnicalCompetencyArea(TCA)credentialsearnedbygraduatesofNorthwestLouisianaTechnicalCollegeinShreveport.46TheTCAisgenerallya30credithourcredential(associate’sdegreesreflect60credithoursofcoursework,and120forabachelor’s)andwillbereplacedbytheCareerandTechnicalCertificateincomingyears.Thesenewcountswillbeavailablethrough

0

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2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18

BPCC,NWLTC,SUSLA LSUS,LSUHSC

56

theLouisianaBoardofRegentsandwillbereportedhereinfutureeditions.Thesecertificatesareaccreditedcredentialsthatfocusonworkforcedevelopment—theyaredesignedtofittheneedsoftheindustriesintheregion.47

PublicCollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwardedbyRace


AfricanAmericancollegegraduatesearnedonaverageabout70percentasmanycredentialsaswhitegraduateseachyearthisdecade.At2-yearcollegesalonethisfigureis93percent,withabout700graduatesineachracegroupinthemostrecentyear.Credentialsofalltypesearnedbythoseinotherracecategoriesfellfrom768to688afterincreasingseveralyearsinarow.

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2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18

BlackorAfricanAmerican White Other

57

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduate


Theshareofarearesidentsage18to24withoutahighschooldiplomacontinuestodecline.AccordingtothemostrecentdatafromtheCensusACS5-yearestimates,about20percentofthe40,190personsinthisagerangehavenotcompletedtheirhighschooleducation.Someofthese8,180personswillgoontoearnahighschoolequivalencycredential,andsomefromthisgroupwillthenpursuehighereducation,possiblyatoneofthemetroarea2-yearcolleges.Thosethatdoneitherwillbecomepartoftheunskilledlaborforceoridleadults.Witha1percentdeclineperyear,about17percentofthisagegroup(7,000persons)willbewithouthighschoolcredentialsin2020.Thecurrentlessthanhighschoolfiguresforthestateandthenationare18percentand13percent.

Lookingatthismeasurebygenderrevealsa6percentagepointdifferenceeachyearonaveragethisdecade,withmorementhanwomenwithoutahighschoolcredential.Thegapfellto3pointsin2015andincreasedto5in2016.Thisgapremainsatabout5percentagepointsin2017,withalmost18percentofwomenand23percentofmenage18to24withoutahighschoolcredential.

0%

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30%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


58

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduatebyGender


Age18to24SomeCollegeandAbove


0%

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35%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017



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2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


59

SomeCollegeisacategoryofeducationalattainmentthatincludesthosewithanytimeatallspentinpostsecondaryschoolbutwithoutadegreeorcertificate.Somearecurrentlyenrolledstudents,somearetakingabreakfromcollege,andothershaveleftanddonotintendtocompletetheireducation.Thismeasurealonedoesnotreflecttheshareofthepopulationwithanyspecificcredentialbeyondhighschool,butallwereadmittedtoaninstitutionofhigherlearninganddohavesomeadditionaltraining.Addingtothisallpersonswithassociate’s,bachelor’s,master’s,anddoctoralandprofessionaldegreesgivesSomeCollegeandAbove,presentedinthefigure.

Currently,43.5percentorabout17,480personsage18to24areinaneducationalattainmentcategorygreaterthanHighSchoolGraduate.Thishasfallenfromjustover46percentineachoftheprevioustwoyears,butremainsabovethelevelsof2011andbefore.Anincreaseof1percentperyearwillbringthemetroareabacktoover46percentby2020.Thismeasurehadbeenrisingslowlyatthelocal,state,andnationallevelthisdecade,buthaschangedlittleatthestateandnationalleveloverthemostrecentyearswhiledeclininglocally.

Age18to24SomeCollegeandAbovebyGender


Thegendergapinthismeasure,morewomenthanmen,hasbeenalmost13percentagepointsthisdecadeandfellto12pointsinthemostrecentyear.Almosthalfofmetroareawomenhavesomecollegeorabove,comparedtojustunder38percentofmen.Thegendergap

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2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017



60

statewideis11points,withhigherpercentagesforwomenandmen(55and44).Nationwidethegapis10points,andmorethanhalfofmenhavesomeeducationbeyondhighschool.

Age20to29Associate’sDegreeorAbovebyRaceandGender


Separatingoutinformationaboutearnedassociate’sdegreesfrom“somecollege”isgenerallynotpossiblethroughthesummarytablesavailableontheU.S.CensuswebsiteordatatoolssuchastheAmericanFactFinder,helpfulasthoseresourcesare.Fortunately,theCensusmakesavailablepublicusemicrodatasample(PUMS)filessothatlocalitiescanmaketheseandotherinquiriesontheirown.48Duetothenatureofsamplingstatisticsandthecommunity’sneedforreliableestimates,theagerangeforthePUMSderivedestimatesinthissectionofthereportis20to29years.In2017,almost22percentofindividualsage20to29heldanassociate’sdegreeorabove,downfrom23and24percentinrecentyears.Disaggregated,thesepercentagesare14percentofnonwhites,30percentofwhites,26percentoffemales,and17percentofmales.Theassociate’sdegreeandabovegapbetweenfemalesandmalesaveragedabout6percentagepointsperyearthisdecade,butgrewtoalmost9pointsin2017.Betweenwhitesandnonwhites,thegaphasaveraged17pointsperyear,growingfromalowof13in2009and2010toahighof20in2014and2015.In2017,thisgapfellbelowthedecadeaverageto16points.

0%

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15%

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25%

30%

35%

40%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

AllAge20to29 Nonwhite White Female Male

61

Age20to24LaborForceParticipationRate


ThelaborforceconsistsofcivilianswhoareclassifiedasemployedorunemployedplusmembersoftheArmedForces.About72percentofthepopulationage20to24areinthelaborforce-about21,350individuals.49Thosewhoarenotinthelaborforcearegenerallystudents,homemakers,seasonalworkersduringanoffseasonandnotlookingforwork,institutionalizedpersons,andpersonsdoingunpaidfamilyworkfewerthan15hoursperweek.50

Themetroarealaborforceparticipationrateof72.4percentin2017isinbetweenthestate(71percent)andthenation(74percent).Thisisbelowtheannualaveragethisdecadeof75percent.Atanincreaseof1percentperyear,thecommunitycouldreturnto75percentin2020.Beinginbetweenthestateandnationalrateisprobablyagoodthing.Itisdifficulttosaythatlaborforceparticipationoughttobemuchhigherthanitcurrentlyis.Forexample,onewayofincreasingtheratewouldbetohavecollegestudentswhoarenotcurrentlyworkingdropoutofschoolandimmediatelyjointhelaborforcewithoutcompletingtheireducations.

66%

68%

70%

72%

74%

76%

78%

80%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


62

Age20to29LaborForceParticipationRatebyRaceandGender


Disaggregatingthelaborforceparticipationrateforthepopulationage20to29showsanaverageannualgapthisdecadeofabout6percentagepointsbetweennonwhitesandwhites.Theparticipationrateforthesegroupsnearlyconvergedat79percentin2012.Inthemostrecentestimatethegapgrewto9points,thelargestthisdecade.Betweenmalesandfemales,thisgaphasbeenaslargeas7points(2009)andiscurrentlyabovethedecadeaverageof5at6.6points.Currentlaborforceparticipationestimatesare72percentfornonwhites,73percentforfemales,80percentformales,81percentformales,and76percentforallmetroareaciviliansage20to29.

66% 68% 70% 72% 74% 76% 78% 80% 82% 84%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


63

Age20to24EmploymenttoPopulationRatio


Employedisacategorythatincludescivilianswho1)didanyworkatallaspaidemployees,2)workedintheirownbusinessorprofession,3)workedontheirownfarm,4)worked15hoursormoredoingunpaidfamilyworkduringthereferenceweek,or5)werewithajobbutnotatworkduetoillness,badweather,industrialdispute,vacation,orotherpersonalreasons.About57percentofcivilianmetroresidentsage20to24areemployed.Thisisjustunderthestatelevel(60percent)andthenationallevel(64.5percent)andhasdeclinedfromahighof63percentin2012.Eachadditionalpercentincreaserepresentsabout275individuals,andat1percentperyeartheyoungadultsinthecommunitycangetbacktotheannualaveragethisdecadeof60percentemployedin2020.

52%

54%

56%

58%

60%

62%

64%

66%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


64

Age20to29EmploymenttoPopulationRatiobyRaceandGender


Disaggregatingtheemploymenttopopulationratioforthecivilianpopulationage20to29showsanaveragegapof6percentagepointsthisdecadebetweennonwhitesandwhites.Thisgapfelltoalowof3.5pointsin2012andhassincegrownto8pointsinthemostrecentyear,thehighestsince2009.Currently,about59percentofnonwhiteciviliansareemployed,comparedtoabout67percentofwhites.Betweenfemalesandmales,thegaphasbeen1.5pointsonaveragethisdecade,withalargershareoffemalesbeingemployedthanmales.In2017theemploymentrateconvergedat63percentforthesegroups.ThisgenderconvergencedoesnotoccurinthecurrentlaborforceparticipationratebecausemoremalesthanfemalesserveintheArmedForces.

52% 54% 56% 58% 60% 62% 64% 66% 68% 70% 72%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


65

Age20to24UnemploymentRate


Unemployedisanemploymentstatuscategorythatincludes1)thosewhowereneitheratworknorwithajobbutnotatworkduringthereferenceweek,and2)wereactivelylookingforworkduringthelastfourweeks,and3)wereavailabletostartajob.Examplesofjobseekingactivitiesincluderegisteringatanemploymentoffice,meetingwithprospectiveemployers,investigatingpossibilitiesforopeningabusiness,placingoransweringadvertisements,writinglettersofapplication,orbeinginaunion.About12.7percentofciviliansage20to24inthemetroareaareunemployed,about3,500individuals.Areaunemploymentforthisagerangeislowerthanthestate(13.7percent)andhigherthanthecountry(11.6percent).A1percentdecreaseperyear,about275individuals,wouldplacetheunemploymentrateatjustunder10percentforthisagerangein2020.

AccordingtotheFederalReserveBoard,thelowestlevelofunemploymentthattheU.S.economycansustain,itslong-runnormallevel,isinarangebetween4and5percent.51ThemostrecentunemploymentrateforalladultsinmetroShreveport-BossierCityreportedbytheBureauofLaborStatisticsis4.7percentinDecember2018;themostrecentannualaverageformetroareaadultsis5.5percentin2017.52,53Theratefortheyoungadultsintheage20to24rangeconsideredhereismuchhigherthantherateforalladults.Thisisnormal,andpossiblereasonsincludethelast-in,first-outexplanation;lackofjobsearchexperience;shoppingaround;andlackofmobility.54

0% 2% 4% 6% 8%

10% 12% 14% 16% 18%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


66

Age20to29UnemploymentRatebyRaceandGender


Disaggregatingtheunemploymentrateforthecivilianpopulationage20to29showsthatboththeracegapandthegendergaphavenarrowedsincetheirpeaksin2012and2013.Thegapbetweennonwhitesandwhites,averaging4.5pointsperyearthisdecade,peakedat7pointsin2012andisnowlessthan3points.Thegapbetweenfemalesandmales,averagingalmost1pointthisdecade,grewtoover2pointsin2013andisnowlessthanthehalfof1point.Currentunemploymentrateestimatesare7percentforwhites,8percentformales,8.4percentforfemales,9.5percentfornonwhites,and8.2percentforallmetroareaciviliansage20to29.

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


67

Age20to29AverageAnnualWageandSalaryIncomebyRaceandGenderinCurrentDollars


Attheendofthecradletocareerpathwayisasustainablelivingwage.ThisisthetargettowardwhichtheeffortsofStepForwardNorthLouisianaareultimatelydirected.Toexceedthefederalpovertythresholdin2017,asingleadultwouldneedtoearnmorethantheannualequivalentof$6.13perhour($12,752).55AccordingtotheMITlivingwagecalculator,asingleadultintheShreveport-BossierCitymetroareainthesameyearrequires$10.92perhourovera2,080hourworkyear($22,714),about$10,000morethanthepovertythreshold,tomeetthelivingwagestandard.56Forthosesupportingachild,thecostismuchhigher.57

Thefirstof8incomecategoriesreportedintheAmericanCommunitySurveyiswageandsalaryincome,or“totalmoneyearningsreceivedforworkperformedasanemployee.”58Thisdoesnotincludeincomefromself-employment,interestordividends,publicassistance,ordisability.Overthepastdecade,theaveragewageandsalaryincomeofemployedciviliansage20to29is$25,050.59Thispeakedin2014at$27,000andiscurrently$25,000.Lookingattheseaveragesbyraceandgenderrevealsthatnoteveryoneisabletomeetthegoalofalivingwageintheirtwenties.Thecurrentgapbetweenwhitesandnonwhitesisalmost$8,000,andthegapbetweenmalesandfemalesisalmost$7,000.

$0

$5,000

$10,000

$15,000

$20,000

$25,000

$30,000

$35,000

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017


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NEXTSTEPS

TheStepForwardinitiativeisactivelyengagedaroundmultiplecriticaldevelopmentalmilestones.ActionplansforEarlyChildhood,EarlyLiteracy,MiddleGradeSTEM,GraduationandCitizenship,andWorkforceDevelopmenthavebeendeveloped.Theseplansaremadepossiblebyamutualcommitmenttoshareresourcesandmeasureoutcomesasweseektofindwhatworksanddomoreofit.

Thepartnershipisalwaysseekingcommunityvolunteerstoassistandcontributetotheseimportantefforts.Yourinvolvementcanmakeadifference.Community-widegrassrootsinvolvementisinfactcriticaltoachievingsuchpopulation-levelchange.Ifyouarecommittedtoimprovingeducationalopportunitiesforthechildreninthemetroarea,StepForwardwouldliketohearfromyou.

Inthemeantime,StepForwardwillremaincommittedtosharingdataindicators,andwillcontinuetoengageincontinuousevaluationofitseffortstoimprovethestatusofthecommunity’schildren,fromcradletocareer.

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APPENDIXA:TABLES

ABOUTTHECOMMUNITY

PopulationofMetroShreveport-BossierCityParishesandLargestPlaces

Year TotalBossierParish

CaddoParish

DeSotoParish

WebsterParish Shreveport

BossierCity

1850 23,869 6,962 8,884 8,023 - 1,728 -1900 108,840 24,153 44,499 25,063 15,125 16,013 7751950 276,788 40,139 176,547 24,398 35,704 127,206 15,4701960 345,430 57,622 223,859 24,248 39,701 164,372 32,7761970 357,406 64,519 230,184 22,764 39,939 182,064 43,7691980 402,437 80,721 252,358 25,727 43,631 206,989 50,8171990 401,676 86,088 248,253 25,346 41,989 198,402 53,1292000 417,796 98,310 252,161 25,494 41,831 199,822 56,1282010 441,197 117,628 255,694 26,683 41,192 200,884 61,9812015 444,486 125,722 251,577 27,111 40,076 196,649 68,0372016 442,403 126,252 249,145 27,211 39,795 194,394 68,0712017 440,933 127,634 246,581 27,340 39,378 192,036 68,554

Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html

AnnualEstimatesoftheComponentsofPopulationChange

TotalChange

VitalEvents NetMigrationYear Births Deaths International Domestic2013 -1,647 6,503 4,382 441 -3,9362014 -1,683 6,426 4,450 477 -4,1082015 -1,050 6,294 4,449 522 -3,3722016 -2,365 6,139 4,607 503 -4,2512017 -1,470 6,056 4,555 428 -3,400Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html

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PopulationofMetroShreveport-BossierCitybyAgeandSex,2017

Age Males Females Total Age Males Females Total0-4 15,398 14,954 30,352 45-49 12,333 13,586 25,9195-9 15,216 14,613 29,829 50-54 12,863 13,711 26,57410-14 14,820 14,138 28,958 55-59 13,845 15,378 29,22315-19 14,146 13,439 27,585 60-64 12,768 14,873 27,64120-24 14,042 13,334 27,376 65-69 10,684 12,673 23,35725-29 15,897 16,300 32,197 70-74 7,786 9,586 17,37230-34 14,876 15,647 30,523 75-79 5,229 7,159 12,38835-39 14,134 14,760 28,894 80-84 3,472 5,254 8,72640-44 12,036 13,089 25,125 85+ 3,027 5,867 8,894Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html

MetroAreaK-12FallEnrollmentbyGrade

Year 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018Kindergarten 6,036 6,056 6,243 6,210 5,877 5,580 5,482 5,641 5,291Grade1 5,990 6,094 6,056 6,180 6,188 5,850 5,670 5,549 5,684Grade2 5,866 5,877 5,918 5,900 6,094 5,920 5,783 5,505 5,382Grade3 5,994 5,792 5,739 5,740 5,766 5,900 5,822 5,619 5,390Grade4 6,732 6,709 6,399 6,250 6,008 5,650 5,796 5,640 5,467Grade5 5,820 5,486 5,473 5,260 5,316 5,760 5,587 5,702 5,523Grade6 5,434 5,923 5,649 5,600 5,494 5,310 5,585 5,483 5,532Grade7 5,255 5,431 5,785 5,520 5,635 5,390 5,302 5,531 5,425Grade8 5,194 5,190 5,404 5,760 5,444 5,450 5,326 5,198 5,375Grade9 6,373 5,810 5,605 5,800 6,420 6,190 6,016 5,821 5,710Grade10 5,141 5,262 5,130 4,930 5,174 5,550 5,553 5,548 5,403Grade11 4,480 4,547 4,656 4,500 4,513 4,710 5,109 5,024 5,062Grade12 3,870 4,062 4,272 4,400 4,311 4,280 4,534 4,964 4,703TotalK12 72,185 72,239 72,329 72,050 72,240 71,540 71,565 71,225 69,947

Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

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Ageunder18YearsbelowPovertyLevelbyRace

BlackorAfrican

American HispanicorLatino White,notHispanicYear Count Percent Count Percent Count Percent2009 21,756 48.5% 746 19.9% 5,092 11.2%2010 21,040 46.6% 1,039 25.1% 4,612 10.4%2011 21,158 47.1% 993 22.2% 4,586 10.3%2012 20,126 44.7% 1,136 24.5% 4,268 9.6%2013 22,255 45.5% 1,250 24.3% 5,489 11.0%2014 23,008 47.5% 1,308 24.2% 6,220 12.5%2015 23,212 48.0% 1,672 29.8% 6,495 13.0%2016 23,731 48.9% 2,014 36.2% 7,016 14.2%2017 24,120 50.4% 2,141 37.1% 7,528 15.5%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age25andoverwithLessthanHighSchoolDiplomabyRace

BlackorAfrican

American HispanicorLatino White,notHispanicYear Count Percent Count Percent Count Percent2009 21,037 24.1% 1,584 27.0% 16,255 10.8%2010 20,024 22.3% 1,941 30.5% 16,112 10.6%2011 19,114 21.0% 2,057 30.2% 15,342 10.0%2012 19,466 21.0% 2,190 31.2% 14,888 9.6%2013 21,809 21.3% 2,193 27.8% 18,608 10.7%2014 21,643 20.9% 2,510 30.6% 17,834 10.2%2015 21,225 20.3% 2,335 27.4% 17,261 9.9%2016 21,462 20.2% 2,466 28.8% 16,522 9.5%2017 20,285 19.0% 2,521 28.5% 16,088 9.3%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

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Age25andoverwithBachelor’sDegreeorHigherbyRace

BlackorAfrican

American HispanicorLatino White,notHispanicYear Count Percent Count Percent Count Percent2009 10,317 11.8% 1,183 20.1% 40,193 26.7%2010 11,097 12.4% 992 15.6% 40,169 26.3%2011 11,663 12.8% 1,057 15.5% 40,937 26.6%2012 11,847 12.8% 876 12.5% 41,652 26.9%2013 13,640 13.3% 1,063 13.5% 46,350 26.7%2014 14,270 13.8% 1,107 13.5% 47,787 27.5%2015 14,877 14.2% 1,328 15.6% 48,112 27.7%2016 15,100 14.2% 1,393 16.3% 48,169 27.8%2017 16,294 15.3% 1,537 17.4% 47,664 27.7%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age16andoverinManagement,Business,Science,andArtsOccupationsbyRace

BlackorAfrican

American HispanicorLatino White,notHispanicYear Count Percent Count Percent Count Percent2010 12,057 19.8% 1,183 20.9% 37,001 36.2%2011 12,880 20.5% 1,297 21.8% 37,122 36.6%2012 13,030 20.5% 1,331 21.6% 38,136 37.0%2013 14,466 21.2% 1,372 19.6% 42,158 37.1%2014 14,947 22.1% 1,519 21.0% 43,446 38.5%2015 14,862 22.1% 1,634 22.2% 43,827 39.3%2016 14,830 22.1% 1,664 23.6% 44,516 40.5%2017 15,285 22.9% 1,782 26.2% 43,024 40.1%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

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EARLYCHILDHOOD

KindergartenReadiness MetroArea StateYear Count Percent Percent2011 2,990 49.4% 53%2012 3,090 49.5% 54%2013 2,941 47.4% 55%2014 2,849 48.5% 56%2015 2,696 48.3% 56%2016 2,313 42.2% 54%2017 2,099 37.2% 54%2018 2,178 41.2% 50%Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

3to4YearOldsEnrolledinSchool

MetroArea State U.S.Year Count Percent Percent Percent2009 6,003 53.3% 52.9% 47.3%2010 5,834 51.8% 53.5% 47.8%2011 5,908 50.6% 53.6% 48.1%2012 6,202 51.3% 53.6% 48.2%2013 6,239 49.9% 52.2% 47.7%2014 6,291 48.7% 51.6% 47.4%2015 6,412 48.1% 50.8% 47.4%2016 6,030 48.7% 51.1% 47.5%2017 6,204 49.6% 51.2% 47.5%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age3andoverEnrolledinNurserySchool,PreschoolbyRace

YearBlackorAfrican

AmericanHispanicorLatino

White,notHispanic Other Total

2012 3,337 298 3,232 284 7,1512013 3,496 444 3,770 321 8,0312014 3,213 355 3,777 374 7,7192015 3,192 407 3,817 412 7,8282016 3,296 361 3,881 352 7,8902017 3,230 246 3,663 498 7,637Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

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NumberofLicensedEarlyLearning(DayCare)CentersbyType

Year TypeI TypeII TypeIIIAll

TypesPercentTypeIII

2009 - - - 178 -2010 - - - 186 -2011 - - - 175 -2012 - - - 167 -2013 - - - 165 -2014 - - - 155 -2015 - - - 152 -2017 30 12 86 128 67.2%2018 31 16 85 132 64.4%Data:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

PubliclyFundedEarlyChildhoodProgramsbyDomainRating

2017 2018 Domain Score Score CurrentRatingOverallScore 4.8 4.9 ProficientEmotionalSupport(PreK) 5.7 5.8 ProficientClassroomOrganization(PreK) 5.4 5.6 ProficientInstructionalSupport(PreK) 3.5 3.7 ApproachingProficientEmotionalandBehavioralSupport(Toddler) 5.3 5.6 ProficientEngagedSupportforLearning(Toddler) 2.9 3.1 ApproachingProficient

Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevel


75

Age5andunderBelowPovertyLevelbyRace

BlackorAfrican

American HispanicorLatino White,notHispanic

Year Count Percent Count Percent Count Percent2009 8,374 56.4% 379 28.3% 1,853 12.3%2010 7,595 52.4% 546 34.6% 1,616 11.2%2011 7,963 54.5% 533 28.6% 1,447 9.9%2012 7,603 51.2% 603 29.4% 1,433 9.7%2013 8,221 51.3% 608 26.2% 1,673 10.0%2014 8,232 52.1% 581 24.1% 2,157 12.8%2015 8,805 55.1% 690 28.1% 2,239 13.2%2016 8,910 55.1% 894 37.7% 2,601 15.5%2017 9,329 57.7% 806 35.3% 2,807 17.4%Data:http://factfinder.census.govChildreninFosterCare,MetroArea

Year Count Rateper1,0002011 811 7.422012 715 6.522013 782 7.132014 953 8.752015 1008 9.302016 1116 10.382017 981 9.17Data:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

ChildProtectionInvestigationsbyFinding,BossierandCaddo

Year Valid Invalid Other Total2011 584 981 131 1,6962012 567 971 85 1,6232013 597 1,087 86 1,7702014 722 1,128 114 1,9642015 820 1,260 155 2,2352016 758 1,137 110 2,0052017 660 949 184 1,793Data:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

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EARLYLITERACY

3rdGradeEnglishLanguageArtsProficiency MetroArea StateYear Count Percent Percent2009 3,740 62.9% 66%2010 3,805 62.5% 67%2011 3,782 63.2% 69%2012 3,754 64.7% 69%2013 3,913 68.1% 72%2014 3,855 67.1% 69%2015 3,387 59.0% 63%2016 3,383 57.6% 62%2017 3,879 66.5% 69%2018 3,489 62.3% 68%Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

MIDDLEGRADESTEM

6thGradeMathProficiency MetroArea StateYear Count Percent Percent2011 3,499 64.5% 70%2012 3,620 61.5% 70%2013 3,468 61.6% 69%2014 3,692 65.5% 70%2015 2,836 51.6% 59%2016 3,032 57.2% 60%2017 2,889 52.1% 57%2018 2,948 53.9% 60%Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

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6thGradeScienceProficiency Metro StateYear Count Percent Percent2011 3,520 64.9% 69%2012 3,608 61.3% 65%2013 3,465 61.6% 65%2014 3,478 61.7% 66%2015 3,362 61.2% 65%2016 3,367 63.5% 65%2017 3,461 62.4% 66%Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

ComputerProgrammers,SoftwareDevelopers,andWebDevelopers Total Age40andAbove UnderAge40Year Count Count Count Percent2009 403 253 150 37.2%2010 284 224 60 21.1%2011 294 204 90 30.6%2012 249 179 70 28.1%2013 269 142 127 47.2%2014 518 237 281 54.2%2015 662 250 412 62.2%2016 725 291 434 59.9%2017 791 295 496 62.7%Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

AllComputerandMathematicalOccupations

Total Age40andAbove UnderAge40Year Count Count Count Percent2009 1,832 946 886 48.4%2010 1,627 755 872 53.6%2011 1,602 647 955 59.6%2012 1,185 448 737 62.2%2013 795 229 566 71.2%2014 2,282 857 1,425 62.4%2015 2,404 915 1,489 61.9%2016 2,547 1,022 1,525 59.9%2017 2,843 1,187 1,656 58.2%Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

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GRADUATIONANDCITIZENSHIP

Age16to19Idleness

Metro State U.S.Year Count Percent Percent Percent2009 1,619 7.4% 7.5% 5.3%2010 1,751 7.7% 8.1% 5.4%2011 1,999 8.8% 8.0% 5.4%2012 2,053 9.1% 8.1% 5.4%2013 2,288 9.6% 8.2% 5.3%2014 2,320 9.8% 8.1% 5.2%2015 2,470 11.0% 7.8% 5.0%2016 2,243 9.7% 7.8% 4.9%2017 2,077 9.2% 7.7% 4.8%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age16to19IdlenessbyRace

BlackorAfrican

American HispanicorLatino White,notHispanic

Year Count Percent Count Percent Count Percent2009 821 8.0% 69 9.1% 681 6.7%2010 894 8.2% 94 8.9% 706 7.0%2011 1,065 9.8% 94 8.4% 754 7.6%2012 1,259 11.8% 89 6.6% 627 6.4%2013 1,495 13.4% 12 0.9% 738 6.9%2014 1,592 14.6% 10 0.7% 647 6.2%2015 1,790 17.0% 30 2.8% 580 5.8%2016 1,501 14.0% 70 5.5% 548 5.4%2017 1,268 12.4% 87 7.4% 577 5.7%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

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Age17andunderShreveportPoliceDepartmentArrests LarcenyTheft OtherAssaultYear Count Count2009 289 7212010 296 8202011 304 9082012 396 1,0462013 386 8782014 315 8712015 337 6822016 252 7152017 312 594Data:https://www.shreveportla.gov/426/Crime-Reports

ShreveportPoliceDepartmentCallsforService:JuvenileComplaint

Year JuvenileComplaint TotalCalls PercentofTotal2010 5,234 278,078 1.9%2011 5,146 278,618 1.8%2012 5,486 289,542 1.9%2013 5,017 281,735 1.8%2014 4,755 278,369 1.7%2015 4,167 246,765 1.7%2016 4,048 221,485 1.8%2017 4,002 215,065 1.9%Data:https://www.shreveportla.gov/426/Crime-Reports

YouthundertheSupervisionoftheOfficeofJuvenileJusticeorCaddoParishJuvenileDetentionCenterIntake MetroArea

Year CountRateper1,000age

10to192011 1,409 23.82012 1,355 23.12013 1,376 23.72014 1,392 24.22015 1,265 22.22016 1,156 20.42017 1,087 19.2Data:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0;specialcorrespondencewithCPJS

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FertilityRateper1,000FemalesAge15to19 MetroArea State U.S.Year Count Rate Rate Rate2009 914 62.9 52.6 382010 851 57.4 48 342011 756 52.9 45.2 312012 735 53.1 42.8 292013 661 48.7 38.9 262014 521 38.9 35.5 242015 536 39.9 33.9 222016 430 31.6 30.3 20Data:https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data#LA/5/0/char/0

FertilityRateper1,000FemalesAge15to19byRaceandEthnicity

BossierParish CaddoParish

BlackorAfrican

AmericanHispanicor

LatinoWhite,notHispanic

BlackorAfrican

AmericanHispanicor

LatinoWhite,notHispanic

Year Births Rate Births Rate Births Rate Births Rate Births Rate Births Rate2009 - - - - - - 434 82.5 13 61.6 137 37.82010 - - - - - - 422 81.0 12 57.1 122 34.02011 - - - - - - 367 75.6 12 51.5 102 29.72012 - - - - - - 356 76.4 17 83.3 93 28.02013 - - - - - - 307 68.5 13 71.4 107 33.02014 40 39.6 12 46.2 53 21.1 252 56.9 - - 77 24.22015 42 40.6 13 44.1 64 25.0 243 54.7 10 46.7 68 21.92016 24 23.0 18 58.1 53 20.2 192 41.7 - - 57 18.62017 37 34.4 - - 43 16.6 230 50.6 13 55.3 43 14.4

Data:https://wonder.cdc.gov/natality.html

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AverageACTCompositeScore MetroArea State U.S.Year Count Average Average Average2009 2,668 20.0 20.1 21.12010 2,807 19.7 20.1 21.02011 2,756 19.7 20.2 21.12012 2,879 19.9 20.3 21.12013 3,906 18.7 19.5 20.92014 4,232 19.2 19.2 21.02015 4,163 19.4 19.4 21.02016 4,099 19.5 19.5 20.82017 4,346 19.8 19.6 21.02018 4,739 19.3 19.3 20.8Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://www.act.org/

AverageACTCompositeScore,BlackorAfricanAmerican

Year MetroArea State U.S.2012 17.6 17.9 17.02013 16.8 17.1 16.92014 16.7 17.0 17.02015 17.1 17.4 17.12016 17.2 17.5 17.02017 17.4 17.5 17.12018 16.9 17.3 16.9Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://www.act.org/

Grade9to12Dropout

MetroArea StateYear Count Percent Percent2009-10 1,202 5.6% 4.6%2010-11 1,132 5.2% 4.1%2011-12 1,179 5.5% 4.7%2012-13 969 4.5% 4.7%2013-14 997 4.7% 4.5%2014-15 993 4.5% 4.3%2015-16 912 4.1% 4.2%2016-17 725 3.2% 3.9%2017-18 670 3.0% 3.7%Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center

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CohortGraduationRate MetroArea State U.S.Year Count Percent Percent Percent2009 3,733 67.3% 67.3% 75.5%2010 3,900 65.4% 67.2% 78.2%2011 3,725 68.3% 71.4% 79.0%2012 3,771 68.9% 72.3% 80.0%2013 3,873 70.3% 73.5% 81.0%2014 4,085 74.3% 74.6% 82.0%2015 4,025 80.0% 77.5% 83.0%2016 4,011 78.4% 77.0% 84.0%2017 4,287 78.3% 78.1% -Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/

CohortGraduationRatebyRaceandEthnicity

BlackorAfricanAmerican HispanicorLatino White,notHispanicYear MetroArea State U.S. MetroArea State U.S. MetroArea State U.S.2016 73.5% 71.5% 79% 82.0% 71.3% 76% 82.6% 82.0% 88%2017 72.3% 72.9% - 83.7% 66.7% - 83.1% 83.7% -

Data:http://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/

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WORKFORCEDEVELOPMENTImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRate MetroArea State U.S.

YearTotalHSGraduates

ImmediateEnrollment

2-YearColleges

ImmediateEnrollment

2-YearColleges

ImmediateEnrollment

2-YearColleges

2009 3,733 51% - 47% - 70% 28%2010 3,900 50% - 48% - 68% 27%2011 3,725 60% 44% 55% 30% 68% 26%2012 3,771 62% 42% 56% 29% 66% 29%2013 3,873 62% 43% 58% 32% 66% 24%2014 4,085 66% 44% 59% 34% 68% 25%2015 4,025 61% 35% 58% 29% 69% 25%2016 4,011 61% 38% 57% 33% 70% 24%2017 4,287 62% 38% 58% 29% 67% 23%Data:https://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cpa.asp

ImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRatebyRace BlackorAfricanAmerican WhiteYear MetroArea State U.S. MetroArea State U.S.2016 54.4% 53.5% 57.3% 68.0% 61.0% 69.7%2017 58.2% 55.0% 59.4% 65.9% 61.1% 69.1%Data:https://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/data-center;https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cpa.asp

Age18to24EnrolledinCollegeorGraduateSchool


84

Age18to24EnrolledinCollegeorGraduateSchoolbyGender MetroArea State U.S.

Female Male Female Male Female MaleYear Count Percent Count Percent Percent Percent Percent Percent2009 6,988 35.7% 4,869 24.6% 41.8% 31.4% 45.3% 36.7%2010 7,096 35.7% 4,820 24.7% 41.6% 31.4% 45.9% 37.3%2011 6,764 33.9% 4,832 24.9% 41.4% 32.8% 46.7% 38.0%2012 7,166 35.7% 4,595 23.6% 41.7% 32.9% 47.2% 38.4%2013 7,275 33.8% 4,590 21.5% 41.5% 33.2% 47.5% 38.7%2014 7,198 34.0% 5,389 25.1% 41.7% 32.9% 47.5% 38.8%2015 6,939 33.5% 5,272 24.7% 41.8% 32.8% 47.3% 38.8%2016 6,787 33.6% 4,407 20.9% 42.6% 31.5% 47.1% 38.7%2017 6,092 31.1% 4,037 19.6% 42.8% 31.5% 46.8% 38.5%

Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age24andunderPublicCollegeFallEnrollmentYear BPCC NWLTC SUSLA LSUS LSUHSC Total2012 4,619 587 1,672 3,093 417 10,3882013 5,066 448 1,863 2,791 416 10,5842014 5,168 592 1,997 2,427 417 10,6012015 4,191 386 2,274 2,161 411 9,4232016 3,925 353 2,337 2,085 406 9,1062017 3,900 260 2,066 2,232 417 8,8752018 3,691 180 1,714 2,221 419 8,225Data:http://regents.la.gov/data-publications/;specialcorrespondencewithLCTCS

Age24andunderPublicCollegeFallEnrollmentbyRace

YearBlackorAfrican

American White Other2012 4,136 5,095 1,4542013 4,476 4,790 1,4402014 4,550 4,512 1,5392015 3,995 3,890 1,5382016 3,921 3,611 1,5742017 3,871 3,655 1,3492018 3,330 3,503 1,392Data:http://regents.la.gov/data-publications/;specialcorrespondencewithLCTCS

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PublicCollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwardedYear BPCC NWLTC SUSLA LSUS LSUHSC Total2012-13 989 1,523 373 639 268 3,7922013-14 1,130 1,700 375 579 258 4,0422014-15 1,105 840 351 625 264 3,1852015-16 1,078 672 307 805 259 3,1212016-17 1,032 835 319 982 246 3,4142017-18 917 518 302 1,317 260 3,314Data:http://regents.la.gov/data-publications/;specialcorrespondencewithLCTCS

PublicCollegeDegreesandCertificatesAwardedbyRace

YearBlackorAfrican

American White Other2012-13 1,541 1,753 4982013-14 1,563 1,790 6892014-15 1,024 1,656 5052015-16 932 1,570 6192016-17 995 1,651 7682017-18 1,001 1,625 688Data:http://regents.la.gov/data-publications/;specialcorrespondencewithLCTCS

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduate


86

Age18to24LessthanHighSchoolGraduatebyGender

MetroArea State U.S.Year Female Male Female Male Female Male2009 20.7% 28.8% 17.7% 24.8% 14.4% 19.8%2010 20.5% 29.4% 18.1% 25.1% 14.3% 19.8%2011 20.2% 29.4% 17.8% 24.1% 13.9% 19.3%2012 20.5% 28.0% 17.9% 23.3% 13.5% 18.7%2013 20.5% 26.6% 17.7% 22.8% 13.0% 18.0%2014 20.1% 24.5% 17.0% 22.8% 12.6% 17.3%2015 20.1% 23.4% 15.9% 22.0% 12.1% 16.5%2016 18.0% 23.3% 15.0% 21.8% 11.7% 15.8%2017 17.6% 23.0% 14.3% 21.2% 11.4% 15.3%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age18to24SomeCollegeorAbove


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Age18to24SomeCollegeorAbovebyGender

MetroArea State U.S.Year Female Male Female Male Female Male2009 47.6% 36.4% 51.5% 40.5% 56.2% 45.8%2010 48.2% 35.8% 51.7% 40.4% 57.1% 46.6%2011 48.5% 36.4% 52.8% 42.4% 58.5% 47.9%2012 52.7% 37.9% 53.8% 42.9% 59.7% 49.1%2013 51.1% 37.6% 53.8% 43.5% 60.4% 49.8%2014 51.4% 39.8% 54.3% 43.3% 60.8% 50.3%2015 51.9% 41.3% 55.1% 44.1% 61.3% 50.9%2016 54.0% 39.1% 55.5% 43.2% 61.5% 51.2%2017 49.7% 37.6% 55.4% 43.6% 61.4% 51.2%Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

Age20to29Associate’sDegreeorAbovebyRaceandGenderYear AllAge20to29 Nonwhite White Female Male2009 20.5% 13.7% 26.9% 24.7% 16.4%2010 21.6% 15.1% 27.6% 24.4% 18.8%2011 23.0% 14.6% 30.8% 25.1% 20.7%2012 23.9% 15.1% 32.3% 26.0% 21.7%2013 23.9% 14.4% 33.3% 25.8% 22.0%2014 24.0% 13.6% 34.2% 26.6% 21.3%2015 23.3% 13.1% 33.5% 26.1% 20.4%2016 22.8% 13.6% 32.0% 26.8% 18.6%2017 21.7% 13.8% 29.9% 26.1% 17.3%Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

88

Age20to24LaborForceParticipationRate


Age20to29LaborForceParticipationRatebyRaceandGenderYear AllAge20to29 Nonwhite White Female Male2009 79.2% 75.7% 82.4% 75.7% 82.6%2010 79.1% 77.0% 81.1% 76.5% 81.8%2011 78.0% 75.8% 80.1% 75.8% 80.3%2012 78.8% 78.3% 79.3% 76.9% 80.8%2013 77.8% 76.2% 79.4% 76.2% 79.4%2014 76.9% 73.6% 80.1% 75.0% 78.8%2015 76.2% 72.0% 80.5% 74.0% 78.5%2016 76.4% 72.8% 80.0% 73.9% 78.9%2017 76.3% 71.9% 80.9% 73.0% 79.7%Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

89

Age20to24EmploymenttoPopulationRatio


Age20to29EmploymenttoPopulationRatiobyRaceandGenderYear AllAge20to29 Nonwhite White Female Male2009 65.6% 61.5% 69.5% 65.1% 66.2%2010 66.5% 62.9% 69.9% 66.7% 66.4%2011 65.4% 61.8% 68.7% 66.3% 64.4%2012 66.1% 64.3% 67.8% 67.6% 64.5%2013 65.1% 62.9% 67.2% 67.2% 62.9%2014 64.0% 60.7% 67.3% 64.9% 63.2%2015 63.7% 60.8% 66.5% 64.5% 62.8%2016 63.8% 61.2% 66.4% 64.5% 63.1%2017 63.1% 59.1% 67.1% 63.1% 63.0%Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

90

Age20to24UnemploymentRate


Age20to29UnemploymentRatebyRaceandGenderYear AllAge20to29 Nonwhite White Female Male2009 8.5% 11.2% 6.1% 7.9% 9.2%2010 8.5% 11.2% 6.0% 7.5% 9.5%2011 8.4% 11.6% 5.3% 7.6% 9.2%2012 8.4% 11.8% 5.1% 7.4% 9.4%2013 8.2% 10.7% 5.7% 7.0% 9.4%2014 8.2% 10.5% 6.0% 8.5% 8.0%2015 7.9% 9.4% 6.3% 8.2% 7.5%2016 8.0% 9.1% 6.8% 8.3% 7.6%2017 8.2% 9.5% 6.9% 8.4% 8.1%Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

Age20to29AverageAnnualWageandSalaryIncomebyRaceandGender,ConstantDollarsYear AllAge20to29 Nonwhite White Female Male2009 $22,669 $18,431 $26,143 $19,986 $25,3012010 $22,976 $18,740 $26,504 $19,875 $26,1272011 $24,532 $19,825 $28,501 $20,748 $28,6122012 $25,608 $21,824 $29,051 $21,582 $29,9552013 $25,844 $22,173 $29,217 $21,805 $30,2362014 $26,967 $23,476 $30,050 $22,294 $31,9012015 $26,574 $23,293 $29,569 $22,402 $30,9822016 $25,308 $21,870 $28,512 $21,817 $28,9412017 $24,960 $20,829 $28,748 $21,529 $28,471Data:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/pums.html

91

EstimatesofAge20to24LaborForceStatusGroups 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017LaborForceStatusGroup Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimate EstimateTotalPopulationAge20to24 31,022 30,918 31,178 30,455 29,681

ArmedForcesPopulation 1,520 1,573 1,688 1,726 2,089CivilianPopulation 29,502 29,345 29,490 28,729 27,592

NotintheLaborForce 7,582 7,952 8,375 8,188 8,333LaborForceParticipationRate 75.3% 73.8% 72.7% 72.8% 72.4%

CivilianEmployed 17,996 17,460 17,222 16,806 15,755EmploymenttoPopulationRatio 61.0% 59.5% 58.4% 58.5% 57.1%

CivilianUnemployed 3,924 3,932 3,893 3,735 3,504UnemploymentRate 13.3% 13.4% 13.2% 13.0% 12.7%

Data:http://factfinder.census.gov

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APPENDIXB:MAPS

Thefollowingchoroplethmapsuse2017ACS5-yearestimatesandtheCensustractgeography.Censustractsvaryinsizebecauseofpopulationrequirements.60Thereare104tractsinthemetroarea:22inBossierParish,64inCaddoParish,7inDeSotoParish,and11inWebsterParish.61Thelegendsofthesemapsinclude10possibleshadesandtheirassociatedpercentagesinbrackets.Inparenthesesarethenumberoftractsinthebracketedrangeofpercentages.Thebasemapincludesplacenames,streets,andwaterways.Thereare2mapspertopic.ThefirstshowstheentiremetroareaandthesecondshowsShreveportandBossierCityingreaterdetail.The4topicsare:percentage3to4inschool,percentunder18inpoverty,percent18to24incollege,andpercent20to24unemployed.PercentAge3to4inSchool,MetroAreaParishes

93

PercentAge3to4inSchool,ShreveportandBossierCity

Percentunder18inPoverty,MetroAreaParishes

94

Percentunder18inPoverty,ShreveportandBossierCity

Percent18to24inCollege,MetroAreaParishes

95

Percent18to24inCollege,ShreveportandBossierCity

PercentAge20to24Unemployed,MetroAreaParishes

96

PercentAge20to24Unemployed,ShreveportandBossierCity

97

NOTES

1AmericanCommunitySurveygeneralinformationhere:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/about.html2MoreACSinformationhere:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/guidance/estimates.html3Forcurrentandhistoricalbulletins,see:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/metro-micro/about/omb-bulletins.html4Forannualandcumulativeestimatesofthecomponentsofpopulationchange,see:https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2017/demo/popest/total-metro-and-micro-statistical-areas.html5Formigrationflowsintoandoutofmetroareas,see:https://www.census.gov/topics/population/migration/guidance/metro-to-metro-migration-flows.html6Theestimatedannualaveragenetmigrationflowofindividualsage18to19is-637.Thisispartiallyoffsetbytheannualaveragenetflowof416individualsage20to24.7GenerationalcohortsotherthanBabyBoomersarenotofficiallydefinedbyanyfederalstatisticalagency.ForMillennialsweusehereadefinitionprovidedbythePEWResearchCenter.See:http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/01/17/where-millennials-end-and-generation-z-begins/8Subcategoriesincludemanagement,business,andfinancial;computer,engineering,andscience;education,legal,communityservice,arts,andmedia;andhealthcarepractitionerandtechnicaloccupations.9Tocqueville,Alexis.1838.DemocracyinAmerica.London:SaundersandOtley.10Ofthe30,352childrenunderage5,about6,000areage4andwillenterKindergartenatage5.Age-specificpopulationestimatesbyparishavailablehere:https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2017/demo/popest/counties-detail.html11See:March,Segann.2015,Nov.Experts:Lackofpre-Kputtinglocalchildrenbehind.ShreveportTimes.Retrievedfrom:https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/watchdog/2015/11/06/experts-lack-pre-k-putting-local-children-behind/75232792/12UsingACSpopulationestimatesbyraceandethnicityforthoseunder5yearsofage,anddividingby5,resultsin2,787AfricanAmericanchildren,404HispanicorLatinochildren,and2,722whitechildren.Assumingagespecificcountsareevenlydistributedacrossthefiveyears,thesefiguresaredoubledandusedascountsof3and4yearolds.13CCDFBulletin137–EarlyLearningSiteLicensingRegulations,here:http://www.doa.la.gov/osr/lac/28v161/28v161.doc14Informationondaycarecentersbytypeforprioryearsisnotavailable.15See:https://www.cdc.gov/features/prematurebirth/index.html16U.S.CensusBureauRegion3,theSouth,includesstatesandtheDistrictofColumbiaintheSouthAtlanticdivision(Delaware,DistrictofColumbia,Florida,Georgia,Maryland,NorthCarolina,SouthCarolina,Virginia,WestVirginia),EastSouthCentraldivision(Alabama,Kentucky,Mississippi,Tennessee),andWestSouthCentraldivision(Arkansas,Louisiana,Oklahoma,Texas).Moreinformationhere:https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us_regdiv.pdf17IncludesBossierandCaddo,DeSoto(withSabine),andWebster(withBienville,Claiborne,andJackson)parishes18Felitti,V.J.,R.F.Anda,D.Nordenberg,D.F.Williamson,A.M.Spitz,V.Edwards,M.P.Koss,andJ.S.Marks.1998.RelationshipofChildhoodAbuseandHouseholdDysfunctiontoManyoftheLeadingCausesofDeathinAdults.AmericanJournalofPreventiveMedicine,vol.14,no.4,pp.245-258.19HarvardUniversityCenterontheDevelopingChild.Retrievedfrom:http://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/national-scientific-council-on-the-developing-child/

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20CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention.Retrievedfrom:https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/acestudy/about.html21Bruskas,D.2008.ChildreninFosterCare:AVulnerablePopulationatRisk.JournalofChildandAdolescentPsychiatricNursing,vol.21,no.2,pp.70-77.22Hart,BettyandToddR.Risley.1995.MeaningfulDifferencesintheEverydayExperiencesofYoungAmericanChildren.Baltimore:PaulH.BrookesPublishing.23Anderson,RichardC.,PaulT.WilsonandLindaG.Fielding.1988.GrowthinReadingandHowChildrenSpendTheirTimeOutsideofSchool.ReadingResearchQuarterly,vol.23,no.2,pp.285-303.24See:Luttenberger,Silke,SigridWimmer,andManuelaPaechter.2018.SpotlightonMathAnxiety.PsychologyResearchandBehaviorManagement,vol.11,pp.311-322.Retrievedfrom:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6087017/25TheOrganizationforEconomicCooperationandDevelopment(OECD)includestheworld’sadvancedandemergingeconomies.Formoreinformationandalistofmembercountries,see:http://www.oecd.org/about/membersandpartners/26ForPISAU.S.performancesummaryinformationanddata,see:https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pisa/27See:Crotty,JamesM.2014,Jun.TheCauseofMediocreU.S.MathScores.Forbes.Retrievedfrom:https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesmarshallcrotty/2014/06/30/the-causes-of-mediocre-u-s-math-scores/#439027dc64b028See:https://successcenter.tamu.edu/getattachment/Student-Resources/Handouts/Math-Anxiety.pdf.aspx29StandardOccupationalClassification(SOC)codes15-1131to15-1134.Exampleoccupationsinclude:SystemsProgrammer,ComputerLanguageCoder,ApplicationsProgrammer,ComputerApplicationsEngineer,DatabaseDeveloper,SoftwareApplicationsArchitect,SoftwareApplicationsEngineer,SoftwareSystemsEngineer,EmbeddedSystemsSoftwareDeveloper,ComputerSystemsSoftwareArchitect,WebDesigner,InternetDeveloper,andIntranetDeveloper.SOCcodeinformationavailablehere:https://www.bls.gov/soc/30BecausethePUMSmicrodatausesasampleofthetotalACSsample,occupationtotalsmaydiffer.TheavailableACS5-yearestimates(non-PUMS)forcomputerandmathematicaloccupationsare2,443(2015),2,678(2016),and2,846(2017).See:https://factfinder.census.gov/31Thestandarderroroftheestimate(SE),oneofthecomponentsoftheconfidenceinterval,isequaltothestandarddeviation(σ)dividedbythesquarerootofthesamplesize(n).32Theviolentcrimerateincludes62murders,218rapes,598robberiesand1,792aggravatedassaultsin2017(comparedto44,176,659,and3,474in2007).Thepropertycrimerateincludes3,438burglaries,12,082larceny-thefts,and1,339motor-vehicletheftsin2017(comparedto3,835,12,330,and1,571in2007).See:https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s,MetropolitanStatisticalAreas(Table6).33FBIindexcrimeinformationavailablehere:https://ucr.fbi.gov/34Theeighthindexcrimecategoryisarson,butitisoftennotincludedinthepropertycrimeestimateduetovariationsinthelevelofparticipationbyreportingagencies.See:https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2017-crime-statistics35Datareflectthemother’splaceofresidence,ratherthantheplaceofbirth.36Duetopopulationthresholds,fertilitydataforBossierParishisnotavailablethroughtheCenterforDiseaseControlandPrevention’sWide-rangingOnlineDataforEpidemiologicResearch(WONDER)databasebefore2014,anddataforDeSotoandWebsterarenotavailableinanyyearthroughthisdatabase.AlsowithheldareHispanicorLatinoage15to19countsforBossierin2017andforCaddoin2014and2016.37Doll,JonathanJacob,ZohrehEslamiandLynneWalters.2013.UnderstandingWhyStudentsDropOutofHighSchool,AccordingtoTheirOwnReports:AreTheyPushedorPulled,orDoTheyFallOut?A

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ComparativeAnalysisofSevenNationallyRepresentativeStudies.SAGEOpen,October-December2013,pp.1-15.38Thistotalof4,541differsfromthereported4,287highschoolgraduatesintheImmediateCollegeEnrollmentRatecalculation.Forcomparison,applyingthecurrentgraduationratetothefallenrollmentcountofthegraduatingclass(beginninggrade12infall2016)gives3,550graduates;applyingtheratetothegrade12spring2017enrollmentcountgives3,402graduatesin2017.Alltotalsincreasedfrom2016to2017.39CohortgraduationratesfortheHispanicorLatinopopulationarenotavailableforDeSotoParishin2016orforWebsterParishin2016and2017.40See:Athreya,KartikB.,UrviNeelakantanandJessieRomero.2014.“ExpandingtheScopeofWorkforceDevelopment,”FederalReserveBankofRichmondEconomicBrief,availablehere:https://www.richmondfed.org/publications/research/economic_brief/2014/eb_14-0541Louisianaparishandstatecollegegoingenrollmentdatahere:https://www.louisianabelieves.com/resources/library/high-school-performance42TheNationalStudentClearinghouseincludesmorethan3,600collegesanduniversities,enrolling98%ofallstudentsinpublicandprivateU.S.institutions.Formoreinformation,seehttp://www.studentclearinghouse.org/about/43SeeTable302.10Recenthighschoolcompletersandtheirenrollmentincollege,bysexandlevelofinstitutionavailablehere:https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/44See:http://www.laworks.net/labormarketinfo/lmi_employmentprojections.asp45ThetotalsinthisreportdifferfromthoseinpreviousyearsbecausetheenrollmentnumbersforNorthwestLouisianaTechnicalCollegenowincludeonlytheShreveportcampus.Before2018,twoothercampusesoutsidethemetroareawerereportedalongwiththeShreveportcampustotalsbytheLouisianaBoardofRegents,thesourceforthisindicator.AspecialrequestwasmadeoftheLCTCSforNWLTCenrollmenttotalsinpreviousyears.46TCAtotalsfortheother2-yearcollegeswerenotavailableatthetimeofpublication.47Forinformationaboutvariousprogramsofstudyandcredentialsofferedatarea2-yearcolleges,seeNWLTChere:http://www.nwltc.edu/academic-programs/;SUSLAhere:http://www.susla.edu/page/academic-degree-plans-2015-2017;andBPCChere:http://catalog.bpcc.edu/content.php?catoid=2&navoid=7448InformationaboutACSPUMShere:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/technical-documentation/pums/about.html49The2017ACS5-yearestimatefortheArmedForcespopulationage20to24is2,089.Thecivilianlaborforceage20to24isabout19,250persons(15,750employedand3,500unemployed).50AmericanCommunitySurveyemploymentstatussubjectdefinitionshere:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/technical-documentation/code-lists.html51Forgeneraldiscussionofthelong-rununemploymentrate,see:https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/economy_14424.htm52Foraselectionofmonthlymetroareaeconomicstatistics,see:https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.la_shreveport_msa.htm53Forannuallaborforcedata,see:https://www.bls.gov/lau/home.htm54See:https://www.cnbc.com/id/4045362655Forcurrentandhistoricalpovertythresholdsbysizeoffamilyandnumberofchildrensee:https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-poverty/historical-poverty-thresholds.html56See:http://livingwage.mit.edu/metros/43340

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57Forasingleadultwithonechild,therequiredincomeismorethan$8.12perhour($16,895)toexceedthepovertythresholdand$23.16perhour($48,173)tomeetthelivingwagestandard.58AmericanCommunitySurveyincomesubjectdefinitionshere:https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/technical-documentation/code-lists.html59Incomespresentedhereareincurrentdollars(notinflationadjusted).60ForgeneralinformationaboutCensustracts,see:https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/webatlas/tracts.html61Forparish-levelreferencemapstothetractgeography,see:https://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/maps/2010tract.html

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Dear residents of Northwest Louisiana - Step Forward · 2019-04-22 · 2 Dear residents of Northwest Louisiana: Things are not always what they appear to be. The truth can be blurred