IYI’s 31st edition of the Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book provides insight into the issues Hoosier youth are facing today; a data-driven understanding of opportunities and achievement gaps in the lives of Indiana kids.
By Margaret Curtland, Indiana Youth Institute—
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Youth Institute (IYI) has released the 2025 Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book, detailing the state’s ranking of 27th nationally for child well-being. This year’s publication, the 31st annual edition, highlights data intersectionality, disparities, and data-informed solutions for some of the most pressing issues facing Hoosier kids. Indiana ranks 15th for Economic Well-Being, 17th for Education, 32nd for Health, and 31st for Family & Community, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
This annual Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book is one of 53 state- and territory-level projects designed to provide a detailed picture of child well-being and includes both statewide data trends and county-specific data tables. As in previous years, the 2025 Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book provides objective, reliable information to equip youth workers, youth-serving organizations, and community leaders with the latest, disaggregated data about Indiana youth well-being to fuel positive action and impact.
“At its heart, the 2025 Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book is a measure of how we value our children. It is really a report card for adults,” said Silverman. “It tells us where we’re succeeding and where we’re failing. It tells us where we can do better for our kids. We cannot guarantee them success, but we can do our best to give Hoosier kids the best possible start. That’s our greatest responsibility and that’s our call to action.”
Key Data Highlights from the 2025 Indiana KIDS COUNT Data Book are included below. The full 2025 Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book and County Dashboards are available at iyi.org.
Child Population
Indiana is home to the 14th largest population of children nationally. In 2023, more than 1.59 million children younger than 18 resided in Indiana. Indiana’s youth population continues to be more diverse than the adult population. In 2023, 33.4% of Hoosier youth were a race or ethnicity other than White, non-Hispanic compared to 22.4% of non-White adults.
Family & Community
- 15.4% of children did not live in a neighborhood with certain amenities (parks, recreation centers, sidewalks or libraries) in 2022-2023, higher than the national average of 10.4%, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health.
- 23.2% of caregivers in Indiana reported their youth aged 6 to 17 exercised, played a sport, or participated in any type of physical activity for at least 60 minutes every day, higher than the nationwide average of 19.5% in 2022-2023, according to the CDC.
- 18,371 youth experienced foster care in 2024, the first increase after a steady decline since at least 2016, according to the Indiana Department of Child Services.
Health
- Data from the 2024 Indiana Youth Survey shows that students in Indiana are using substances at a 30-year low across all substance types.
- 29.9% of students in grades 7th -12th reported feeling so sad or hopeless for 2 or more weeks consecutive weeks in the past year that they stopped doing usual activities in 2024, a decrease from 35.7% in 2022, according to the Indiana Youth Survey.
Economic Well-Being
- Nearly 2 in 10 Indiana children (18.2%) struggled with food insecurity in 2022, marking an increase of 39.5% more children from 2021, according to Feeding America.
- Indiana had the 3rd highest percentage of food insecure children in 2022, compared with neighboring states: Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, according to Feeding America.
- 35.7% of Indiana teens aged 16 to 19 were employed in 2023, surpassing the national rate of 29.3%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Among teens enrolled in school, 34.7% were employed, higher than the national rate of 30%.
Education
- 40% of children in Indiana aged 3 to 4 were enrolled in an early education program in 2023, lower than the national rate of 46%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau .
- The 2024 statewide Early Learning Access Index score was 63.8, an increase from 60.6 in 2021, indicating steady progress in access to high-quality early learning programs, according to Early Learning Indiana.
- The state’s latest graduation rate for the class of 2024 is the highest in a decade (90.2%), a 1.25 percentage point increase from 2023, according to the Indiana Department of Education.
Upcoming State of the Child Presentations
Indiana Youth Insitute will host local State of the Child events in counties across Indiana in February, March, and April. These local events will provide attendees with opportunities to learn and engage with the latest county-level information about child well-being to equip youth workers and community leaders with data to drive positive change for youth.
To register for an in-person, county-specific State of the Child event in March or April, visit iyi.org/events.
About Indiana Youth Institute
Indiana Youth Institute’s mission is to improve the lives of all Indiana children by strengthening and connecting the people, organizations, and communities that are focused on kids and youth. IYI is Indiana’s premier source for high-quality data on child well-being and data-informed action to challenges facing Hoosier children. To learn more, visit www.iyi.org
About the Indiana Youth Institute and the KIDS COUNT ® Network
IYI produces the Indiana KIDS COUNT® Data Book as part of a national network of state-level projects coordinated and supported by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Some data from this book also will be included in the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s national KIDS COUNT® Data Book, which provides state-by-state comparisons of child well-being and will be released in June 2025.
