There’s a lot of reasons I bank on the idea that everything gets better with age. In the case of the Kids Count in Nebraska Report, that certainly seems to hold true.
We’ve noted before that this year’s report, to be released Jan. 23, marks the 20th edition. That’s a big deal. And to honor Voices for Children’s two-decade commitment to providing timely and reliable data, we wanted to make sure that we were building on the report’s legacy . . . and take it to the next level.
In 1993, Kids Count was 20 pages. That inaugural issue honed in on many of the same children’s issues we cover today: health, education, safety, and economic stability. It provided Nebraska’s first collection of data that looked specifically at child well-being, and the importance of that can’t be overstated.
Since then, however, the book has grown in new and exciting directions. Attention was given not just to data and personal stories, but also to the impact of policy on children. Commentaries and issue boxes highlighted important matters of the time.
Now, with the 20th edition, we are up to 96 pages. A greater page count doesn’t necessarily equal a better book . . . but in this case, we’re pretty sure it does. This year’s edition is chock-full of data presented in ways you’ve not seen in our previous books. There are more data, to be sure, but they are also shared more visually.
That’s because we know that even for the nerdiest of the data nerds out there, slogging through and finding the right number for the right situation can be a daunting task if you don’t know where to look. We’re aiming to streamline that process. Bring out the high points, the most-referenced pieces. Make life a little easier for data users.
Because in the end, Kids Count isn’t about the data. It’s about kids. It’s about their lives. When we can make data easier to access, when we can understand the whole story, we can make life a little better for kids.
Here’s to another 20 years, and to getting even better with age.
Join us for the release of the Kids Count report January 23rd and 24th.
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