“The State of Vermont’s Children: 2024 Year in Review” includes a spotlight on the state’s child welfare system
Vermont Business Magazine The State of Vermont’s Children: 2024 Year in Review, a newly released report from Building Bright Futures and Vermont’s Early Childhood Data & Policy Center, provides an objective, data-driven assessment of the well-being of young children and families in Vermont. The report features a spotlight on the child welfare system and includes 12 regional profiles.
The State of Vermont's Children report and a recording of the virtual briefing are available for download. To receive a free hard copy of the report, complete this form.
“Because Vermont’s data systems are fragmented and outdated, The State of Vermont’s Children report plays a crucial role in centralizing complex data across a wide range of services and outcomes for children and families,” said Dr. Morgan Crossman, executive director of Building Bright Futures. “By integrating data from areas like mental health, homelessness, early childhood education, child welfare, child development, and nutrition, this report enables Vermont’s leaders to respond more efficiently and effectively to the needs of children and families. It also helps decision-makers track the impact of policies and investments on both short- and long-term outcomes.”
While the full report contains over 100 contextualized indicators, highlights on pressing issues are captured below.
Housing & Homelessness:
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The number of homeless children under 9 enrolled in school continues to climb, from 197 during the 2019-2020 school year to 603 in the 2023-2024 school year.
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48.9% of Vermont households who rent and 28.2% of households who own a home report paying more than 30% of their income toward rent or a mortgage.
Early Childhood and Elementary Education:
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Vermont has consistently been ranked second in the country for access to UPK for 3-year-olds since 2013, even with decreased Universal Prekindergarten enrollment resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Vermont students ages 3-5 have the highest rate of school readiness in the U.S., with 75.3% of children “on track” for school readiness compared to 64.6% for the country as a whole.
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For Vermont as a whole, only 31% of historically marginalized students score as proficient or above in literacy, compared to 66% of historically advantaged students.
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Almost 3,000 more children were enrolled in the child care financial assistance program from November 2023-October 2024, in large part due to eligibility expansions in the program.
Food Security & Nutrition:
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In 2023, 17.8% of children in the Northeast lived in households with food insecurity, which is up from 14.6% in 2022.
Health Care:
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There was a 13% decrease in Medicaid enrollment in Vermont between March 2023 and September 2024. Overall, there are almost 3,000 fewer children enrolled than before the COVID-19 pandemic in September 2019.
Substance Use:
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Substances (alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana, and/or illicit substances) were used in more than one in 10 pregnancies.
Mental Health:
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Between 2016–2017 and 2021–2022, there was a statistically significant increase in the proportion of Vermont children with a mental health condition, from 9% to 18.4%.
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In 2024, the average turnover rate for mental health program staff at Designated Community Mental Health Agencies and Specialized Service Agencies was 23%, and the average vacancy rate for mental health and substance use programs was 15.8%.
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Between 2016-2022, perinatal mood and anxiety disorders affected 1 in 4 people in Vermont during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Non-birthing parents have a national prevalence of 10% for depression and 18% for anxiety.
Child Welfare:
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Vermont’s rate of child abuse and neglect hotline intakes has been between 2.5 and 3 times higher than the national average, while the actual rate of child victimization consistently falls below the national average.
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Vermont’s antiquated child welfare data system was built in 1983—one of the oldest in the country—and is directly responsible for preventing Vermont from accessing all federally available dollars and results in increased federal financial penalties annually.
The mission of Building Bright Futures (BBF) is to improve the well-being of children and families in Vermont by using evidence to inform policy and bringing voices together across sectors and within regions to discuss critical challenges and problem-solve. Building Bright Futures (BBF) is Vermont’s early childhood public-private partnership, charged under Vermont Title 33 § Chapter 46 and the Federal Head Start Act (Public Law 110-134) as Vermont’s Early Childhood State Advisory Council (SAC), the mechanism used to advise the Governor and Legislature on the well-being of children in the prenatal period through age 8 and their families. BBF’s Network infrastructure includes 12 Regional Councils, seven VECAP Committees and the State Advisory Council. BBF maintains the vision and strategic plan for Vermont’s Early Childhood System. Learn more at buildingbrightfutures.org.
Source: Jan. 15, 2025 (WILLISTON, Vt.)—Building Bright Futures
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