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Charlotte, 8, excitedly pulled a pink pair of sunglasses out of the drawstring bag from MCCOY, the Marion County Commission on Youth. She used a bench in the lobby of the Indiana Statehouse Monday morning as a ramp for a fidget spinner, saying her favorite part of her visit to the state capitol was the new toys.
While she, and other children, were excited about the trinkets and candy, they were there with family members, lawmakers and advocates focused on something else: How are Indiana’s children doing?
The annual Day of the Child event marks the release of the Indiana Youth Institute’s report on the well-being of Hoosier children. The report focuses on four categories: family and community, health, economic well-being, and education. Monday marked the ninth year for the event and 31st for the report.
Charlotte was joined by her grandmother, October S. Kniess, who worked in family law for 25 years and is now an educator.
“I’m not going to stop trying to find ways to help young people,” said Kniess. She said the Day of the Child is important because it brings focus to issues impacting children and allows a view of who in Indiana is helping youth.
The day opened in the House chamber, where Tami Silverman, president and CEO of the institute, began a summary of this year’s report, which covered Indiana’s more than 1.5 million children.
A look at last year’s report is here.
“Whether it’s at the Indiana Statehouse or out across the state, we all work together to serve our kids,” said Silverman. She described the study as a “report card for adults.”
“Technology has changed, the times have changed. At the same time, the feelings of childhood have not changed that much,” said Silverman. “We all were children once. …
“There is a saying that the greatest responsibility of any generation is to care for the generations that follow.”
The 146-page Indiana Kids Count Data Book ranked Indiana 27th in the country for overall child well-being. This ranking was derived from data in the four outlined categories, and the information was collected considering age, gender, race, ethnicity, place of birth, language, household type and religion.
“Within that data, there is a lot of encouraging stories,” said Silverman. Teen birth rates are down, more mental-health providers are available, household median family income has increased, and child poverty is the lowest it has been in a decade.
On the other side of the coin, just 40% of 3- and 4-year-olds in Indiana are enrolled in early childhood education, childhood food insecurity has increased, and only 40% of students in grades 3-8 passed both math and language arts state testing.
“As for learning in this country, and in our state, we still have significant work to do to help our kids catch up,” said Silverman.
Family and community
Children have also been less involved in civic engagement like volunteering.
“We’re known for Hoosier hospitality and for showing up, and we need to be instilling that exact same value in the next generation,” said Silverman.
In addition to lower civic engagement, only 23% of 6- to 17-year-olds played a sport or participated in an hour of daily activity. The number is above the national average but still far below the majority of kids. Silverman emphasized the state’s love for sports and how we can extend that to youth.
“In our state, we live for competition. But at the same time, we are not meant to be just spectators,” said Silverman. On a national scale, more Indiana children live in neighborhoods that don’t have parks, recreation centers or libraries.
Continuing through the report, Silverman said more than 18,000 Indiana children experienced foster care in 2024.
Four students from Jobs for America’s Graduates, or JAG, shared how the program helped them overcome adversity in their lives.
JAG student Shelby Williams was adopted at 10 months old.
“That led to a sense of abandonment, and I struggled to adjust,” she said. “JAG helped me realize that being different is not always a bad thing. Sometimes, it’s what makes us unique.”
After graduating, Williams will be pursuing her degree in biology with a minor in entrepreneurship from the University of Cincinnati. She hopes to then continue her education and become a dermatologist.
Health
Gunnar Crispin, another student in JAG, was born visually impaired.
“Growing up in a world that was meant for people with vision had been difficult and even isolating at times,” said Crispin. He experienced anxiety growing up and often felt overwhelmed, and he began using drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism.
Overall, Indiana has seen a decline in substance use among children. Since 1993, monthly cigarette usage among 8th graders declined from 21% to 1.2%. Alcohol saw a similar downward trend, from 30% to 7%. However, rural communities are still disproportionately impacted.
“JAG became my lifeline. It gave me the structure, support and community that I needed,” said Crispin.
He plans to attend Ball State University and study political science on a pre-law track.
“I will then go on to advocate for others like me and like others in this room,” said Crispin.
While substance abuse among children is lower, Indiana’s youth face struggles with mental health in general. The report found that almost one-third of teenagers experienced sadness and hopelessness for consecutive weeks, which then led to withdrawal from their normal activities.
Children today have fewer friends, which they see less frequently. Additionally, smartphones and social media impact the modern social experience for youth.
“We need to reconnect our youth to the real world,” said Silverman. She emphasized the social aspect of the Statehouse event, that children had the opportunity to see government functions up close and personal and interact with lawmakers.
“We need them to connect to one another and to the things that they care about,” said Silverman.
Makia Lucas, the third JAG student to speak, experienced trauma throughout her childhood, as her family has a history of addiction. In 2020, her father was murdered. Lucas went through therapy and began taking classes online, which led to social isolation. At this point, she joined JAG.
“It changed my life completely,” she said.
Lucas began volunteering and worked at a local recovery center.
“Every day, I’ve worked to break my family’s cycle,” she said.
She is planning to attend Ball State University, where she will pursue a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in criminal justice. She hopes to work for the FBI as a member of the Behavioral Analysis Unit.
“Every teenager has something they care about. They just need to feel empowered to do it,” Lucas said.
Economic well-being and education
Thirty-five percent of youth ages 16 to 19 were employed in Indiana in 2023, putting the state above the national average. Indiana’s graduation rate is over 90%, the highest it has been in over a decade.
“Part of our job as adults is to prepare our kids for a future that we can’t even predict,” said Silverman. “We want every student to find their purpose.”
Angel Tunny, JAG president, was the fourth and final student to speak. Tunny was in foster care by 4 years old and was adopted by her grandparents alongside her nine siblings.
“Through JAG, I learned to open up, and now I have the support to be who I want to be,” said Tunny.
Tunny currently works for the Indiana Army and National Guard, and wants to work in the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit alongside Lucas.
“The important thing is to work hard and do your best, just like you ask of us,” said Tunny, addressing the adults in the audience.
Silverman closed the speech by noting that the stories shared by the JAG students, while inspiring, are not guaranteed.
“There are thousands of Hoosier students that are waiting for their opportunity,” said Silverman.
Progress has been made for youth in Indiana, Silverman said, but there is still room for improvement.
“Generations come and go in Indiana. They built this incredible, magnificent Statehouse. They passed laws, and they invested in our futures. Now it’s our responsibility to pay it back, and we do that by paying it forward,” said Silverman.
She called for more online protections and real-world freedoms and urged the state to provide students with strong starts.
The Indiana Youth Institute will now travel to 17 counties around the state to provide data on a local basis.
“As adults in this room, we can make an impact, and we can be remembered,” said Silverman, “because in the end, that will be our final report card.”
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