Press Releases

> > > Media and Resources

Press Release Search

Minnesota Ranks Third Overall for Children’s Well-Being, but Fault Lines in Systems Exacerbated by Pandemic; Black, Indigenous and Children of Color Experience Vast Disparities in Outcomes

Minnesota ranked third among states for overall child well-being, improving in health and education rankings but falling in the Family and Community domain from 2020, according to the latest edition of the national 2021 KIDS COUNT® Data Book, released today by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Read More

New Census Data Shows Child Poverty Persists Across America, Even Prior to COVID-19 Pandemic, Especially for Children of Color and Indigenous Children

Saint Paul, Minn. – The Census Bureau has released its annual poverty data indicating that in 2019, 10.5 million American children lived in poverty, among them 143,000 Minnesota children (11.2 percent), making them the poorest age group. While these estimates do not adequately capture the present-day realities of Americans due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, they do reveal the vast racial inequities of income and wealth in Minnesota that have only become more pronounced during this public health crisis.

Read More

Five High School Seniors Recognized for “Beating the Odds”

Five Minnesota high school seniors, who have overcome tremendous adversity in their young lives and yet have managed to achieve academic excellence and aspire to attend college, will be recognized with Beat the Odds® Scholarships at the 29th Annual Beat the Odds Award Celebration, sponsored by Children’s Defense Fund-Minnesota. This year’s event will be a virtual celebration on Thursday, May 13, starting at 6:30 p.m. The five honorees are Sarah Ali, Minneapolis South High School; Daidyena Frost, Brooklyn Center High School; Cindy Candela Gonzaga, St. Paul Central High School; Tolchi Nwankpa, Tartan Senior High School; and Quentin Wolf, Minneapolis South High School. Each will each receive a $5,000 scholarship, a laptop computer and other support to help them achieve their college dreams.

Read More
You are leaving the CDF-MN site and being redirected to the National Children's Defense Fund website.