The personal finance website WalletHub recently ranked New Mexico 4th in the country when it comes to having the most underprivileged children. WalletHub analyst, Jill Gonzalez says New Mexico did poorly when it comes to children’s education.
“We’re seeing that there’s very low public high school graduation rate that gets even lower among economically disadvantaged students,” says Gonzalez.
Gonzalez says that there are also many young children not enrolled in preschool. The study also ranked New Mexico low when it comes to maltreated children. Gonzalez says almost a third of children in the state face maltreatment.
“Right now New Mexico has one of the highest rates in the country at just over 30 percent of children being maltreated or having some reports of maltreatment in the past,” says Gonzalez.
The study suggests that there are some things that legislators and elected officials can work on that may help lower the amount of underprivileged children in the state.
“Indirectly, things like raising the minimum wage, increasing access to affordable housing all trickle down and help children, they’ll help families in general,” says Gonzalez.
Gonzalez says that increasing childcare subsidies, especially for working parents who make under a specific amount of money can help have a positive impact for underprivileged children.
More information about the study: https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-states-underprivileged-children/5403/
