Rural child poverty is as high as in some cities

"New data indicate that more than 13 million children are living in poverty, 22 percent of rural children and 25 percent of children living in central cities," says the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. "The report, based on U.S. Census Bureau data released today, finds that on average, rates of child poverty are persistently higher in rural parts of the country relative to suburban areas and share similar rates with many central cities."

Sarah Savage, a research assistant at Carsey, writes "Because poverty is closely linked to undesirable outcomes in areas such as health, education, emotional welfare, and delinquency, we take child poverty seriously as a measure of children's well-being."

The major finding of Savage's report: "In 17 states, particularly those in the South and Southwest, rural child poverty is higher than rates in both suburban and urban areas. In 2007, the rural child poverty rate in ranges from a low of just seven percent in Connecticut to a high of 35 percent in Mississippi."(Read full report)