Earlier this month, The Annie E. Casey Foundation released Race for Results: Building a Path to Opportunity for All Children, a policy report that examines the intersection of children, race and opportunity using a new index. The Race for Results Index disaggregates data by state and racial and ethnic groups and thus measures how we are doing in terms of preparing all American children to succeed in life and school. It comprises 12 indicators and is intended to measure individual states’ progress towards equity and to develop state-level policy changes. A child’s success is gauged at every stage of life in different areas, including early childhood, education and early work experiences, family resources and neighborhood context.
The Index draws from the Brookings Institute’s Social Genome Project, and when coupled with other tools such as the Kirwan Institute’s Opportunity Mapping Initiative and Project, provides a comprehensive measure of progress towards equity. It is similar to the Human Development Index, which provides a single statistic to measure progress in terms of economic and social development; the Race for Results Index provides a single composite score that allows for cross-state and cross-race comparisons of progress in important areas. Despite its limitations, the Index offers one way to gauge the overall health and opportunities of children across the nation.
The report analyzes factors that influence the lives and opportunities for African American, Native American, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander and White children. Outcomes are examined for each group by comparing children of U.S.-born families and those who are born in immigrant families. For example, African American children of immigrant families are twice as likely (66 percent) to live in a two-parent family compared to their U.S.-born counterparts (32 percent). Among Whites, 75 percent of children from U.S.-born families live in two-parent households while 89 percent of immigrant-born children live in such families. Significant differences emerged among Native American children based on tribal affiliation. While close to half of Choctaw children live in families that have incomes at or above 200 percent of poverty, only 20 percent of Apache children live in similarly economically situated families. Geography is a key factor for many children of different races and ethnicities, too.
Writing about the new report, LaJune Montgomery Tabron, president and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, notes the findings of a recent poll done by her foundation with EBONY magazine. The “State of the Black Family Survey” found that nearly one third of African Americans are concerned that their children are not getting a quality education. Tabron writes, “We have a great chance of improving these statistics when we increase access to opportunities that promote the brain development of children at an early age.”
One of the four recommendations in Race for Results that is particularly resonant for foundations is to “use data and impact assessment tools to target investments to yield the greatest impact for children of color.” This aligns precisely with NCRP’s recommendation in Criteria for Philanthropy at Its Best that grantmakers explicitly allocate 50 percent of their grant dollars for the benefit of underserved communities, broadly defined. It builds on previous work by scholars such as Theda Skocpol and john powell who identify targeted universalism as one means to address structural barriers to opportunity and equity.
Does your foundation target your funds to those with the least wealth, opportunity and power? Has your foundation ever used an opportunity or racial impact assessment to inform your grantmaking? These tools have the potential to maximize the impact of limited philanthropic dollars and lead to a more just and inclusive country in which all children have the same opportunities to succeed, regardless of geography, race or economic status.
Niki Jagpal is director of research and policy at the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP). She blogs frequently about philanthropy, social justice and structural racism.
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