Youth

Data Committee Results
General Population Survey Results
Non-English Speaking Survey Results
Community Leader Survey Results

Data Committee Results

PUBLIC EDUCATON

Quality public education is essential to the health of a community.  Decades of research confirm that both the quality and quantity of schooling are strongly associated with increased income, better health, lower levels of criminal activity, and less reliance on public assistance.  (Hanushek, E.A. Outcomes, costs and incentives in schools.  In Improving America’s Schools: The Role of Incentives.  E.A. Hanushek and D.W. Jorgenson, eds. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1996, pp. 29-52.)  Public schools are charged with a heavy responsibility:  accept all of society’s children, from every background, and give each one a fair start in life; provide each student with academic skills, job skills, citizenship skills, and self-knowledge; recognize and develop the unique strengths of each individual student; find an appropriate method for motivating each student; and never give up on any child, for without schooling their chances in life are greatly diminished.

The State of Washington’s method for funding public education requires local communities to provide approximately 25% of the costs of educating the children in their local districts.  Although the constitution of the State of Washington stipulates that public education shall be the “paramount duty” of the state, over a series of years, the state’s contribution to public education funding has eroded.  Currently the state actually funds around 72 to 75% of the costs.

When student population increases and local levies pass, local districts have been able to provide the quality schooling needed for the children of their communities.  When student population declines and/or the voters are not supportive of their local schools, a serious deficit occurs--not just for the local public school districts but for the community at large.  The impact can be long-lasting and far-reaching.

One particular issue facing public school districts in the State of Washington today is the decrease in the percentage of families in a community who do not have children living in their homes.  While it is hoped that families without children can see the value of quality schooling in their own communities, often voters without children feel no responsibility to use their personal funds for schools for the common good.  Snohomish County census data indicate on average approximately 39% of the homes in the county contain families with children.  Because of the need to ask voters to regularly approve a maintenance and operations levy just to maintain current revenue, and because 61% of the homes in the county contain residents who have no direct links to public education, local districts may be at risk of losing the quality obtained to date.

• HIGH SCHOOL DROP OUT RATE:  High school drop out data is difficult to compare among national, state, county and local because the methods used for collecting the data are somewhat inconsistent among school districts.  The attached table shows the drop out rate among Snohomish County districts to be lower than the national and state rates.  Although the State of Washington does not collect drop out data by ethnic groups at this time, local ethnic group data is consistent with national ethnic group data with white students remaining in school longer than black and Hispanic students.  Among all students, Everett Public Schools has seen a slight decrease in the drop out rate between the spring of 1998 and the spring of 2000.  The total rate has declined from 6.9% to 6.4%.  The percentage of white, black, Asian, and American Indian students dropping out of school in Everett Public Schools has decreased during the three-year period indicated while the percentage of Hispanic students dropping out of school has increased by 3.6 % during that same period.
  
  
• EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT: Data indicate that a higher percentage of the population in Snohomish County than the population nationally has obtained at least a high school diploma.  Approximately 18.3% of the national population never completed high school while approximately 14.1% of those residing in Snohomish County in 1990 had not obtained a high school diploma.  In addition, a higher percentage of residents in Snohomish County than the average percent reporting nationally indicate they have completed at least a Bachelor’s degree from a college or university.
  
  
• PERFORMANCE ON STANDARDIZED TESTS:   Standardized tests are administered to students on an annual basis and analysis is done for comparisons among the national data, state data, and local district data.  Norm referenced tests administered nationally for comparisons over the past few years include the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, the Iowa Test of Educational Development, the California Test of Basic Skills, and the Curriculum Framework Assessment System.  In addition, high school students expecting to attend college choose to take the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) used by colleges and universities as a predictor of student success in higher education.  In most areas, the average results on these assessments for students in the State of Washington and in Snohomish County are at or above the national average and 1999 data indicate students in Everett Public Schools score higher than the state average.
  
  
• PUBLIC SCHOOL EXPENDITURES:  The cost for educating students in public schools is steadily increasing.  As shown on the attached chart, the per pupil expenditure grew by 2% in our state between 1998 and 1999 and by 10% in Snohomish County and 2 % in Everett Public Schools during that same two-year period.  The amount shown on the chart for Snohomish County in 1999 is higher than the state average.  This could be due to the amount of federal dollars received in low-income schools throughout the county.
  
  
• HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES ENROLLING IN HIGHER EDUCATION:  As students leave the public schools, tracking them for a research purpose becomes extremely difficult; therefore, any data on the percentage of high school graduates enrolling in post-secondary education is questionable.  The last data available in this area indicate the percent of students graduating from high schools in Everett Public Schools and enrolling in an institution of higher learning is slightly above the national average.
  
  
• TOTAL PRIMARY AND SECONDARY ENROLLMENT:  The total number of students enrolled in K-12 public education continues to increase.  Between 1998 and 2000, enrollment has increased nationally by 1%, in the state by .3 %, in Snohomish County by 4%, and in Everett Public Schools by 2%.  As is evident by this data, public school growth locally in Snohomish County is much higher than growth nationally and significantly higher than what our state is experiencing.

SOURCES:

• Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction
• Everett Public Schools
• Snohomish County Census Data
• National Library of Education
• Digest of Educational Statistics 2000

* percentage based on sampling of Everett Public School graduates, 9/5/01

**No longer gathering this information

SAT Scores for Snohomish County

(Information Source: Individual Districts)

Performance on Standardized Testing (ITBS & ITED)

Performance on Standardized Testing (CTBS/CFAS)

Average SAT Scores

Public School Expenditures Per Pupil

Percentage of graduates enrolling in post-secondary education

Number of Higher Education Degrees Awarded

Total Primary and Secondary Enrollment

General Population Survey Results

Enough Youth Activities

• Young to middle age respondents, those 54 or under, were most likely to disagree strongly that their community offers enough activities for youth (21% compared to 10% of 65 or older respondents.
  
• Respondents who rated their community "fair/poor" (29%) were more likely to strongly disagree than those who said "excellent" (15%) or "good" (18%).
  
• 24% of North/East residents strongly disagreed that youth activities are adequate compared to 15% of Everett/Hwy99.
  

Adequate Youth Employment Opportunities
On the topic of adequate youth employment opportunities in the community, again one in five (19%) said they did not know. Those who said they strongly agree with the statement tended to be:

• Respondents who are married (28%) compared to those who are not married (20%).
  
• Respondents 34 years of age and younger (28%) compared to those 45 or older (18%).
  
• Respondents who have lived in their homes 5 years or less (26%) versus those who have lived in their homes 6 or more years (18%).
  
• Residents of the Everett/Hwy 99 (26%) region compared to North/East (18%).
  

Those below the poverty level (36%) compared to those above (21%).

Teenage Pregnancy Is an Issue
There is no clear consensus as to whether or not teenage pregnancy is or is not an issue in the community. One in five (20%) strongly disagree, compared to 18% who strongly agree. One-third (31%) of the respondents said they "don't know".

Respondents who strongly agree tended to be:

• Under the age of 35 (25%) compared to 35 and over (14%).
  
• Those with incomes under $55,000 (22%) compared to those with incomes of $55,000 or more (13%).
  
• Renters (30%) compared to owners 14%).
  
• Households with two or more people (19%) compared to one person households (121%).
  
• Those who rated their community "fair/poor" (25%) compared to those who rated it "excellent" or "good" (16% each).
  
• Respondents who are receiving some type of assistance (37%) compared to those who are most likely to say they don't know (15%).
  
• Respondents who live in the Everett/Hwy 99 (21%) region compared to those living in View/S. Central (14%).
  
• Unmarried respondents (21%) compared to those who are married (16%).
  
• Respondents with a high school or less education (20%) compared to college graduates (13%).
  

Non-English Speaking Survey Results

Education
Non-English speaking respondents were less likely to strongly agree there are adequate training opportunities for adults (11% compared to 25% of the general population but didn't know (29% compared to 20% of the general population). Non-English speaking respondents were much more likely than the general population to feel that too many people are unable to read and do basic math (29% compared to 9%). Non-English speaking respondents were not quite sure about the adequacy of youth employment opportunities and were more likely than the general population to not know or not answer the question (32% compared to 19% for the general population). Non-English speaking respondents who expressed an opinion about adequacy of youth employment opportunities were less willing to express strong agreement that the opportunities are adequate. Fifteen percent (15%) expressed strong agreement that opportunities are adequate compared to 22% of the general population.

Community Leader Survey Responses

Enough Youth Activities
Just under one-third (30%) disagreed with the statement that there are enough activities for youth. Those most likely to feel that way are:

• Respondents who rated their communities "fair/poor" (50%) compared to those who said "good" (31%) or "excellent" (22%).
  
• Women were also more likely to express a lower level of agreement (3.4) than men (4.0).
  

Too Many Teenagers On the Street
Over a third of the respondents (35%) strongly agreed with this statement and were most likely to be:

• Women (40%) compared to men (27%).
  
• Those who rated their community "fair/poor" (47%) compared to those who said "excellent" (27%). Respondents who rated their community "fair/poor" also had a higher average rating (5.3), indicating a higher level of agreement that there are too many teens on the streets, than those who rated it "excellent" (4.2).
  

Adequate Youth Employment Opportunities
Almost a quarter (23%) of the respondents strongly disagreed with this statement. These respondents were more likely to be:

• Those who rated their community "fair/poor" (41%) compared to those who rated it "excellent" (20%) or "good" (22%).

Those who agreed with the statement were more likely to be:

• Men (23%) compared to women (11%).
  

Alcohol or Drug Use Among Youth is Widespread
Three in ten (31%) respondents strongly agreed with this statement and tended to be:

• Forty-five to fifty-four year olds (41%) compared to those younger (23%) or those 65 or older (14%). The forty-five to fifty-four year olds also had a higher average rating (4.9) than the 65 and older group (4.0).
  
• Those who rated their community "good" (34%) or "fair/poor" (47%) compared to those who gave an "excellent" rating (22%). The level of agreement for those who gave a "good" (4.9) or "fair/poor" (5.3) opinion of their community was also higher compared to the rating for those who gave an "excellent" rating (4.2).
  
• Respondents who worked more than 10 years in Snohomish County (36%) compared to those who have worked less than three years (13%).
  
• Women were also more likely to agree (4.9) than were men (4.5).
  

Teenage Pregnancy is an Issue
Less than a quarter (23%) strongly agreed that teen pregnancy is an issue and they tended to be:

• Leaders who are 45 to 54 years of age (25%) compared to those 65+ (11%). The average rating for the 45 to 54 year olds was higher (4.6) than the older group (3.7).
  
• Those who rated their community "good" (27%) compared to those who rated it "excellent" (16%). The average rating for those who said "good" (4.6) and for those who said "fair/poor" (4.9) was higher than for those who said "excellent" (4.1).