Alexander County
Social Impact Research Center
at Heartland Alliance
33 W. Grand Ave., Suite 500 | Chicago, IL 60654
T: 312-870-4949 | F: 312-870-4950
Media Inquiries: alstewart@heartlandalliance.org
Well-Being Index
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High School Graduation Rate, 2011-2012 academic year 1 | 69.3% | 82.3% |
-1.8% pts 2010-2011 |
-1.5% pts 2010-2011 |
| Teen Births (live births per 1,000 women ages 15-19), 2009 2 | 105.9 | 36.1 |
-12.1 pts 2008 |
2 pts 2008 |
| Unemployment Rate, Sep 2012 3 | 10.7% | 8.1% |
-1.9% pts Sep 2011 |
-1.7% pts Sep 2011 |
| Poverty Rate, 2011 4 | 31.3% | 14.9% |
0.2% pts 2010 |
1.1% pts 2010 |
Poverty & Income
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of People in Poverty, 2011 4 | 2,360 | 1,871,484 |
-1.7% 2010 |
8.0% 2010 |
| Child Poverty Rate, 2011 4 | 48.2% | 21.3% |
-0.8% pts 2010 |
1.9% pts 2010 |
| Median Household Income, 2011 5 | $28,499 | $53,271 |
-5.6% 2010 |
-2.5% 2010 |
| Bankruptcies per 1,000 People, 2011 6 | 4.47 | 5.50 |
-0.76 pts 2010 |
0.57 pts 2010 |
| Self-Sufficiency Wage for a One-Parent Family with a Preschooler and School-age Child, 2011 7 | $33,809 | $51,731 | — | — |
| Average Amount Poor Families' Income Falls Below the Poverty Line (i.e., mean income deficit), 2007-2011 8 | $10,648 | $9,132 | — | — |
Employment
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment Rate, Sep 2012 3 | 10.7% | 8.1% |
-1.9% pts Sep 2011 |
-1.7% pts Sep 2011 |
| Rank by Unemployment Rate (1=highest, 102=lowest), Sep 2012 3 | 9 | — | — | — |
| Number of Unemployed Individuals, Sep 2012 3 | 308 | 536,288 |
-19.8% Sep 2011 |
-17.0% Sep 2011 |
| Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims, 2011 9 | 464 | 722,739 |
35.3% 2010 |
-12.1% 2010 |
| Average Quarterly Net Job Flow, 3rd Qtr 2010 to 3rd Qtr 2011 10 | 1 | 33,574 | — | — |
Education
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High School Graduation Rate for Low-Income Students, 2011-2012 academic year 1 | 74.4% | 72.8% |
3.8% pts 2010-2011 |
-2.3% pts 2010-2011 |
| Funded Head Start Enrollment, 2011 fiscal year 11 | 105 | 36,908 |
0.0% 2010 |
-1.5% 2010 |
| Percent Meeting or Exceeding Standards on the ISAT, 2011-2012 academic year 12 | 69.9% | 82.5% |
-0.6% pts 2010-2011 |
0.1% pts 2010-2011 |
| Average ACT Composite Score, 2011-2012 academic year 13 | 17.8 | 20.2 |
2.3 pts 2010-2011 |
0.1 pts 2010-2011 |
Housing
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Renters as a Percent of Total Households, 2007-2011 8 | 32.6% | 31.3% | — | — |
| Percent Severely Rent-Burdened Households, 2007-2011 8 | 15.7% | 25.1% | — | — |
| Fair Market Rent (FMR) for 2-Bedroom Apartment, 2012 14 | $596 | $873 | — | — |
| Estimate of Mean Renter Hourly Wage, 2012 14 | $6.73 | $13.95 | — | — |
| Monthly Rent Affordable at Mean Renter Wage, 2012 14 | $350 | $726 | — | — |
| Wage Needed to Afford 2-Bedroom Apartment at FMR, 2012 14 | $11.46 | $16.78 | — | — |
| 2-Bedroom Housing Wage as a Percent of IL Minimum Wage, 2012 14 | 139% | 203% | — | — |
| Work Hours per Week at IL Minimum Wage to Afford 2-Bedroom at FMR, 2012 14 | 56 | 81 | — | — |
Health & Nutrition
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Share of Families Receiving SNAP that have 1 or more Workers in Family, 2007-2011 8 | 63.0% | 78.3% | — | — |
| Health Uninsured Rate, Non-Seniors, 2010 15 | 13.8% | 15.6% |
-0.9% pts 2009 |
0.6% pts 2009 |
| Percentage of Babies Born Low Birth Weight, 2009 16 | 13.2% | 8.4% | — | — |
| Percent of Children Eligible for Free or Reduced-Price School Lunch, 2011-2012 academic year 17 | 99.0% | 53.6% |
22.1% pts 2010-2011 |
1.9% pts 2010-2011 |
| Food Insecurity Rate, 2010 18 | 20.4% | 15.0% |
-1.1% pts 2009 |
0.3% pts 2009 |
| Child Food Insecurity Rate, 2010 19 | 22.8% | 22.2% |
-3.9% pts 2009 |
-1.1% pts 2009 |
Assets
| County Value | IL Value | County Change | IL Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average Debt per Tradeline, Jun 2012 20 | $4,262 | $12,602 |
-1.9% Jun 2011 |
-6.1% Jun 2011 |
| Percent of Consumers with Credit Scores Below 620, Jun 2012 21 | 38.1% | 22.5% | — | — |
| Homeownership Rate, 2007-2011 8 | 67.4% | 68.7% | — | — |
There are a number of different data sources available for poverty estimates. The timeliest source availabe for estimates for all Illinois counties is the Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates Program, which is used here. For more information on the various sources of poverty estimates used for this project and how they differ, see the FAQs page.
At the time of release, all data were the most timely and accurate available.
Data Sources
1 Illinois State Board of Education's 2011-2012 and 2010-2011 School Report Card Data, by County. On file with author.
2 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau's 2008 and 2009 Population Estimates and Illinois Department of Public Health, Illinois Teen Births by County 2008-2009. Available at http://www.idph.state.il.us/health/teen/teen0809.htm
3 Illinois Department of Employment Security's Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS). Available at http://lmi.ides.state.il.us/laus/lausmenu.htm (not seasonally adjusted)
4 The U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 and 2011 Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Available at http://www.census.gov/did/www/saipe/
5 The U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 and 2011 Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Available at http://www.census.gov/did/www/saipe/ (2010 data updated to 2011 dollars with the Consumer Price Index)
6 FDIC's Regional Economic Conditions, Personal Bankruptcy Filing Rate (per 1,000 population) Illinois. Available at http://www2.fdic.gov/recon/ovrpt.asp?CPT_CODE=NBR&ST_CODE=17&RPT_TYPE=Tables
7 Social IMPACT Research Center & Center for Women's Welfare, University of Washington School of Social Work's 2009 Illinois Self-Sufficiency Standard. Available at http://www.heartlandalliance.org/research/research-illinois-self-sufficiency-standard/ (updated to 2011 dollars with the Consumer Price Index)
8 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau's 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates Program. Available at http://factfinder2.census.gov/
9 Illinois Department of Employment Security's Unemployment Insurance (UI) Program Data. Available at http://www.ides.illinois.gov/page.aspx?item=917
10 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of Illinois Department of Employment Security's Local Employment Dynamics, LEHD State of Illinois County Reports - Quarterly Workforce Indicators. Available at http://www.ides.illinois.gov/page.aspx?item=919
11 Illinois Early Childhood Asset Map's Search the IECAM Data Collection. Available at http://iecam.crc.uiuc.edu/cgi-bin/iecam/search.asp
12 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of Illinois State Board of Education's 2011-2012 and 2010-2011 ISAT/PSAE/ACT Performance Results. Available at http://www.isbe.net/assessment/report_card.htm
13 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of Illinois State Board of Education's 2011-2012 and 2010-2011 ISAT/PSAE/ACT Performance Results. Available at http://www.isbe.net/assessment/report_card.htm (ACT scores are calculated out of possible 36 points)
14 National Low Income Housing Coalition's Out of Reach 2012. Available at http://nlihc.org/oor/2012
15 The U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 and 2009 Small Area Health Insurance Estimates. Available at http://www.census.gov/did/www/sahie/
16 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of Illinois Department of Public Health's Birth Characteristics by Resident County 2009. Available at http://www.idph.state.il.us/health/bdmd/birthchar_09.htm
17 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of Illinois State Board of Education's Free and Reduced Price Meal Eligibility Data. Available at http://isbe.net/nutrition/htmls/eligibility_listings.htm
18 Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap 2012: Food Insecurity Estimates at the County Level, by Gundersen, C., Waxman, E., Engelhard, E., Del Vecchio, T., Satoh, A., & Lopez-Betanzos, A. Available at http://feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/hunger-studies/map-the-meal-gap.aspx
19 Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap 2012: Child Food Insecurity Estimates at the County Level, by Gundersen, C., Waxman, E., Engelhard, E., Del Vecchio, T., Satoh, A., & Lopez-Betanzos, A. Available at http://feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/hunger-studies/map-the-meal-gap.aspx
20 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of aggregate data provided by a large national credit bureau for a snapshot of credit and debt by region, dated June 2012 and June 2011. No individual or customer data were provided.
21 Social IMPACT Research Center's analysis of aggregate data provided by a large national credit bureau for a snapshot of credit and debt by region, dated June 2012. No individual or customer data were provided.
We gratefully acknowledge The Chicago Community Trust, Grand Victoria Foundation, and The Libra Foundation for their support of our poverty research, communications, and education efforts.
