Kidsdata.org: Great New Data Source Available for All Communities in California!

Spread the Word: http://www.Kidsdata.org

Kidsdata.org now offers data for all counties, cities, and school districts in California. These statewide data are available for a wide range of topics measuring the health and well being of children, and more data will be phased in throughout 2010. If you’d like to help us spread the word about this free, time-saving resource, please post this news on your Facebook and Twitter pages, add it to your organization’s newsletter or website, and alert your colleagues. If you have general feedback about the site, contact us at kidsdata@lpfch.org.

What is Kidsdata.org?

• Kidsdata.org offers more than 300 indicators on the health and well being of children in communities across California. The website, launched in 2004, is a project of the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health.
• The website initially provided data for San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, along with statewide comparisons. In 2007, kidsdata.org expanded to include other counties in the San Francisco Bay Area, including Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, and San Francisco. Also in 2007, a version of kidsdata.org launched in Santa Barbara County. In fall 2009, kidsdata.org expanded to all counties, cities and school districts in California – about 1,600 regions. For more information about this expansion, visit http://www.kidsdata.org/statewide.
• In 2005 and 2006, kidsdata.org was nominated as one of five finalists for a Webby Award -- the leading award for websites -- in the Family/Parenting category. Kidsdata.org also won a silver medal from the Council on Foundation's 2006 Wilmer Shields Rich Awards Program for Excellence in Communications.

What is its purpose?

• To promote the health and well being of children by making trustworthy information easily accessible to policymakers, service providers, grantseekers, media, parents, educators, and others who influence kids’ lives.
• To raise the visibility of key issues affecting California’s children and enable policymakers to set priorities, track progress in meeting benchmarks, and identify new issues of concern.
• You are welcome to make use of our data for research, reports, and other work, and permission to cite the information and reproduce the tables, graphs, or maps on kidsdata.org is granted. Suggested citation: [Data source.] As cited on www.kidsdata.org, a project of the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health. Retrieved on [date].
• The site evolved from children's reports in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health has been a long-time investor in these local data reports and, based on community interest, built kidsdata.org to make these indicators more accessible and up-to-date on the web and to help identify and track key children's issues over time.

Where does the data come from?

• Nearly all data on the site are from public sources, though some indicators come from a Lucile Packard Foundation survey of parents about their child’s well being. You can find information and links to the data sources in the notes below tables, maps, or graphs on indicator pages, or you can view a list of the data sources.
• Data updates and analyses are provided by Population Reference Bureau and foundation staff.
• Data on the site are updated continually.
• The data on kidsdata.org, like indicator data in many reports and websites, have not been tested for statistical significance. Apparent trends over time and differences across regions and among demographic groups may or may not be statistically significant.

Who manages Kidsdsata.org?

• The website was created and is maintained by the Programs and Partnerships department of the Palo Alto-based Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health. The foundation’s vision is that all children in the communities we serve are able to reach their maximum health potential.
• Programming work for kidsdata.org is provided by Velir Studios. The site was designed by Anna Cobb. The data characters that appear on kidsdata.org were created by Twist Studio.