What Are The Needs?

POVERTY

• 29.9% of families in Buffalo live in poverty with over 63% of families having a woman as the head of household ¹
• Of the 20,000 children living in the City of Buffalo ²
  • 45% live in households below 100% of the Federal poverty level ($ 20,650 for a family of four)
  • Over half of 3- and 4-year old children live with a single parent
  • Approximately 1,000 children are born each year to mothers without a high school diploma

EDUCATION

• 39% of children entering 9^th grade at Buffalo Public Schools drop out without graduating
• 67% of eight graders and 60% of fourth graders in Buffalo Public Schools are not meeting grade level standards in literacy

HEALTH

• 15.5% of girls are overweight (nationally)
• 25% of women in Erie County DO NOT receive prenatal care and this number has been increasing over the past decade ³
• Nearly 8% of babies born in WNY are underweight (5.5lbs) ⁴

GIRLS

• 5.4% of pregnancies are to teenage mothers in Western New York versus 4.3% in New York state (excluding New York city) ⁵
• 32% of girls ages 8-17 report that their number one concern is being teased or being made fun of ⁶
• One in four girls were involved in physical fights ⁷
• Girls reported a higher rate of current drinking (17.2%) vs. boys (15.9%) among youth aged 12-17 ⁸

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

• There are over 5,000 reports of domestic violence a year in WNY ⁹

WNY Women’s Fund is funding programs whose goals are to improve these statistics dramatically

¹ Census Bureau
² Information provided by Good Schools for All – October 2007 based on US Census Bureau.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ UB Regional Institute: State of the Region.
⁶ Information provided by Girl Scouts based on GSRI Feeling Safe: What Girls Say (2003).
⁷ Information provided by Girl Scouts based on OJJDP, Juvenile Victims and Offenders: 2006 National Report.
⁸ Information provided by Girl Scouts based on SAMHSA, National Survey on Drug Use and Health: 2005.
⁹ UB Regional Institute: State of the Region.