California: State of Our Children 2002
Children's Critical Early Years, October 2002

California State Of Our Children 2002
This 108-page companion to the California Report Card provides data on children's critical early years.
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Introduction
An increasing body of research supports the connection between children's well-being in their early years and their later K-12 success. This report documents how well California's young children are doing—in terms of their early care and education, health, family economic resources and safety.

It shows where the state has seen improvements, such as in decreasing infant deaths, and where significant gaps remain, such as in the availability of quality child care. This compilation of new data also shows how California measures up to other states and offers strategies for improving young children's chances to thrive.

This report, which accompanies the Report Card, illustrates how community groups, state government and the private sector are making a difference in young children's lives. The Prenatal to Three Program in San Mateo County improves health outcomes for children by providing over 5,500 home visits annually to families with young children. The Westminster Early Education Center in Los Angeles is building literacy for both children and their parents in hopes of better preparing families for kindergarten. The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) nutrition program provides nutritious food, individual counseling and health care referrals to 1.17 million high-risk, low-income children up to age five. Medi-Cal for Children and the Healthy Families program provide no- or low-cost health insurance to over 3.2 million low-income children in California.