The Indiana Youth Institute (IYI) and Girl Coalition of Indiana, in partnership with Girl Scouts, released the 2024 Indiana Girl Report: A Data-Driven Roadmap for Improving the Lives of Indiana Girls.
This year’s annual report, which was released on Aug. 26, used data driven research to offer insights into the well-being of girls and young women throughout the state of Indiana, and provide a detailed look into the challenges girls in Indiana face as well as the opportunities available to them.
“The 2024 Indiana Girl Report is more than a collection of data,” Tami Silverman, president and CEO of IYI, said in a statement. “It is an example of the foundational role data has in our collective work to care for and improve the lives of Indiana kids. We are proud to collaborate with Girl Co., who is dedicated to leveraging data for impactful change. Together, we are making strides towards a brighter future for every girl in Indiana.”
Indiana Youth Institute has served as Indiana’s KIDS COUNT affiliate — part of a national network dedicated to collecting, analyzing and sharing data on child well-being — for more than 30 years. The 2024 Indiana Girl Report, which builds on the previous year’s report, dives even deeper, combining essential information from more sources to bring awareness to issues in areas such as mental health, social well-being, positive childhood experiences and interpersonal aggression.
Some of the key findings in the 2024 Indiana Girl Report include:
Positive childhood experiences:
- 30.7% of female children ages 6-17 years did not participate in organized activities or lessons in 2021-2022.
- During the 2022-2023 school year, 8,024 homeless female students were enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade, which was a 10% increase from the previous school year.
Addressing interpersonal aggression:
- An increase in four of the five types of bullying incidents among female students K-12 in from 2022 to 2023.
- 17.2% of female high school students in Indiana reported experiencing sexual dating violence in the last year — nearly seven times higher than the reported rate of male students, which was 2.5%.
Access to mental health supports:
- 51.3% of Indiana caregivers with female children ages 3-17 reported experiencing difficulties finding necessary mental health treatment or counseling for their children. This is lower than the national rate of 55.7% and the 61.6% rate of those with male children under 18.
- In 2022, female students 7th-12th grade were twice as likely as their male peers to report multiple mental health issues, including feeling sad or hopeless for more than two weeks, suicidal thoughts and ideation.
“While it’s natural to first think about the girls closest to us, it’s crucial that we begin with a perspective that includes all girls across our state,” Silverman said in a statement. “Central to supporting the well-being of Indiana girls is understanding who they are. Our work centers on evidence and facts about how girls are faring in our state. The potential for innovation, problem-solving, and impacting the lives of girls is only as good as our understanding of the children and youth that we aim to serve.”
The Indiana Girl Report also features recommendations for parents, youth service providers and policymakers. Data is broken down by race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and other important demographics to maintain a nuanced understanding of the diverse experiences of girls in Indiana.
To read a full copy of the 2024 Indiana Girl Report, visit iyi.org.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.
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