March 12, 2019
Media Contact:
Scott L. Peterson, Director of Communications, Office of Public Information, 202-277-9412
ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball previously met with the Howard County Local Children’s Board (LCB) to receive their new report, “Access to Opportunity in Howard County: Making the Case for Equity.” The LCB represents a wide range of public agency leaders and residents committed to creating a Howard County where all children and youth have equitable access to education, health care, basic needs and enrichment. The discussion covered the scope and purpose of the report, top findings and next steps for cooperative action. The report can be found here.
“For Howard County to be the best county in this nation, we must push equity,” said Ball. “This starts with equipping our Howard County government employees and service providers with the proper training and direction to ensure all our policies and practices meet the needs of our diverse community. I want to thank the Howard County Local Children’s Board for providing this valuable report that will be our roadmap toward a more equitable county.”
In 2018, the LCB convened an Equity Committee charged with developing a baseline report using qualitative and quantitative data to tell the story of opportunity across race, ethnicity and income levels in Howard County. Their new report will be used to draw public and agency attention to the opportunity gap in Howard County and frame a positive discussion about cooperative government and nonprofit action to ensure a collective Howard County provides a path to success for all children and youth.
Across numerous important measures, data show that youth of color in Howard County, especially African American and Hispanic/Latino youth, are more likely than their white peers to experience negative outcomes and less likely to benefit from opportunities. The report concludes that racial and socioeconomic equity should be significant considerations when planning and developing policies and practices that impact public services, programs and initiatives. It includes a countywide call to action regarding equity, both in the short term and long term.
In the short term, they recommend a focus on coordinating efforts and sharing information between government agencies and community organizations. To increase our ability to understand the factors that contribute to inequities in Howard County, a countywide commitment to, and support for, equity training and education will also be essential.
In the long term, they advocate we prioritize equity focus areas for policy analysis, form enduring relationships with and among the communities in Howard County to sustain ongoing dialogue, and establish concrete timelines for reaching specific milestones.