PROVIDENCE—Childhood advocates and leaders across the state gathered at the Rhode Island Kids Count 24th Annual Celebration of Children’s Health and Well-Being to highlight recent data findings, emphasize ongoing disparities among underserved children populations, and announce the nonprofit’s 2025 legislative priorities.
The organization’s 2025 legislative and budgetary priorities include supporting a wide range of policies within child welfare and youth justice, early learning and development, children’s economic well-being, K-12 education, and families’ health coverage.
Data presented at the event on December 2, 2024, shows ongoing racial and ethnic disparities relating to childhood overweight and obesity and high schoolers’ mental health.
According to a Rhode Island Youth Risk Behavior Survey, feelings of sadness or hopelessness among Rhode Island high schoolers steadily rose by 10 percent between 2015 and 2023. High school Hispanic/Latino students consistently reported feelings of sadness or hopelessness at higher rates than their peers.
In 2023, Hispanic/Latino high schoolers were more likely to attempt suicide among other ethnic and racial groups. Over the past eight years, Black and Hispanic/Latino students have been more likely to attempt suicide than white students. Overall, suicide attempts among Rhode Island high schoolers declined from 2015 to 2023—despite a significant spike in suicide attempts in 2019.
At the event, presenters emphasized the complex impact that gun violence has on children and youth’s developmental growth and emotional well-being, aside from their physical health. The increase in shootings—intentional and accidental—in recent years is a serious concern among child and youth advocates and guardians.
“It is unacceptable that we have gun violence as the number one killer of our children,” stated Representative Justine Caldwell. “It was unacceptable when it was cancer—and we did something about it. It was unacceptable when it was motor-vehicle accidents—and we did something about it. It’s critical that we do everything we can to prevent gun violence for everyone but particularly our children.”
Among children and youth, there were 147 emergency department visits, 17 hospitalizations, and 11 deaths relating to firearms between 2018 and 2022. In the U.S., Firearm-related injuries are the leading cause of death among children and youth, exceeding motor vehicle-related deaths.
The Safe Storage for Firearms Act, which sets specific mandates on storing firearms, was passed in June 2024. The Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence, Rep. Caldwell, and Senator Pamela Lauria received a RI Kids Count Children’s Champion Award for their work in passing the act.
“Every child deserves to be safe and free from exposure to gun violence no matter their zip code,” said RICAGV Executive Director Melissa Carden. “Gun violence is preventable, and requiring people to safely store their firearms keeps everyone safer from gun suicide, gun homicide, unintentional shootings, and mass shootings.”
The award also honors Dillon Viens, who was killed at 16 years old in February 2022 with an unsecured gun. His mother, Rhonda Brewster, was in attendance to accept the award.
“Listening to some of the demographics and data, I thought about how myself, as a single mother, have overcome so many hurdles and journeys to not be part of a statistic,” shared Brewster. “Somewhat feeling a little bit like I fell short on protecting my son from being harmed in the most horrible way…I continue my journey in life and seek advocacy and justice for Dillon.”
RI Kids Count emphasized their continued support for common sense gun safety laws in the coming year.
“Raising our children is a collective effort and work. We are all responsible for all our children. So, we have failed you,” RI Kids Count Executive Director Paige Parks said to Brewster. “Our systems have failed you and we will not stop until they are fixed and there are no more kids who are suffering as Dillon did.”
The ceremony also celebrated Parents Leading for Educational Equity, Senator Bridget Valverde, and Representative Megan Cotter with a Children’s Champion Award for their work in increasing Medicaid rates for Early Intervention. Awardees emphasized the importance of community and governmental collaboration and accessible, in-depth research in their efforts to serve children and youth across the state equitably.
“The data is so powerful. It’s such a valuable tool—for myself, for my colleagues, for the House, and for the Senate,” said Rep. Cotter. “I have to say that the folks at Kids Count are absolute warriors…they make sure that the voices of our most vulnerable are heard.”