PROVIDENCE — The latest snapshot of how children are faring in Rhode Island finds too many low-income children are getting lost along the way, falling behind their peers in school and at higher risk for dropping out of high school and winding up in dead-end jobs.

The 2007 Rhode Island Kids Count Factbook, which will be released at a news conference today, urges greater attention and resources be devoted to education and health issues to help children and families flourish, particularly Rhode Island’s most vulnerable populations — low-income children, minority and special-education students, and those in foster care.

Nearly half of all low-income children in Rhode Island — 49 percent — live in extreme poverty. That means about 23,000 children are in families of three that earn less than $8,121 a year.

Education is the way out of poverty, the report says. Yet just 36 percent of eighth graders in Rhode Island’s urban centers are proficient in reading, compared with 70 percent in the suburbs and rural areas, a troubling gap that education officials blame on the educational divide between “the two Rhode Islands.” While 85 percent of students statewide graduate from high school, the number drops to 74 percent in the core cities: Central Falls, Newport, Pawtucket, Providence, West Warwick and Woonsocket. “Across Rhode Island and across the country, we are losing too many poor children, minority students, youth in the foster care system and students with special needs or disabilities,” said Elizabeth Burke Bryant, executive director of Rhode Island Kids Count. “These young people are at greater risk for dropping out of school. Yet we know that the graduation gap that exists for these young people can be eliminated. We know that investments in high-quality preschool programs, excellent teachers, high expectations and rigorous and engaging curricula make a difference.”

The Kids Count Factbook release comes just days after a University of New Hampshire study detailed a widening gap between rich and poor in New England. The UNH study found that, over the last 15 years, income growth among people in the region with the highest income outpaced the nation, while income losses among the poorest exceeded the national average. The study said the inflation-adjusted household income for the bottom 20 percent of the region’s population fell by 5 percent, to $12,437.

The 13th-annual report by the nonprofit advocacy organization analyzes 62 “indicators” for children’s well-being in the state, and it finds mixed results.

In terms of health care, Rhode Island scores high. In the state, 93.4 percent of children under 18 have health insurance — thanks in part to the RIte Care program, which covers low-income children. Nationwide, 88.9 percent of children are insured.

“We are very fortunate in Rhode Island that we made a commitment to children’s health and that children living in extreme poverty have access to health care,” Bryant said. “Some of the worst effects of living in extreme poverty in terms of bad health outcomes are prevented by children’s access to health programs.”

But in several other areas, the report finds that Rhode Island is struggling to meet the needs of low-income children and their families.

With the state facing a severe budget shortfall, Governor Carcieri has proposed cutting the state’s child-care subsidies. The program currently allows families earning 225 percent of the federal poverty line — $38,633 for a family of three — to qualify for a sliding-scale rate on child care. The governor’s proposal would roll back eligibility to 150 percent of the poverty level, or $25,755 for the same family. There are about 12,000 children in the program now. If the cuts are made, 3,800 of them will be knocked out of the program.

Kids Count opposes these cuts, saying programs that help working families pay for child care keep parents in the work force and families from sliding into deeper poverty. In addition, quality child-care programs give low-income children a jumpstart on school skills that help them succeed once they enter kindergarten, Bryant said.

Bryant pointed out that at the same time the state child-care subsidies have grown from $12.5 million in 1998 to about $40 million this year, the number of families receiving other cash assistance has been cut in half. State financing for cash assistance programs other than child-care subsidies has decreased from $58 million in 1996 to $7.7 million this year.

“We’ve made very wise investments in these programs over the years, and these programs increase the chances that families will succeed and move out of poverty,” Bryant said.

Another concern is the Department of Children, Youth and Families’ budget. Carcieri proposed reducing services to older children, ending investigations into child abuse and neglect allegations for youth older than 16. The Kids Count report found that last year, 401 of the roughly 4,000 child abuse and neglect victims were 16 or older.

“An allegation of physical abuse is as serious the day after a youth’s 16th birthday as it is the day before his or her 16th birthday,” Bryant said. “These cases need to be investigated to prevent serious harm to young people.”

The governor’s proposal would also cut housing subsidies, tuition and health care for 857 youth who are older than 18, in an effort to save $12 million — threatening assistance to young people who are moving out of foster care as they enter college or training programs.

“Research in other states that have made these cuts shows that costs actually go up down the line,” Bryant said. Youth “aging out” of foster care are at greater risk for depression, homelessness, pregnancy and poverty. “If these kids don’t have a support system, we all pay the price for that failure.”

To see a copy of the report, visit: www.rikidscount.org

jjordan@projo.com