What's New

Halve the Gap

HALVE THE GAP BY 2030

An astonishing one in seven teens and young adults is not in school and not working. And youth disconnection rates in some neighborhoods are higher still—one in three young people is adrift. Ambitious, time-bound targets are needed to spur action and accountability. Read the report here.

Opportunity 2013

Opportunity Index 2013

How does your county or state fare when it comes to opportunity? Has it improved since last year? Check out the third annual Opportunity Index, with rankings by state and county. Read more.

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STATE OF THE CONGRESS 2013

How representative are our representatives?  A unique dataset compiled by Measure of America shows that members of the 113th Congress are far ahead of the average in earnings and education, but lag in life expectancy. Find out more here. 

Youth Disconnection in New York City
Following our recent “One in Seven” research on disconnected youth, we have taken a closer look at the 55 Census-defined neighborhoods of NYC. Which neighborhoods in each borough are doing best? Which struggle the most with youth disconnection—young people ages 16 to 24 who are neither in school nor working? Find out here.

One In Seven: Ranking Youth Disconnection in the 25 Largest Metro Areas
Launching September 13, 2012

In the U.S. today, 5.8 million young people are neither in school nor working. Which city has the highest rate of youth disconnection? Does disconnection vary by race or ethnic group? And what can be done? Find out here.

 

ARE YOU MOVING THE NEEDLE?

What is the impact of your organization’s work? When your board or donors ask how your programs are changing lives for the better, can you answer them? We can help you move from anecdote to evidence with tailor-made performance metrics and analysis. Find out more on our services page.

 

A PORTRAIT OF MARIN’s WIDESPREAD LOCAL IMPACT

Just six months out from its January 2012 release, A Portrait of Marin has already made tangible changes within the county, engaging the community, impacting housing discussions and bank lending practices. Read our latest blog post for full details –>

 

Women’s Well-Being: Ranking America’s Top 25 Metro Areas

Women are not a monolithic group, and this report explores how different women are faring in the country’s most populous metropolitan areas. How do metro areas stack up when it comes to women’s choices, opportunities, and overall well-being? Find out the results.

BEHIND THE SCENES: A TOUR OF NYC WITH MARKETPLACE

Marketplace Radio recently aired a segment on Measure of America about disparities within New York City. Now take the special behind-the-scenes look at the tour we led through the South Bronx and Manhattan’s East Side.

A PORTRAIT OF MARIN 2012

Commissioned by the Marin Community Foundation, this new report takes a closer look at human development at the census tract level. A Portrait of Marin 2012 is also the first county-level report in the Measure of America series. Learn more | Explore Maps

A PORTRAIT OF CALIFORNIA

WHICH CALIFORNIA DO YOU LIVE IN? From the high-ranking Silicon Valley Shangri-La to the bottom ranked Forsaken Five Percent, the Five Californias represent the wildly divergent realities facing residents in the state. Read more | Explore Maps

The Measure of America 2013–2014

Over the last half-century, the United States GDP has grown nearly 400%. Has the average American’s well-being in terms of health, education, and income also quintupled?

See the latest update to the American Human Development Index here.

Interactive Maps & Data

Ever wondered how your state or congressional district stacks up compared with your neighbors on life expectancy, preschool enrollment, earnings or dozens of other indicators? Create customized maps for every state and congressional district or for local areas in California, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Build and sort data charts for over 100 indicators. Explore the Maps

Endorsements

“While preparing a recent newspaper column on science and mathematics education in public schools, I chanced upon the very helpful website, measureofamerica.org. The analysis and presentation of data is excellent at this site, which I have visited several times since.”

–Dr. Clif Cleaveland, Contributor to the Chattanoonga Times Free Press

“The information in the Measure of America report, A Portrait of Mississippi, has been invaluable during my preparation for an upcoming presentation on Health Equity in Mississippi. This very informative depiction of Mississippi’s health, educational and economic data has provided me with an important resource for telling the story of health disparities in our state. The Human Development Index, a measure of our state’s composite deficits in these areas, relays the urgency to reach beyond biologic factors to address health disparities and inequities.“

– Evelyn R. Walker, MD, MPH, MS State Department of Health

“While at Oxfam America, I was involved in two studies with Measure of America, the Portraits of Mississippi [and] Louisiana. They provided such an important baseline for discussion and advocacy…Legislators also used these documents to prepare their own briefs on a number of issues that supported their own legislative efforts and a prominent local advocate for low-income and minority citizens told us the Portrait of Mississippi was one of Oxfam’s greatest legacies on the Gulf Coast.” Read more–>

 

“We’re currently working with some of the United Ways offices to address some of the Human Development Index disparities listed in A Portrait of California. Having this breakdown affords us the ability to speak further on a local level. Thanks for your partnership and the great work you and your team are doing!”

Henry Gascon Manager, Program & Policy Development, United Ways of California

“Measure of America is a great example of a leading edge application that employs visualization to enable access to information, exploration and understanding in complex data sets. We see this as an emerging area of technology that makes it possible for people who are not database experts to perform significant analysis and visualization.”

– Stephen North, Executive Director, Information Visualization Research, AT&T Shannon Laboratory

“I am a strategic planning consultant and will be assisting my new clients in transitioning from a government commission to a sustainable nonprofit. A Portrait of Louisiana is setting the context of what’s going on in the state and where the community needs may lie.”

– Bobbi Bilnoski, President & CEO, Concinnity Network