Dive Brief:

• The 2014 Kids Count Data Book was released Tuesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.  
• The yearly report ranks states based on four criteria: economic well-being, education, health, and family & community
• The report has led many publications, such as USA Today, to insist that 23% of US children are living in poverty. However, Forbes' Tim Worstall argues the number is more like 2-3% once government aid is taken into account.  

Dive Insight:

Looking at the overall rankings, we see Massachusetts taking the No. 1 spot, rising from third place in 2013. At the tail end is Mississippi, which falls from 49th place last year. While the site is a bit clunky to navigate, requiring many clicks and pages to get to information, it paints a helpful picture of the socioeconomic status of the 50 states. New York University education historian Diane Ravitch often argues the United States must fix its poverty crisis in order to improve its schools. An interesting exercise may be to compare the poverty levels of each state to the general media perception of education in that state.