Safety and social support are how we take care of each other. Community safety and support includes work that builds belonging and social connection, meeting the needs of individuals and families, and violence and injury prevention efforts. Some examples are mental health services, housing support, community centers and financial assistance programs. Meeting people’s needs while holding individuals accountable for their actions can help keep us all safe.
The average gap in dollars between actual and required spending per pupil among public school districts. Required spending is an estimate of dollars needed to achieve U.S. average test scores in each district.
The extent to which students within different race and ethnicity groups are unevenly distributed across schools when compared with the racial and ethnic composition of the local population. The index ranges from 0 to 1 with lower values representing a school composition that approximates race and ethnicity distributions in the student populations within the county, and higher values representing more segregation.
Percentage of households with at least 1 of 4 housing problems: overcrowding, high housing costs, lack of kitchen facilities, or lack of plumbing facilities.
Social and economic factors influence the choices and opportunities available in a community. Economic factors include which jobs and benefits are available and to whom, and whether education, health insurance and child care are accessible and affordable. Social factors enable connection and inclusion within and between communities and include social safety net and other support.
Societal rules are the written and unwritten rules and how they are applied to shape community conditions. Written rules may be formalized and documented in laws, policies, regulations and budgets. Unwritten rules are made up of worldviews, culture and norms. These can include customs or expectations that guide acceptable thought and behavior without being documented in writing. Institutional practices and systems of governance – such as an organization’s approach to salary parity – may be written or unwritten. Societal rules, and how they are created and maintained by those with power, are referred to as the structural determinants of health.
