STATUS REPORT Of Women and Girls In Beloit, Wisconsin (2015)

Introduction

The Women’s Fund was established at the Stateline Community Foundation in 2012 to inspire, empower, and support women and girls through active philanthropy and pooled resources.

We believe that all women regardless of age, income, background, and ethnicity can grow and achieve their full potential.

The idea of producing a status report was born shortly after the Women’s Fund was launched, and the assembly of a team and development of this inaugural status report began in February of 2014.

The development of this report has been a long process with many roadblocks and detours, but it is our hope that the end result justifies the many months of hard work by filling a need within the community.

The purpose of this document is to provide an objective, fact-driven report card of the current status of women in Beloit. It is to provide a picture of women’s largest struggles as they compare to their male counterparts and also as they compare to the state as a whole. This report is provided as a tool for area organizations, institutions, and businesses to understand the needs of our female citizens, pinpoint where services may be needed, and also see where their efforts are succeeding.

We hope this report serves its purpose in our community and that we can revise this document on a regular basis in the years to come — tracking progress and positive change.

Summary

RACE & ETHNICITY: Beloit is much more racially and ethnically diverse than Wisconsin as a whole – looking more like a reflection of the U.S.

AGE & STAGE IN LIFE: Women in Beloit fall into distinct age profiles that represent what might be considered different stages in women’s lives.

EDUCATION: Women in Beloit are less likely than women statewide to have any post-secondary degree (22% versus 37%).

EDUCATION: Racial differences persist in educational attainment, most notably in the completion of high school and a bachelor’s degree, where a substantial gap exists between African American (not Hispanic) and Hispanic women in Beloit and their white (non-Hispanic) counterparts.

GENDER WAGE GAP: In Beloit, women earn on average $0.70 for every $1.00 earned by men.

LABOR FORCE: Women in Beloit make up 45% of full-time, year-round civilian workers, slightly above the statewide average.

UNEMPLOYMENT: Women (and men) in Beloit have faced twice the unemployment rate as their statewide counterparts — 16% versus 8.5% — on average during the 2010-2012 period.

POVERTY: Nearly half (44%) of all female-headed households in Beloit live below the poverty line, compared to 1 in 4 single father families and 1 in 12 married couple families.

FOOD STAMPS: In Beloit, two-thirds (66%) of all single mothers receive food stamps — the equivalent of 2 out of 3 single mother households — which is above the statewide rate of 45% for single mothers.

TEEN PREGNANCY: Data indicates a higher rate of teen pregnancy present in the City of Beloit — not only in comparison to Wisconsin rates, but also in comparison to neighboring cities including the City of Milwaukee.

STIs: Regardless of age, women in Beloit consistently report more than double the cases of chlamydia and gonorrhea than men with women aged 18-24 reporting the highest number of cases for the period.

INFANT MORTALITY: The infant mortality rate for the City of Beloit was significantly higher than in Wisconsin and the U.S. with a combined rate for the years 2006-2010 of 8.7, compared to 6.3 and 6.1, respectively. By race and ethnicity, the African American infant mortality was 13.8, the white rate was 8.8, and the Hispanic rate was 4.5 per 1,000 live births.