Fresno County: Agricultural Production, Unemployment, & Educational Attainment

Urban Planning 206AProf. Leo EstradaBy Pedro E. NavaFresno County & The San Joaquin Valley: Agricultural Production, Unemployment, & Educational Attainment 1San Joaquin ValleyComprised of 8 countiesConsidered the agricultural hub of the state & nation.Measure of America(2008) SJV is one of the lowest ranked regions on wellbeing indicators. [Health, Income, Education]

2The PurposeTo analyze spatial relationships between agricultural production, poverty and educational attainment.How does the political economy of the San Joaquin Valley shape the life chances of youth living there?Where are there areas in the SJV that foster greater opportunity for youth, specifically those from farmworking backgrounds?

3California & The Migrant Labor$36.2 billion agricultural output in state of CA (2008) (CA Dept. of Food & Ag)$11.3 billion alone in counties that are part of U.S. CD 20 (Measure of America)Measure of America reportCD 20 rated worst in the nation out of 435Only 6.5% of adults were college graduatesAverage income $17K yearT

The American Human Development Index is a national indicator of well-being. It is similar to the Global Human Development Report used by the United Nations to track which consists of key statistical indicators of income, health, and education. It is a composite measure of three dimensions of human development: longevity, access to knowledge and standard of living

The Measure of America noted that-only 6.5% of adults were college grads compared to 62.5 in upper east side of ManhattanAverage annual income was 17K compared to 51K4A Profile of Migrant Students 800,000 migrant students nationally330,000 in CaliforniaAlmost 45% live in Central Valley (US. Dept of Education, 2003)Large percentages of students are undocumented.

5Statistical estimates show that there are :

There are 1.7 million farmworkers nationally

A child is considered Migrant if :parent or guardian is a migratory worker in the agricultural, dairy, lumber, or fishing industries and whose family has moved during the past three years.

can range from moving across school district boundaries or from one state to another for the purpose of finding temporary or seasonal employment-----------------------Approximately 61% live at or below poverty line

Spanish is the native language for most farmworkers -84%;With a median income of less than $7,500 per yearAverage life expectancy is 49yrs vs 75 for national average

Statictics show that the majority of farm workers in the 1990s are migrant44% are non-migrants39% Shuttle Migrants17% Follow the crop migrants NAWS 1997-1998 (2000)

Over 1/3 of populationAbout 30,000 in Fresno County (Largest Region in State)Increasingly, indigenous from Oaxaca & Guerrero (Krissman, 1999)

SJV is #1 in Ag Production Historical development of state allowed for the creation of large farms in CA.Yet US farm policy is based on small family farm of Midwest.

Fresno County has higher than state average unemployment rateStats underestimate the real unemployment rate due to seasonal status of farm labor demands & residency status of farmworkes today.6Racial Makeup of SJV

7To determine the poverty rate of youth under 18 in Fresno County I combined attribute fields from the American Community Survey for males and females .[(