Augustana College

Latest Augustana College News

Washington, D.C. — One of every four new mothers in Iowa is unwed, according to a census analysis that tracked state-by-state trends in U.S. birth, marriage and poverty over a four-year period.What's more, many of those new moms have very low incomes, the report covering 2000 through 2003 found.Close to 49 percent of unmarried women in Iowa who said they had a baby during the preceding year were living below the poverty level. In contrast, about 10 percent of married women with babies said they lived below the poverty level.In Iowa, unmarried women with infants also tend to hold down paying jobs more often than across the country, the study found.Nationally, an average of 60 percent of unwed moms with new babies were in the labor force; in Iowa, the figure was 67 percent. Among married women with babies, 69 percent stayed in the labor force.Those who research child and family issues in Iowa say it's difficult to draw broad conclusions from the census analysis, but it points to a need for adequate child care and health care for working women with infants, particularly women earning low wages.Studies have shown a strong relationship between children born to an unmarried mother - more available