SECTION III – RESULTS OF THE WELD COUNTY NEEDS
ASSESSMENT
Results from the data derived from the household survey and focus groups, key informant survey, and secondary data are presented in this section. The report and the charts/graphs are based on the “valid percentage” in which the base number includes only the respondents for whom a factual (i.e., “valid”) response is available, thus excluding missing data. Throughout this report there are instances where “not an issue” answers were not presented in the table of results and only those answers indicating issues were a minor, moderate, or major are reported. The complete set of frequencies can be found in the Appendix. Thus percentages contained in some tables may not add to 100%.
Population Demographics
Weld County is the third largest county in Colorado and covers an area of 3,992 square miles in north central Colorado. The population of Weld County in 2000 was 180,9361. The city of Greeley, with a population of 76,9302 (2000) is the county seat and is located in the west central part of the county. Most of the remaining population resides within a 20 to 30 miles radius of Greeley; the northeastern part of the county is sparsely populated. There are 31 incorporated towns in Weld County.
Weld County is in the top 100 fastest growing counties in the United States. Weld ranks 32nd in the country with an estimated 16.8% change in population expected from 2000 to 2003. From 1990 to 2000, the Weld County population increased 37.3% making it the 3rd fastest growing county in Colorado. The average household size is 2.78 and the average family size is 3.25. 3 4
Twenty-eight percent of the Weld population is under 18 and 9% of the population is over age 65. White persons, not of Hispanic or Latino origin, represent 70% and persons of Hispanic or Latino origin represent 27% of the county’s population. Twentysix percent of the population is classified as never married, 58.6% married and 9.1% divorced and 49.9% of the population are female. Seventy-nine percent of Weld’s population has educational attainment level of high school or higher. According to the 2000 census, 58% of Weld residents have incomes below $50,000. Upon further investigation, different subpopulations are concentrated in different geographic locations in the County. For example, according to the US Census, a high percent of those over age 65 who live below the poverty level are located in the central, northern and eastern regions of the county (see Figure 1). 5
Figure 1. Percent of Weld County Adults Aged 65+ Living in Poverty by Geographical Location
Figure 2 shows the percent of Hispanic population by geographical location. The highest percent of Hispanic residents live in the central and southern areas of the county. 6 The percent of Hispanics living in Weld County increased from 21% in 1990 to 27% in 2000.
Figure 2. Percent of Hispanic Population by Weld County Geographic Location
As shown in Figures 3 and 4, there is a high percent of persons and children living below poverty who live in the north central and north eastern parts of the county. 7
Figure 3. Percent of Persons Below the Poverty Level by Geographical Location
Figure 4. Percent of Related Children Under Age 18 Living Below the Poverty Level (1999)
The next section reviews the results of the household and key informant surveys, and focus groups.
Sociodemographic Characteristics Household Respondents
The sociodemographic characteristics of the household respondents are presented in Tables 1-2. Figures 5-12 graphically illustrate the various sociodemographic characteristics of respondents.
Sex
Of the 370 respondents completing the survey, 48.4% were females, 51.6% were males.
Age
The ages of the respondents ranged from 19 to 75 or over. Almost half were in the age category of 35 to 54 years of age.
Race/Ethnicity
Seventy-six percent of respondents were white (n=276) whereas 20% were of Hispanic origin (n=74); the remainder (n= 14) classified themselves as being of mixed race, American Indian, or Asian American.
Education
The largest percentage (24.5%) of respondents reported their highest level of education as being some college with no degree. The rest reported their educational attainment (in descending frequency) as having a bachelor’s degree (23.4%); a high school or GED degree (18.3%); a graduate degree (17.2%); an associate’s degree (12.8%) or less than high school (3.8%).
Household Characteristics
Eighteen percent of respondents had persons under the age of 5 years living in the household, 19.7% had children between the ages of 5-12 years living in the household and 23% had children between the ages of 13-18 living in the household. Nineteen percent had individuals over the age of 65 living in the household.
Respondent Household Location
Fifty-three percent (n=194) of respondents lived in Greeley/Evans; the remainder 47% (n=173) in rural areas in Weld County. Surveys were received from residents living in every Weld town.
Languages spoken in the household
Almost all of the respondents spoke English, and 16.8% indicated they also spoke Spanish. Four percent indicated an additional language was spoken at home.
Income
Respondents were asked to identify their yearly net income level. Over half of the respondents (56.5%) had incomes less than $50,000. The majority of respondents (20.5%) listed their incomes between $35,000 and $49,999. Fourteen respondents refused to divulge their annual household incomes. Thirty percent indicated that it was very difficult or difficult to “make ends meet” each month.
Focus Groups
Focus group respondents were primarily Hispanic, Spanish-only speaking adults, with a high school or lower education level, and low household incomes (see Table 2).
Table 1. Respondent's Demographic Characteristics
|
|
|
Age |
||
19 or younger |
2 |
.5 |
| 20-25 |
19 |
5.2 |
26-34 |
51 |
13.9 |
35-54 |
175 |
47.7 |
55-64 |
63 |
17.2 |
65-74 |
30 |
8.2 |
75 or over |
26 |
7.1 |
Missing |
1 |
.3 |
Sex |
||
Male |
178 |
48.4 |
Female |
190 |
51.6 |
Race/ Ethnicity |
||
American Indian |
2 |
.5 |
Asian or Pacific Islander |
2 |
.5 |
Black or African Amer |
0 |
0 |
Hispanic |
74 |
20.3 |
White |
276 |
75.8 |
Mixed Race |
9 |
2.5 |
Other |
1 |
.3 |
Education |
||
Less than high school, no diploma or GED |
14 |
3.8 |
High school graduate or GED |
67 |
18.3 |
Some college with no degree |
90 |
24.5 |
Associates Degree |
47 |
12.8 |
Bachelor’s Degree |
86 |
23.4 |
Graduate Degree |
63 |
17.2 |
Total household net income last year |
||
Less than $5,000 |
11 |
3.1 |
$5,000-$9,999 |
18 |
5.1 |
$10,000-$14,999 |
26 |
7.3 |
$15,000-$19,999 |
17 |
4.8 |
$20,000-$24,999 |
19 |
5.3 |
$25,000-$34,999 |
37 |
10.4 |
$35,000-$49,999 |
73 |
20.5 |
$50,000-$74,999 |
70 |
19.7 |
$75,000-$99,000 |
39 |
11.0 |
over $100,000 |
46 |
12.9 |
What languages are spoken in your home? |
||
English |
364 |
98.6 |
Spanish |
62 |
16.8 |
Other |
13 |
3.5 |
How difficult do you find it to make the ends meet? |
||
Very difficult |
52 |
14.2 |
Difficult |
57 |
15.5 |
Somewhat difficult |
149 |
40.6 |
Not at all difficult |
109 |
29.7 |
How many people contribute to the overall household income? |
||
1 |
131 |
35.8 |
2 |
210 |
57.4 |
3 |
18 |
4.9 |
4 or more |
7 |
1.9 |
How many people live in your household? |
||
1 |
67 |
18.4 |
2 |
130 |
35.6 |
3 |
61 |
16.7 |
4 |
67 |
18.4 |
5 |
22 |
6.0 |
6 |
15 |
4.1 |
7 |
1 |
.3 |
8 |
1 |
.3 |
9 |
1 |
.3 |
How many are under 5? |
||
0 |
296 |
82.7 |
1 |
41 |
11.5 |
2 |
20 |
5.6 |
3 |
1 |
.3 |
Between ages 5-12? |
||
0 |
286 |
80.3 |
1 |
47 |
13.2 |
2 |
16 |
4.5 |
3 |
4 |
1.1 |
4 |
3 |
.8 |
Between ages 13-18? |
||
0 |
275 |
77.2 |
1 |
58 |
16.3 |
2 |
21 |
5.9 |
3 |
2 |
.6 |
Between ages 19-64? |
||
0 |
52 |
14.4 |
1 |
68 |
18.8 |
2 |
199 |
55.1 |
3 |
28 |
7.8 |
4 |
11 |
3.0 |
5 |
3 |
.8 |
Age 65 or older? |
||
0 |
280 |
81.2 |
1 |
46 |
12.9 |
2 |
21 |
5.9 |
Do your own or rent your home? |
||
Own |
305 |
83.3 |
Rent |
61 |
16.7 |
Do you have Internet access? |
||
Yes |
265 |
84.7 |
No |
48 |
15.3 |
Rural |
171 |
47.2 |
Urban (Greeley/Evans) |
191 |
52.8 |
Table 2. Demographics Characteristics of focus group participants
Age Range |
Number |
Percent |
19 or younger |
1 |
3.0 |
20-25 |
9 |
28.0 |
26-34 |
10 |
31.2 |
35-54 |
9 |
28.0 |
55-64 |
0 |
3.0 |
65-74 |
2 |
6.0 |
75 or over |
1 |
3.0 |
Gender |
Number |
Percent |
Male |
12 |
37.5 |
Female |
20 |
62.5 |
Racial / Ethnic Group |
Number |
Percent |
American Indian |
1 |
3.0 |
Hispanic |
26 |
81.2 |
White |
4 |
12.5 |
Mixed Race |
1 |
3.0 |
Language Spoken in Home |
Number |
Percent |
English |
5 |
15.6 |
Spanish |
16 |
50.0 |
Spanish and English |
11 |
34.3 |
Highest Level of Education |
Number |
Percent |
Less than high school, no diploma or GED |
12 |
37.5 |
High school graduate or GED |
10 |
32.3 |
Some college with no degree or associates degree |
6 |
18.7 |
Associates Degree |
2 |
6.0 |
No Response |
2 |
6.0 |
How difficult to make ends meet |
Number |
Percent |
Very difficult |
10 |
31.2 |
Difficult |
11 |
34.3 |
Somewhat difficult |
10 |
31.2 |
Not at all difficult |
0 |
0 |
No response |
1 |
3.0 |
Total Household Income Range |
Number |
Percent |
Less than $5,000 |
2 |
6.0 |
$5,000-$9,999 |
6 |
18.7 |
$10,000-14,999 |
6 |
18.7 |
$15,000-19,999 |
6 |
18.7 |
$20,000-24,999 |
5 |
15.6 |
$25,000-34,999 |
2 |
6.0 |
$35,000-49,999 |
1 |
3.0 |
No Response |
4 |
12.5 |
Number of People Who Contribute to Household Income |
Number |
Percent |
1 |
12 |
37.5 |
2 |
12 |
37.5 |
3 |
3 |
9.3 |
4 or more |
3 |
9.3 |
No Response |
2 |
6.0 |
Number of People Living in Household |
Number |
Percent |
1-3 |
8 |
25.0 |
4-5 |
13 |
40.6 |
6-8 |
8 |
25.0 |
9-11 |
0 |
0 |
12-13 |
2 |
6.0 |
No Response |
1 |
3.0 |
Age Range of Dependent Children |
Number |
Percent |
Under age 5 |
17 |
53.1 |
Age 5 to 12 |
18 |
56.2 |
Age 13 to 18 |
11 |
34.3 |
Home Ownership Status |
Number |
Percent |
Own |
5 |
18.7 |
Rent |
24 |
75.0 |
No Response |
2 |
6.0 |
Computer in house |
Number |
Percent |
Yes |
11 |
34.3 |
No |
20 |
62.5 |
No Response |
1 |
3.0 |
Internet Access |
Number |
Percent |
Yes |
7 |
21.8 |
No |
24 |
75.0 |
No Response |
1 |
3.0 |
Figure 5. Household Respondent’s Gender
Figure 6. Household Respondent’s Race/Ethnicity
Figure 7. Household Respondent’s Education Level
Figure 8. Household Composition by <18 Years and Over Age 65
Figure 9. Respondent’s Household Income
Figure 10. Difficulty making ends meet
Figure 11. Respondent’s Age
Figure 12. Languages Spoken at Home
