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Significant Statistics | How is Utah performing on the Nation’s Report Card?

Written by: Shawn Teigen

In Utah, students slipped back to their 2013 scores for the 4th and 8th grade reading tests, and back to their 2011 scores for 4th and 8th grade math tests. On the bright side, Utah students in 2022 are statistically better than the nation in all but 4th grade math. That said, the difference all but disappears when accounting for household income. The gap between higher and lower income households persists, and even widened in … Continued

Significant Statistics | The Pursuit of Happiness in Utah: How are We Doing?

Written by: Shawn Teigen

The Utah Foundation recently released its Personal Quality of Life Index. It shows that Utahns’ well-being is on the downward slide, declining from a score of 82 in 2018 to 76 in 2022. But how might Utah compare to other states? We don’t have a national version of our Quality of Life survey, but we can get a glimpse from other indicators. For instance, WalletHub’s recent “Happiest States” rating shows that Utah comes in at … Continued

Utah Thrives Podcast | Social Capital in Utah

Written by: Peter Reichard

Social Capital: An Overview of the 2021-22 Series In July, the Utah Foundation released the eighth installment in its Utah Social Capital Series. The series examined roughly 30 metrics in seven topical areas. They included civic engagement, social trust, community life, family life, social cohesion, social mobility and the focus on the next generation. The Network of Relationship: Utah’s Social Capital Index is the final report in the series. It takes together the findings of the previous … Continued

Press Release: Garffs to be Honored with the Utah Foundation’s 2022 Insight Award

Written by: Peter Reichard

Katharine and Robert Garff to be Honored with the Utah Foundation’s 2022 Insight Award Annual Luncheon Features Education Innovator Michael Horn as Keynote Speaker (August 24, 2022) – Katharine Garff and her late husband Robert will be honored with the Insight Award at Utah Foundation’s 2022 Annual Luncheon on November 16 at the Marriott City Creek Hotel. The purpose of the Insight Award is to recognize civic leaders who, through a career of service or philanthropic support, have … Continued

Significant Statistics | Salt Lake Remains Second Highest Metro for Home Price Increases

Written by: Shawn Teigen

The Utah Foundation’s 2022 Quality of Life project shows that Utahns’ perception of community quality of life is in decline. Housing affordability and other costs of living accounted for nearly two-thirds of the overall decrease in community quality of life from 2018 to 2022 The Federal Reserve increased interest rates four times in five months (March, May, June and July) in part to slow inflation. That seems to be having an impact in the housing … Continued