Tagged With "Community Health Law Project"
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Maternal Health in New Jersey: Pursuing Equity Through Systemic Change
About this Event Alarmingly, in the United States mothers are dying at the highest rate in the developed world with the crisis being most severe for Black moms, who are dying at 3 to 4 times the rate of their white counterparts. In New Jersey, Black mothers may be nearly twice as likely as white mothers to die from pregnancy-related complications and Black babies nearly three times as likely as white babies to die before their first birthdays. To address these tragic realities, initiatives...
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It’s called ‘the pandemic wall’ and it mostly affects children, psychologists say
JEN URSILLO | NJ1015 It's been over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic began and kids are hitting a breaking point that many developmental psychologists have coined "the pandemic wall." The pandemic wall refers to cognitive overload, said Jaime Arlia, vice president of Children and Family Services at CarePlus NJ. Kids have hit the point where their bodies and brains just can't take it anymore. They're exhausted and worn out. They're taking the brunt of this because their capacities were...
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Remodeling Healthcare for Children with New Jersey Family Care: Understanding How the Integrated Care for Kids Model is Changing Care for Kids in Monmouth and Ocean Counties
ATTN Monmouth and Ocean Counties Earn CME/MOC Part 2 credit! Join us Thursday, April 15th at 12 PM EST NJ InCK is a multi-sector collaborative child-centered local service delivery model aimed at reducing out-of-home placement as well as health care expenditures for children covered by Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). It operates through prevention, early identification, and treatment of priority health concerns like behavioral health challenges, physical health...
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Why Atlantic City’s minority neighborhoods are also its most flooded
ANDREW S. LEWIS | NJ Spotlight When Veronica Grant reflects on growing up in the Venice Park section of Atlantic City in the 1970s, regular nuisance flooding isn’t a memory that comes to mind. Yet these days, high tides spill across the neighborhood’s streets and yards so frequently that Grant can’t keep count. Flooding has been a reality in Atlantic City since its founding a century-and-a-half ago, but it has never been as frequent as it is today. Since 1911, the city’s tide station has...
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Advocates push for yearly screenings of NJ students for drugs, depression
Not many young students will volunteer information, unprompted, about feelings of depression or their recent experimentation with drugs. That's why advocates, school employees and lawmakers are pushing for regular screenings of students at the middle- and high-school levels, as long as their parents consent. With a caseload of 400 students, counselor Cristina Puri at Lincoln Park Middle School typically wouldn't end up seeing a troubled student until someone else sensed an issue or the...
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A Novel Effort to See How Poverty Affects Young Brains
By Alla Katsnelson | NY Times An emerging branch of neuroscience asks a question long on the minds of researchers. Recent stimulus payments make the study more relevant. New monthly payments in the pandemic relief package have the potential to lift millions of American children out of poverty. Some scientists believe the payments could change children’s lives even more fundamentally — via their brains. It’s well established that growing up in poverty correlates with disparities in...
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CDC director says racism is 'serious public health threat'
BY NATHANIEL WEIXEL | The Hill The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday declared racism a "serious public health threat," becoming the largest federal agency to do so. "A growing body of research shows that centuries of racism in this country has had a profound and negative impact on communities of color," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement published on the agency's website. Walensky noted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been felt most severely...
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In the Child Welfare System, Black Families Should Matter
Steve Volk | NextCity.org Reimagining a foster care system that errs on the side of protecting children, but disproportionately investigates and punishes Black families more for economic hardship than harm. EDITOR’S NOTE: This is Part One of a two-part series in the “Our Kids” reporting project. Our Kids is a project of the Broke in Philly reporting collaborative that examines the challenges and opportunities facing Philadelphia’s foster care system. (See also Part Two, “Can Racial Bias Be...
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Sen. Booker, Reps. Adams & Underwood Introduce Black Maternal Health Week Resolution
22 Co-sponsors in the Senate and over 47 in the House join resolution to raise national awareness of the state of Black maternal health in the United States. WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Representatives Alma Adams (NC-12) and Lauren Underwood (IL-14) introduced a resolution recognizing Black Maternal Health Week, “to bring national attention to the maternal health crisis in the United States and the importance of reducing maternal mortality and morbidity among Black...
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Black Maternal Health Week, Apr. 11-17
Black Maternal Health Week takes place each year from April 11-17. Learn more about this year’s goals, which are to: Deepen the national conversation about Black maternal health in the US; Amplify community-driven policy, research, and care solutions; Center the voices of Black Mamas, women, families, and stakeholders; Provide a national platform for Black-led entities and efforts on maternal health, birth and reproductive justice; and Enhance community organizing on Black maternal health.
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Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM)
April is also Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). Currently, the Division on Women (DOW) supports statewide community-level primary prevention efforts to prevent sexual violence. To advance these efforts, we work with non-traditional partners and consider them as experts in their own lives and community pillars for change . We believe that impactful primary prevention efforts begin with community engagement and providing tools to communities so they can empower themselves. As such, our...
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Positive and Adverse Childhood Experiences Webinar | 5/4 @ 12PM
Passaic County Prosecutor, Camelia Valdes is hosting a Community Forum. This event will take place on Tuesday, May 4, 2021 and will be held via Zoom. Topics will include Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and helpful resource information. Register HERE
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NJ To Waive Mandatory Minimum Prison For Non-Violent Drug Crimes
NEW JERSEY – Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal issued a statewide directive to law enforcement Monday, instructing prosecutors to waive mandatory parole disqualifiers—commonly known as mandatory minimum prison terms—for non-violent drug offenses. "We cannot stand by and ignore the unjust and racially disparate impact of these mandatory minimum terms on non-violent drug offenders—primarily young persons of color," Governor Phil Murphy said. "It's been well over a year since the Criminal...
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Keyon’s Case Heads to Washington Supreme Court
BY ELIZABETH AMON | The Imprint Shortly before Christmas of 2019, Cheryl Beaver loaded her 6-year-old grandson Keyon onto the school bus, as she did each weekday morning. Beaver, who had cared for the first-grader since he was a baby, was leaving Seattle to attend a niece’s graduation. In her place, she had arranged for her adult son to pick Keyon up from his after-school program. But when the boy’s uncle arrived later that day, Keyon was gone. In a panic, Beaver and his mom, Salina Simpson,...
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The Newark Trust for Education Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (SSLE) Summit: May 10-13th
The Newark Trust for Education is proud to present the third annual Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (SSLE) Summit: Covid-19 & Beyond! This year’s summit will focus on working together with students and families to create safe and supportive learning environments post pandemic. Over the course of four days (May 10th – 13th) participants will hear keynote remarks delivered by experts including Karen L. Mapp, Ed.D. , Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education;...
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"Resilience and the Human Spirit: Our Legacy to Infants, Children and Families!"
This year's conference is at no cost, but we are encouraging all to make a donation to the Todd Ouida Children's Foundation at: http://www.mybuddytodd.org/donation.htm Click HERE to register SEE AGENDA AND EVENT FLYER ATTCHED.
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Federal Grant Opportunities
Environmental Regulatory Enhancement The Administration for Children and Families, Administration for Native Americans announces the availability of Fiscal Year 2021 funds for community-based projects for the Environmental Regulatory Enhancement (ERE) program. The ERE program provides funding for the costs of planning, developing, and implementing programs designed to improve the capability of tribal governing bodies to regulate environmental quality pursuant to federal and tribal...
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Adela Ames-Lopez unanimously confirmed as Trenton health director
Adela Ames-Lopez, a former director at the state Department of Children and Families, was confirmed Tuesday night as health director in a sweeping 7-0 vote. She had been serving in an interim capacity since being appointed in January to replace Shakira Abdul-Ali, who left for another job. “You’re gonna learn about me,” Amez-Lopez told legislators. “I’m the voice.” Amez-Lopez faced no opposition but a flurry of questions from West Ward councilwoman Robin Vaughn. Vaughn wanted to ensure that...
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Protect Our Children: Effects of the Pandemic
NEW YORK (WABC) -- On Saturday, May 8, WABC-TV will air a special entitled "PROTECT OUR CHILDREN: EFFECTS OF THE PANDEMIC" at 7 p.m. ET. The program is hosted by Eyewitness News Anchor Shirleen Allicot, and will focus on the continued impact the pandemic has had on youth, with advice from professionals on how we can address and improve the mental, emotional and physical health of youth. Despite the ongoing pandemic, the special shares stories of individuals who faced difficult challenges and...
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Law and Disability Conference 5/5 @ 9:30AM EST
The Law and Disability Conference is held each year at the New Jersey Law Center and is cosponsored with the Community Health Law Project . This year, we will be pivoting to an online format due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The topics for the 2021 Law and Disability Conference will include: supportive housing, special needs trusts, Medicaid eligibility and transition from children’s to adult system of care. The 2021 Conference will be held Wednesday, May 5, 2021 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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Marking National Mental Health Awareness Month, Governor Murphy Signs Legislation to Cover Expenses for Adolescent Mental Health Screenings
TRENTON – In advance of National Mental Health Awareness Month in May, Governor Phil Murphy today signed A3548 into law, which will require private insurers, the State Health Benefit Plan, and School Employees' Health Benefits Program to put into place policies and procedures to ensure coverage of expenses in mental health screening of a major depressive disorder for adolescents between the ages of 12 and 18. “The effects and uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic has put the mental health of...
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A Pilot Study of Childhood Experiences of Race-based Trauma from Colorism: Messages of Skin Tone and Hair Type
****This survey is open to everyone from May 1 - May 31**** Tulane University Human Research Protection Office Social/Behavioral IRB Consent Script for Participation in a Research Study What is the research study and why is it being done? You are invited to participate in an anonymous online research study that will analyze the effects of race-based trauma experienced during childhood from colorism and hair type discrimination. This study will investigate how these early experiences, related...
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Redefining Mental Health with Common
As we are all facing ongoing adversity, we are learning to navigate our struggles in innovative ways. Join our conversation with Common, Grammy and Academy Award winning artist and activist, and Dr. Apryl Alexander, prominent psychologist, as they discuss the many paths we can create to cope and come together with our communities to begin healing. Register HERE
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Hospital and Nurse Week 2021
We would like to say THANK YOU to all of our nurses and hospital staff here in New Jersey!! A Brief History of National Nurses Week 1953 Dorothy Sutherland of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare sent a proposal to President Eisenhower to proclaim a "Nurse Day" in October of the following year. The proclamation was never made. 1954 National Nurse Week was observed from October 11 - 16. The year of the observance marked the 100th anniversary of Florence Nightingale's mission...
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6TH ANNUAL TRAUMA INFORMED: MOVING TO RESILIENCE CONFERENCE
CRI was founded with the goal of creating a community that speaks a common language around ACEs, brain development, and resilience. A common language will help us understand the negative impact of trauma or adversity and buffer against it by strengthening our resilience toolbox. That same goal of common language continues to hold our attention as we strive to learn how our bodies respond to stressors, and to consciously incorporate and practice the language and acts of resilience in our...
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THE BENEFITS OF BEING VACCINATED
In recognizing Nurses Week, and School Nurse Day, as an urban community school nurse, I am strongly encouraging you in urban communities to become vaccinated. This COVID-19 pandemic has claimed the lives of so many of our loved ones especially in under-served under-privileged communities. Many are hesitant and resistant in becoming vaccinated with reasons as diverse as the neighborhoods. Awareness and access is critical in turning the tide in this pandemic. Research and science supports...
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Re: THE BENEFITS OF BEING VACCINATED
Thank you so much for sharing @Dr. Cynthia Samuel PhD, RN
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'Absolutely defeated': Black nurses struggle with mental health support while battling Covid-19
(CNN) Throughout Olivia Thompson's 12-hour shift as a cardiac and Covid-19 nurse in Chandler, Arizona, she closely monitors the oxygen levels of several patients at a time and works with other medical specialists to heal them. For some, no amount of care Thompson gives prevents them from being transferred to the Intensive Care Unit. "There were times where I was dreading going to work because of the unknown," Thompson said. "Am I going to be a good nurse for my patients? Am I going to make a...
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Mental Health Awareness Events in NJ 2021
Monday, May 17 – NAMI NYC-Metro invites you to their free online event: Family & COVID – No One Said It Would Be Easy. A conversation about families, lock-down, and mental health, focused on how families can support and have supported each other, how communities and workplaces factor in, and where we go from here. Presented by María Bautista, LCSW, and Pam Berman, Chief Talent Officer at Publicis Health on family relationships, COVID-19, and mental health. At 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Register...
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Interview with Dr. Nadine Burke Harris & Dave Ellis
We recently sat down with Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, California’s first surgeon general, and Dave Ellis, the first executive director of the Office of Resilience at the New Jersey Department of Children and Families. A pioneering voice on prevention, early identification, and treatment of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), Dr. Burke Harris gained national prominence with her viral 2015 TED talk on this topic. Dave Ellis made his name as a national leader in providing trainings and...
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Resources: Engaging Families in Affirming Trauma-Informed Care for LGBTQ Children and Youth
Research has shown that LGBTQ youth who have family support have better outcomes through their youth and into adulthood. This is especially relevant for LGBTQ youth who have experienced trauma and may face ongoing safety concerns related to their identities. This webinar will outline techniques for engaging families in affirming treatment and care of their LGBTQ youth, including a review of strategies used within the Family Acceptance Project (FAP) with founder Caitlin Ryan. FAP, a...
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Reflecting on Autism & School
Please join us for this live Webinar on Thursday, June 24, 2021 at 7:00 pm , on "Reflecting on Autism & School" Review and disseminate the attached flyer! Panelists are: · Rob Bernstein, Author of Uniquely Normal ( 2017) · Stephen Shore, Adelphi University Faculty, Author and Self-Advocate · Carolyn Hayer, Statewide Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN) and Parent · Corinne Catalano, Assistant Director, Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health, Montclair State University · Gerard...
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‘An isolated world’ — LGBTQ youth battle mental health issues during pandemic | Hannah Parker | WTOP
The isolation of COVID-19 lockdowns brought about a nearly 30% increase in demand for mental health services throughout the country. But for LGBTQ youth, the isolation and anxiety from the last year has only exacerbated preexisting mental health battles. In 2020, 42% of young LGBTQ people — including more than half of transgender or nonbinary youths — considered suicide, according to a survey conducted from October to December 2020 by The Trevor Project, a national organization that provides...
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NJ Spotlight News Virtual Roundtable: Back to School in New Jersey: What to Expect this Fall
The educational disruption to New Jersey students due to the COVID-19 pandemic has been extreme by all measures. But with increasing numbers of vaccinated adults in the state and new COVID-19 cases dropping, attention (and planning) is turning to how schools can begin returning to normal for the new school year this fall. A wide range of challenges deserve consideration: Instructional - How will teaching be different once virtually all students are back in the classroom? How will technology...
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Launching June 23: The Actions 4 ACEs Awareness Campaign [Actions4ACEs, NJ ACEs Collaborative]
Note: This notice was sent out today, Tuesday, June 22, from Dave Ellis, Executive Director, Office of Resilience, New Jersey. Since it may be of interest to others outside New Jersey, I'm sending it along. There will be a post about the event in PACEs Connection. Dear Colleagues and Friends, I am excited to share that the Actions 4 ACEs campaign will launch tomorrow! Actions 4 ACEs will raise public awareness about adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and the simple - yet powerful - actions...
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Community listening session on white supremacy, domestic threats, & youth extremism with The Division on Civil Rights (DCR)
DCR listening Sessions on White Supremacy Extremist will cover groups in the state, with the specific focus on how youth are recruited to these groups, the role social media plays in that recruitment, and how individuals and the community are harmed by these groups' hateful actions. These listening sessions are part of uplifting our 27 Youth Bias Taskforce Recommendations. Register: Wednesday, July 14th 6:30pm – 8:30pm - Click Here for Zoom Registration For those that are unable to attend...
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Think you know something about historical trauma? PACEs Connection's 'Historical Trauma in America' series promises to be an eye-opener
Per: Jane Stevens , PACEs Connection staff. The murder of George Floyd in May 2020 unleashed hundreds of articles, books, podcasts, film and online documentaries. It’s not that the roots of racism and inequity in historical trauma hadn’t been known about or written about previous to his death (Frederick Douglas, James Baldwin, anyone?), but the pressures of hundreds of years of injustice began a near explosive untangling from the massive twisted and angry knot they’d formed over generations.
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PACEs Champion Dwana Young navigates community-driven ACEs healing centers in New Jersey
In 2020, New Jersey, a state with about 9 million people spread over the rural countryside and dense urban areas like Newark, launched a new entity: the NJ Office of Resilience (NJOR). The NJOR is unusual because it is a public-private partnership. It brings together three private foundations as well as the NJ Department of Children and Families to provide community-driven strategies for preventing, treating, and healing from ACEs. Like a ship’s navigator laying out a course on charts, Dwana...
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5th Annual Panel on Mental Health in Queer & Trans BIPOC Communities
5th annual panel discussion on mental health in Queer and Transgender, Black, Indigenous, People of Color, or QTBIPOC, communities. We will be discussing the importance of prioritizing wellness and mental health. Our panelists include: Dr. Helen Hsu - Past President of The Asian American Psychological Association Josh Odam-Healing While Black LLC Kylee Jones, ACSW- Indigenous Circle of Wellness Keah Brown - Author, Actress, Journalist & Screenwriter Juan Acosta - Mental Health &...
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Finding Peace in the Midst of Brokenness: Anonymous Blogger
In honor of mental health month I ask myself this question: What is something you need to start saying “yes” to? To most individuals the answer is very simple; minute. Unfortunately for an over thinker and self-doubter like I this is a loaded questions which constitutes a complex answer. My old self wants to run as fast as I can and hide until the question goes away, but the new me is ready to face it head on. So here it goes. I need to start saying yes to MYSELF! Over the past few months,...
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NJEDA ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL $75 MILLION FOR COMMERCIAL PROJECTS UNDER ECONOMIC REDEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH (ERG) PROGRAM
TRENTON, N.J. (July 29, 2021) – The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) today announced a $75 million extension of the commercial component of the Economic Redevelopment and Growth (ERG) Program. The Authority also announced that the extended Residential ERG Program, which began accepting applications in June, has been expanded from $50 million to $125 million. More information about the ERG Program is available at https://www.njeda.com/erg . “Thanks to the foresight of...
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Give NJ youth mental health treatment, not prison time, advocates say | Patrick Lavery | NJ1015
NEWARK — When gymnastics legend Simone Biles suddenly pulled out of Olympic competition last week, citing a need to focus on her mental health, it prompted two concurrent yet divergent conversations. One, was she neglecting her duty to team and country by refusing to push through and compete, and two, is mental health stigma in sports finally going to be broken down. Ashanti Jones, community engagement manager for the Newark-based New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, said someone does...
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When school returns let's focus on resilience — not what's been lost | Javaid Siddiqi
Our educators and families are understandably concerned that students may never fully recover from the traumas brought about by the pandemic this past year - the stress of lockdowns, learning loss, and isolation from extended family and friends are just a few of the issues that experts point to as evidence that children's mental health has been put in jeopardy. Yet while we shore up our mental health systems in schools, we also need to encourage children's resilience. Rather than focusing on...
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NJ teachers brace for more COVID trauma as pandemic lengthens Michael Symons | NJ1015
TRENTON – Take the regular societal challenges that lead to educational inequities in New Jersey, layer on COVID-related issues that aggravate those problems, and you’ve got the conditions for an even more imbalanced state school system. Then add to that the coronavirus delta variant that has dimmed the light at the lengthening pandemic tunnel and the complications teachers face in the approaching school year get compounded. The state Department of Education held its third annual Statewide...
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Systemic Racism & Health Care: Building Black Confidence in the COVID-19 Vaccine
The Tuskegee syphilis experiment. The secret sale of Henrietta Lacks cancer research cells. Jim Crow laws affecting African Americans' ability to receive medical treatment. For weeks, it’s been hard to hear over the clamor of millions of Americans lining up for COVID-19 vaccines. But not everyone has been enthused — namely, large swaths of minority communities, which comprise the populations disproportionately impacted by the virus, but whose hesitance is largely fueled by the country’s...
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ED-GRANTS-071321-001
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE): Office of Indian Education (OIE): American Rescue Plan (ARP)-American Indian Resilience in Education (ARP-AIRE) Assistance Listing Number 84.299C Department of Education Click her for funding opportunity. Purpose: Provides grants to support local educational agencies (LEAs) in their efforts to reform elementary and secondary school programs that serve Indian students. Programs are to be based on challenging state content and student...
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Why pausing evictions likely won’t help kids harmed by housing uncertainty and instability | Lois M. Collins |
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has extended to Oct. 3 the moratorium on evicting tenants behind on paying for housing during the pandemic. The extension applies only in counties with “substantial” or “high” levels of community transmission of COVID-19. Not all tenants are shielded: They must be able to show they struggled financially because their incomes fell during the pandemic, they applied for rental assistance and they have paid as much as possible along the way. Even...
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DEP urged to set tough limit on likely carcinogen in drinking water
JON HURDLE, CONTRIBUTING WRITER | AUGUST 6, 2021 | NJ SPOTLIGHT NEWS A science panel Thursday urged the Department of Environmental Protection to set one the nation’s strictest standards for a likely carcinogenic chemical in drinking water, in New Jersey’s latest initiative to protect public health from water-borne contaminants. The Drinking Water Quality Institute, a group of scientists and water company executives that advises the DEP, unanimously recommended that the level of 1,4-dioxane,...
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Willis & Friends—The New AAP Policy Statement Advances Relational Health
Date and time Wed, August 18, 2021 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM PDT This livestream series, hosted by David Willis, MD, FAAP, a Senior Fellow at CSSP, will explore Early Relational Health About this event In our third conversation in this live stream series, we will discuss the American Academy of Pediatrics’ updated policy statement "Preventing Childhood Toxic Stress: Partnering with Families and Communities to Promote Relational Health." Building beyond the toxic stress framework, this seminal...
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NOW Playbook: Transformative Community Capacity to Advance Equity
The Networks of Opportunity for Child Wellbeing (NOW) Playbook is a resource guide designed to provide tools for local leaders, community coalitions and networks, educators, practitioners, and policymakers working to promote the wellbeing of children and families, advance equity, and align systems of care and education in early childhood. The models, pillars, and frameworks outlined in the playbook were developed in collaboration with residents and partner organizations in Boston and through...