Tagged With "Cal Matters"
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Ella Baker Truth and Reinvestment Justice Teams underway in 8 CA Counties
There are various forms of emergency preparedness for natural disasters. From an early age, one learns how to put out a fire, board up their home if a hurricane or tornado is coming, or drop under a desk if an earthquake hits—but low-income communities of color have little to no response to more frequent incidences of state violence in the streets and inside of jails. The Justice Teams for Truth and Reinvestment will be the local rapid response networks inside of eight different counties...
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Farmers are forced to let crops rot and throw away milk while food bank demand soars [calmatters.org]
By Manuela Tobias and Robert Rodriguez, Cal Matters, April 11, 2020 Last week, Isabel Solorio turned away five families from the Lanare food bank serving farmworkers in rural Fresno County. There just wasn’t enough food to feed the 215 families who showed up. It was twice the number of families that needed food a week earlier, she said. But that same week, on a farm just 20 minutes away, at least two fields of fresh lettuce were disced back into the ground, left to rot as the restaurants...
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Just one year of child abuse costs San Francisco, CA, $300 million….but it doesn’t have to
In 2015, 5,545 children in San Francisco, CA, were reported to have experienced abuse. Of those, the reports of 753 children were substantiated. The expense to San Francisco for not preventing that abuse will cost $400,533 per child over his or her lifetime. That adds up to $301.6 million for just that one year, according to “ The Economics of Child Abuse: A Study of San Francisco.” And, because child abuse is profoundly underreported, the costs are likely to be as much as $5.6 billion/year,...
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Kaiser Permanente Cited — Again — For Mental Health Access Problems [KHN.org]
Despite three warnings and a multimillion-dollar fine a few years ago, Kaiser Permanente still fails to provide members with appropriate access to mental health care, according to a recent survey of the HMO by the state of California. The routine survey, released by the state Department of Managed Health Care, found that Kaiser Foundation Health Plan did not provide enrollees with “timely access” to behavioral health treatment , in violation of state law. (Kaiser Health News, which produces...
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L.A. County to consider overhaul of defense system for juveniles accused of crimes [Los Angeles Times]
Los Angeles County elected officials are preparing to consider an overhaul of the county's system for defending minors accused of crimes, following the release of a report that found attorneys contracted by the county to represent juveniles get fewer resources and less oversight than those in other counties. Youths whose families can't afford a lawyer and who can't be represented by the public defender's office because of a conflict of interest are represented by county-contracted private...
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Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Questioning, and/or Gender Nonconforming and Transgender Girls and Boys in the California Juvenile Justice System: A Practice Guide [nclrights.org]
If you are a child welfare professional working with youth in California, chances are this practice guide may be a useful resource! Developed by Impact Justice and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and published in January 2017, this practice guide is designed to provide probation department practice guidelines, and policy recommendations for working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, and/or gender nonconforming and transgender girls and boys who interface with the California...
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Love in the time of Coronavirus: HOPE-informed thoughts for parents
reposted from https://positiveexperience.org/ This has been quite a week, and we are now facing major disruptions in our own family lives. There is no doubt that the events of this winter and spring will be memorable for children. In that spirit, here are a few ideas to help make those memories (at least somewhat) happy. Addressing Children’s Fears Parents can do a lot to answer children’s fears. Here are the facts as we know them: although COVID-19 is certainly frightening, it is very...
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Making Mental Health Needs a Priority [smdailyjournal.com]
By Anna Schussler, The Daily Journal, December 26, 2019 When San Carlos resident Suzanne Hughes formed a nonprofit offering mental health services four years ago, she started out with just three interns and a mission to make them affordable and accessible to anyone who might need them. Trained as a marriage and family therapist, Hughes drew from more than 20 years of mental health experience to identify what she saw as the most pressing mental health needs and build programs to address them.
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McGuire, First 5 Humboldt talk ‘ACEs’ at town hall [Times Standard News]
Humboldt County has one of the highest rates of childhood trauma and abuse in the state with 75 percent of locals being affected by at least one adverse childhood experience — or ACE. T his county along with Mendocino County, have the highest percentage of residents with four or mor e ACEs. “A child who experiences ACEs is 12 times [more likely] to attempt suicide, 12 times. A child who has four or more ACEs experiences [is] seven times [more likely] to be and alcoholic or 10 times higher to...
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Learning How to Convince Leaders to Create Trauma-Informed Programs, Systems and Environments.
How do you build a narrative around ACEs science, bolster it with data and convince your leadership that integrating it is critical for the community you serve? Representatives from San Francisco Bay Area health and social service agencies had an opportunity on December 5 to learn about ACEs science, find data sets to help them make a case for supporting ACEs education and resiliency programs, and then role play ways to deliver powerful messages. Donielle Prince, ACEs Connection Network’s...
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Most Recent Spike of Toxic Air Pollution has Officials Rethinking Alert System [fresnobee.com]
By Cresencio Rodriguez-Delgado, The Fresno Bee, December 17, 2019 A sudden and dangerous spike in Fresno’s air quality last week has regional officials re-examining everything from burn-day approvals to public notification systems, authorities said. But officials with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District said the unexpected spike of hazardous particulate matter was the result of a perfect storm of circumstances in the Valley. “Unfortunately, mother nature took a turn. We...
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New 'Food Hub' for Low-Income Residents Launched in Bay Area [calmatters.org]
By Erica Hellerstein, Cal Matters, January 17, 2020 A new Alameda County program focused on the connections between poverty, food and employment opened Friday morning, the latest in a countywide effort to help low-income residents by increasing access to jobs and fresh produce. The newly built, 3,300-square-foot space will provide a commercial kitchen for small, home-based food entrepreneurs, land to grow fresh produce and a place to package leftover food retrieved from some local schools to...
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New Laws set to Help Focus on Mental Health and Post-Traumatic Stress for First Responders [abc30.com]
By Vanessa Vasconcelos, ABC 30, February 5, 2020 "I don't think when you sign up for this job that you realize the things that you're going to see," says Cal Fire Fresno Co. Battalion Chief Josh Campbell. Campbell has spent the last 23 years putting service above self and has been on the front lines of seven of the 10 most destructive wildfires in state history. "I always thought the Cedar fire would be the biggest fire in my career that I'd ever go on," Campbell said. "I wasn't even close."...
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New Study Shows Communities Can Reduce the Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences [Mathematic Policy Research]
[ Ed. note: Following is a media release published yesterday by Mathematica Policy Research. This follows on the heals of the report, "Self-Healing Communities" that Laura Porter, Dr. Robert Anda and WHO wrote for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Both reports and executive summaries are attached to this blog post. Both reports are significant, because they show that community ACEs initiatives -- with "modest investments and limited staff" -- are solving some of our most intractable...
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New Tipping Point Research Presents Snapshot of Poverty Before COVID-19 Hit
NEW STUDY REVEALS STARK PICTURE OF BAY AREA POVERTY LEADING UP TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC COVID-19 has shed light on the economic fragility for millions of people in the Bay Area. And yet, what we didn’t know was exactly how fragile things were before the pandemic even hit—until now. Today, we are releasing Taking Count , a new study on poverty in our region, developed in partnership with the University of California, Berkeley. Our goal was to gain a better understanding of how many people are...
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New Trump Rule Could Eliminate Food Stamps for Almost 200,000 Californians [calmatters.org]
By Manuela Tobias, Cal Matters, December 4, 2019 The Trump administration finalized a rule Wednesday that will cut off food stamps to roughly 688,000 American adults by requiring states to enforce work requirements. The U.S. Agriculture Department said the move will save about $5.5 billion over five years. The rule takes effect in April 2020. “This is about restoring the original intent of food stamps,” said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on a call to reporters. “Moving more able-bodied...
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OCAP grants announced, applications due by 12-14-18
The Office of Child Abuse and Prevention ( OCAP ) recently announced a funding opportunity that may align with the work of California based ACEs champions. Please see the details below, the OCAP Grants link, and the attached document for further details. Copied from the website : The Office of Child Abuse Prevention (OCAP) administers federal grants, contracts, and state programs designed to promote best practices and innovative approaches to child abuse prevention, intervention, and...
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OCAP grants announced - Deadline EXTENDED TO DEC 28th
The Office of Child Abuse and Prevention ( OCAP ) recently announced a funding opportunity that may align with the work of California based ACEs champions. Please see the details below, the OCAP Grants link, and the attached document for further details. Copied from the website : The Office of Child Abuse Prevention (OCAP) administers federal grants, contracts, and state programs designed to promote best practices and innovative approaches to child abuse prevention, intervention, and...
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Out of a job? Can't pay your bills? These proposals may help keep you afloat amid coronavirus [calmatters.org]
By Jackie Botts, Cal Matters, March 18, 2020 Donna Insalaco had to lay off 40 of the 45 employees at Pizzaiolo, her gourmet pizzeria in downtown Oakland, after sales fell through a “black hole.” “A lot of tears,” Insalaco said, “All of us here live check-to-check.” Responding to a statewide call for restaurants to close their doors to dine-in customers, Pizzaiolo is now only offering pick-up and delivery. “We hope that we can limp by enough to stay open and call our staff back,” Insaleco...
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Overturn of ACA Would Wreak Havoc in Time of Pandemic [chcf.org]
By Xenia Shih Bion, California Health Care Foundation, May 18, 2020 In April, the US unemployment rate rose to 14.7% , surpassing the previous monthly peak of 10% during the Great Recession in 2009. At least 36 million Americans are now jobless — many of them are suddenly without employer-sponsored health insurance. Some may need to obtain health coverage in the individual marketplace or from Medicaid, whose eligibility requirements were greatly expanded under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
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Overview of the 2016 Project on Behavioral Health Services For Children and Youth in California [dhcs.ca.gov]
The California Behavioral Health Planning Council (Council) is under federal and state mandate to advocate on behalf of adults with severe mental illness and children with severe emotional disturbance and their families. The Council is also statutorily required to advise the Legislature on behavioral health issues, policies and priorities in California. The Council advocates for an accountable system of seamless, responsive services that are strength-based, consumer and family member driven,...
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Parent and Youth Leaders Educate Policymakers on ACEs in Sacramento on July 11th
Twelve parent and youth leaders, reentry and educational leaders, and community organizers represented the region of San Diego in Sacramento on July 11th. Aligning with about 80 other community members and professionals statewide, everyone met with and educated legislative staff on the impact of ACEs, community trauma, community healing and resilience building. Organized by the 4CA steering group led by Center for Youth Wellness, Children Now, and ACEs Connection Network, the ACEs science...
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Personal stories from witnesses, U.S. representatives provided an emotional wallop to House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on childhood trauma
Room erupts in applause for the grandmother of witness William Kellibrew during July 11 House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing. The power of personal stories from witnesses and committee members fueled the July 11 hearing on childhood trauma in the House Oversight and Reform Committee* throughout the nearly four hours of often emotional and searing testimony and member questions and statements (Click here for 3:47 hour video). The hearing was organized into a two panels—testimony from...
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Positive Childhood Experiences offset ACEs: Q & A with Dr. Robert Sege about HOPE
Tufts University medical professor Dr. Robert Sege directs the Center for Community-Engaged Medicine and is nationally known for his research on effective health systems approaches that address social determinants of health. He is also the principal investigator for the HOPE framework (Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences).The HOPE framework is based on research that shows how positive childhood experiences can mitigate the effects of adverse childhood experiences. Sege and colleagues...
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Preparations begin for 2018 State Legislative Sessions—Tools to help you communicate with your state legislators
With the majority of states convening legislative sessions in 2018*, now is the time to begin preparations to advance trauma-informed proposals and educate lawmakers on the impact of trauma on the health and wellbeing of their constituents. ACEs Connection Network (ACN) will be sharing tools to help in this process over the next months. Two are now available—“How to Create a Community Profile” and “Tips on How to Build Relationships with Your Legislators.” One of the most effective tools...
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Quality must be at the heart of expanding early childhood education in California [edsource.org]
Investing in comprehensive and meaningful programs for California’s youngest children gives them the best chance to become successful adults and contributing members of society. But all too often, in the urgency to serve the most children, we don’t pay enough attention to the quality of care children are receiving, and if child development benefits accrue. That’s a problem. If we really care about all children, then we must create the conditions for all children to have experiences that...
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Registration Open - 2019 Families and Fathers Conference Early Rate and Hotel Discount Closing
In 48 days, we open our 20th convening of a powerful conference focused on strengthening families, improving outcomes for children, and strategies to engage families: the 20th Annual Families and Fathers Conference hosted by Fathers and Families Coalition of America. Sponsorships allow the extended early rate for an exceptional experience in Los Angeles, California, from March 4th (pre-conference institute credential) through the main conference dates of March 5th - 7th. Please share this...
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Reopen schools when it's safe for students, not for the convenience of adults [calmatters.org]
By Vernon M. Billy, Cal Matters, May 15, 2020 School trustees and educators serve our public schools because they care for children and are committed to their learning and growth. We’re eager to welcome students back to campus when we can do so in a safe and supportive environment – and not a moment sooner. We don’t want to resume school at any cost or for the wrong reasons. We cannot jeopardize the safety of students because of the adult desire for a return to normalcy. And when we reopen...
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Report reveals how foster care, juvenile and adult justice systems traumatize youth, calls for policy shifts
YWFC sponsored Sister Warriors meeting When she was 15 years old, Lucero Herrera was put in a rehab program by San Francisco’s Juvenile Court because she was getting drunk regularly. And in doing so, the court failed to explore the root of her drinking. Had they done so, she said, they would have found that anger and trauma were lurking underneath, driven by her ACEs: adverse childhood experiences. Lucero Herrera "Why did they put me in a drug program when I had an anger problem? I went...
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"Resilience" Comes to Santa Clara
In the first of a series of planned screenings of the film Resilience , the Santa Clara ACEs Connection community offered a panel led discussion about how to bring trauma informed practice and resilience building to the entire county. Rhoda Blankenship, Director of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health for County Public Health Department, emceed the event, along with Andrew Cain, both of whom sit on the Santa Clara community collaborative steering committee. Following opening remarks by...
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Resources & Materials: 2/27/20 SoCal Learning Community
Thank you to all those who joined us on Thursday February 27, 2020 for the third of our 4-part SoCal Learning Community series: Re-visioning Prevention: Exploring Systems Innovation and Best Practices in the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect Visit this link to access the recording, resources and materials, https://conta.cc/2TFqmdR Shawndi Johnson, Dads Matter Program Manager, shared with us the critical importance of engaging fathers in the process of sharing services, family healing,...
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College Students, Seniors and Immigrants Miss Out on Food Stamps. Here's Why. [calmatters.org]
By Jackie Botts and Felicia Mello, Cal Matters, November 6, 2019 A college student in Fresno who struggles with hunger has applied for food stamps three times. Another student, who is homeless in Sacramento, has applied twice. Each time, they were denied. A 61-year-old in-home caretaker in Oakland was cut off from food stamps last year when her paperwork got lost. Out of work, she can’t afford groceries. While picking up a monthly box of free food, a 62-year-old senior in San Diego told...
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Community Profiles from selected CA ACEs Initiatives and Programs
CA communities and organizations from across the state shared information about their trauma informed and resilience building initiatives at the Child Adversity Policymaker Awareness Day on July 11, 2017 in Sacramento. The event, organized by 4CA ( California Campaign to Counter Childhood Adversity) , educated state legislators about the impacts of child adversity across the lifecourse and strategies for preventing ACEs, healing trauma and creating resilient communities. A series of fourteen...
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Connections Matter
By Kathleen Guerrero, executive director, First 5 El Dorado Commission Connections matter. Brain connections, caring relationships and thriving communities contribute to healthy communities. The Community Hub Partnership Team believes El Dorado County can build healthy communities by understanding and being intentional about connecting families. Positive interactions are the foundation for healthy brain development at any age. The Harvard Center for the Developing Child finds brain...
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CYW releases "Children Can Thrive: A Vision for California's Response to ACEs"
The Center for Youth Wellness released a new report “Children Can Thrive: A Vision for California’s Response to ACEs”. This report is a follow up to the November 2014 Children Can Thrive Summit. Based on the ideas shared by participants at the Children Can Thrive summit, the report sets forth the beginnings of a multi-sector, multi-strategy approach to respond effectively to the impacts of ACEs in California. The report is attached to...
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California's Homelessness Crisis - and Possible Solutions - Explained [calmatters.org]
By Matt Levin and Jackie Botts, Cal Matters, December 31, 2019 California’s most vexing issue is also its most shameful: the large and rising number of residents who lack a safe place to call home. In a state with vast amounts of wealth, more than 150,000 of its residents sleep in shelters, cars, or on the street. The United Nations compared the tent encampments of San Francisco to the slums of New Delhi and Mexico City. Nearly 5,000 people live in the half square mile of Los Angeles’ Skid...
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California's Latest Undergrad Project? More Aid for Campus Moms and Dads [calmatters.org]
By Adria Watson, CalMatters, September 29, 2019 Like most college students, Bianca Rojas has a lot to balance — classes, papers, exams, research. Unlike most of her peers, though, the 25-year-old Cal State Long Beach sociology major also has two extracurricular obligations: Jasper and Adeline, her toddlers. Each semester, she said, she carefully budgets her financial aid, calculating the credits she can afford, given the needs of her family. It’s stressful: Last semester, she and her...
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California's Teen Birthrate Hits Record Low [bakersfield.com]
By Elizabeth Castillo, Cal Matters, November 2, 2019 Diana Shalabi had to be sure. She was 15 when she told her dad she needed cash for a high school football game. Actually, it was for pregnancy tests. Test after test confirmed the news she wasn’t ready to face. “I was like, ‘This is not happening,’” Shalabi said. “I was crying every day.” That was four years ago, and she gave birth to a daughter, Amina. Her marriage to the baby’s father lasted less than a year. Today, she says she has sole...
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CDC: Childhood Trauma Is A Public Health Issue And We Can Do More To Prevent It
Yesterday, NPR published the following story: CLICK HERE "Childhood trauma causes serious health repercussions throughout life and is a public health issue that calls for concerted prevention efforts. That's the takeaway of a report published Tuesday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experiencing traumatic things as a child puts you at risk for lifelong health effects, according to a body of research. The CDC's new report confirms this, finding that Americans who had...
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ChangeLab Solutions: The Keys to Collaboration: A Roadmap for Health in All Policies
What happens when all government agencies in a town, county, or state work together to build healthier communities? They create jobs, make sure families can afford healthy food, and build parks where all kids can play. And ultimately, they build communities where all people feel healthy, empowered, and connected to the place they call home. It’s impossible to make this vision a reality unless everyone works together. Behind the scenes, government agencies must collaborate. That means...
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Homelessness: A 58-County Issue [CSAC County Voice Blog)
California’s counties are incredibly diverse, but no matter their size, location, population or demographics, all 58 are grappling with the issue of homelessness. I recently testified at a State Capitol hearing on this complex issue. Homelessness has many causes, but two things are clear: counties are uniquely positioned to address homelessness, and we must collaborate with our cities and others to find housing solutions for all Californians. Counties administer critical state...
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How a story about childhood trauma in Paradise became one of community trauma [centerforhealthjournalism.org]
My project for the Center for Health Journalism’s California Fellowship was focused on childhood trauma, zeroing in on a town in Northern California. In the fall, that town — Paradise, California — burned in a harrowing wildfire. The story quickly changed to one of community loss. The story of trauma in two counties My initial project was about Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs. ACEs are one way to quantify how much childhood trauma a person has experienced before the age of 18. Through...
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How collaboration helps clinic in San Mateo County, CA, tackle ACEs in children
Dr. Elizabeth Grady is a pediatrician at the South San Francisco Clinic, a community clinic of San Mateo Medical Center. She and Susana Flores , a senior public health nurse with San Mateo County Health, spoke with me about how the clinic and other health agencies in San Mateo have been able to craft ways to work together to prevent and heal toxic stress in children. Grady also talked about how she and Flores have been working with the Resilient Beginnings Collaborative (RBC), a group of...
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How much a decent apartment costs you in every county [WashingtonPost.com]
A decent two-bedroom rental today will cost you on average more than you could afford working full time on the local minimum wage everywhere in America — in every state, every county, every metropolitan area. No matter how you draw the geography. Whether you live in Sioux Falls or San Francisco. What the government considers to be a local "fair market rent" for a two-bedroom would eat up more than 30 percent of a minimum-wage worker's earnings. This fact, from updated data annually compiled...
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In Spanish: Handouts for parents about ACEs, toxic stress & resilience
The Community & Family Services Division at the Spokane (WA) Regional Health District has come through again, with a Spanish version of the parent handout (in English) that we posted last year , and which has been downloaded thousands of times. The English versions came about whiledoing a story about the trauma-in formed elementary schools in Spokane, WA .I interviewedp ublic health nurse Melissa Charbonneau who said that she'd been giving an...
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ITRC calls for Universal Resilience Education and Skills Training for Climate Trauma
Sneak Preview for ITRC ACEs Connection Members! Next Tuesday, Jan. 8, the ITRC will release a major report Preparing People on the West Coast for Climate Change. The media release about the report is below (and attached). It includes a link to the webpage for the report, where people can download the full report, and find a link to the webpage with examples of resilience programs across the west coast. You can connect with the ITRC CA and PNW Facebook page:...
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Re: Customizing ACEs Screening for High School Students in Santa Rosa, CA
Hi Todd, This is a bit complex to answer - but I will do my best! Here goes ... Since this post was written the work at Elsie Allen and Roseland Pediatrics has continued to evolve and now includes all of the Santa Rosa Community Health Center sites (most are based on a Family Medicine model) see minutes below for further details. Click this link for more detailed Minutes from Sonoma County ACEs Connection Meeting From the document: Meredith Kieschinck MD shared the initial data revealed by...
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Re: Gov. Newsom proposing to expand services for babies and toddlers [edsource.org]
I'd be grateful if anyone knows who on the Governor's staff is heading this ACE-related project, and help get the attached document into that person's hands.
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Re: NEW BRIEF! Screening for Trauma Birth to 5
The attached article may fit in somewhere here. Please feel free tp pass it on.