Brandon Stratford July 28, 2020 Regardless of whether students return to school in person or via distance learning , education leaders and policymakers across the country must equip schools to address the social, emotional, and behavioral effects of the ongoing pandemic. To address these issues, many policymakers are turning to school-based mental health services as a key strategy for supporting student wellness. Although mental health services are a critical, often underfunded element of...

Immigrant Relief Funds Available Now – San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, Sobrato Foundation and other foundations have pooled funding to support immigrant families access funding to make ends meet given how challenging this time continues to be. The program is offering up to $1,000 for eligible households. The eligibility criteria include: 1) your household has lost income due to Covid-19, and , 2) you’re not eligible for the federal CAREs funds because of immigration status, and 3) you...

By Neil Paine and Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux For the past few months, Alicia Wertz has barely seen her husband. Since schools closed in their northern Alabama town in March, they’ve been single-mindedly focused on a single goal: making sure that someone was watching their three kids. At first, Wertz tried working from home. But she wasn’t getting anything done, so they tried splitting the hours: Wertz’s husband watches the children in the morning, then a sitter comes to relieve him in the...

Developed by the National Resource Center for Patient/Family-Centered Medical Home, in partnership with the National Academy for State Health Policy, this fact sheet series discusses social determinants of health (SDoH) screening and referrals for children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN) and their families. Opportunities for collaboration and partnership between Medicaid, Title V Maternal and Child Health / CYSHCN programs, and pediatricians are discussed. State-level case...

In late May, Betsy Andersen’s 7-year-old son, Ezra, had a serious meltdown. He and his six-year-old sister Abby had been enjoying an online Zoom interaction with “Miss Eileen,” “Miss Savannah,” a couple of their colleagues, and a puppet. Betsy Andersen “I could see him trailing off and then he started crying,” says Andersen, who lives in Mundelein, Illinois. But before she swooped in, she heard Miss Eileen talking to him: “She was saying ‘Hey, I see you’re having some big emotions.” Speaking...

By Nadra Nittle, The Chronicle of Social Change, July 1, 2020 Highly trained, well-paid preschool teachers with low-student ratios, clean, safe classrooms with blocks, playdough, art supplies and outdoor spaces where kids can run and play could be key to closing the racial achievement gap, according to a new Rutgers University study. The June policy analysis by the university’s National Institute of Early Education Research concludes that preschools have more influence on the academic...

Have You Completed the ACEs Aware Training? Eligible Medi-Cal providers : It’s not too late to self-attest to completing the ACEs Aware training. As a reminder, eligible Medi-Cal providers must self-attest to completing the certified ACE training to receive payment for ACE screenings conducted after July 1, 2020. Don't Forget to Self-Attest ACEs Aware has answers to your attestation questions at ACEsAware.org/FAQ . After finishing your training at Training.ACEsAware.org , you can find the...

Jun 6, 2018 By Maria Gehl, Kathy Kinsner, and Rebecca Parlakian The practice of mindfulness has roots in Buddhist traditions spanning more than 2,500 years, and the practice has been adapted frequently to clinical populations for the relief of both physical and psychological symptoms for almost 40 years. Mindfulness “is not a religion,” and instead has “come to be seen as a mode of being.” In this piece, mindfulness is defined as “intending and developing the capacity to come back to center;...

Remote learning will likely play a role in students’ lives once schools reopen. Here’s how teachers and parents can help kids manage stress, build resilience, and stay connected. By Sarah Gonser July 7, 2020 As the pandemic grinds on and protests against police brutality and systemic racism continue, young people are coping with high levels of stress and uncertainty, writes Dr. Pamela Cantor in “ The Stress of This Moment Might Be Hurting Kids’ Development ” for Education Next. With the...

Elizabeth Aguilera CalMatters Jul 12 The baby’s father was the first to get sick. As a cook in Los Angeles, Ramon Lopez never stopped going to the restaurant while other kinds of workers could log in from home. He ran all the family’s errands, buying groceries and putting gas in the car. He developed a fever, dry cough and body pain. When he lost his sense of smell, his wife, Florida Santiago, took him to a hospital where he tested positive for COVID-19, she recounted. A week later,...

By Louise Hansen, July 15, 2020, Mercury News. The Bay Area is the least affordable region in the country for low- and moderate-income renters, with San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin counties topping the list, according to a new report. Santa Clara, Alameda and Contra Costa counties also remain among the top 10 most income-stressing spots in the country, according to an analysis released Tuesday by the National Low Income Housing Coalition. [ Please click here to read more. ]

Susan Friedman Young Children July 2020 Vol. 75, No. 3 I am drafting this editors’ note in the spring, when much of the country is living under stay-at-home orders in an effort to combat the spread of COVID-19. Most early learning programs and schools are closed. It’s a frightening and unusual time, with huge impacts on early childhood programs, teachers, children, and families. This cluster of articles was planned well before COVID-19 impacted the early childhood community. Our aim was to...