Tagged With "student dads"
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16,000 California K-12 Students had Shootings at Their Schools Since Sandy Hook [mercurynews.com]
By John Woolfolk, The Mercury News, November 14, 2019 The sight of another school shooting like the latest mayhem Thursday at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita has become sadly familiar. Since the horror unleashed in 2012 by a deranged gunman at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, about 16,000 California students have experienced some sort of shooting at 15 schools in the Golden State. “This is every student’s worst nightmare,” Julia Runkle, 17, a volunteer with Students Demand...
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A Landmark Lawsuit Aimed to Fix Special Ed for California's Black Students. It Didn't. [kqed.org]
By Lee Romney, KQED, October 18, 2019 Darryl Lester was at his mom’s place in Tacoma, Washington, when a letter he’d been waiting for arrived in the mail. At 40, he was destitute, in pain and out of work. The letter delivered good news: Lester would be getting disability benefits after blowing out his back in a sheet metal accident. But he crumpled it up and threw it in the trash. Why? Because he couldn’t read it. From first through seventh grades, Lester had attended three public schools in...
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A Quarter Century On, Schools in California Now a Welcoming Place for Undocumented Students [edsource.org]
By Louis Freedberg, EdSource, November 8, 2019 Exactly a quarter of a century ago, on Nov. 8, 1994, Californians went to the polls to vote on Proposition 187, an initiative to expel undocumented students from its public schools and universities. That was despite a Supreme Court ruling a dozen years earlier that schools were required to educate all students regardless of their immigration status. Among its many provisions was that schools officials would have had to identify all undocumented...
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ACEs Science Champions Series: Because of Andres Perez, 10,000+ Latinx parents in Northern California embrace trauma-informed parenting
Andres Perez immigrated to San Jose, Calif., from Mexico in 1990. He was 24 years old, undocumented, knew little English, lacked job skills, and had a pregnant wife to support. He hit the ground running by completing an ESL program in San Jose City College, and, while working days at any job he could find, at night he earned an associate of science degree with specialization in electronics and computers in 2002. Fortunately for thousands of Latinx parents and their children, he never worked...
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Berkeley Program puts Students Seeking Housing in the Homes of Older Adults [berkeleyside.com]
By Robin Estrin, Berkeleyside, December 2, 2019 Marcia Garcia, 29, moved to the Bay Area in August, admitted to UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy for a master’s degree. Searching for housing, she quickly learned that options were scarce—and expensive. But thanks to a new program that pairs up graduate students and University retirees with room to spare, she found something affordable: a first-floor bedroom with its own entrance, in a house owned by Cal alumna Linda Artel. “I like...
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Action Alert! Campaign for restorative discipline in schools deadline TOMORROW!
The Children’s Movement is helping to promote restorative justice practices in schools by eliminating suspensions or expulsions for “willful defiance” through Senate Bill 607 authored by Senator Nancy Skinner . You can view the letter at this link here , and sign on before the deadline tomorrow, Wednesday 2/21, at 5pm. Five years ago, California schools issued an astounding 709,702 suspensions, nearly half for “defiance/disruption,” a catch-all category used to justify disciplinary action...
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Addressing the Educational Gap in Whittier [kcet.org]
By Neighborhood Data for Social Change, February 10, 2020 The California Department of Public Health reported in 2017 that completing a formal education is a crucial step on the pathway to securing fulfilling employment that can provide food, housing, transportation and other livelihood improvements essential to a healthy life. However, educational attainment differs across economic and racial lines. Since 2003, the achievement gap in California between low-income students and their more...
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Watch documentary "Invisible Bars" April 15th, at 9 pm on KRCB TV
On April 15, KRCB TV 22 will present Invisible Bars , about new California programs that take into account the damage done to families in the age of runaway incarceration. Filmmaker John Beck came to our studios with Fred Stillman, who served more than two decades in California prisons for murder. and his daughter Jessica – one of his seven children – who works in Santa Rosa. Jessica started visiting her dad in prison at age 9 – she’s now in her early 30s. Her visits used to be behind glass...
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When California schools reopen, Gov. Newsom envisages major changes in how they are run [edsource.org]
By Louis Freedberg, EdSource, April 14, 2020 Gov. Gavin Newsom says it is too soon to ease up on restrictions keeping millions of students out of school, but when they do return, possibly in the fall, they would likely come back to schools organized in radically different ways in order to protect students, staff and families. Currently over 6 million students in California are out of school, and school districts are struggling to provide them with “distance learning” that will hold their...
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Why the Nation Should Screen All Students for Trauma Like California Does [theconversation.com]
By Sunny Shin, The Conversation, November 18, 2019 As the first person to hold the new role of Surgeon General of California, Dr. Nadine Burke Harris is pushing an unprecedented plan to implement universal screenings for childhood trauma within the state’s schools. Childhood trauma is defined by the National Institute of Mental Health as an “emotionally painful or distressful” event that “often results in lasting mental and physical effects.” Burke Harris’ plan is already more than a dream:...
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Why Understanding A Student's Preschool Life May Be Key To Raising LAUSD Graduation Rates [laist.com]
By Mariana Dale, LAist, December 12, 2019 Almost 31,000 children attend some kind of early childhood program in the Los Angeles Unified School District, but that system isn't well connected to the district's elementary and high schools. That means it's hard for teachers to understand a student's background and where they need help when they enter K-12 schools. Now the district has a strategic plan to change that. LAUSD's Birth to Eight Roadmap recommends new teaching methods, data collection...
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State Audit Finds Education Money Not Serving High-Needs Students, Calls for Changes in Funding Law [edsource.org]
By John Fensterwald, EdSource, November 6, 2019 In its first detailed examination of former Gov. Jerry Brown’s landmark school funding law, the California State Auditor sharply criticized the Legislature and State Board of Education for failing to ensure that billions of dollars have been spent on low-income children and other students targeted for additional state money. “In general, we determined that the State’s approach” to the Local Control Funding Formula “has not ensured that funding...
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Students, Teachers, Administrators Soar Above Challenges at Las Plumas [chicoer.com]
By Natalie Hanson, Enterprise-Record, December 18, 2019 As Oroville students continue to face social and economic hardships, high schools are working to improve their experiences and access to opportunities as adults. Staff at Oroville Union High School District’s schools say they are working to address the effects of widespread adverse childhood experiences. In the last decade, Butte County has been reported with the highest number of adverse childhood experiences in California in the...
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Study: Black Students Face 'Accumulation of Disadvantage' [educationdive.com]
By Naaz Modan, Education Dive, October 10, 2019 Dive Brief: A new study from the University of California, Los Angeles' Center for the Transformation of Schools finds a student's quality of life is linked to his or her academic performance. Where they live, access to healthy food, and quality of air and healthcare are among factors that influence academic performance and the schools they attend. Black students in Los Angeles — who are already faced with higher suspension rates, attend...
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Substance Use Disorder and Brain Development
The inputs a brain experiences during its developmental stages have a profound impact on whether that person will develop a substance use disorder (if they choose to drink or use other drugs). In turn, developing a substance use disorder (SUD) as a tween, teen, or young adult dramatically influences that person's brain development. And why is understanding this causality important? The risk factors for developing a substance use disorder are the result of inputs the brain experiences (or...
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Richmond High School students confront demands of social distancing [edsource.org]
By Marina Knowles, EdSource, April 9, 2020 Shutting down California to control the spread of the coronavirus requires everyone to cooperate. Gov. Gavin Newsom urged young people to take the crisis seriously and stay indoors and at least six feet from others after commenting on the tragic loss of a Lancaster teenager who died of COVID-19. He went on to say: “Young people can and will be impacted by this virus. In fact, young people disproportionately are the ones testing positive in the state...
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'Sesame Street' Releases Pandemic PSA For Tired Parents Featuring Elmo's Dad [huffingtonpost.ca]
By Al Donato, Huffington Post, April 15, 2020 If you’re an exhausted parent at home right now, you have a friend in Elmo’s dad, Louie. In the latest pandemic programming from “Sesame Street,” the children’s series has released a PSA for parents starring the famous Muppet’s father. In the PSA, Louie reveals that, like many kids cooped up at home, Elmo won’t leave his parents alone. “It is wonderful to spend so much time with our children, but it can also be a bit ...” the older Muppet pauses,...
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Summer Reading (and Listening) List for Sidelined Students [aafp.org]
By Margaret Miller, American Academy of Family Physicians, May 14, 2020 I'm sitting on my back porch in sunny South Carolina, where I recently experienced virtual graduation from my medical school in Tennessee, and I'm having a hard time writing this blog post. There are moving boxes to be unpacked in the kitchen, our mattress is lying on the bedroom floor, and the only place we have to sit in the living room is a giant recliner from Big Lots that we're forced to share until our couch...
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Supporting Safety and Well-being of Children and Families during COVID-19
The following information is from a tip sheet created by Sacramento County, for the full tip sheet, please access it at the below link: The outbreak of COVID‐19 is a concern on everyone’s mind. While we may be comforted to know that the risk to our children’s physical health from the outbreak itself appears to be low, child and family serving agencies are worried about the increased risk for child abuse and neglect during this time of crisis and economic insecurity . Reports to child abuse...
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The Beginning of the End of Random Searches: Students Know What They Need Next [fixschooldiscipline.org]
By Ashley Ruano, Fix School Discipline, October 1, 2019 The #StudentNotSuspects coalition has long worked in Los Angeles to end the random searches policy that discriminate against students and create a hostile campus environment for students to learn. For many years, Los Angeles Unified School District implemented mandatory random metal detector searches in middle and high schools. The searches did not make campus environments more secure. Instead, the policy targeted, and criminalized...
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Three Bright Spots in California’s Fitful and Failing Implementation of a Federal Law Aimed at Lifting Foster Students’ Academic Horizons [chronicleofsocialchange.org]
By Susan Abram, The Chronicle of Social Change, November 14, 2019 In the eastern suburbs of Sacramento County, Kamika Hebbert keeps a watchful eye for signs of how an unstable environment affects young minds. There’s the restlessness that comes with worry about biological parents and siblings. The thousand-mile stare that comes with trauma. The mouthing off and anger that comes with fear of being placed with another family or moved to another group home. “I’ve had kids who have moved to 17...
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Trauma-informed Care: It Takes More Than a Clipboard and a Questionnaire
California is about to launch an ambitious campaign to train tens of thousands of Medi-Cal providers to screen children and adults up to age 65 for trauma, starting on January 1, 2020. It is well-established that the early identification of trauma and providing the appropriate treatment are critical tools for reducing long-term health care costs for both children and adults. Research has shown that individuals who experienced a high number of traumatic childhood events are likely to die...
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TCOE [Tulare County Office of Education] Grant Opens 'Gates' for Minority, Low-Income Students [thesungazette.com]
By The Sun-Gazette, November 13, 2019 The Tulare County Office of Education will play a key role in helping develop strategies to improve student outcomes for black, Latino and low-income students. Last week, the Tulare County Office of Education (TCOE) learned it will receive a $500,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. TCOE was the only K-12 agency in California among the current cohort of Model Design & Initiation (MDI) grantees. The MDI grant is the second grant...
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Two Community Colleges Show How Students Can Succeed Without Remedial Math Courses [edsource.org]
By Ashley A. Smith, EdSource, November 15, 2019 A San Diego area community college that moved early to eliminate remedial math courses is drawing lots of attention across the state for success in teaching math. Not only are students at Cuyamaca Community College taking math classes that can transfer to four-year colleges, but Latino students are bucking a national trend by outperforming their white counterparts. Cuyamaca, along with College of the Siskiyous in Northern California, were two...
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UC Plans to Enroll 1,400 More California Undergraduates With No Tuition Increase [latimes.com]
By Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, November 15, 2019 The University of California plans to enroll 1,400 more California undergraduates next year with no tuition increase under a 2020-21 budget approved Thursday by the board of regents. The UC system also will enroll 1,000 additional graduate students and expand mental health services and academic support in its drive to increase graduation rates and close the achievement gap among diverse student groups. The UC Student Assn. successfully...
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Disconnected: Internet Stops Once School Ends for Many Rural California Students [edsource.org]
By Sydney Johnson, EdSource, December 6, 2019 Walk into any classroom in Alpaugh Unified and you will see teaching and learning using the latest technology. Students collaborate on digital documents, give presentations on interactive whiteboards, conduct research and even apply to colleges on Chromebooks. But for many students in Alpaugh, a small rural town about an hour north of Bakersfield in Tulare County, that online connection stops once the school day ends. “We have a disadvantage...
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Early Discount 20th Annual Families & Fathers Conference
Call to action- Fathers and Families Coalition of America is nearing the 20th Annual Families and Fathers Conference, March 4-7, 2019 in Los Angeles, California with a comprehensive program that hosts presenters from the United Kingdom, Scotland, Ireland, Australia, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, Bolivia and throughout the United States. We are providing the conference information for your consideration to participate. We are asking you to share this conference information with your community...
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Echo Conference Spotlight: Mental Health of Undocumented Students
Echo's conference this year is packed with great workshops for teachers, parents and anyone who works with children and their families. In addition to the not-to-be-missed keynotes (such as Susan Craig ), we are proud to present: Jose Ivan Arreola-Torres Workshop Spotlight: Holistic Healing for Immigrant & Undocumented Youth In this important workshop, Jose Ivan Arreola-Torres will talk about an often overlooked aspect of student mental health - the mental and emotional...
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Equity [cdefoundation.org]
From Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation, February 2020 California students have big dreams. Unfortunately. some students face a much tougher road to achieve them. It’s up to us to remove barriers in the education system that get in their way. Working with Alliance for Continuous Improvement partners, Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation developed this video as a way to help local educators, families, students and community groups engage with their schools, districts and...
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Fentanyl Epidemic: A Father's Love Starts his Fight [myvalleynews.com]
By Jeff Pack, Valley News, February 11, 2020 When he took to the podium at the Temecula City Council meeting Tuesday, Feb. 4, Alex Capelouto’s father looked shaken, but he took a deep breath, adjusted his glasses and began to read from a speech he had written. “I’m Alex’s dad,” the man said. “I’m here on behalf of Jacob Alexander, 2017 graduate of Chaparral High School. Dec. 3, 2019, dead. I’m here on behalf of Caleb Dunlap, senior at Great Oak High School, Dec. 15, 2019, dead. I’m here on...
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Fires Take a Toll on Students; Some Districts Rethink Suspensions (Podcast) [edsource.org]
By EdSource, November 4, 2019 From Sonoma County to Simi Valley, fires forced hundreds of thousands of Californians out of their homes in October. In this week’s podcast, reporter Sydney Johnson shares what she found at evacuation centers in Santa Rosa and Petaluma, where she spoke with college students worried about how they will make up lost time. Also, with a big decline in out-of-school suspensions for disruptive behavior, some districts are looking at ways to transform how they handle...
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Google to provide computers, internet to California students studying from home [sfchronicle.com]
By Alexei Koseff, San Francisco Chronicle, April 1, 2020 Google will provide thousands of computers and free internet access to help California students finish the school year online, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday. The company plans to donate 4,000 Chromebooks and make broadband internet available to 100,000 households through the end of the school year. Newsom said at a news conference that “Google stepped up in a big way,” but that more support was needed from the private sector to...
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Native American Students Suspended at Higher Rates Than Peers. New Report Looks at Solutions [desertsun.com]
By Risa Johnson, Palm Springs Desert Sun, September 30, 2019 Native American students in California's public schools face higher-than-average suspension rates, according to a new report. A joint effort between California State University, San Diego, and the Sacramento Native American Higher Education Collaborative, the report outlines what it calls troubling trends regarding how school administrators discipline students. Racial disparities in school discipline, particularly for African...
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Of Mice & Meetings: Bringing Our Whole Selves to Work During the Pandemic
My wife works for an educational company and her past few weeks have been busy working with schools and districts across California as they face the herculean task of adapting to distance learning for the remainder of the school year. One of my favorite stories from last week comes from a training that one of her colleagues was conducting with a school site. During the training, without skipping a beat, the trainer announced that his daughter had just handed him their pet mice and he was now doi
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Paradise students get substance abuse, disaster trauma help [chicoer.com]
By Natalie Hanson, Chico Enterprise-Record, May 9, 2020 Butte County’s Office of Education has gotten a $1 million grant to help students on the Paradise ridge get services for substance abuse and disaster-related trauma. The Office of Education applied for the 18-month grant, targeted specifically for areas that have experienced disaster, to continue the support process of recovery for ridge schools, students and families. It will focus on four areas for services: Substance abuse services...
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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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Police: Autopsy Shows Children Found In Redding Storage Unit Died Outside Of Shasta County [SacramentoCBSLocal.com]
This is a tragic story of two children's deaths in Redding. What's very interesting is that a representative of the child abuse prevention center in Monterey provided this comment: “These children had some pretty serious adverse childhood experiences—dad was in prison, mom had been killed, they even moved into a family relative’s home, they were mobile. There were things to look at that looked like the family could use some support.,” she said. To read the entire...
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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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Remote Learning for English Learners and Special Needs Students during COVID-19 [ppic.org]
By Niu Gao, Laura Hill, Public Policy Institute of California, April 10, 2020 For California’s most vulnerable students, including 1.2 million English Learners (EL) and over 700,000 students with special educational needs, remote learning in the wake of COVID-19 presents particular challenges. As districts across the state roll out distance learning plans to minimize disruption to K–12 students, educators must find alternate ways to meet all student needs. English Learners and special...
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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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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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California Plans to End 'Lunch Shaming' That Guarantees Meals for All Students [usatoday.com]
By Joshua Bote, USA Today, October 14, 2019 A bill signed Saturday by California Gov. Gavin Newsom plans to cut the recent trend in schools of "lunch shaming." SB 265, which was originally introduced by California state Sen. Robert Hertzberg, will require that all public school students have a "state reimbursable" meal provided by the school "even if their parent or guardian has unpaid meal fees." It amends the Child Hunger Prevention and Fair Treatment Act of 2017, which previously stated...
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California's First Surgeon General: Screen Every Student for Childhood Trauma [nbcnews.com]
By Patrice Gaines, NBC News, October 11, 2019 Dr. Nadine Burke Harris has an ambitious dream: screen every student for childhood trauma before entering school. "A school nurse would also get a note from a physician that says: 'Here is the care plan for this child's toxic stress. And this is how it shows up,'" said Burke Harris, who was appointed California's first surgeon general in January. "It could be it shows up in tummy aches. Or it's impulse control and behavior, and we offer a care...
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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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Grocery Money Zips Straight to California's Needy Students Amid School Closures [chronicleofsocialchange.org]
By Sara Tiano, The Chronicle of Social Change, May 5, 2020 As lines for food banks stretch for miles and millions of Californians apply for unemployment in record numbers amid the coronavirus pandemic, a new anti-hunger program is giving families debit cards to keep their fridges and pantries stocked. Close to two-thirds of school-aged children in California could well be eligible, and the state anticipates spending as much as $1.4 billion on the infusion into the budgets of struggling...
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Homeless Students Suffer Consequences of Housing, Food Insecurity | Homeless, in Butte County [chicoer.com]
By Natalie Hanson, Chico Enterprise-Record, January 16, 2020 At least 70% of Oroville’s high school students are considered socioeconomically-disadvantaged. In Chico, Between 400 and 500 children are categorized as housing insecure at any time during the Chico Unified School district’s school year. Across the county, thousands of students often rely on each district for help just to get to school and to get a meal. In these statistics a tragic side is seen in the Butte County homelessness...
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How Closed Schools Are Creating More Trauma For Students [kqed.org]
By Cory Turner Apr 21 The high school senior sitting across from Franciene Sabens was in tears over the abrupt amputation of her social life and turmoil at home. Because of the coronavirus, there will be no prom, no traditional send-off or ceremony for the graduates of Carbondale Community High School in Carbondale, Ill. And Sabens, one of the school's counselors, could not give the girl the one thing Sabens' gut told her the teen needed most. "I want to hug them all, but I really wanted to...