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In the dark early hours of Mother’s Day, May 13th , before the 2018 Alaska legislative session adjourned, Senate Bill 105 was approved by both the Alaska House and the Senate...making Alaska one of only a handful of states to pass ACEs awareness into statute. This represents years of education, collaboration, and some creative and dogged advocacy this last legislative session. It also represents a promising path forward.

State leaders in education, criminal justice and health came together Tuesday to begin to confront an alarming, new statistic: Oklahoma’s youngest, most vulnerable children suffer more trauma than those in any other state in the nation. A summit titled, “It Starts Here: Trauma-Informed Instruction,” brought thousands of educators from across the state to hear from national experts on childhood trauma and what brain science reveals about what teachers can do to help students both learn more...

Life expectancy is highly correlated with ACE scores and complex childhood trauma. Enter your address or zip code to know what the health outcomes are in your neighborhoods and communities. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Life Expectancy Calculator

The 2018 Building Strong Brains Tennessee ACEs Summit took place last week in Nashville, TN. The theme of this year’s summit was “Celebrating Successes and Imagining Possibilities” and there is plenty to celebrate. Tennessee is one of the most innovative states when it comes to ACEs awareness. Tennessee understands that childhood trauma is the root cause of its poor health outcomes, high rates of addiction and other ailments. And Tennessee is doing something about it. Tennessee’s leadership...

Tennessee First Lady Crissy Haslam this week released a report highlighting eight years of progress by the state to improve the lives of children and families. Prioritizing Tennessee’s Children: Our Promise to Future Generations reflects an early commitment by Governor Bill Haslam’s administration to make the health and success of all Tennessee children a state priority. In conjunction with Governor Haslam’s Children’s Cabinet and Deputy Governor Jim Henry, First Lady Haslam set out to...

(Photo caption: Tennessee First Lady Chrissy Haslam addresses the annual Building Strong Brains Tennessee ACEs Summit, held at the Country Music Hall of Fame on Tuesday, September 11, 2018. Photo courtesy of Governor Bill Haslam/ Flickr.com ) One minute of complete silence. Fred Rogers, the beloved television personality of "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood," gave such a moment of contemplation to the graduating class of Dartmouth University during a commencement speech 16 years ago . A minute to...

State Sen. Vincent Hughes issued a passionate plea to experts at Temple University to help serve and protect victims of trauma in grade schools in Philadelphia and across the commonwealth. “Too many kids are walking into too many toxic schools, too many toxic situations — from domestic abuse to gun violence — to get an education in [an atmosphere] that’s toxic for educators to work in,” said Hughes (D-7) during a recent hearing at the university with members of the Senate Appropriations...

Child Trends responded to a request for comments from the federal Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), about the development of a clearinghouse of evidence-based practices in accordance with the Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018. The Family First Act is a powerful new opportunity for states to extend the largest federal funding source, Title IV-E of the Social Security Act , to include services and supports that can prevent...

State legislatures are an ever-changing landscape. Some states cram in a year of policy into short sessions, and the membership is constantly turning over. It can be a tough environment for child welfare issues to find traction, even with widespread concern over increases in foster youth and shortages in foster homes. One national organization is taking a crack at embedding more state houses with legislators poised to take the lead in this arena. The National Conference of State Legislatures...

What does a legislator do when not in session? Last month, I was asked by the Speaker to attend a regional meeting of key state policymakers with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It seems the committee chairmen of our health-related committees couldn’t attend, so I was afforded the opportunity to learn about something not exactly in my wheelhouse. The meeting was sponsored by the National Conference of State Legislatures, and is the third such specialized session they’ve...

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University's Indiana School Mental Health Initiative has partnered with The Lutheran Foundation to provide online resources to support schools and community partners as they address students' social, emotional, behavioral and mental health needs. The Lutheran Foundation’s statewide LookUp Indiana website provides information along with a resource directory of mental health provider agencies searchable by name, city or ZIP code. The Indiana School Mental Health...

American adults of low socioeconomic status report increasing mental distress and worsening well-being, according to a new study by Princeton University and Georgetown University. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is among the first to investigate if the psychological health of Americans has worsened over time, as suggested by the “deaths of despair” narrative, linking rising mortality in midlife to drugs, alcohol and suicide. The results show that...