Laura Porter presenting at conference in Oklahoma. Five years ago, the Potts Family Foundation began a journey that continues to this day. Introduced to the documentary "Resilience: The Biology of Stress & the Science of Hope" in 2017, our immediate reaction was that all Oklahomans need to see this film. From the first screening at Rose State College, we have employed the same format following the film with a moderated panel discussion. Even the pandemic did not set us back, as we...

When it comes to optimizing learning, we don’t value breaks enough, neuroscientists suggest in a new study. Practice makes perfect. To become ambidextrous in basketball, dribble with your left hand, switch to your right, and repeat the process again and again. Likewise, to solve differential equations in math, pile them up and work your way through them diligently. According to one popular school of thought, it’s this active, repeated manipulation of material that lays the neural foundations...

A new resource looks at the preva­lence of trau­ma among youth in the juve­nile jus­tice sys­tem and out­lines ways to pro­tect their men­tal and emo­tion­al well-being. The fact sheet , pro­duced by the Amer­i­can Acad­e­my of Pedi­atrics (AAP), is part of a grow­ing call from child and ado­les­cent health experts to reform long­stand­ing juve­nile jus­tice poli­cies and practices. “Efforts aimed at improv­ing our juve­nile jus­tice sys­tem must extend beyond issues relat­ed to youth arrest...

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – Oklahoma lawmakers are set to bring awareness to ACEs, known as Adverse Childhood Experiences and PACEs, Positive and Compensatory Experiences. Both the House and Senate have simple resolutions naming April 7 th ACEs and PACEs Awareness Day in Oklahoma. In the House, the resolution's primary sponsor is Rep. Carol Bush with many co-sponsors. In the Senate, co-sponsors are Sen. Brenda Stanley and Sen. Carri Hicks. Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are potentially...

The current early childhood ecosystem is fueled by extensive knowledge about child development, mountains of data from program evaluations, and continuing public fascination with the developing brain. Its energy is sustained by the tireless efforts of providers of early care and education, primary health care and social services, policymakers, advocates, and families raising young children under a wide range of conditions. Over the past two decades, the “brain science story” has made a...

The pandemic is leaving its imprint on all of us, but some experts suggest it may be most keenly affecting babies and toddlers. A new study by researchers at five universities found that babies born during the pandemic may have lower IQ scores than those born before it. Babies who came into the world before the coronavirus had a cognitive score hovering around 100, according to this study. But the test scores of babies born during the pandemic fell sharply, to around 78. That’s 22 points...

Our hats are off to the Okahoman for its expanded offering of thought-provoking articles including Grading Oklahoma. The full-page article in the Sunday July 18 th issue gave rise to hope that our state is once again ready to look at our shortcomings and change our priorities and policies to realize the potential of our people. Of specific focus for the Potts Family Foundation, is the health and well-being of our youngest citizens. To achieve positive change - moving from the bottom ten...

Father figure involvement in parenting is associated with better outcomes for children, including better social-emotional, behavioral and psychological outcomes and improved academic performance. Although home visiting (HV) programs have traditionally focused on pregnant women and first-time mothers, fathers can also benefit from these parenting supports. However, engaging fathers in HV programs presents unique challenges. Young fathers may have relationship instability, logistical obstacles...

We are excited that the Ok25by25 Early Childhood Coalition 5 Year Update is just around the corner. The presentation will "go live" on Monday, May 10th at 10:00 a.m. Our keynote speaker is Rob Grunewald, economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, who will be introduced by Secretary of Human Services Justin Brown. Four interactive discussions take place between two service providers in each of four topic areas (and OK25by25 metrics) including Child Poverty, Teen Pregnancy, Food...

Written By Teju Ravilochan . Some months ago, I was catching up with my dear friend and board member, Roberto Rivera . As an entrepreneur and community organizer with a doctorate and Lin-Manuel-Miranda-level freestyle abilities, he is a teacher to me in many ways. I was sharing with him that for a long time, I’ve struggled with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs . The traditional interpretation of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is that humans need to fulfill their needs at one level before we can...

A new study done at Arizona State University has, for the first time, quantified the health-care cost of women in Arizona who experienced trauma as children, pegging the amount at $260 million for 2019. The research, done by the Morrison Institute for Public Policy , showed that exposure to three or more “adverse childhood experiences,” or ACEs, such as drug abuse or violence in their homes, was associated with $260 million in Medicaid spending – about 16% of the total for 2019. The work is...

One secret to achieving more: Finding time to do nothing. In our efforts to squeeze every second from the day, it seems counterintuitive to watch a pot of coffee boil or gaze out the window. But your brain uses those free periods for important cleanup work, neuroscience research indicates. And during the pandemic, as the boundaries between work and home have blurred , it has become harder to create mental breaks. Even brief timeouts help the brain reinforce long-term learning and...

Alexis, 17, has always been close to her parents. But since the pandemic began, they have been arguing a lot. “We snap at each other more,” she said. “And because there’s more negative emotion with the virus and we’re all trapped in the house together, the stress is definitely amplified.” Both her parents have been working from their Maryland home since March last year. For most of that time, Alexis’ sister, who has graduated from college, has also been living at home. Last April, their...

It's been a traumatic year. The pandemic. Social justice protests in response to police brutality. An insurrection at the nation's capital. Now our nation is dealing with two mass shootings. Traumatic events can put the human brain into high gear, according to trauma expert and psychologist Dr. Bethany Brand of Towson University. “It feels like there's danger everywhere,” Brand said. “It is our brain's attempt to protect us by making us hyper-alert.” This hypervigilance takes away the body's...

From a new study conducted for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation “As America rapidly evolves into a more racially and ethnically diverse country, we see that future in our children. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation commissioned an in-depth research study to explore the experiences of parents and caregivers today as they raise the next generation of children. The project began with interviews and focus groups, culminating in a survey of approximately 2,000 parents and caregivers to hear...

It’s truly been a year like no other since we issued a statement in March 2020 about the COVID-19 pandemic that was rapidly sweeping around the world. Our primary aim for that statement was to honor first responders, health care workers, and front-line service providers—especially those supporting young children and their families. A year later, that tribute needs to be redoubled and tripled. The enormous efforts that have been made on behalf of others are awe-inspiring. We also made two...

A new report from the American Psychological Association shows just how stressful life in America was in 2020. The APA's "Stress in America" report, published Thursday, provides a stunning example of how mental health directly impacts physical health. It comes exactly one year after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global pandemic. "We've gone through a collective trauma," said Arthur C. Evans, chief executive officer and executive vice president of the APA. The...

The child welfare system — like other powerful institutions, including law enforcement and the incarceration system — is under attack. The devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic along with a reckoning with systemic racism and inequality over the past year are shining a harsh spotlight on child protective services (CPS), the nation’s system for protecting children from abuse and neglect. Similar to the movement to defund the police, long-standing concerns about racism and other gross inequities...

Did you know that interactions among genes, experiences, age, and environments influence every biological system in the body, with especially powerful effects in the earliest years? When we think about the foundation of early childhood development, we often focus on brain architecture . However, the environments we create and the experiences we provide for young children and their families affect not just the developing brain, but also many other physiological systems. Systems relating to...

The Potts Family Foundation through its Raising Resilient Oklahomans initiative partnered this past week with the Ardmore Behavioral Health Collaborative and Ardmore Literacy Leadership to host a very successful virtual screening and discussion of the award-winning documentary Resilience: The Biology of Stress & the Science of Hope. As we always do, the weekend screening period was followed by a moderated panel discussion of professionals, mostly local, who frequently work with children...

By Jessica Kent Health IT Analytics An explainable artificial intelligence platform that analyzes data captured during in-person consultations may enhance diagnosis and treatment of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), according to a study published in JMIR – Medical Informatics . ACEs are negative events and processes that an individual might encounter during childhood or adolescence. These events have been proven to be linked to increased risk of a range of negative health outcomes and...

Child maltreatment is well recognized as one of the most significant contributors to pediatric morbidity and mortality throughout the world. 1 , 2 The effect of child maltreatment on morbidity and mortality in older adults has been documented for >20 years as demonstrated by the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study. 3 The impact of maltreatment on teenage suicide and other mental health diagnoses is also well known. 4 , 5 To date, however, a direct relationship between maltreatment...

You are invited to join the OKAIMH's [virtual] Fall Conference, Wednesday, October 21st, 11:30 - 4:30, with Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, based on her new book The Age of Overwhelm: Strategies for the Long Haul. Whether we are overwhelmed by work or school; our families or communities; caretaking for others or ourselves; or engagement in social justice, environmental advocacy, or civil service, just a few subtle shifts can help sustain us. Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, bestselling author of Trauma...