Latest Articles & Columns:

Out of the Frying Pan ... and into our Brains?

March 10 - Chemicals have become so much a part of our world—in our toys, household goods, furniture, and even food—that we need a better system for getting the facts and minimizing risks to children and adults alike. Jan Richter's blog takes a look at what's up, what's working and what more we can do.
Join the conversation.

They Won’t Stay Outside Forever: Black Young Men and Unemployment

March 5 - The blizzards that hit DC are behind us it seems, but the area's young black men face an ongoing storm -- and it will take all of us to dig our nation out. In her latest Youth Today column, Karen Pittman reflects on what needs to be done.
Read the story.   |   More of Karen's columns

Against the Odds, St. Louis Crisis Nursery Continues to Grow

March 10 - The St. Louis Crisis Nursery in Missouri has offered emergency supports to more than 64,000 families and become the largest resource of its kind in the country. How has it managed to grow while staying true to its original mission? Child Advocacy 360 takes a look. Read more.   |   More CA360 columns

Engaging Hard-to-Reach Youth through New Technologies

Feb. 24, 2010 - CFK's Shane Gooding gives us her take-aways from a recent Society for International Development workshop on high-tech ways to engage hard-to-reach teens. Read more.

Beyond the Headlines: Abstinence, Sex Ed & Teen Pregnancy

Feb. 8, 2010 - What's the take-away from the research on abstinence-only education, rising teen pregnancy rates and Child Trend's educational attainment findings? Our blog puts it together for you. Read more.

Race to the Top - Driving a Race to Reform?

Jan. 26, 2010 - Money makes a lot of things happen, but can it drive more states to tackle comprehensive school reform? States have been working hard to put in place the changes required to apply for the Race to the Top funds. Our Jan Richter looks at what it means, and what states are doing to try to earn the money. Read more.

The Next Most Underreported Health Reform Story

What will happen to SCHIP?
The health reform plan in the House repeals the popular, effective State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)—even though one of President Obama's first and much-touted acts in office was to reauthorize SCHIP after it was twice vetoed by President Bush. Trudy Lieberman looks at why it matters and why it's not getting much media coverage. Read more.

Columns:

One More Time: Don't Pit Preschoolers Against Teens
Karen Pittman's column
Karen finds commonalities between juvenile justice and the child welfare systems. Leaders from both systems convened recently to hear about efforts to strengthen supports for young people. Read Karen's column.

• Karen Pittman's columns

Checking In on Hope Meadows 2010: Influence Far beyond Its Boundaries
Child Advocacy 360 blog

Child Advocacy 360 has a look at what's new with Hope Meadows, an intergenerational community in Illinois that brings together children in foster care, their adoptive families and seniors. Read more.

Past Blogs:

• The Good-News Challenge: How the Journalism Center for Children & Families Covers An Important Beat
• Case Study: How MomsRising.Org Uses Social Media To Get Its Message Out
• Can Social Media Really Spark Social Change?
• See all CA360 communications columns

• Hunger in an Obese Nation: Dispatches from a Webinar
• The Power of Positive Peer Pressure: a Q&A with Scott B. Peterson
• For Young Americans, Health Care Reform is Our Fight
• College Mental Health: A Different Diagnosis
• Parents Design L.A. Parent Involvement Model
• Middle School Youth Lead the Way: Creating "Pathways to Leadership" in After-School Programs
• Taking Stock: What the 2009 Children's Budget Says about Us (and Why it Matters)
• The Real Cost of Child Poverty, and What We Can Do About It
• A New White House Initiative to Strengthen Community College

>> More CFKArticles

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CFK Update | March 10, 2010

From the Field

Children and young people don't grow up in fragmented programs. That's why we're committed to bringing you best practices, news and policy developments from across the child and youth field. Here are a few of the highlights:

A Look at Community Schools
When public schools partner with nonprofits, local agencies and community members to offer services like health care and other youth development activities, without burdening school staff, they can work to reduce the impacts of poverty on students.

"Justices Will Scrutinize Life Sentences for Youths"
Twenty years after a 13-year-old was sentenced to life without parole for rape, the Supreme Court will consider whether "extreme sentences for juveniles" are Constitutional (Washington Post article).

Physical Activity Opportunities Associated With Fitness and Weight Status Among Adolescents in Low-Income Communities
A study in the November 2009 Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine has good news about public policy’s ability to boost the health of low-income children and youth—yes, policy. Community environment is a changeable factor in the fight against obesity.

Local Governments Actions to Prevent Obesity
An Institute of Medicine report tallies the cost of childhood obesity and actions that local governments can take.

Take Action on Health Care with the FamiliesUSA Toolkit!
National health care reform is still within sight. Here's how you (yes, you) can make a real difference in your hometown and across the country.

Changing Systems: Outcomes from the RWJF Reclaiming Futures Initiative on Juvenile Justice and Substance Abuse
Here's a longstanding initiative that's showing real results in its latest evaluation.Get the details.

Action Central: Tools for Advocacy

• ABC's of Advocacy
• A Toolkit for Funding
• Advocating for Kids (Transcript)
• More Taking Action Toolkits

Got a minute to get involved? Check out our Action Alerts!

Featured Alerts:

Create a White House Office on Children and Youth!
The Federal government runs hundreds of critical programs to serve children and youth ages 0 to 24, which are spread across 12 departments and agencies. This fragmentation is getting in the way of effectiveness, but we can do better ... more.

>> Learn about this PSA campaign