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THIS WEEK'S
HEADLINES
NEWS IMPACTING CHILDREN 0-5 AND THEIR FAMILIES
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Here is a quick look at some headlines from this week impacting the lives of kids 0-5 and their families. The purpose of these stories is simply to inform, and they do not necessarily reflect First 5 Kern's areas of support or efforts towards these issues.
Follow First 5 Kern on social media (@First5Kern) for more kids news, as well as information about our funded programs and initiatives.
Now for the headlines........
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EARLY CHILDCARE & EDUCATION
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CORONAVIRUS SCHOOL CLOSINGS WILL CAUSE A CHILD CARE CRISIS IN AMERICA
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As of Tuesday, 621 K-12 schools around the country have closed in response to the growing coronavirus outbreak. Hundreds more have followed suit since then, at least temporarily, impacting nearly 100,000 students in California alone.
The closures come as a means to fight the spread of the virus, often after a parent or other community member tests positive. The impact on day care centers, preschools, and other early childhood education and care providers is harder to measure, since facilities tend to be smaller and many are privately run. But at least one preschool has closed in California, and more are likely to follow.
When schools are closed unexpectedly, “lots of families are left scrambling.” (VOX)
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SENATE APPROVES BIPARTISAN CHILD CARE PROTECTION BILL
The U.S. Senate on March 5 approved the bipartisan Child Care Protection Improvement Act of 2020, coauthored by U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC).
Sen. Burr sponsored S. 2683 in October 2019 to establish an interagency task force, chaired by the Administration for Children and Families, to support states in conducting required criminal background checks for childcare staff members, according to the congressional record summary. (Ripon Advance)
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THE BEST INVESTMENTS ARE IN OUR CHILDREN
Carmen Parra is the fourth in a family of 10 children. From a young age, she was faced with the challenge of taking on the mantle of a mother figure for her family. Parra helped raise her siblings, including her youngest brother and a close cousin who had developmental challenges.
Her experiences taught her that focusing on early learning is a crucial component of a child’s development.
“What better investment of your life and your time?” Parra said. “Children are the ones who are going to flourish and contribute to your family, to your city, and to your county." (Voices of Monterey Bay)
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W.H.O. REPORT CLAIMS CHILDREN ARENT AT GREAT RISK, BUT DOCTORS AREN'T SO SURE
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A
report spearheaded by international public health leaders suggests that children aren’t particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus that so far has infected more than 95,000 people and killed more than 3,200 worldwide.
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said in a Feb. 24 report that no children in China under the age of nine have died from the infection. But some U.S. experts say the report may underestimate the infection rate among children. (USA Today)
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ULTRA FAST GENOME SEQUENCING COULD SAVE BABIES'S LIVES
Ultra-rapid sequencing for newborns is moving from an investigational tool to a standard of care. Blue Shield of California last year became the first insurer to cover rapid and ultra-rapid sequencing of babies and children who have life-threatening and unexplained medical conditions.
Saving the lives of newborns afflicted with mysterious disorders provides a compelling and even heroic case for advancing the science of genomic sequencing of babies. But the technology used to diagnose an urgent case also can be used to foresee potential future health problems, a more ambiguous realm. (Wired)
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STRESS DURING PREGNANCY MAY LAST A LIFETIME
Mice exposed to stress in the womb and soon after birth can expect a lifetime of immune system deficiencies that hinder the ability to ward off infections and cancer, Yale University researchers report March 5 in the journal
Cell
.
"Mice for rest of their lives are rewired and reprogrammed in ways fundamentally different from those not exposed" to stress hormones, says the lead author of the study. (Science Daily)
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PREGNANT PEOPLE ARE NOT AT INCREASED RISK FOR CORONAVIRUS
As the World Health Organization
coronavirus disease,
COVID-19
, anxiety around what the virus means for pregnant people grows.
But are pregnant folks at a greater risk of contracting the virus and passing it to their fetus? According to experts, so far research indicates no. (Global News)
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PREMATURE BABIES
CAN CATCH UP THEIR IMMUNE SYSTEMS
Researchers from King's College London & Homerton University Hospital have found babies born before 32 weeks' gestation can rapidly acquire some adult immune functions after birth, equivalent to that achieved by infants born at term.
Researchers found that all the infants' immune profiles progressed in a similar direction as they aged, regardless of the number of weeks of gestation at birth. Babies born at the earliest gestations - before 28 weeks - made a greater degree of movement over a similar time period to those born at later gestation. (EurekAlert
)
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SESAME STREET WANTS YOUNG CHILDREN COUNTED
IN THE CENSUS
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No age group was undercounted as much during the last once-a-decade census as children under 5, researchers say. Sesame Street is hoping to use Count von Count to change that.
The Muppet best known as the Count is joining Elmo, Rosita and her mom, Rosa, in
public service announcement
s filmed on the set of the long-running educational television show. The spots encourage parents of young children to make sure they and their children are counted in the 2020 census. The public service announcements in English and Spanish started airing Monday. The head count starts for most people this Thursday. (PBS News Hour)
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QUARANTINE GRANDMA? CALIFORNIA FAMILIES SCRAMBLE AS CORONAVIRUS HITS
Government policy is one thing, real life another.
What happens if your germ-carrying preschoolers suddenly pose a lethal threat to their elderly grandparents? What becomes of your teenagers’ future if their education is disrupted, long-term? How protected are we if schools cancel class but kids then disperse to malls and bounce houses and movie theaters? (CalMatters)
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THE IMPORTANCE OF CREATING AN EFFECTIVE PARENTAL LEAVE POLICY
Your company culture has to keep up with the times, and the times call for establishing flexible guidelines that serve your business goals and your employees’ needs.
One of the most important questions in employee benefits is how much paid parental leave to give. This article addresses a recent example of a major nonprofit that cut their paid leave policy in half, why it was generally well-received, and how companies of all sizes can learn from this. (Forbes)
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First 5 Kern was established in 1998 when California voters passed Proposition 10, which levied a 50-cent tax on tobacco products. Revenues generated from the tobacco tax are used to fund local programs in the areas of health and wellness, early childcare and education, and parent education and support services that promote early childhood development for children ages zero to five.
For more information on First 5 Kern and the agencies we support, please visit
www.First5Kern.org
and follow us on social media.
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Special thanks to
Vecteezy
for assistance on graphics
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