State of the Children

The Costs of Child Abuse, Plus News of the Week

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 16:13:30 GMT

Failing to address child abuse could cost Texas much more than it would save in budget cuts, our policy director testified at a Legislative Budget Board hearing this week. Below are some highlights from that testimony, and our round-up of news on children and policy issues this week.

From Our Clarity in Choices Department

Christine Sinatra — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 16:05:32 GMT

"From Our Clarity in Choices Department" will be a new recurring feature on our blog. We'll use it to highlight some of the tradeoffsTexas faces as decision-makers cope with a financial crisis. Our goal is to move from the fuzzy jargon of politics (like "10% budget reduction") to something a little easier to understand (like "vaccines for 112,000 children"). In these posts, we'll also puzzle through the costs for Texas in a way seems warranted (for example: "If it costs more in unnecessary health spending due to sicknesses and hospitalizations, does eliminating vaccines for kids to save money really make sense?")

First up are two issues our policy staff members have recently testified about at the Capitol: early childhood services and childhood obesity prevention.

Connecting Kids to Coverage Challenge, Plus News of the Week

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 14:47:16 GMT

A national health-care-for-children challenge kicked off today with this message: If you work with children, you can help uninsured kids get the health coverage they need. Some new research suggests Texas has a big role to play in achieving this U.S. goal--our kids are disproportionately more likely to go without coverage, even when their families' earnings make them eligible for health care. We highlight what you can do to participate in the new challenge, and share our usual round-up of news about children.

Bittersweet Victory for Children and News of the Week

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:07:04 GMT

"Bittersweet victory: FMAP passes" was the message in my inbox this week, after U.S. lawmakers passed legislation that benefits children in the Medicaid program, even as another program that helps feed hungry children was slated for cuts. We have more on this and news of the week in our round-up.

Preventing the Decimation of Services for Children, plus News for the Week

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 17:24:33 GMT

Progress on child nutrition and state fiscal relief in Washington, a challenge for the food stamp program, what works in home-visiting, and new scientific findings about the values of breastfeeding all made our news round-up this week. Texas state agencies also announced their plans for meeting an unthinkable directive from top elected leaders to reduce spending by 10percent, even as the needs families face in our shaky economy climb ever higher.

The Best Option for Texas and Kids: Keeping Children Out of Adult Prison

Nicole Trinh — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 16:22:33 GMT

In Texas, for the most part, the law recognizes a difference between kids and adults. We don't let 14-year-olds get a driver's license, for example, or join the Texas State Guard or vote. We do, however, make a disturbing exception in the law: Texas will send a 14-year-old who commits a felony to adult court, jail, and prison.

How Does Texas Rank for Child Wellbeing, Plus News for the Week

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:10:54 GMT

If you have followed the news on kids this week, you might have heard by now that the Annie E. Casey Foundation released its annual rankings of child wellbeing in the states, The 2010 KIDS COUNT Data Book. Once again, Texas performed worse than most other states. Our partners and friends at the Center for Public Policy Priorities coordinate the data for Texas, and I got to attend the release event Tuesday. Some important lessons lie in both Dr. Frances Deviney's presentation and the larger report.

More Tips from LWV of Texas, Plus News for July 17-23

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:55:29 GMT

Closing a Texas predatory-lender loophole, ideas to reduce the C-section rate, new Fostering Connections guidelines from the federal government, and an important upcoming KIDS COUNT event are all featured in our new edition of the round-up.Congress also is running out of time to act on a number of important priorities, national advocates say. Below, we share links to their reports about why it is important to extend Medicaid funding to help states like Texas fill their budget holes and to fully fund a plan to bring Promise Neighborhoods, based on the successful Harlem Children's Zone model, to communities nationwide. We also share tips from a well-known Texans Care for Children member.

Texas Children Sandwiched Between Hunger and Obesity

Christine Sinatra & Eileen Garcia — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 14:59:52 GMT

Are hunger and obesity two sides of the same coin? An op-ed by our CEO Eileen Garcia that ran into today's Austin American Statesman argues as much:

Two recent reports relayed bad and seemingly paradoxical news for Texas children. According to the latest research, our Texas kids, more than almost any in the country, face threats from both hunger and obesity.

Nearly one out of four Texas children is "food insecure," meaning they might not know where their next meal will come from, says a July 1 report from Feeding America, which ranked Texas 49th in the country for providing reliable food access for children under 18. The same week, however, the Trust for America's Health announced Texas children suffer disproportionately from obesity. More than 20 percent of kids here are obese, and Texas had the seventh-highest child obesity ranking.

Underlying these statistics is a sad reality: Too many children get poorly nourished because their environment--at school, in the neighborhood and their community--proves inhospitable to healthy eating.

Why National Juvenile Justice Reform Matters for Texas

Jodie Smith — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:03:05 GMT

This week, Texans joined with others from across the country to send the U.S. Congress an important message--we care about improving future prospects for youth in the juvenile justice system, we support programs effective at protecting against youth crime, and we expect the federal government to be a good partner to states and counties in a united front to help youth participate positively in their communities. We acted in conjunction with a federal partner organization, Act 4 Juvenile Justice, who organized July 7th as the National Call-In Day for Juvenile Justice. Our goal is to get the U.S. Congress to revise the federal legislation, the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act, that guides states' juvenile justice work before the year ends.

The Fourth and the Future, plus News for June 29-July 2

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 15:09:32 GMT

A state hearing on foster kids, poverty's lasting power, an upcoming call-in day for juvenile justice reform, and a proposed ban on corporal punishment in schools are among the features in our round-up of news and reports on children. Also, if you missed our last round-up, you may not have seen an important report on the future of Texas.

Putting Children First During Hard Times and News for June 20-28

Christine Sinatra — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 16:36:45 GMT

Imagine if a new terrorist plot were revealed, with widespread implications for our economy, its supply chains, and many civic institutions. Let's say the scheme has the potential to set our nation back by a generation, but that, fortunately, some of the country's top scientists have determined a way to subvert the plot before it occurs. In that case, we would expect our elected leaders to come together in a nonpartisan way and act to protect our common interests for safety and economic stability. Now, if the preventable scenario that would damage our communities for decades turned out not to come from off-shore terrorists, but from our own ill-conceived policies, isn't that all the more reason to come together and address a key threat we face?

This was the question on my mind during last week's Voices for America's Children Forum in California. This post features our weekly round-up of all the latest news and reports on children and policy, along with thoughts on the national threat that involves our children.

Payday Lending and a 2011 Agenda Sneak Peak and News for the Week of June 11-18

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 17:20:56 GMT

Cuts that cost in juvenile justice, the rising cost of raising a child, more families facing homelessness, and a new funding opportunity for home visitation programs are among the features in our round-up this week of the latest news and reports on children and policy in Texas. We also put a spotlight on one item in our agenda for the upcoming Texas Legislative session in 2011: closing a loophole in the law that today disproportionately hurts vulnerable families with young children.

The Importance of All the Parts of Child Wellbeing

Eileen Garcia — Wed, 26 May 2010 13:22:11 GMT

Often when speaking to colleagues not familiar with our work, I am asked which area of child wellbeing will get priority in the coming legislative session. The truth is: all of them. We seize opportunities to improve outcomes for children as they arise, but at all times we work to improve all areas of wellbeing at once. As a point of principle, but more importantly, as indicative of the full array of potential and need of each child, we are dedicated to doing the challenging work of staying active in a wide spectrum of policy discussions related to children and families...

How the Latest Budget Cuts Impact Kids and News for the Week of May 15-21

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 21 May 2010 16:28:32 GMT

The $1.2 billion in state budget cuts announced this week are bad news for the wellbeing of Texas children and families, and states throughout the country are taking actions that, advocates fear, will set back child wellbeing for years to come, our latest round-up reports. In the good news department, though, a win from last session for children who need an alternative to foster care goes into effect, the Supreme Court followed a Texas lead by barring life sentences for minors (at least in most instances), and Big Food declares a plan to get Americans to consume 1.5 trillion fewer calories....

Who Speaks for Texas and News for the Week of April 24-30

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:07:25 GMT

Hearings at the Capitol, the toll poverty can take on children, the school-to-prison pipeline, and building a workforce to address mental health in children—all are topics in our Friday round-up of news and reports, along with a lesson from Arizona. Two quick calendar reminders are also in order: next week is Children's Mental Health Awareness, and Wednesday is the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. If you have events linked to either of these observances you want us to share on our calendar, please let us know. . .

Agenda Setting for Children in Texas and News for the Week of April 17-23

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 17:12:03 GMT

Child care standards, federal updates, fighting child obesity together, making Child Protective Services accountable to African-American communities, and lots of mental health news as Children's Mental Health Awareness Week approaches are among the highlights in our latest round-up of news and reports. As we mentioned last week, this was also a busy week for advocates, with partners meeting with us on everything from food policy to the children's mental health workforce, from health coverage for kids to money for the Texas budget, as well as strategies to prevent teen pregnancies, implications of making juvenile offenders register as sex offenders, and ways to support transitions to adulthood for foster youth. Have you ever wondered, though: What's up with all those meetings? We answer in the post this week. . .

Upcoming Events and News of the Week for April 10-14

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 13:29:52 GMT

How health reform helps kids, the impact of the recession on North Texas children, a report on child welfare implications in immigration enforcement, and a new commentary on lagging state child care standards from a Texans Care board member are among the features in the round-up this week. We also want to alert you to a busy week ahead, with meetings of the Texas Children's Mental Health Forum, Juvenile Justice Roundtable, and Texas CHIP Coalition all happening next week. Visit our calendar page to learn more about how you can get involved in speaking out for kids in the days ahead.

Count the Ways Your Census Response Helps Texans and News of the Week for March 6-12

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:00:48 GMT

Hunger, obesity, a new TYC ombudsman, and health reform topped the week's news about children. Also, you may have seen in your mailbox, online, and in the press the major public awareness campaign from the U.S. Census. It inspired us to round-up not only the week's news, but a few of the ways your 10 minutes spent on your household census form (and encouraging others to do the same) helps Texas and children. . .

The Groundwork for Propelling our State Forward

Eileen Garcia — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:54:25 GMT

The impact of the crisis at hand is not about budgets, but about real lives, about real individual potential that we can choose to maximize or squander. Let this not be the moment when we fail Texas families, but rather let this be the moment when we as a state begin answering the call of those families like never before. . .

Workforce Woes - The Need for Mental Health Providers for Kids in Texas

Josette Saxton — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 10:45:52 GMT

There is a shortage of mental health professionals across the state, and this shortage is especially pronounced for the workforce specializing in children's mental health. I was at the hearing to ask the Senate committee on Health and Human Services to include plans for a children's mental health workforce in its consideration of broader health workforce needs in the state.

Child Care and Our Kids Plus News for the Week of Feb 13-19

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 16:15:45 GMT

What happened to early care? We answer that question in the lead-in to this week's round-up, which also features more on the state's 5% budget cut proposals, news about tax policies' impact on families, updates from the latest Kids Count Data Book, and a few funding opportunities of interest. . .

Overheard at the Hearing on Cuts to the Texas Health and Human Services Budget and News for the Week for Feb 6-1

Christine Sinatra — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:48:00 GMT

Slicing 5% from the paltry budget for health and human services was the subject of a hearing that drew standing-room-only crowds to Austin Thursday. We did not testify, because Texans Care for Children cannot advocate for any plan to invest still fewer dollars in an already starved system vital for children, families, and Texas. As these services go without resources, our children fall behind children just like them in other states. Allowing still worse outcomes for our kids -- especially when, as we pointed out recently in this space, better alternatives exist -- is indefensible. . .

Recipes for Tackling Childhood Obesity - from the White House to Your House

Christine Sinatra — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:18:23 GMT

We're gathering recipes from real Texans to give families the tools to cook healthy meals parents can fix in a jiffy that kids will eat. All the meals here are affordable, nutritious, quick (requiring 10 minutes of prep time or less) and have received favorable reviews from real Texas kids. . . .

Preparing for Texas Interim Charge Hearings

Christen Miller — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:39:09 GMT

Legislators want your input for upcoming interim charge hearings. Now that both the Texas House and Senate have released their interim charges (the key issues policymakers explore in the months leading up to the next legislative session), our coalitions are hard at work looking at what these charges will mean for Texas kids.

At yesterday's Partners in Child Protection Reform meeting at the Capitol, we were joined by several legislative staffers who gave us an inside look at how their offices will be approaching some of the charges that pertain to child welfare. . .