CHILDREN
Sobering data on kids and social media
Learn more here: Anxiety and algorithms: NC policymakers examine how to rein in social media’s sway
Anxiety and algorithms: NC policymakers examine how to rein in social media’s sway
Here’s a quick quiz: Think back to Thanksgiving. Was your smartphone at the table? Did you scour Facebook or Instagram between courses? Did you post a selfie to mark the occasion? With social media occupying a bigger and bigger role in our lives, health experts are increasingly concerned about the role it has on adolescent […]
Some states act to protect residents from extreme heat — with a new focus on young people
After two years of record-breaking heat that brought a surge of deaths and health emergencies, several states have enacted or are considering measures designed to protect residents — with a new focus on younger people whose vulnerability is rising with the temperatures. Nationally, heat-related deaths rose from about 1,000 in 2018 to 1,722 in 2022 […]
States lose track of thousands of foster children each year
Sharday Hamilton, a 28-year-old advocate for foster youth, homeless youth and runaways, still bears her own scars from running. There’s one near her left knee. She got it as a little girl, running away from her foster mother, who was trying to hit her with a bag of frozen food but who sometimes used a […]
Crisis in children’s mental health takes a heavy toll in rural southeastern NC
This story, which originally appeared in the Border Belt Independent, is the first in a two-part project about the children’s mental health crisis in Bladen, Columbus, Robeson and Scotland counties. Read the second story, which focuses on the foster care system, story here. A 9-year-old girl who spent four months last year inside the Columbus […]
NC lawmakers should catch up with the times on corporal punishment
Recently, the American Academy of Pediatrics reaffirmed its policy statement on corporal punishment in the public schools, calling for the practice to be abolished in all states by law and replaced by alternative forms of student behavior management. In North Carolina, parents and local school boards have spoken on this issue: corporal punishment is prohibited […]
Appeals court rules father’s parental rights can’t be terminated because of his parole conditions
The North Carolina Court of Appeals issued a ruling Tuesday that a man should not lose his parental rights because of strict parole conditions imposed by another state. In 2014, the father, who is not named in the opinion, was convicted of two felonies involving sexual conduct with a 14-year-old in Indiana. He spent three […]
EPA announces $58 million investment in eradicating lead in drinking water
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday that it would distribute $58 million in grant funding toward the goal of protecting children from lead in drinking water in U.S. schools and childcare facilities. “During his first year in office, President Biden announced a bold plan to replace every lead pipe in America. Today’s announcement is another […]
US House Dems seek to stiffen penalties for employers violating federal child labor law
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee Democrats on Thursday announced the introduction of a bill to increase civil and criminal penalties for employers who knowingly violate child labor laws. The measure would also prevent states from easing federal child labor standards. The bill, The Protecting Children Act, comes as multiple states have passed […]
U.S. House Democrats push for congressional hearing on child labor violations
WASHINGTON — Top Democrats on the U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee are urging Republican Chair Virginia Foxx of North Carolina to hold a hearing this month on the uptick in child labor violations. Democratic Reps. Bobby Scott of Virginia, the ranking member of the committee, and Alma Adams of North Carolina, the ranking member […]
Monday numbers: Report says NC youth aging out of foster care need more services
Youth aging out of foster care aren’t receiving all the support available to them as they transition to adulthood, according to a report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Using information from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services databases, the report (Fostering Youth Transitions 2023) examines the reasons children entered foster care and the […]