Iowa youth face a growing mental health crisis worsened by lack of early care, long wait times, and a broken system. Families only get help after crisis, prompting reform efforts.
Children & Families
Rx Kids gives cash aid to pregnant women and new moms in Michigan to fight poverty, ease stress and help with essentials like housing, food, and baby care.
It has been five years since the COVID-19 pandemic hit and despite the difficulties, LAUSD reported that in 2023-2024 the graduation rate reached 87%, the highest of all time.
Sacramento County cut foster care entries by 31% for Black children, through community-led efforts tackling systemic racism and rebuilding trust.
Parents who lose children to foster care often can’t afford a lawyer — and aren’t always given one — leaving them feeling baffled and helpless.
In areas like California’s rural Shasta County, school campuses may be the most effective places to care for children’s mental health needs, and such care will now be covered by insurance.
New Mexico’s child welfare system faces decades-long issues—kids sleeping in offices, lack of care, and systemic trauma—despite reforms aimed at protecting vulnerable foster youth.
Taken from school at 15, Janay Eustace turned trauma into purpose as a champion of equity in child welfare, especially for Black families.
Emily Schwing investigated Alaska’s crumbling rural schools, finding dangerous conditions, historic funding failures, and state neglect despite urgent community needs.
The school in the small village of Sleetmute is falling apart. Despite years of pleas, limited funding has arrived, leaving students in unsafe conditions.