As a nation, we are deeply entrenched in the fight for racial justice, are living through the effects of climate change, and are battling to survive a global pandemic. Indeed, we are at an inflection point—not only for how we, as a country, address these issues, but how we care for and prioritize our children and young people.
Read MoreI’m going to say it: as a country, we don’t think about our kids early or often enough, and our current situation around opening schools is proof. COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic in March, and schools closed—this was the day schools closed this spring was the day we should have started thinking and talking about the safest way to get kids back into the classrooms.
Read MoreThe kids are at it again. They're all over social media, on the front page of the New York Times Sunday Style section and many other news sources. The Black Lives Matter movement is reaching every part of our country, and young people are proving, once again, that their voices are important—and we need to listen.
Read MoreMore than 56.6 million children and young people are currently distance learning and the impact on their developmental growth and well-being has been immense. When we talk about reopening schools, however, the focus frequently shifts from the difficulties they are facing to schools being the lynchpin to reopening our economy. Why aren’t we thinking about how we can reopen schools in the context of what is best for kids’ development, health, and well-being?
Read MoreThankfully—children are infrequently made seriously ill themselves by COVID-19, every aspect of their lives has been disrupted by the pandemic. While there are many resources available for parents, families, and caregivers to help their children understand what is happening, the lack of direct communication with our young people by our leaders is consistent with our country’s overall attitude toward kids: unlike much of the rest of the world, we do not view our young people as individual citizens.
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