First 5 Marin's Newsletter:

January 2025

Spotlight:

FORUM: Child Care Means Business in Marin - Friday, January 31st

First 5 Marin and the North Bay Leadership Council (NBLC) will be co-hosting this historic event: a child care forum for providers, parents, advocates AND employers.

Join us on Friday, January 31st to hear about the challenges of being a child care provider, the difficulties parents face in looking for affordable, high-quality care that's convenient to home or work... and about the interests and concerns of employers in reliable child care for their working families.

Speakers & Program - the emcee for our forum will be Marin County Supervisor Eric Lucan, and the opening remarks will be delivered by State Senator Mike McGuire. The keynote address will be delivered by Elliot Haspel, author of, "Crawling Behind: America's Child Care Crisis and How to Fix It."

Commissioner Aideen Gaidmore (from the Marin Child Care Council) will host a panel discussion with providers, and Joanne Webster (CEO of the NBLC) will host a panel discussion with employers and business representatives.

We will also have an open microphone for parents and advocates to make public comments. Finally, we will hear about Measure I in Sonoma County, the recently approved funding measure.

This promises to be a special event with robust discussions-- don't miss it! (Join us at the Embassy Suites Hotel from 8:30 a.m. to noon, with breakfast available by 8 a.m.)

RSVP today!

To register, email Michelle@First5Marin.org.

TODAY!NEW LOCATION!FIRST 5 MARIN CHILDREN AND FAMILIES COMMISSION - NEXT COMMISSION MEETING: Wednesday, January 8th from 4 to 6 pm at 3240 Kerner Blvd., Room 110. The public is welcome!

First 5 Things to Read in the News Today!

Take a look at some of the recent articles about important issues related to children and families:

The New York Times

Study Links High Fluoride Exposure to Lower I.Q. in Children

The results of a new federal analysis were drawn from studies conducted in other countries, where drinking water contains more fluoride than in the United States.

Center for American Progress

Childhood Vaccination Has Saved Millions of Lives, but Rising Hesitancy Could Reverse Decades of Progress

Growing vaccine hesitancy, driven by misinformation and disinformation, threatens the health of American children and communities.

PBS

New mothers face barriers getting the mental health care so many need

Maternal mortality rates have soared in the U.S. to nearly three times those of other high-income countries. Over 20 percent of deaths among...

The Atlantic

Why Poor American Kids Are So Likely to Become Poor Adults

Most scholarship on the subject focuses on conditions during childhood. But government support during adulthood plays the biggest role.

TODAY.com

How screen time is affecting children's brains

Researchers in Ohio led a study looking at hundreds of children's brains since birth to examine the impact of screen time.

NEED PARENT RESOURCES?

Visit the First 5 California parents page-- in ENGLISH or Sitio web para padres de California en

ESPANOL!

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