August 2017

In the years after the Great Recession, Stockton, California, became the poster child of financial ruin. The mid-sized city was crushed by the housing collapse , and made national headlines for the resulting high foreclosure rates , drastic municipal cuts, record violent crime , and finally, bankruptcy . For these reasons and others, it has featured at the very top of Forbes’ annual list of “America’s Most Miserable Cities” more than once. [For more of this story, written by Tanvi Misra, go...

Judge Nunley is a staunch advocate for children, especially the most vulnerable. He brings rich personal experience to his judicial role; he grew up in the Hunter’s Point neighborhood of San Francisco with a single mother, ultimately rising to one of the highest positions an American lawyer can occupy. SCHEDULE 7:30 – 8:00 a.m. Breakfast and Socialize 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. Presentation, Discussion, Q&A EVENT DETAILS Thursday, Sept 14th, 2017 from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m. Hanna Boys Center...

Photo of Nadine Burke Harris by Liz Hafalia, The Chronicle _______________________________________________ Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, pediatrician and CEO of the Center For Youth Wellness, and Dr. Melissa Merrick, behavioral scientist at CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and lead scientist on the ACE Study , will present at a session on today titled “Improving Children’s Chances by Combating Early Trauma" at the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) meeting in...

To See the Conference Agenda, List of All-Star Speakers, and To Register Click Here Why Should Californians Attend This Unique Conference ? From high levels of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), to job and financial struggles, racism and other forms of inequity and injustice, traumatic stress is epidemic today. Climate change will aggravate all of these existing adversities, and add many new ones as well. Yet, California is leading the U.S. in finding innovative new ways to address...

After a man held a knife to her throat, forced her into her car and repeatedly raped her, Helena Lazaro underwent a painful and humiliating medical forensic examination. The 17-year-old wanted her attacker caught. She never imagined the evidence collected in what is known as a rape kit would sit untouched for years by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. And by the time she discovered the identity of her attacker, prosecutors couldn’t charge him with the rape because the statute of...

Michael Fine is the new CEO of the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team, perhaps the most important education agency Californians may never have heard of — unless their school district has been in financial peril. Better known by its acronym, FCMAT monitors the financial health of school districts, investigates and, together with county offices of education, manages districts when they’re in trouble. It also trains local administrators to keep them from getting into trouble in the...

When Marci Maxey’s father moved to Texas to take care of her ailing grandmother last August, the Sacramento resident found herself alone for the first time in her life. She was taking classes at a community college and didn’t have a job. She had some money from her family, but it wasn’t enough to live on. “There were times when I felt that maybe I’m not going to be able to have enough food,” she said. Because Maxey qualified for her college’s work-study program, she was eligible for food...

For better or worse, California likes to decide drug policy at the ballot box. Voters have already approved marijuana legalization, but criminal sanctions against users of heroin, cocaine and other drugs are very much intact, though they’ve been moving in a more lenient direction. It would not be surprising to see a proposition entirely eliminating criminal penalties for drug possession in the near future. The removal of criminal penalties for drug possession — which is very different from...

Did you know that California is currently considering 4 pieces of legislation that seek to address trauma and childhood adversity? ACE's Connection members recently (July 2017) participated in a P olicy Maker education Day on Childhood Adversity . Jessica Hackwell, Karen Clemmer, Carla Denner, Nick Dalton, and two youth from Sonoma County partnered with the California Campaign to Counter Childhood Adversity (4CA) to ensure our policymakers understand the terms "adversity," "trauma," and...