According to the American Academy of Pediatrics,  kids over the age of 2 should not be spending more than 2 hours a day in front of a mobile device or a TV. We definitely know that kids are not following AAP recommendations. In fact, Common Sense Media released a study indicating that children from the ages of 8-18 spend at least 7.5 hours a day with electronic devices.

On this episode of the Digital Parent Podcast, Denise DeRosa joins us once again to help parents determine the most appropriate screen time for kids during the summertime. Denise and I discuss how the summer is the prime time for predators to target teens on social media and apps.

Denise L DeRosa is the founder of Cyber Sensible, LLC, an expert in online safety, digital citizenship and a frequent speaker on parenting in the digital age. Cyber Sensible Consulting is dedicated to helping people harness the power and potential of a positive digital life. Here are some of the questions I asked Denise during the interview.

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It has now become a fact that kids receive tremendous health benefits when they ditch their electronic devices and play outside with nature. Scientific studies have proven that our digital natives are suffering from diabetes, depression, obesity, and ADHD. All of these health issues stem from to much screen time indoors.

In order to get kids to play outside more, I reached out to my friend Diana Graber to join the Digital Parent Podcast. Diana is a recognized expert on digital literacy. She writes for, is interviewed by, and appears often in the press on topics related to how technology impacts human behavior.

Graber has a B.A. in Communications Studies from UCLA, an M.A. in Media Psychology & Social Change from Fielding Graduate University/UCLA.  Her Cyber Civics program was recently  recognized as an “Innovation in Education” finalist by Project Tomorrow and the O.C. Tech Alliance and is now being taught at schools in 20 states and internationally.

Diana and I discussed some of the following questions on the episode:

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When most teens have health problems or concern they turn to Dr. Google.com to provide them with answers. Afraid to talk with their parents teens seek online health sites to soothe their concerns. The problem is that most health sites geared toward teens are full of miss information.

On this Episode of the Digital Parent Podcast we invited my good friend Dr. Laura Offutt who is the top teen health advocate in the country. Laura Offutt, MD received her BA from Columbia University in NYC and her MD at Northwestern University in Chicago. She completed her residency training in Internal Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, where she stayed on as a member of the academic faculty. Subsequently Dr. Offutt has had numerous medical roles in clinical research, drug safety and medical consulting.

She is also the founder of Real Talk with Dr. Offutt which is a teen health resource site that uses social media to encourage teens to be a part of their digital health. On this episode Dr. Offutt and I discussed some of the following topics:

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Similar to the Vietnam War era of protest, today's teen are more engaged now than ever in political protest. Student protestors are taking it to the streets and the digital streets to let their voices be heard.

Victims of Bullying are taking their protest to social media. Teens are using their constitutional right to protest to bring awareness to bullying. Teens are protesting budget cuts at school that will eliminate music programs. Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook has become the venue for teens to engage in hashtag activism.

On this Episode of the Digital Parent Podcast, I sit down to talk with Parenting expert Annie Fox. Not only does Annie hasve year of experience writing books on parenting, but she has a lot of great war stories of being a student protestor. Annie discusses her current journey of protesting Women issues. Here are some of the questions I asked Annie:

Device Free Dinner is a new movement for all digital parents. Restaurants have started to reward families with free meals for going device free. Common Sense Media has spearheaded a campaign for families to ditch their devices for dinner.

There is a good reason the #DeviceFreeDinner hashtag is picking up steam. Research indicates that uninterrupted family time during dinner has significant health benefits. Kids have a decreased chance of having behavior problems at school. Kids also have a decreased risk of abusing substances.

On this Episode of the Digital Parent Podcast we talk with Sheri Veges who is the owner and founder of  "Crate Your Phone". Sheri and her husband ditched the phones awhile ago at dinner in order to have device free dinners.  They coined the term "Crate Your Phone."  Crate Your Phone was created by developing a crate to store the family devices during dinner. Sheri's  Crate Your Phone  crate has now become a staple for the #DeviceFreeDinner movement.

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High school students are in the process of preparing for college. College applications, essays, and resumes are being prepared to gain acceptance or to land a scholarship.  Only a select few  number of students will be auditing their social media profiles. Social Media pages can be a potential landmine for aspiring college students. More attention from universities is being placed on student's social media sites.

A survey by Kaplan covered 381 college admissions officers . Over 31% of the admission officers surveyed said that they have visited an applicant Facebook or social media page to learn more about them. 30% of those same officers stated that they discovered negative and damaging information that negatively impacted the applicant’s chance to enroll in college.

Cornerstone Reputation, and educational company committed to students helping to protect their digital foot print, conducted a college athletics survey in 2015 revealed college coaches and recruiters heavily monitor social media. The survey polled 600 coaches at more than 300 colleges across Division I, II , and II and discovers the following:

• 83% of coaches and athletic recruiters performed online searches of athletes during the 2013-2014 recruitment season
• 97% of coaches believe that a negative online presence could harm a recruit’s prospects
• 17% of college coaches have receded an offer to an athlete based upon content posted on line throughs social media

Here are the top 3 Apps that will kill your chance of obtaining or retaining a scholarship if you use them inappropriately.

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According to Pew Research, historical black churches are having a hard time attracting youth to attend church. Most youth that attend church are part of youth ministries that tend to disconnect them from other adults in the church and their pastor.

Unfortunately, this disconnect is preventing youth from tapping into one of the greatest resources they have to locate mentors, learn new skills, and serve the Lord. On this episode of the Digital Parent Podcast, PR Coach Pam Perry and I discuss how teens can use church participation and service to brand themselves as experts.

Pam Perry is an award-winning communications professional. She has been called by Publishers Weekly a “PR Guru” and featured in many major publications, and on more than 100 radio and TV programs. Pam Perry also has a 20-year career expertise in marketing, public relations and journalism in Detroit.

Her clients have been featured on CNN, TBN, The Word Network, Radio One, Oprah Magazine, Tom Joyner Morning Show, Essence, Ebony, Black Enterprise, PBS – and many other major media outlets. Pam Perry clients have been offered major publishing contracts, and have created successful full-time careers as “authorpreneurs” earning six-figures.

Known as the master of connecting the right people, for the right project, at the right time – Pam Perry works hard to help her clients brand (and get paid) like a superstar. For more information, visit www.pamperrypr.com.

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On any given day in the United States, there are almost 428,000 children in foster care in the United States.  Unfortunately, in 2015 more than half of children entering U.S. foster care were young people of color. Foster Care kids face the same risks as most kids but their living situation places them at a unique risk.

For example, foster kids are more likely to be targeted for sex trafficking, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and bullying compared to non foster care youth. Due to child welfare caseworkers being overworked, foster kids are starting at a unique disadvantage.

Dr. John Degarmo, author of the book Keeping Foster Children Safe Online, stops by the Digital Parent Podcast to provide tips and strategies for foster parents to keep foster kids safe. Dr. Degarmo is the director of the Foster Care Institute and is also a consultant for multiple foster care agencies and state agencies across the United States.

John conducts training throughout the year with foster parents, child welfare workers, local schools, local churches, and many more organizations. Dr. Degarmo is also a regular blogger for the Huffington Post and other national publications.

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Students spend a lot of time ensuring that they have the highest GPA to include on their college application. What if they could add a GPA score for their use of social media? What if college admission officers took into account this social GPA when making admission decisions?

Julie Fisher, the founder of Social U, has answered these questions.  Her company has created proprietary software that scans students social media sites and provide a grade based upon the appropriateness of uploaded content. Since over 50% of admission officers review social media of student applicants, Social U provides a free way for parents to audit their child's social media file.

On this Episode of the Digital Parent Podcast, Julie and I discuss how Social U can be a valuable resource to parents and teens. Julie and I discussed some of the following topics on this episode:

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Most students wait until their junior or senior year of high school before they start searching for scholarships. The students that begin their search do not have a scholarship resume, scholarship team, or a social media presence to attract college recruiters. In order to help these students and many more, we invited the top scholarship search strategist Ashley Hill to provide some guidance and tips.

Ashley is a Scholarship Search Strategist who is passionate about teaching overwhelmed students (K-12, homeschool, adult, international, undergraduate, and graduate students) how to use their talents and achievements to increase their chances of winning scholarships.

Ashley hosts an annual event, College Success Conference, to provide future college students and their college success partners with key tools to start the school year with a competitive edgeShe has a monthly column in Solo Parenting Magazine in addition to her weekly radio show, College Prep Radio.  Also, Ashley is a College Success Blogger for Working Mother Magazine. Ashley has authored The Ultimate Guide for Finding and Winning More Money for College Now.

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