Talking About Kids

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Traumatic brain injuries, or TBIs, are injuries that affect how the brain works, and they are a major cause of death and disability in the United States. Children and adolescents are particularly vulnerable, both in terms of sustaining a TBI and experiencing debilitating, potentially lifelong effects.  The topic of traumatic brain injuries is so important to kids that I have decided to dedicate three episodes to it, each with a different, preeminent guest expert. The first episode is an overview of TBI (i.e., what it is, why we care, etc.), the second episode is on prevention, and the third episode is on responding to and treating TBI.  For this episode - the first in the series - my guest is Keith Owen Yeates.  Keith holds the Ronald and Irene Ward Chair in Pediatric Brain Injury at the University of Calgary, where he also is a Professor and Head of the Department of Psychology and an Adjunct Professor of Pediatrics and Clinical Neurosciences. More importantly to our topic, Keith is the one of the most, if not the single most, cited pediatric TBI researcher. More information about Keith and links to TBI resources can be www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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Sex Education has been in the news a lot recently, and it has me thinking about my favorite sex education series:  The Midwest Teen Sex Show.  It aired new episodes on YouTube from 2007 to 2009. Nikol Hasler, my guest for this podcast, was one of the creators of the show, as well as its host and writer. After the show, Nikol wrote two sex education books. Sex:  A Book for Teens came out in 2010, and a revised and expanded version of the book, called Sex: An Uncensored Introduction, came out in 2015. The series and the books are honest, respectful, informative, and engaging. They are among the best sex education materials I have ever seen. Professionally, Nikol now focuses on different issues, which is why I am honored that she agreed to share her insights on this topic. More information about Nikol and links to her videos can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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In the U.S., we have started to make real progress towards decreasing juvenile suicides by promoting mental health and reducing the stigma around suicidal ideation. However, practical concerns remain.  What should a kid do when they are feeling suicidal?  What should a parent, teacher, caring adult, or even a friend do when a kid they know is in crisis?  I know it takes substantial resources and a concerted effort to put the correct services in place and then to make the public aware of those services.  My guest to scratch the surface of the work state and federal agencies are doing to decrease juvenile suicides is Arizona’s Suicide Prevention Program Manager, Joshua Stegemeyer.  The passion, experience, and innovation that Joshua brings to the position is inspiring, and I am honored to have him on to bravely share his story and to provide practical information on how you can plug in for assistance or to become a part of the larger movement. More information about Joshua and a link to Arizona’s suicide prevention hub can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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Over the years, many teachers, administrators, and parents have asked me about restorative justice in schools. It is an important topic, but one that I am a little confused about myself, which is why I am so glad to be joined by Akiva Liberman. Akiva is a friend and colleague with whom I have discussed restorative justice many times. More importantly, Akiva has studied responses to youth misbehaviors for over two decades – much of it as a Senior Research Fellow at the Urban Institute – and he has published evaluations of restorative justice programs in schools.  More information about Akiva and links to some of the research we cite can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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In this mini Labor Day episode, I discuss labor and new evidence of the power of being a caring adult in the life of child. Links to the research I cite can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.  Full-length Talking About Kids episodes will return next week (September 12, 2022).

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As parents, teachers, and direct service providers, we are bombarded with products and services that claim to help kids. Many of them are quite expensive. We want the best for the children and adolescents in our lives, but resources are scarce. My guest to help all of us understand how we can discern whether an app, a curriculum, a program, etc., might actually work is Eric Hedberg. Eric is an Accredited Professional Statistician and a Senior Associate at Abt Associates, a global public policy research firm and think tank. Eric has published extensively on statistical methods and on evaluations of educational programs. My first exposure to Eric was watching a video of him explaining statistics to group of non-researchers. I remember appreciating the clarity and humor of his explanation, which is why I approached him for this episode. More information about Eric and a link to the What Works Clearinghouse, which Eric and I discuss in the episode, can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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Dominique Roe-Sepowitz joins us for this episode. Dominique is the Founder and Director of Arizona State University’s Office of Sex Trafficking Intervention Research and the Clinical Director of Phoenix Starfish Place, a Federally funded supportive housing program for sex trafficked women and their children. Dominique has devoted her professional life to the  heartbreaking topics of human trafficking and sex trafficking, and there is nobody I trust more to educate you about them. More information about Dominique and links to some of the resources she mentions can be found www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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My guest for this episode is Chandra Ghosh Ippen. Chandra is the Associate Director and Dissemination Director of the Child Trauma Research Program at the University of California, San Francisco. She also is the author of a series of storybooks for young children that are written to support emotion regulation and healing after stressful or traumatic experiences. Titles from the series include Holdin Pott, You Weren’t With Me, and Once I Was Very Scared. Chandra is somebody who, when it comes to kids, just gets it, and the advice shares and the resources she has created are invaluable.  More information about Chandra and her books can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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My guest this episode is Melinda Gulick.  Melinda is the CEO of First Things First, which is an organization created by Arizona voters to help young children be ready for success in kindergarten and beyond. Melinda took over the helm of First Things First in March of 2022. As an award-winning public administrator with a breadth and depth of experience, Melinda is uniquely poised to advance First Things First’s mission, and I am excited for you to hear her perspective on why early childhood education is important and what you can do to promote it. More information about Melinda and First Things First can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.

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My guest this episode is Steve King. Steve is the Superintendent of the Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District in Arizona. For over 28 years, Steve has been experimenting, exploring new ideas, and reforming schools to support those students with the most significant needs, because he believes that supporting them affords the best opportunities for all students to succeed. I happen to think that Steve is an innovator. This interview was recorded on July 25, 2022, in front of live audience at the Our Future in Mind - Youth Mental Health Awareness Conference. More information about Steve and the about the conference can be found at www.TalkingAboutKids.com.