Yolo County Families & Children Digest

The Davis Farmers Market popular Picnic in the Park is back, running every Wednesday from 4PM to 8PM starting on May 1 and running through September.

Heiress Paris Hilton is on a mission to shine a light on the "troubled teen industry," a largely unregulated multibillion-dollar industry that is gaining public scrutiny for alleged abuse of vulnerable youths.

After its first year in operation, First 5 Yolo reports on the progress of its Welcome Baby program.

Evictions have exacerbated homelessness nationwide, increasing the rate of homeless infants and toddlers. Most of those children are not enrolled in early education programs.

The Yolo County Board of Supervisors approved the construction a new playground in the El Rio Villa Housing Community outside of the city of Winters during their March 12 meeting.

The Mikuni Charitable Organization donation of $5,000 to Make It Happen for Yolo County is in support of local, under-resourced youth making the transition to independent living.

The Winters Combined PTA announced that the organization was awarded a grant of $10,000 by the Yolo Air Quality Education Grant of the Yolo Community Foundation to increase the number of students walking or biking to school to reduce car traffic and the associated air pollution.

The state is to implement long-awaited new guidelines in 2025 despite some calls for a year’s delay.

After a soft opening late last year, the MOSAIC Children's Museum is inviting members of the community to attend its official grand opening.

Several local parks for a range of ages were recently renovated, including Campanilla Mini Park, Donato Mini Playground and Sandy Motley Park.

During the last Yolo County Board of Supervisors’ meeting, $25,000 was earmarked to fortify youth sports and facilities.

The Yolo County Board of Supervisors approved the appointment of 15 teenagers to serve as the members of the 2024 Yolo Youth Commission.

After bringing home the City of Trees’ first state championship in any sport, the Woodland Christian High School varsity football team was honored by city officials.

The Assembly has until the end of January to decide the fate of the youth tackle football bill, which would prevent kids under 12 from playing the sport to protect them from brain trauma.

California’s projected budget deficit of close to $38 billion likely means some cuts are coming. Among them, Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed ending the California State Park Adventure Pass, which offers free access to some state parks for fourth graders.

Pasadena is the only California city named a travel destination for 2024 by The New York Times. This comes despite the Los Angeles-area city being just the 45th-largest city in the state.

The 2024 California Children’s Report Card from an organization called Children Now noted that the state has failed to improve economic disparities for students. The report also dings the state for things like STEM offerings, early intervention and special education.

San Diego Unified School District has received more than $700 million in federal and state relief funds since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, with these funds ending, some schools could be facing serious deficits.

Leaders of a parental rights advocacy group announced they’re planning to sue California Attorney General Rob Bonta over the way his office has characterized a 2024 ballot initiative they authored.

Two-thirds of community college students in California admit to struggling to meet basic needs. The California Community Colleges’ Student Ambassador Program has empowered more than 50 students to act as resource guides to help them.

A law passed by the California legislature in 2023 has gone into effect banning licensed gun holders from bringing their firearms to places like playgrounds, churches and casinos. The law faces an ongoing challenge in the federal court system.

The dawn of 2024 meant that California’s minimum wage rose from $15.50 to $16 an hour. That puts the Golden State at the second-highest minimum wage for a U.S. state, trailing only Washington state at $16.28 an hour.

A 2021 law passed by the California legislature went into effect Jan. 1, requiring major retailers to maintain an aisle of toys marketed to people of either gender. The bill’s author, Evan Low, said the legislation will help kids “express themselves freely and without bias.”

California adopted several laws to increase access to contraception and abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade. The latest one eliminates out-of-pocket charges for birth control for millions of Californians.

After seven years of hard work, a two-year pause due to the pandemic and an extended search for a home, the MOSAIC Children's Museum enjoyed a much-awaited soft opening on Dec. 15.

In a report released by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, researchers instead lay out a plan for what society might do to improve adolescents’ interactions with social media.

Under a new law, employees in California are guaranteed five paid sick days a year, two days more than previously. Worker advocacy groups say the benefit is needed, but business groups warn of additional costs.

Federal funding for domestic violence shelters and housing programs is declining. Advocates want the state to step in, but with a record projected deficit new spending is unlikely.

Davis' Progress Ranch Treatment Services for Children received this year’s Yolo County Nonprofit of the Year Award for its excellence in mental health care and commitment to serving some of California’s most vulnerable children and youth. The organization provides mental health services to boys ages 6 through 13.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has formally backed an August motion by two law groups to keep the Temecula Valley Unified School District from being able to notify parents about transgender children or censor instruction about race. A hearing for the motion is scheduled for Jan. 24.

The Exclusive Poultry Inc. agreed to pay $3.8 million in wages, damages and penalties in part for hiring children for dangerous work. The case is one of hundreds federal labor officials investigated last year.

Eighteen California children are suing the Environmental Protection Agency, claiming it violated their constitutional rights by failing to protect them from the effects of climate change—the latest in a series of similar cases filed on behalf of children.