On Wednesday, March 5, over 50 advocates for children gathered at CHILDREN AT RISK’s 8th Annual Children’s Summit: New Trends Impacting Our Children. Texas Senator Sylvia Garcia opened up the summit with a few words on the importance of children to the Texas legislators and recent legislative wins. Mandi Kimball, Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs at CHILDREN AT RISK, discussed the status of children in Texas and the trends that have emerged.
Pediatrician Dr. Claire Bocchini, Doctors for Change, shared how the health of children is threatened by poverty and the long-term implications of lack of healthcare. Clay Olsen also looked at an old problem through a new lens as he engaged the audience with the realities of pornography in the modern world and how porn affects brain development in children. Continuing the discussion around technology, Ross Shegog tracked the changes in technology through the life of a child, using his son as an example.
Violence and technology were brought together with Dr. Christine Markham’s presentation on dating violence as a problem that has grown past few years with the new trends. The last speaker, Nancy Correa, CHILDREN AT RISK’s Director of the Center of Parenting and Family Well-Being, reported on the state of parenting as a public policy priority and highlighted some of the areas in which maternal care could be improved. At the close of the conference, Larry Payne, Educational Excellence Resource Group, delivered the final remarks of the conference leaving the attendees with a charge to action.
