News And Announcements Index

A Chicago preschool teacher encourages her young students to say no to guns and gangs. Learn more about her approach to teaching violence prevention and child safety.

L.A. Care is the largest public health program America, and is now much more Web accessible. Its newly redesigned Web site allows users to determine insurance eligibility, read health-related information, and find network doctors.

First 5 LA's newest research brief "Latino Families Value Early Care and Education" investigates a belief that Latino families prefer relative or informal care for very young children. Read more!

Last week the Alameda Alliance for Health announced the closing of its Healthy Kids insurance program, leaving 1,000 low-income children uninsured. Learn more about a similar threat facing Los Angeles.

With one week left to apply for the Community Opportunities Fund, Evie reminds applicants of eligibility requirements and the areas of funding. She also thanks those that attended information sessions.

Last month First 5 LA and several collaborative research partners held a poster symposium to share innovative evaluation techniques addressing the challenges of evaluating culturally diverse populations.

As the rate of overweight toddlers grows, researchers are trying to find ways to curb the epidemic. Learn what has been discovered about the eating habits of infants and toddlers while they spend their days in daycare.

More babies are delivered in July than any other month, and many of those children come home to older siblings. Evie gives tips on how to ease the transition of a new sibling into a family.

An incoming email, a parent briefly looks away from the pool where his or her child is playing, and tragedy strikes. Drowning can occur that quickly. First 5 LA, a child advocacy organization, is reminding parents that it only takes a moment for a life to be lost to this preventable tragedy.

If only every organization could be given a roadmap to success. Recently First 5 LA grantees and other L.A. nonprofits got to hear from Heather McCloud Grant, co-author of "Forces for Good" which outlines the six practices of successful nonprofits.

First 5 LA's Community Opportunities Fund will give L.A. County organizations the ability to take a non-conventional approach to supporting children and families — through organizational capacity building and policy and advocacy.

What if parents could convince their local leaders to institutionalize a nutritious environment for all children? The California Center for Public Health Advocacy is going to find out. Learn about this innovative program and its mission.

Behind every First 5 LA Initiative there is a team driving the effort. Meet the lead members behind the Community Opportunities Fund, and how they each envision COF's impact on Los Angeles.

Evie promotes COF as well as a few tools for organizations to use in conducting capacity building and policy and advocacy work - the Center for Nonprofit Management resource library, Healthy City 3.0, and the Alliance for Justice.

According to a recent report published by Safe Kids USA, unintentional injury continues to be the leading killer of children ages 1-14 in the U.S. Learn more about what may be driving these statistics and how you can help.

Third in a series of research papers focusing on preschool, the RAND Corporation revealed its most recent findings about preschool quality and use in California. Unfortunately the findings are grim.

These days, children are more overweight than ever — but what does the data say? Learn what the WIC/First 5 LA DataMining project has found about childhood overweight rates in children participating in WIC.

A picture is worth a thousand words. And for Healthy City, a picture may improve the health of a community. Recently this non-profit celebrated the launch its newest Web based mapping tool for change, Healthy City 3.0.

For many parents of hearing impaired children, their child is the first person they know with this condition. Evie promotes a new resource for parents of hearing impaired children to get help and connect with other parents.

When a parent can't stand to see their child sick, medicine can seem like the best solution. But the FDA cautions parents about the use of cough and cold medications. Learn the most recent FDA advice.

The first wave of First 5 LA's Families, Friends and Neighbors Training and Mentoring Project for Child Care Providers (FFN) participants have graduated in this last month. First 5 LA got to capture one graduation on film.

June 7th was the Feria del Libro: A Family Book Fair, and Evie was inspired by the more than 35,000 children and parents who attended and the more that 200 vendors that came to reach them. See the photo gallery!

In this time of budget cuts, agencies are looking to ways to keep their services going despite lost funds. Learn how the First 5 LA Sustainability Project has offered support for grantees.

In time for Fathers Day, First 5 LA attended a conference that celebrated fatherhood as a potential solution to social woes. Listen to the interviews captured at In Harm's Way: The Fatherhood Solution.

A recent study laid out a hypothetical scenario describing how a magnitude 7.8 Southern California earthquake would impact the state. Learn about the ShakeOut Drill created to help us get prepared.

Once a failing elementary school, First 5 LA grantee Vaughn Learning Center has become a model for education systems throughout the country. Learn what the Governor has done for them recently.

Transitions can be hard. Especially for little ones. Learn what Queen Anne Place is doing to help preschoolers transition to Kindergarten with confidence and excitement about learning. Watch our interviews!

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 558 children under 14 died in 2004 from a fire related accident. More than half of those were under the age of 5. Learn what all parents should know to prevent these tragedies.

As the state looks for solutions to the budget crisis, Proposition 10 dollars have been suggested as a source. To help protect First 5 LA funding, the LA City Council approved a formal resolution of support.

The sub-prime mortgage crisis has hit many families hard. To help those who may be facing foreclosure, or think they are entering into financial trouble, the HOPE Coalition of America has made available a hotline number to call.