News & Resources


First 5 LA Board Approves Budget for FY 2025-26
by Katie Kurutz | Aug 5, 2025 | Articles, News & Resources
By, Ruel Nolledo | Freelance Writer August 5, 2025 First 5 LA's Board of Commissioners convened in person for its monthly meeting on June 12, 2025. Highlights of the meeting included the approval of...

Through Transgender History Month, California continues to forge a culture of inclusivity
by Katie Kurutz | Jul 31, 2025 | Articles
By, Ruel Nolledo | Freelance Writer August 1, 2025 "I couldn't find myself in history. No one like me seemed to have ever existed." Leslie Feinberg, author of Transgender Warriors: Making History...

SCOTUS Ruling (June 27) on Birthright Citizenship: First 5 LA Public Statement
by Katie Kurutz | Jul 2, 2025 | Articles, Press Room
Los Angeles, CA (July 2, 2025) - First 5 LA is deeply dismayed by the Trump Administration’s Executive Order which undermines the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution—the provision that...

Enacted State Budget for Fiscal Year 25-26: Statement from First 5 LA President & CEO, Karla Pleitéz Howell
by Katie Kurutz | Jul 1, 2025 | Articles, Press Room
Los Angeles, CA (July 1, 2025) - First 5 LA President and CEO, Karla Pleitéz Howell released the following statement in response to the enacted Fiscal Year 2025-2026 California state budget signed...

An Absolute Equality: Celebrating Juneteenth
by Katie Kurutz | Jun 10, 2025 | Articles
By, Ruel Nolledo | Freelance Writer June 10, 2025 Nine hundred days. That's how long the dream of freedom was deferred for the enslaved Black people of Galveston, Texas. Although President Abraham...

Statement from First 5 LA President & CEO, Karla Pleitéz Howell : First 5 LA Stands in Solidarity with L.A. County’s Immigrant Community
by Katie Kurutz | Jun 9, 2025 | News & Resources, Press Room
June 9, 2025 (Los Angeles, CA) – There are moments that call for us to choose – between fear and compassion, division and dignity, silence and courage. This is one of those moments. What we choose...

Pride Month 2025: Building a Society Without Discrimination
by Danna Schacter | Jun 5, 2025 | Articles, Celebrating DEI, News & Resources
Building a Society Without Discrimination “If we desire a society without discrimination, then we must not discriminate against anyone in the process of building this society." Those words from...

Celebrating Home Visiting in LA
by Katie Kurutz | May 22, 2025 | Articles, News & Resources
By, Ruel Nolledo | Freelance Writer May 22, 2025 Opening your home to a stranger can be scary. Especially if you're a new mom. Just ask Dani. After the birth of her son, she got a call from a...

Conversations That Count: Encouraging Bilingualism in Young Learners
by Katie Kurutz | May 22, 2025 | Articles, News & Resources
By, Ruel Nolledo | Freelance Writer April 22, 2025 The young boy is talking about cognates. "I know some words in Spanish," Mateo tells the nice lady sitting next to him in the booth. "When we...

First 5 LA Advocacy Day in Sacramento: Advancing a Future Where Every Child Thrives
by Katie Kurutz | May 21, 2025 | Articles, News & Resources
By, Erika Witt | First 5 LA Policy Analyst May 22, 2025 On April 28, 2025, First 5 LA returned to the State Capitol for its annual Advocacy Day, delivering a clear message: California must continue...