As a writer and editor at First 5 LA, I value the great care given to how we state our commitment to the education, development, safety and health of our youngest children across Los Angeles County. Every word has a purpose to serve and must be weighed against the...
Even after a lifetime of knowing something was wrong, it wasn’t until my father was completely estranged from his family (including his children), self-medicating heavily and facing times of homelessness and arrests that he was finally diagnosed with Post Traumatic...
I thought I could have it all: an ambitious career and a growing family. But as a new mother struggling to manage a job that required travel, evening hours and 60+ hour workweeks, I quickly decided that work-life balance was a myth. For over a year I struggled to stay...
When most people think of their first experience with democracy, turning 18 years old and gaining the right to vote usually comes to mind. What many don’t realize, however, is that democracy actually begins long before that benchmark birthday, starting first in the...
As a 20-year veteran of California politics and public affairs, I used to define advocacy as organizing marches, canvassing neighborhoods door-to-door, and staging press conferences to influence elected officials and policy makers.These remain effective techniques to...
Earlier this month, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced revisions to his proposed state budget for the 2019–2020 state fiscal year, a $213.5 billion spending plan strengthened by higher-than-expected revenue forecasts and focused on some of the state’s most pressing...
First 5 LA has long acknowledged the impact state and federal legislation has on families in Los Angeles County, and for the past few years the organization has developed an annual legislative agenda aligned with its policy goals. Legislation, after all, has the...
“This cannot be happening AGAIN,” I thought to myself as the labor pains grew more intense. Two years earlier, I had given birth to my first daughter, Hannah, at 27 weeks, 5 days — all 1 lb., 9 oz. of her. And here I was again, 27 weeks, 5 days pregnant and about to...
By First 5 LA Executive Vice President John Wagner and Senior County Systems Strategist Reid Meadows For decades, the politicians in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. have battled over whether government is too big or too small. Here in Los Angeles County, a better...
March 28, 2019 On my first day on a trip...
