Richmond, Calif. — Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) will join with advocates from United Ways of California, RYSE Youth Center, Children’s Defense Fund, and others to announce the introduction of AB 875 to reestablish “Healthy Start.” Health Start, established in 1991 with bipartisan support, was a historic program that gave seed money grants to Local Education Agencies and community partners to address the social determinants of health and comprehensively meet the needs of students and their families. The program, which was cut in 2007 as a result of the Great Recession, helped connect children and families to services related to: dental health, mental health, vision, academic support, job training, violence intervention and prevention, parenting education, and more. Healthy Start 2.0 will build on the positive community-level impacts of the original program by integrating child- and family-facing service systems and emphasizing evidence-based approaches to program access and effectiveness, especially for high-need communities.

MEDIA ADVISORY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     Thursday, February 21, 2019

Contacts:

Unai Montes (United Ways California), This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 213-476-8742

Cadonna Dory (Children’s Defense Fund California), This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 323-385-6342

Eric Panzer (Assemblymember Wicks), This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 510-508-7033

Assemblymember Wicks and Statewide Advocates Call for Reestablishment of Healthy Start Program to Connect Children and Families to Health, Academic, and Development Services

Richmond, Calif. — Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) will join with advocates from United Ways of California, RYSE Youth Center, Children’s Defense Fund, and others to announce the introduction of AB 875 to reestablish “Healthy Start.” Health Start, established in 1991 with bipartisan support, was a historic program that gave seed money grants to Local Education Agencies and community partners to address the social determinants of health and comprehensively meet the needs of students and their families. The program, which was cut in 2007 as a result of the Great Recession, helped connect children and families to services related to: dental health, mental health, vision, academic support, job training, violence intervention and prevention, parenting education, and more. Healthy Start 2.0 will build on the positive community-level impacts of the original program by integrating child- and family-facing service systems and emphasizing evidence-based approaches to program access and effectiveness, especially for high-need communities.

What:       Statewide Healthy Start 2.0 Launch Event

Who:        Buffy Wicks, Assemblymember (AD 15); Kanwarpal Dhaliwal, Associate Director, RYSE Youth Center; Janis Lambert Connallon, Children’s Defense Fund-California; Anna Hasselblad, United Ways of California; youth from My Brother’s Keeper Alliance.

When:       Friday, February 22, 2019, 10:30 AM 

Where:      RYSE Youth Center, 205 41st St, Richmond, CA 94805

Visuals:     Signs; speeches by youth, elected officials, policy experts; building with mural

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