The U.S. Department of Education (USDE), along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), have launched a new COVID-19 data dashboard to track the impact of the pandemic on K-12 programs. Included on the dashboard are location data on pediatric COVID-19 cases, youth vaccination rates, and numbers on schools that are operating in-person, hybrid or remote with data updated each week.
For more from the USDE, click here.
On Friday, October 29, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in children aged 5-11. The FDA approval is a huge step towards vaccinations for children in that age group and was based on data showing the a smaller dose of the vaccine to have a 90.7% efficacy rate of effectiveness in preventing COVID-19 for children 5-11 years old.
The next procedural step will see officials from the Centers for Disease Control of Prevention (CDC) meeting this week to consider recommending the vaccine for use with such children and to issue guidance for vaccine distribution, outreach and resources.. CDC approval would then allow the vaccination process to begin.
As a result, school systems across the country are in various stages of planning for a potential rollout, including hosting vaccine clinics on campus, hiring additional staff, issuing communications to families, and handling parental permissions for students to get a shot.
The FDA panel recommended a two-shot regime of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for elementary-aged students. Each dose would be one-third the amount of an adult shot.
At this point, vaccines for 5-11 year-olds would likely be available within the in early November, which would allow children to be fully immunized by the winter holidays if they follow the two-dose regime spaced 21 days apart.
Sources include the FDA and BioPharma Dive.
The White House has announced the Build Back Better Framework.
To view the press release and framework document, click on the item links below.
President Biden Announces the Build Back Better Framework
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/10/28/president-biden-announces-the-build-back-better-framework/
Build Back Better Framework
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/10/28/build-back-better-framework/
The U.S. Department of Education (USDE) has released a new resource for state and local education systems. Supporting Child and Student Social, Emotional, Behavioral and Mental Health Needs provides information and resources to promote mental health and the social and emotional well-being of students.
Included in the resource are seven key challenges to providing school or program-based mental health support across early childhood, Kâ12, and higher education settings, as well as seven corresponding recommendations, including the use of federal COVID-19 relief funding to hire additional staff.
For more from K-12 Dive, click here.
The Wolf Administration announced Pennsylvaniaâs full implementation of the Family First Prevention Services Act, prioritizing providing services to children and families in the least restrictive manner and with their families as much as safely possible.
âThe Family First Prevention Services Act dovetails with longtime goals of both the Wolf Administration and our county-level partners across Pennsylvania. The implementation of our plan will enhance the impact of work we were already doing to strengthen families and keep children safe with their families, in their homes, whenever and however possible,â said DHS Acting Secretary Meg Snead.
The Family First Prevention Services Act gives states the option of using federal funds to administer their child welfare systems differently â and for the first time to utilize federal funding that supports certain evidence-based mental health prevention and treatment, substance use prevention and treatment, and in-home parenting skill-based programs that are delivered to eligible children, youth, and families to help prevent the placement of a child into out-of-home care. In the event placement outside the home occurs, the law directs federal funding toward family-like settings or other specialized settings that are best suited to a childâs individual needs.
Considerable progress has been made in recent years to improve outcomes for children in foster care and their families. For example, there has been a steady increase in the percentage of children in foster care who are placed in kinship care with family. As of April 2021, 44 percent of children in foster care were placed with relatives â compared to 31.5 percent in 2015.
Pennsylvania has also steadily decreased its use of congregate settings â such as institutions or group homes â in Pennsylvaniaâs foster care system. In 2015, 17.1 percent of Pennsylvania children in foster care were in congregate settings. By 2019, that dropped to 12.7 percent. The overall number of children entering foster care is also on the decline. Between 2019 and 2020, 2,797 fewer children entered foster care. Currently, there are about 14,000 children in foster care in Pennsylvania.
2020 Child Abuse Report
In strengthening the child welfare system through a greater focus on prevention and use of evidence-based programs and services, Pennsylvania aims to reduce instances of child abuse and neglect. This week, DHS released the 2020 annual Child Protective Services Report, which includes statewide and county-level data relevant to the child welfare system in the previous year.
The total number of Child Protective Services (CPS) reports received dropped about 22 percent between 2019 and 2020. CPS reports are reports of incidents that meet the definition of child abuse contained in the Child Protective Services Law. While the total number of CPS reports fell significantly, the total number of substantiated reports fell slightly — from 4,865 in 2019 to 4,593 in 2020. These are the CPS reports that â after investigation â indicated that child abuse had in fact occurred.
In terms of overall sources of the reports from 2019 to 2020, Pennsylvania saw a predictable drop in reports from school employees — from 12,990 in 2019 to 5,780 in 2020. However, reports from permissive reporters â those who, by law, do not have to report suspected child abuse — remained at almost the exact same level as 2019.
Sadly, Pennsylvania saw significant increases in both child fatalities and child near fatalities substantiated as the result of child abuse between 2019 and 2020. In 2019, 51 children died and 93 children nearly died as the result of child abuse. In 2020, 73 children died and 115 children nearly died as a result of child abuse.
âPennsylvaniaâs child welfare system did not stop or slow down at any time during 2020. ChildLine remained fully operational. County and DHS caseworkers continued investigating reports. Families continued receiving services they needed,â Acting Secretary Snead said. âIn all of Pennsylvaniaâs 67 counties, child welfare workers as well as mandated and permissive reporters adapted to a changed world so families could continue to receive support and children can grow up safely and cared for. The value of their work is immeasurable, and I want to say thank you on behalf of the Wolf Administration and the commonwealth.â
To learn more about Family First and how to report potential child abuse or neglect, visit www.keepkidssafe.pa.gov.