Our future prosperity depends on all of our children having a fair chance to thrive and succeed. Yet each year we lose gifted young people who are born trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty, violence, under-funded schools, and inadequate health care options that too often forces them off the ladder of success and into custody of the juvenile justice system – or worse.
This policy agenda identifies the steps that California lawmakers can take in 2018 to ensure that all our children have what they need to realize their potential tomorrow. Recognizing that children don’t come in pieces, the policy agenda highlights policies that support the whole children by lifting children out of poverty, providing quality health care to every child, ensuring educational equity, and transforming the juvenile justice system to focus on prevention and rehabilitation.