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A strong education system is essential to growing the next generation of leaders and decision-makers, but there is a growing voice for more choice in education, particularly in the form of charter schools. Two state leaders heavily involved in charter school legislation, Massachusetts state Sen. Marc Pacheco and Utah state Rep. Jefferson Moss, spoke with CSG regarding student performance, lessons from other states, school governance and charter research.

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin is the 62nd governor of the commonwealth of Kentucky. He believes too many of America’s children are slipping through the cracks, and foster care reform is imperative to creating a thriving state and nation. Bevin married his wife Glenna in 1996 and they are now the parents of nine children ages 7–18.

High-quality early learning programs have been shown to boost educational outcomes for children, reduce rates of incarceration and lower health-care costs, according to research from economist James Heckman, winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.

Discussions about vaccinations occur regularly within legislatures across the nation. Policymakers aim to protect public health while scrutinizing conflicting information and heeding concerns of constituents, including parents who want options for their children.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee in July signed into law one of the nation’s most comprehensive paid family leave programs, offering workers paid time off for the birth or adoption of a child or for the serious medical condition of the employee or his or her family member. The legislation, which will take effect in 2020, offers eligible workers 12 weeks of either parental or medical leave, or 16 weeks for a combination of both. Only four other states guarantee paid family leave: California, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island, with New York’s program beginning in 2018. The District of Columbia also approved a paid family leave program this year to take effect in 2020.

By Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene
During the years when the baby-boom generation was being introduced to the population of the United States, the fertility rate equaled about three births for each woman of child bearing age. But since the mid-1960s, when the baby boom ceased, fertility rates have been dropping. By the early 1970s, the fertility rate fell below two births per woman, and it has been declining steadily for at least the last 10 years. Since then, the U.S. fertility rate has been below replacement level—the level that is needed for couples to replace themselves in the population—according to the Population Reference Bureau.

This primer highlights how critical it is for psychiatrists to better identify and address the clinical and forensic needs of these patients and incorporate interventions that address their criminogenic risks and needs into patient treatment plans.

This resource presents a concrete list of dos and don’ts that policymakers and justice system leaders can use to guide policy and practice changes focused on young adults in the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems.