By Meg StanleyExecutive Director at Wholespire In 1946, President Truman started the school lunch program as a response to claims that American men had been rejected for World War II military service because of diet-related health problems. The federally assisted meal...
By Chynna A. Phillips, Senior Director of Policy and Research at the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina To change the world, we must begin with ourselves. As a statewide grantmaking entity committed to reducing poverty by ensuring that South Carolina is a...
By Zelda Quiller Waymer, President and CEO of the South Carolina Afterschool Alliance This week, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) released the latest results of the Nation’s Report Card. Teenagers’ math and reading performance has continued to...
“Since 2020, housing needs have become even more pronounced due to increased inflation, rising rents, rapid house price appreciation, and higher mortgage interest rates.” -- Joseph Von Nessen, Ph.D. in the Palmetto State Housing Study 2023 By Tammy Palmer, SC Housing...
By Donna Waites, President of the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina About a decade ago, a young father found himself the sole caretaker of his two young sons. He was facing seemingly insurmountable challenges as he worked to make ends meet. He turned to...
February is Parent Leadership Month, and we are celebrating parents across South Carolina who work to improve the lives of their families, neighbors and communities every day. Amanda Ingle is a resident of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and has two boys, Kaiden, 15,...
By Karriem Edwards, South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families CEO As the new CEO of the South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families, I am excited about helping men become great dads, but I am more excited about being a dad – a “girldad.” A healthy...
By Bonnie Kapp, New Morning President and CEO There’s no doubt: Family planning and contraceptive access have everything to do with efforts to reduce the risks of child abuse and other adverse childhood and maternal outcomes. Yet in recent years in South Carolina,...
Children's Trust board member Marc Brown spoke to the Joint Citizens Committee on Children in during the committee's annual tour in Columbia on October 12. Brown, an attorney based in Columbia and a member of the South Carolina Bar Association, shared with the...
Preventing child abuse and neglect starts with protective factors. When protective factors are present, the risk of abuse and neglect decreases. So, what exactly are protective factors and how can policymakers ensure that protective factors are present? Protective...
By Phillip Cease While not a new idea, paid family leave has gotten more attention at the federal and state level over the past two years, including in South Carolina. In March of 2020, Gov. Henry McMaster held a press conference surrounded by legislators from both...
COLUMBIA — South Carolina ranks No. 41 nationally in child and family well-being, according to the 2021 KIDS COUNT® Data Book, a 50-state report of recent household data developed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation analyzing how families have fared between the Great...