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"content": "\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first children to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082904/as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close\">attend transitional kindergarten\u003c/a> when it began in California public schools more than a decade ago made significant learning gains that persisted into later elementary school years, according to a new UC Berkeley study.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Children from lower-income families \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">benefited the most from TK\u003c/a>, according to \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/universal-prek-california-education-reforms-brief\">a research brief published Thursday\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They gained about seven more months of learning in reading and math by third grade compared to students from the same school who did not attend TK. What’s more, the children who got an extra year of preschool in addition to TK made the biggest strides. The effects were larger and longer-lasting when they attended well-funded elementary schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Researchers said the evidence shows that two major education reforms that happened around the time TK started in 2012 combined to narrow deep and \u003ca href=\"https://www.ppic.org/publication/californias-k-12-test-scores/\">longstanding achievement gaps\u003c/a> in California schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069031\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children at Mission Kids Preschool in San Francisco raise their hands to ask Senator Alex Padilla a question on June 1, 2021. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those changes include the expansion of the California State Preschool Program, or CSPP, which is free to income-eligible 3- and 4-year-olds, and the Local Control Funding Formula, which directs more resources to high-need students. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“It’s this trifecta of public policies — TK, State Preschool and more equitable school funding — that has been the catalyst accelerating young children’s growth,” said Rucker Johnson, an economist and public policy professor at UC Berkeley. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">California introduced transitional kindergarten to address disparities that begin even before children enter kindergarten. The state’s previous Dec. 2 cutoff date to begin kindergarten was among the latest in the nation, which meant that some kids who were turning 5 in the fall were entering kindergarten when they were still 4. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This led families who could afford childcare or preschool on their own to delay entry, giving their kids a developmental advantage, while lower-income families typically couldn’t. By shifting the cutoff date to Sept. 1, and enrolling kids who were almost 5 in TK, lawmakers hoped that an extra year of early education would help them develop the necessary skills to succeed in kindergarten. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Johnson said his research found that TK alone doesn’t solve the achievement gap. Instead, its efficacy hinges on what happens to children before, during and after they complete the grade. The benefits of TK were greater for low-income kids who first attended CSPP when they were 3 and persisted when they were in elementary schools that had more resources. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“You could think of each of these three policies having an independent effect that you could add, like two plus two plus two is six,” Johnson said. “But what we’re finding is that the effects are not additive but multiplicative. When you invest early, they actually make the efficacy of subsequent investments more effective. And so two plus two might equal eight.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Austin Land, a policy analyst and co-author of the study, said the findings suggest that children who attended CSPP might have gotten more out of TK because they started in a high-quality program. The program is modeled after Head Start but is less known than the federal antipoverty program. It provides play-based learning and family support services. Classroom sizes are smaller than TK and are often staffed by educators who speak children’s home languages.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"An adult's hands lay on top of a little kid's hands while making something with clay.\" class=\"wp-image-12007545\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Preschoolers work with clay and flowers under a tented canopy at the North Bay Children’s Center in Healdsburg on Oct. 2, 2024. (Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“CSPP appears to have played an important role,” Land said. “If they have that year of preschool where it’s not so academic and they’re around other children their age before entering these more formal TK environments, that was important for them.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two years of early education made a difference for her family, said Selam Mulatu, a Bay Area mom who enrolled all three of her children in CSPP. She said her oldest, who is 9, began reading when he started kindergarten and now, “I can’t get him off of books.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“He really enjoyed the hands-on activities [in preschool],” Mulatu said. “He would come home with so many crafts and tracing and artwork. I think that really helped with coordination and just got him really excited to learn. We read a lot at home too — we’re big readers — so I think that contributes, as well.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mulatu said when she became a first-time parent, she assumed that children couldn’t enroll in public schools until they were 6 years old. But a relative told her about Franklin Preschool, a CSPP program run by the Berkeley Unified School District, and she learned she qualified for it based on her income as a waitress.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“The preschool does a great job exposing them to so many different activities like gardening, reading, socializing. You cannot do all of that as a working mother,” she said. “I think it’s so important to have these systems because they fill in the gap that parents cannot meet.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite the evidence of CSPP’s benefits, enrollment has declined since the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent data show only 18% of eligible 3-year-olds are enrolled in CSPP, even though in recent years the program has expanded to reach two-thirds of young children in California, including those from middle-income families, Land said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/mb2603.asp\">Families who earn up to 100% of the state median income\u003c/a>, which is $136,044 for a family of four, qualify. The program can be offered in elementary schools, licensed child care centers or community-based organizations like the YMCA.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1391\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086449\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187-160x112.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187-1536x1079.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chalk art decorates pavement outside of an old bus operating as a preschool at the Aspire Monarch Academy school in Oakland on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015. (Paul Chinn/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Land said now that TK is universally available to all 4-year-olds, regardless of their family’s income, the state could focus on strengthening CSPP and getting more eligible 3-year-olds into the program.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“Because enrollment is lower than the budget suggests it should be, I think there’s a temptation to say, ‘Oh, families don’t want that because they’re not showing up for it and we should fund other things,’” he said. “That would be a tragedy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Johnson, meanwhile, said that given that more than half of young children in California are learning English alongside their home language, the state could do more to meet the needs of these dual language learners. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Research unrelated to this study has found that encouraging home language use in classrooms leads to stronger outcomes for these children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“We put a lot of emphasis on making sure children are ready for school, but we want to make sure schools are ready for children,” he said. “We’re the largest and most diverse state system in the country, so the lessons that we’re drawing out for California are a roadmap for many other state systems.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>They gained about seven more months of learning in reading and math by third grade compared to students from the same school who did not attend TK. What’s more, the children who got an extra year of preschool in addition to TK made the biggest strides. The effects were larger and longer-lasting when they attended well-funded elementary schools. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>They gained about seven more months of learning in reading and math by third grade compared to students from the same school who did not attend TK. What’s more, the children who got an extra year of preschool in addition to TK made the biggest strides. The effects were larger and longer-lasting when they attended well-funded elementary schools. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Researchers said the evidence shows that two major education reforms that happened around the time TK started in 2012 combined to narrow deep and \u003ca href=\"https://www.ppic.org/publication/californias-k-12-test-scores/\">longstanding achievement gaps\u003c/a> in California schools. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Researchers said the evidence shows that two major education reforms that happened around the time TK started in 2012 combined to narrow deep and \u003ca href=\"https://www.ppic.org/publication/californias-k-12-test-scores/\">longstanding achievement gaps\u003c/a> in California schools. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069031\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children at Mission Kids Preschool in San Francisco raise their hands to ask Senator Alex Padilla a question on June 1, 2021.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Those changes include the expansion of the California State Preschool Program, or CSPP, which is free to income-eligible 3- and 4-year-olds, and the Local Control Funding Formula, which directs more resources to high-need students. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Those changes include the expansion of the California State Preschool Program, or CSPP, which is free to income-eligible 3- and 4-year-olds, and the Local Control Funding Formula, which directs more resources to high-need students. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s this trifecta of public policies — TK, State Preschool and more equitable school funding — that has been the catalyst accelerating young children’s growth,” said Rucker Johnson, an economist and public policy professor at UC Berkeley. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s this trifecta of public policies — TK, State Preschool and more equitable school funding — that has been the catalyst accelerating young children’s growth,” said Rucker Johnson, an economist and public policy professor at UC Berkeley. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California introduced transitional kindergarten to address disparities that begin even before children enter kindergarten. The state’s previous Dec. 2 cutoff date to begin kindergarten was among the latest in the nation, which meant that some kids who were turning 5 in the fall were entering kindergarten when they were still 4. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>California introduced transitional kindergarten to address disparities that begin even before children enter kindergarten. The state’s previous Dec. 2 cutoff date to begin kindergarten was among the latest in the nation, which meant that some kids who were turning 5 in the fall were entering kindergarten when they were still 4. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This led families who could afford childcare or preschool on their own to delay entry, giving their kids a developmental advantage, while lower-income families typically couldn’t. By shifting the cutoff date to Sept. 1, and enrolling kids who were almost 5 in TK, lawmakers hoped that an extra year of early education would help them develop the necessary skills to succeed in kindergarten. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>This led families who could afford childcare or preschool on their own to delay entry, giving their kids a developmental advantage, while lower-income families typically couldn’t. By shifting the cutoff date to Sept. 1, and enrolling kids who were almost 5 in TK, lawmakers hoped that an extra year of early education would help them develop the necessary skills to succeed in kindergarten. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Johnson said his research found that TK alone doesn’t solve the achievement gap. Instead, its efficacy hinges on what happens to children before, during and after they complete the grade. The benefits of TK were greater for low-income kids who first attended CSPP when they were 3 and persisted when they were in elementary schools that had more resources. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Johnson said his research found that TK alone doesn’t solve the achievement gap. Instead, its efficacy hinges on what happens to children before, during and after they complete the grade. The benefits of TK were greater for low-income kids who first attended CSPP when they were 3 and persisted when they were in elementary schools that had more resources. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“You could think of each of these three policies having an independent effect that you could add, like two plus two plus two is six,” Johnson said. “But what we’re finding is that the effects are not additive but multiplicative. When you invest early, they actually make the efficacy of subsequent investments more effective. And so two plus two might equal eight.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“You could think of each of these three policies having an independent effect that you could add, like two plus two plus two is six,” Johnson said. “But what we’re finding is that the effects are not additive but multiplicative. When you invest early, they actually make the efficacy of subsequent investments more effective. And so two plus two might equal eight.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Austin Land, a policy analyst and co-author of the study, said the findings suggest that children who attended CSPP might have gotten more out of TK because they started in a high-quality program. The program is modeled after Head Start but is less known than the federal antipoverty program. It provides play-based learning and family support services. Classroom sizes are smaller than TK and are often staffed by educators who speak children’s home languages.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Austin Land, a policy analyst and co-author of the study, said the findings suggest that children who attended CSPP might have gotten more out of TK because they started in a high-quality program. The program is modeled after Head Start but is less known than the federal antipoverty program. It provides play-based learning and family support services. Classroom sizes are smaller than TK and are often staffed by educators who speak children’s home languages.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“CSPP appears to have played an important role,” Land said. “If they have that year of preschool where it’s not so academic and they’re around other children their age before entering these more formal TK environments, that was important for them.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“CSPP appears to have played an important role,” Land said. “If they have that year of preschool where it’s not so academic and they’re around other children their age before entering these more formal TK environments, that was important for them.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Two years of early education made a difference for her family, said Selam Mulatu, a Bay Area mom who enrolled all three of her children in CSPP. She said her oldest, who is 9, began reading when he started kindergarten and now, “I can’t get him off of books.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Two years of early education made a difference for her family, said Selam Mulatu, a Bay Area mom who enrolled all three of her children in CSPP. She said her oldest, who is 9, began reading when he started kindergarten and now, “I can’t get him off of books.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“He really enjoyed the hands-on activities [in preschool],” Mulatu said. “He would come home with so many crafts and tracing and artwork. I think that really helped with coordination and just got him really excited to learn. We read a lot at home too — we’re big readers — so I think that contributes, as well.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“He really enjoyed the hands-on activities [in preschool],” Mulatu said. “He would come home with so many crafts and tracing and artwork. I think that really helped with coordination and just got him really excited to learn. We read a lot at home too — we’re big readers — so I think that contributes, as well.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mulatu said when she became a first-time parent, she assumed that children couldn’t enroll in public schools until they were 6 years old. But a relative told her about Franklin Preschool, a CSPP program run by the Berkeley Unified School District, and she learned she qualified for it based on her income as a waitress.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Mulatu said when she became a first-time parent, she assumed that children couldn’t enroll in public schools until they were 6 years old. But a relative told her about Franklin Preschool, a CSPP program run by the Berkeley Unified School District, and she learned she qualified for it based on her income as a waitress.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The preschool does a great job exposing them to so many different activities like gardening, reading, socializing. You cannot do all of that as a working mother,” she said. “I think it’s so important to have these systems because they fill in the gap that parents cannot meet.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“The preschool does a great job exposing them to so many different activities like gardening, reading, socializing. You cannot do all of that as a working mother,” she said. “I think it’s so important to have these systems because they fill in the gap that parents cannot meet.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Despite the evidence of CSPP’s benefits, enrollment has declined since the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent data show only 18% of eligible 3-year-olds are enrolled in CSPP, even though in recent years the program has expanded to reach two-thirds of young children in California, including those from middle-income families, Land said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/mb2603.asp\">Families who earn up to 100% of the state median income\u003c/a>, which is $136,044 for a family of four, qualify. The program can be offered in elementary schools, licensed child care centers or community-based organizations like the YMCA.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/mb2603.asp\">Families who earn up to 100% of the state median income\u003c/a>, which is $136,044 for a family of four, qualify. The program can be offered in elementary schools, licensed child care centers or community-based organizations like the YMCA.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Land said now that TK is universally available to all 4-year-olds, regardless of their family’s income, the state could focus on strengthening CSPP and getting more eligible 3-year-olds into the program.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Land said now that TK is universally available to all 4-year-olds, regardless of their family’s income, the state could focus on strengthening CSPP and getting more eligible 3-year-olds into the program.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Because enrollment is lower than the budget suggests it should be, I think there’s a temptation to say, ‘Oh, families don’t want that because they’re not showing up for it and we should fund other things,’” he said. “That would be a tragedy.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Because enrollment is lower than the budget suggests it should be, I think there’s a temptation to say, ‘Oh, families don’t want that because they’re not showing up for it and we should fund other things,’” he said. “That would be a tragedy.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Johnson, meanwhile, said that given that more than half of young children in California are learning English alongside their home language, the state could do more to meet the needs of these dual language learners. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Research unrelated to this study has found that encouraging home language use in classrooms leads to stronger outcomes for these children. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We put a lot of emphasis on making sure children are ready for school, but we want to make sure schools are ready for children,” he said. “We’re the largest and most diverse state system in the country, so the lessons that we’re drawing out for California are a roadmap for many other state systems.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "UC Berkeley researchers found that children from lower-income families benefited the most from TK, and that those who got an extra year of preschool in addition to TK made even bigger strides.",
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"title": "New Study Shows Low-Income Students Gain Most From Transitional Kindergarten | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The first children to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082904/as-transitional-kindergarten-grows-hundreds-of-child-care-centers-close\">attend transitional kindergarten\u003c/a> when it began in California public schools more than a decade ago made significant learning gains that persisted into later elementary school years, according to a new UC Berkeley study.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Children from lower-income families \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">benefited the most from TK\u003c/a>, according to \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/universal-prek-california-education-reforms-brief\">a research brief published Thursday\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They gained about seven more months of learning in reading and math by third grade compared to students from the same school who did not attend TK. What’s more, the children who got an extra year of preschool in addition to TK made the biggest strides. The effects were larger and longer-lasting when they attended well-funded elementary schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Researchers said the evidence shows that two major education reforms that happened around the time TK started in 2012 combined to narrow deep and \u003ca href=\"https://www.ppic.org/publication/californias-k-12-test-scores/\">longstanding achievement gaps\u003c/a> in California schools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069031\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/020_SanFrancisco_AlexPadillaMissionKids_06012021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children at Mission Kids Preschool in San Francisco raise their hands to ask Senator Alex Padilla a question on June 1, 2021. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those changes include the expansion of the California State Preschool Program, or CSPP, which is free to income-eligible 3- and 4-year-olds, and the Local Control Funding Formula, which directs more resources to high-need students. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“It’s this trifecta of public policies — TK, State Preschool and more equitable school funding — that has been the catalyst accelerating young children’s growth,” said Rucker Johnson, an economist and public policy professor at UC Berkeley. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">California introduced transitional kindergarten to address disparities that begin even before children enter kindergarten. The state’s previous Dec. 2 cutoff date to begin kindergarten was among the latest in the nation, which meant that some kids who were turning 5 in the fall were entering kindergarten when they were still 4. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This led families who could afford childcare or preschool on their own to delay entry, giving their kids a developmental advantage, while lower-income families typically couldn’t. By shifting the cutoff date to Sept. 1, and enrolling kids who were almost 5 in TK, lawmakers hoped that an extra year of early education would help them develop the necessary skills to succeed in kindergarten. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Johnson said his research found that TK alone doesn’t solve the achievement gap. Instead, its efficacy hinges on what happens to children before, during and after they complete the grade. The benefits of TK were greater for low-income kids who first attended CSPP when they were 3 and persisted when they were in elementary schools that had more resources. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“You could think of each of these three policies having an independent effect that you could add, like two plus two plus two is six,” Johnson said. “But what we’re finding is that the effects are not additive but multiplicative. When you invest early, they actually make the efficacy of subsequent investments more effective. And so two plus two might equal eight.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Austin Land, a policy analyst and co-author of the study, said the findings suggest that children who attended CSPP might have gotten more out of TK because they started in a high-quality program. The program is modeled after Head Start but is less known than the federal antipoverty program. It provides play-based learning and family support services. Classroom sizes are smaller than TK and are often staffed by educators who speak children’s home languages.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"An adult's hands lay on top of a little kid's hands while making something with clay.\" class=\"wp-image-12007545\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241002-CHILDCARE-AND-CLIMATE-CHANGE-MD-02-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Preschoolers work with clay and flowers under a tented canopy at the North Bay Children’s Center in Healdsburg on Oct. 2, 2024. (Martin do Nascimento/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“CSPP appears to have played an important role,” Land said. “If they have that year of preschool where it’s not so academic and they’re around other children their age before entering these more formal TK environments, that was important for them.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Two years of early education made a difference for her family, said Selam Mulatu, a Bay Area mom who enrolled all three of her children in CSPP. She said her oldest, who is 9, began reading when he started kindergarten and now, “I can’t get him off of books.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“He really enjoyed the hands-on activities [in preschool],” Mulatu said. “He would come home with so many crafts and tracing and artwork. I think that really helped with coordination and just got him really excited to learn. We read a lot at home too — we’re big readers — so I think that contributes, as well.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mulatu said when she became a first-time parent, she assumed that children couldn’t enroll in public schools until they were 6 years old. But a relative told her about Franklin Preschool, a CSPP program run by the Berkeley Unified School District, and she learned she qualified for it based on her income as a waitress.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“The preschool does a great job exposing them to so many different activities like gardening, reading, socializing. You cannot do all of that as a working mother,” she said. “I think it’s so important to have these systems because they fill in the gap that parents cannot meet.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Despite the evidence of CSPP’s benefits, enrollment has declined since the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent data show only 18% of eligible 3-year-olds are enrolled in CSPP, even though in recent years the program has expanded to reach two-thirds of young children in California, including those from middle-income families, Land said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/mb2603.asp\">Families who earn up to 100% of the state median income\u003c/a>, which is $136,044 for a family of four, qualify. The program can be offered in elementary schools, licensed child care centers or community-based organizations like the YMCA.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1391\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12086449\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187-160x112.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-1408498187-1536x1079.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chalk art decorates pavement outside of an old bus operating as a preschool at the Aspire Monarch Academy school in Oakland on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015. (Paul Chinn/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Land said now that TK is universally available to all 4-year-olds, regardless of their family’s income, the state could focus on strengthening CSPP and getting more eligible 3-year-olds into the program.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“Because enrollment is lower than the budget suggests it should be, I think there’s a temptation to say, ‘Oh, families don’t want that because they’re not showing up for it and we should fund other things,’” he said. “That would be a tragedy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Johnson, meanwhile, said that given that more than half of young children in California are learning English alongside their home language, the state could do more to meet the needs of these dual language learners. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Research unrelated to this study has found that encouraging home language use in classrooms leads to stronger outcomes for these children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“We put a lot of emphasis on making sure children are ready for school, but we want to make sure schools are ready for children,” he said. “We’re the largest and most diverse state system in the country, so the lessons that we’re drawing out for California are a roadmap for many other state systems.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "part-of-the-presidio-san-francisco-bids-farewell-to-beloved-indoor-park-house-of-air",
"title": "Part of the Presidio: San Francisco Bids Farewell to Beloved Indoor Park, House of Air",
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"headTitle": "Part of the Presidio: San Francisco Bids Farewell to Beloved Indoor Park, House of Air | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>For kids who have been going to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>’s House of Air, a beloved trampoline park in the Presidio, things just won’t be the same when it closes early next year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>House of Air announced Thursday that it will close on Feb. 15, 2027, because it didn’t renew its lease that ends at the beginning of March.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The facility — a former U.S. Army airplane hangar — has stayed true to its roots since its debut in 2010, bringing flightless play and good times of all kinds across its 8,000 square feet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It has dodgeball, general jumping, training for athletes, birthdays — which kids said they can’t find anywhere else. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12104677\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A staff member jumps on a trampoline at the House of Air Trampoline Park and Cafe near Crissy Field in San Francisco on Oct. 15, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I don’t want it to close because this place is a part of San Francisco,” said Lee, 11, who has been coming to the park for years. “It’s a part of the Presidio [that] is missing now. It’s all just gone.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The original facility, officially known as Building 926, was built in 1921. Restored for House of Air’s opening in partnership with its landlord, Presidio Trust, the company said it has since boasted over one million visitors. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Daniel Matsumoto, general manager for the park, said that the company decided not to renew its lease after exploring renewal options with the Presidio Trust. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There would be high costs associated with keeping the lease in this space, and we don’t feel that it’s something that we can meet necessarily,” Matsumoto said, adding that business had been doing really well recently. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The park’s bread and butter, Matsumoto said, is just general jumping and doing many birthday parties. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I think most kids in the city have been to a birthday party here at some point,” Matsumoto said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That’s exactly what Damaris Sosa Clahr, along with her daughter and a friend, came for on Friday afternoon, when kids and parents had just begun to trickle in on an otherwise quiet day. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“You know, it’s something to do indoors, and I could just sit and relax while they’re playing,” Sosa Clahr said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Friends Mikko M. and Gibson M., both 11 years old, said they come to the park at least once a month and have met many friends during their time at House of Air. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s gonna be hard to beat,” Mikko said. “I just love this place a lot.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When asked where they might go instead, all of the young jumpers that KQED spoke with said they didn’t know of anything else that compared to House of Air. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12104673\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The House of Air Trampoline Park and Cafe near Crissy Field in San Francisco on Oct. 15, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And even location-wise, it’s so classic and iconic. It’s facing Crissy Field,” said Grace, 17. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The park is still open for play until it closes in February. Jumpers can show up for regular general jumping and other activities until then. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Matsumoto said there will be a special farewell event closer to its closing date, with plans underway. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what the Presidio Trust — which will decide what happens to the former airplane hangar and trampoline park — will look for next. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But several kids suggested an idea for it: another trampoline park.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There would be high costs associated with keeping the lease in this space, and we don’t feel that it’s something that we can meet necessarily,” Matsumoto said, adding that business had been doing really well recently. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That’s exactly what Damaris Sosa Clahr, along with her daughter and a friend, came for on Friday afternoon, when kids and parents had just begun to trickle in on an otherwise quiet day. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Friends Mikko M. and Gibson M., both 11 years old, said they come to the park at least once a month and have met many friends during their time at House of Air. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The park is still open for play until it closes in February. Jumpers can show up for regular general jumping and other activities until then. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what the Presidio Trust — which will decide what happens to the former airplane hangar and trampoline park — will look for next. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Kids say they don’t want the 16-year-old trampoline park to close after the company announced Thursday that its doors would shut in early 2027.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>For kids who have been going to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>’s House of Air, a beloved trampoline park in the Presidio, things just won’t be the same when it closes early next year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>House of Air announced Thursday that it will close on Feb. 15, 2027, because it didn’t renew its lease that ends at the beginning of March.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The facility — a former U.S. Army airplane hangar — has stayed true to its roots since its debut in 2010, bringing flightless play and good times of all kinds across its 8,000 square feet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It has dodgeball, general jumping, training for athletes, birthdays — which kids said they can’t find anywhere else. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12104677\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-06-BL-KQED-5150d7a6-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A staff member jumps on a trampoline at the House of Air Trampoline Park and Cafe near Crissy Field in San Francisco on Oct. 15, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I don’t want it to close because this place is a part of San Francisco,” said Lee, 11, who has been coming to the park for years. “It’s a part of the Presidio [that] is missing now. It’s all just gone.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The original facility, officially known as Building 926, was built in 1921. Restored for House of Air’s opening in partnership with its landlord, Presidio Trust, the company said it has since boasted over one million visitors. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Daniel Matsumoto, general manager for the park, said that the company decided not to renew its lease after exploring renewal options with the Presidio Trust. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There would be high costs associated with keeping the lease in this space, and we don’t feel that it’s something that we can meet necessarily,” Matsumoto said, adding that business had been doing really well recently. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The park’s bread and butter, Matsumoto said, is just general jumping and doing many birthday parties. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I think most kids in the city have been to a birthday party here at some point,” Matsumoto said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That’s exactly what Damaris Sosa Clahr, along with her daughter and a friend, came for on Friday afternoon, when kids and parents had just begun to trickle in on an otherwise quiet day. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“You know, it’s something to do indoors, and I could just sit and relax while they’re playing,” Sosa Clahr said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Friends Mikko M. and Gibson M., both 11 years old, said they come to the park at least once a month and have met many friends during their time at House of Air. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s gonna be hard to beat,” Mikko said. “I just love this place a lot.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When asked where they might go instead, all of the young jumpers that KQED spoke with said they didn’t know of anything else that compared to House of Air. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12104673\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/261015-HOUSEOFAIR-01-BL-KQED-6f2e4de0-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The House of Air Trampoline Park and Cafe near Crissy Field in San Francisco on Oct. 15, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And even location-wise, it’s so classic and iconic. It’s facing Crissy Field,” said Grace, 17. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The park is still open for play until it closes in February. Jumpers can show up for regular general jumping and other activities until then. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Matsumoto said there will be a special farewell event closer to its closing date, with plans underway. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s not yet clear what the Presidio Trust — which will decide what happens to the former airplane hangar and trampoline park — will look for next. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But several kids suggested an idea for it: another trampoline park.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "sf-has-the-fewest-kids-city-leaders-hope-these-policies-will-help-families-stick-around",
"title": "SF Has the Fewest Kids. City Leaders Hope These Policies Will Help Families Stick Around",
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"headTitle": "SF Has the Fewest Kids. City Leaders Hope These Policies Will Help Families Stick Around | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After giving birth to her second child this Spring, Angelica Torres was able to take four months off work to care for herself and her baby.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr />\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"San Francisco's Under 18 and Under 5 Population\" aria-label=\"Area Chart\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-nMwbh\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/nMwbh/1/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" 0=\"style="width:\" 1=\"0;\" 2=\"min-width:\" 3=\"100%\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He was like, ‘I cannot miss a lot of days of work. What is my boss going to say?’” Torres said. “This time around, I explained to him [he] could take some time off. It’s a law. He would go on walks with the baby and take care of our daughter. I feel like he was more connected to his children.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she hopes that city leaders “can target the bigger issues that people in San Francisco face like the rent.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Rent is really expensive. Super expensive,” she said. “I really love this city. I love the diversity, and I want my children to grow here.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Hard to live here’ \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096523\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel in her mother’s kitchen in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“People who locked in their [mortgage or rental] rates during the pandemic are happy to stay, but those that want to move or want to expand out of their one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments really do find it hard to live here,” said Vai Sundaresan, a tech worker who was laid off when she was pregnant with her 1-year-old daughter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to championing the rezoning amendment and expanded paid parental leave, Sauter is also looking to add more diaper-changing tables and lactation rooms in public spaces and improve transit access for families with young kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But for some families, a bigger issue is the public school system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada said she’s heard “nightmare stories” of navigating San Francisco Unified School District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11641238/how-the-san-francisco-school-lottery-works-and-how-it-doesnt-2\">lottery\u003c/a> — a complicated assignment system intended to desegregate schools but one that has also led to long waitlists and confusion, leaving families anxious about whether they’ll get into their preferred school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie’s hands are tied when it comes to resolving this problem: By law, an elected school board governs the district, which is funded by the state.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada and Macayan said their heart is in San Francisco, but they’re not sure how long they can sustain their life in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We do want to stay,” Wada said. “We want to make it work for as long as possible.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as they look into the future, Wada said they’re already bracing themselves for what comes next: “When we do have to leave, where do we want to go?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“He was like, ‘I cannot miss a lot of days of work. What is my boss going to say?’” Torres said. “This time around, I explained to him [he] could take some time off. It’s a law. He would go on walks with the baby and take care of our daughter. I feel like he was more connected to his children.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said she hopes that city leaders “can target the bigger issues that people in San Francisco face like the rent.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Rent is really expensive. Super expensive,” she said. “I really love this city. I love the diversity, and I want my children to grow here.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096523\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel in her mother’s kitchen in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096523\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel in her mother’s kitchen in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“People who locked in their [mortgage or rental] rates during the pandemic are happy to stay, but those that want to move or want to expand out of their one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments really do find it hard to live here,” said Vai Sundaresan, a tech worker who was laid off when she was pregnant with her 1-year-old daughter. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In addition to championing the rezoning amendment and expanded paid parental leave, Sauter is also looking to add more diaper-changing tables and lactation rooms in public spaces and improve transit access for families with young kids. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But for some families, a bigger issue is the public school system.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wada said she’s heard “nightmare stories” of navigating San Francisco Unified School District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11641238/how-the-san-francisco-school-lottery-works-and-how-it-doesnt-2\">lottery\u003c/a> — a complicated assignment system intended to desegregate schools but one that has also led to long waitlists and confusion, leaving families anxious about whether they’ll get into their preferred school. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lurie’s hands are tied when it comes to resolving this problem: By law, an elected school board governs the district, which is funded by the state.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wada and Macayan said their heart is in San Francisco, but they’re not sure how long they can sustain their life in the city.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We do want to stay,” Wada said. “We want to make it work for as long as possible.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But as they look into the future, Wada said they’re already bracing themselves for what comes next: “When we do have to leave, where do we want to go?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "As the AI boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about rising costs of living, local leaders are trying to make raising a family more affordable. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After giving birth to her second child this Spring, Angelica Torres was able to take four months off work to care for herself and her baby.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s a luxury not all working parents can afford, but Torres was able to take advantage of a San Francisco law, which offers parents full paychecks while they miss work to bond with a new child. That benefit, plus another city program that offers free childcare for her 3-year-old daughter, gave her welcome financial relief as she navigated the additional cost of growing her family, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“With everything getting so expensive, I feel that San Francisco does a lot to support families,” she said. “This is why we’re still here.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For at least a decade, San Francisco has had the fewest children of any major American city, with about 13% of residents under the age of 18 in 2025, according to U.S. Census data. The cost of raising a family has long been cited as one reason. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As the artificial intelligence boom fuels economic growth and stirs anxiety about the costs of living rising even higher, local leaders are trying to help families stay in San Francisco by making life a little more affordable.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-09-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres and her children Valentina and Angel stand for a portrait in Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres and her family stay with her mother for childcare assistance. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a joke about San Francisco having more dogs than kids, and that’s a little funny, but a little sad,” said Supervisor Danny Sauter, who pushed to expand the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/information--paid-parental-leave-ordinance\">paid parental leave ordinance\u003c/a> to make it easier for workers to qualify. “It’s our responsibility at City Hall to look to see if we can remove barriers, if we could lend a hand.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since the beginning of this year, the city has focused on alleviating some of the largest expenses families face. In January, Mayor Daniel Lurie rolled out his “Family Opportunity Agenda,” which included \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094257/san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies\">expanding the city’s subsidized childcare\u003c/a> to include higher-income earners — a family of four making up to $324,000 a year can now qualify — as well as growing the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-expands-access-to-affordable-after-school-care-for-san-francisco-families-following-major-expansion-of-early-childcare\">after-school programs\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie is among a handful of mayors and state governors who’ve championed similar policies aimed at families, joining Delaware, Maine, Minnesota and Colorado in \u003ca href=\"https://www.parentoleave.com/blog/whats-changing-in-paid-family-leave-in-2026-your-complete-guide\">enacting or expanding paid parental leave\u003c/a> and New York City in rolling out \u003ca href=\"https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2026/09/10/mamdani-2-k-program-launches-with-cost-savings-payment-delays/\">free childcare for 2-year-olds\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Those efforts come as the child population is trending down nationwide due to falling birth and fertility rates, and major cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2026/vintage-2025-pop-estimates.html\">saw the biggest decline\u003c/a> in the past five years, according to Census data. Between 2010 and 2025, San Francisco’s under-18 population decreased numerically but \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/san-francisco-fewest-kids-data-21044908.php\">stayed relatively flat as a percentage of the overall population\u003c/a>. The portion of children under 5 had hovered around 4.5% between 2010 and 2020, but since the pandemic, it’s dropped to just under 4%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr />\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"San Francisco's Under 18 and Under 5 Population\" aria-label=\"Area Chart\" id=\"datawrapper-chart-nMwbh\" src=\"https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/nMwbh/1/\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" 0=\"style="width:\" 1=\"0;\" 2=\"min-width:\" 3=\"100%\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In speeches, Lurie and other city leaders echoed concerns about people delaying having children, if at all, or moving out of San Francisco after they have kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is the greatest city in the world, but it can’t be great if the people that are living here today can’t afford to stay here tomorrow,” Lurie told KQED in a recent interview. “We know how expensive this city is to raise a family, and so we’re doing everything in our power to build more affordable housing, to make early childhood care and education accessible to every family.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>City leaders are focusing on the early years because Census surveys show that’s when families are most likely to leave. It’s also the most expensive phase of life, when childcare prices can consume a big chunk of a family’s income.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“One of the things that’s been true in San Francisco is that if you have a child [under] 5, you’re more likely to leave,” said Ted Egan, the city’s chief economist. “But if you have a child who’s over 5, you’re not — which basically means once people are settled in school, they’re less mobile.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco first began using city funds to offer free preschool for 4-year-olds in 2004 and two decades later broadened that program by using revenue from a voter-approved tax to offer free or discounted early education and care for families, based on their income. Lurie stops short of calling it universal childcare, but said he wants San Francisco to become the first major city in the country to provide “access to childcare” for every family with a child under 5.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The city was also a leader in offering fully paid parental leave, becoming the first in the nation to do so in 2017. The ordinance built on California’s \u003ca href=\"https://edd.ca.gov/en/disability/paid-family-leave/\">paid family leave program\u003c/a>, which offers new parents between 60 and 70 percent of their wages for eight weeks, by requiring employers to cover the rest of workers’ paychecks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096522\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-01-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel as her daughter Valentina works on a project for school in the kitchen of Torres’ mother’s home in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. Torres’ mother helps out with childcare for her and her family. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11828551/who-benefits-from-san-franciscos-paid-leave-for-new-parents\">Studies have shown\u003c/a> that workers in industries with high turnover, like restaurants and hospitality, were least likely to opt in. A new update to the law makes employees who are starting a new job eligible for the benefit sooner — at 90 days, up from 180.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Torres said this change didn’t directly affect her, but she was glad to see her partner take time off his job as a restaurant cook to take care of their baby after she went back to work as a site supervisor at a preschool. It was a benefit he could have taken after their daughter was born, but didn’t, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He was like, ‘I cannot miss a lot of days of work. What is my boss going to say?’” Torres said. “This time around, I explained to him [he] could take some time off. It’s a law. He would go on walks with the baby and take care of our daughter. I feel like he was more connected to his children.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The subsidized childcare program, Early Learning For All, saves her more than $2,000 per month for her daughter’s full-time care, she said, and helps offset other rising costs. The program also boosts the pay of early childhood educators at its participating programs, including the preschool where Torres works, and that has increased her hourly wage from $28 to $36 per hour in the last few years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While she’s grateful for the help, Torres said her biggest expense is still the rent. The couple shares a four-bedroom apartment with Torres’ parents and brother in the Excelsior District, a working-class neighborhood in the southeastern part of the city. Since the pandemic, the rent stayed at $4,000 until a couple of months ago, when Torres said the landlord bumped it up by 10%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said she hopes that city leaders “can target the bigger issues that people in San Francisco face like the rent.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Rent is really expensive. Super expensive,” she said. “I really love this city. I love the diversity, and I want my children to grow here.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘Hard to live here’ \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In several interviews, parents of young children echoed Torres’ concern, praising the family-friendly policies but citing the high cost of housing, limited availability of family-sized apartments and an unpopular school lottery as reasons they may eventually leave.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096523\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260821-FamilyFriendlySF-JY-03-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Angelica Torres holds her 5-month-old son Angel in her mother’s kitchen in San Francisco on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Juliana Yamada for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“People who locked in their [mortgage or rental] rates during the pandemic are happy to stay, but those that want to move or want to expand out of their one-bedroom or two-bedroom apartments really do find it hard to live here,” said Vai Sundaresan, a tech worker who was laid off when she was pregnant with her 1-year-old daughter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said one reason she and her husband, who also works in tech, can afford to live in San Francisco is that they bought their house four years ago. “But if we were to move now, it would be hard.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sauter is keenly aware of this trend: In the 15 years he’s lived in San Francisco, he said he’s seen friends leave after they start a family. He became a dad himself more than a year ago and said he’s now getting a closer glimpse into the challenges of parenting in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It almost feels destined when you have a first child, or certainly a second child, that you just expect someone to move away,” Sauter said. “That’s not healthy for a city.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To encourage developers to build larger, family-sized apartments, Sauter co-authored an incentive to allow developers to add another floor if they build apartments with two or more bedrooms. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The incentive is part of a state-mandated effort to address California’s housing shortage. The city’s proposal, which Lurie branded the “Family Zoning Plan,” was approved in December 2025 and allows for the construction of some 36,000 additional homes and apartments, largely in neighborhoods with access to public transit, parks, retail, and community facilities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to championing the rezoning amendment and expanded paid parental leave, Sauter is also looking to add more diaper-changing tables and lactation rooms in public spaces and improve transit access for families with young kids. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But for some families, a bigger issue is the public school system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hitomi Wada and EJ Macayan, a couple who own a small business in the Tenderloin District, said they’re grateful to save $3,000 per month in infant care under the city’s expanded Early Learning for All program but aren’t sure what they’ll do when their 1-year-old son reaches school age. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada said she’s heard “nightmare stories” of navigating San Francisco Unified School District’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11641238/how-the-san-francisco-school-lottery-works-and-how-it-doesnt-2\">lottery\u003c/a> — a complicated assignment system intended to desegregate schools but one that has also led to long waitlists and confusion, leaving families anxious about whether they’ll get into their preferred school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The district wants to overhaul the system but has \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082156/sfusd-wants-to-fix-its-lottery-system-then-look-again-at-closing-schools\">repeatedly delayed replacing it\u003c/a>, though officials said this year, 65% of families got into their top-ranked school. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He’s only 15 months old, but we’re already thinking, ‘What is our strategy for navigating that portion?’ and trying to figure out what best fits us,” Wada said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lurie’s hands are tied when it comes to resolving this problem: By law, an elected school board governs the district, which is funded by the state.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said the city does set aside around $100 million annually from its general fund to support public school libraries and the district’s arts, sports and college readiness programs. The city also increased access to free or discounted after-school care “to help bridge the gap between the time that school ends and parents are done with their job,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have more work to do, but we’ve made some progress, especially on this early childhood [initiative],” Lurie said. “We’re going to lean in on transit; we’re going to lean in on building more affordable housing.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wada and Macayan said their heart is in San Francisco, but they’re not sure how long they can sustain their life in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We do want to stay,” Wada said. “We want to make it work for as long as possible.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as they look into the future, Wada said they’re already bracing themselves for what comes next: “When we do have to leave, where do we want to go?”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "newsom-orders-california-agencies-to-develop-new-ai-safety-plans-after-rejecting-tougher-law",
"title": "Newsom Orders California Agencies to Develop New AI Safety Plans After Rejecting Tougher Law",
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"headTitle": "Newsom Orders California Agencies to Develop New AI Safety Plans After Rejecting Tougher Law | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003c!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ -->\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/gavin-newsom\">Gavin Newsom\u003c/a> announced Friday that he is directing state agencies to develop artificial intelligence safety recommendations, some of which were part of a bill he vetoed two years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His change of tune on those measures, including requiring AI developers to include a “kill switch” to shut off certain programs in emergencies, comes in response to growing public alarm over the fast-developing technology’s potential “catastrophic” harms such as AI creating a bioweapon or bringing down the power grid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom is seeking recommendations from the Government Operations Agency and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services by Nov. 16, which could form the basis of a special legislative session on the issue. He floated the possibility of calling one this week in an \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/17/newsom-floats-special-session-or-executive-action-on-ai-01082216\" data-type=\"link\" data-=\"\">interview with Politico\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom has sought in recent weeks to respond to several incidents in which AI agents from leading developers OpenAI and Anthropic broke away from testing environments, gained access to the open internet and carried out cyberattacks on other websites and companies. Earlier this month, a researcher set off a panic when he resigned from Anthropic while warning the technology could “kill all humans;” the researcher’s former colleagues were quick to agree.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The hackings have captivated the public and seem to confirm AI researchers’ fears that the fast-developing technology is improving its own capabilities beyond human control. Several industry leaders last week endorsed Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/12/technology/anthropic-dario-amodei-ai-slowdown.html\" data-type=\"link\" data-=\"\">call for a slowdown\u003c/a> in development.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s order directs the state agencies to recommend changes in state law to require external safety evaluators at AI companies, as well as require independent verification for AI companies’ safety frameworks that are required under current state law. He’s also seeking recommendations on how to require a kill switch, and how to expand the safety incidents companies must report to the state to include “a range of loss-of-control incidents” such as the recently reported hackings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12094819\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12094819\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Three teenage boys look at their smartphone screens on April 11, 2026. \u003ccite>(Matt Cardy/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Regulation is unlikely from the federal government; President Donald Trump remains all-in on speeding up AI development in the face of competition from China and said the calls for a slowdown are a “conspiracy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom, a likely 2028 presidential contender, said Friday in a press release that should “alarm every American.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re going to speed up our work on substantial and responsible AI oversight before it’s too late,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California under Newsom has enacted several first-in-the-nation laws to curb the potentially existential risks of AI. In 2025, he signed \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb53\">Senate Bill 53\u003c/a>, which requires large AI model developers to publish frameworks on how they manage safety incidents and assess catastrophic risk — defined as incidents involving 50 or more deaths, chemical or biological weapons or more than $1 billion of theft or damage. They also must report critical safety incidents to the state. Illinois and New York have similar laws.[aside postID=news_12099017 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/GavinNewsomAI.jpg']That law sets a high bar for what incidents must be reported, though, including only those involving deaths, injuries or the “materialization of a catastrophic risk.” Advocates for greater tech regulation want the threshold to be lower to cover more incidents like the recent hackings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The measure was a compromise — a requirement for transparency rather than regulatory control — after Newsom in 2024 vetoed \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202320240sb1047\">Senate Bill 1047\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The vetoed measure would have required the largest AI developers to receive safety auditing from third-party, external monitors, develop a kill switch and be subject to clearer legal liability if their technology causes harm. The measure divided Silicon Valley and was fiercely opposed by several of the largest AI developers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The measure was a compromise — a requirement for transparency rather than regulatory control — after Newsom in 2024 vetoed \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202320240sb1047\">Senate Bill 1047\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both bills were authored by Democratic Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/scott-wiener-100936\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a>, whose San Francisco district is home to the most prominent AI companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We must act with all possible haste to address the serious risks of AI-driven catastrophe, and I commend the governor for taking this important step,” he said. “I’m glad to see the strong AI safety framework I laid out in 2024 is still being used to guide policy in 2026.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12092171\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12092171\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A 14-year-old boy looks at an iPhone screen displaying various social media and messaging apps on March 29, 2026. \u003ccite>(Anna Barclay/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The vetoed measure would have required the largest AI developers to receive safety auditing from third-party, external monitors, develop a kill switch and be subject to clearer legal liability if their technology causes harm. The measure divided Silicon Valley and received fierce opposition from several, but not all, of the largest AI developers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom wrote two years ago \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SB-1047-Veto-Message.pdf\">in a veto message\u003c/a> that while he agreed with the need to require safety protocols, the bill could restrict AI development at large companies “at the potential expense of curtailing the very innovation that fuels advancement in favor of the public good.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I agree with the author — we cannot afford to wait for a major catastrophe to occur before taking action to protect the public,” he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since then, more in the industry have embraced third-party evaluations. This year, Newsom signed two laws to verify, register and set standards for those external monitors. But the new laws do not require companies to use them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In his recent call for a slowdown in AI development, Amodei also called for third-party monitoring; both Anthropic and OpenAI say they will commit to the practice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/09/ai-rules-newsom-state-directive/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday ordered state agencies to develop safety regulations for artificial intelligence after vetoing tougher rules two years ago.",
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"title": "Newsom Orders California Agencies to Develop New AI Safety Plans After Rejecting Tougher Law | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c!-- Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ -->\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Gov. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/gavin-newsom\">Gavin Newsom\u003c/a> announced Friday that he is directing state agencies to develop artificial intelligence safety recommendations, some of which were part of a bill he vetoed two years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His change of tune on those measures, including requiring AI developers to include a “kill switch” to shut off certain programs in emergencies, comes in response to growing public alarm over the fast-developing technology’s potential “catastrophic” harms such as AI creating a bioweapon or bringing down the power grid.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom is seeking recommendations from the Government Operations Agency and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services by Nov. 16, which could form the basis of a special legislative session on the issue. He floated the possibility of calling one this week in an \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/17/newsom-floats-special-session-or-executive-action-on-ai-01082216\" data-type=\"link\" data-=\"\">interview with Politico\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom has sought in recent weeks to respond to several incidents in which AI agents from leading developers OpenAI and Anthropic broke away from testing environments, gained access to the open internet and carried out cyberattacks on other websites and companies. Earlier this month, a researcher set off a panic when he resigned from Anthropic while warning the technology could “kill all humans;” the researcher’s former colleagues were quick to agree.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The hackings have captivated the public and seem to confirm AI researchers’ fears that the fast-developing technology is improving its own capabilities beyond human control. Several industry leaders last week endorsed Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/12/technology/anthropic-dario-amodei-ai-slowdown.html\" data-type=\"link\" data-=\"\">call for a slowdown\u003c/a> in development.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom’s order directs the state agencies to recommend changes in state law to require external safety evaluators at AI companies, as well as require independent verification for AI companies’ safety frameworks that are required under current state law. He’s also seeking recommendations on how to require a kill switch, and how to expand the safety incidents companies must report to the state to include “a range of loss-of-control incidents” such as the recently reported hackings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12094819\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12094819\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTeensGetty-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Three teenage boys look at their smartphone screens on April 11, 2026. \u003ccite>(Matt Cardy/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Regulation is unlikely from the federal government; President Donald Trump remains all-in on speeding up AI development in the face of competition from China and said the calls for a slowdown are a “conspiracy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom, a likely 2028 presidential contender, said Friday in a press release that should “alarm every American.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re going to speed up our work on substantial and responsible AI oversight before it’s too late,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California under Newsom has enacted several first-in-the-nation laws to curb the potentially existential risks of AI. In 2025, he signed \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202520260sb53\">Senate Bill 53\u003c/a>, which requires large AI model developers to publish frameworks on how they manage safety incidents and assess catastrophic risk — defined as incidents involving 50 or more deaths, chemical or biological weapons or more than $1 billion of theft or damage. They also must report critical safety incidents to the state. Illinois and New York have similar laws.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>That law sets a high bar for what incidents must be reported, though, including only those involving deaths, injuries or the “materialization of a catastrophic risk.” Advocates for greater tech regulation want the threshold to be lower to cover more incidents like the recent hackings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The measure was a compromise — a requirement for transparency rather than regulatory control — after Newsom in 2024 vetoed \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202320240sb1047\">Senate Bill 1047\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The vetoed measure would have required the largest AI developers to receive safety auditing from third-party, external monitors, develop a kill switch and be subject to clearer legal liability if their technology causes harm. The measure divided Silicon Valley and was fiercely opposed by several of the largest AI developers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The measure was a compromise — a requirement for transparency rather than regulatory control — after Newsom in 2024 vetoed \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/bills/ca_202320240sb1047\">Senate Bill 1047\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both bills were authored by Democratic Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/scott-wiener-100936\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a>, whose San Francisco district is home to the most prominent AI companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We must act with all possible haste to address the serious risks of AI-driven catastrophe, and I commend the governor for taking this important step,” he said. “I’m glad to see the strong AI safety framework I laid out in 2024 is still being used to guide policy in 2026.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12092171\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12092171\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/AIGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A 14-year-old boy looks at an iPhone screen displaying various social media and messaging apps on March 29, 2026. \u003ccite>(Anna Barclay/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The vetoed measure would have required the largest AI developers to receive safety auditing from third-party, external monitors, develop a kill switch and be subject to clearer legal liability if their technology causes harm. The measure divided Silicon Valley and received fierce opposition from several, but not all, of the largest AI developers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Newsom wrote two years ago \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SB-1047-Veto-Message.pdf\">in a veto message\u003c/a> that while he agreed with the need to require safety protocols, the bill could restrict AI development at large companies “at the potential expense of curtailing the very innovation that fuels advancement in favor of the public good.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I agree with the author — we cannot afford to wait for a major catastrophe to occur before taking action to protect the public,” he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since then, more in the industry have embraced third-party evaluations. This year, Newsom signed two laws to verify, register and set standards for those external monitors. But the new laws do not require companies to use them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In his recent call for a slowdown in AI development, Amodei also called for third-party monitoring; both Anthropic and OpenAI say they will commit to the practice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/09/ai-rules-newsom-state-directive/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "a-chromebook-in-the-hand-of-every-child-did-schools-go-too-far",
"title": "‘A Chromebook in the Hand of Every Child.’ Did Schools Go Too Far?",
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"headTitle": "‘A Chromebook in the Hand of Every Child.’ Did Schools Go Too Far? | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>Last year, Suki Reddy started to enter her third-grader’s bedroom to find him, face \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/66537/the-school-year-begins-in-la-with-one-big-change-limited-screen-time\">lit up behind the glow of a computer\u003c/a>, watching YouTube. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This didn’t seem possible, she thought; she had put controls on his iPad and closely monitored his screen time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But Reddy’s son didn’t have to use his personal tablet to watch videos in bed. He could open YouTube on his school-issued Chromebook. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They had less controls on their school computer than families have,” Reddy said. “There’s families who don’t have any phones or iPads for their kids. The only access that their kids are getting is through the school computer.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Reddy’s two children are in the San Mateo–Foster City School District, which includes 21 elementary and middle schools across the two cities. For years, the district has issued each child a Chromebook and integrated them into students’ learning, using them for access to textbooks, class handouts and homework as early as transitional kindergarten.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095056\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Bowditch Middle School on Wednesday, Aug.12, 2026, in Foster City. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Last year, as Reddy became concerned about the amount of screen time her children had through school, she started to speak with other parents who were also \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/66517/families-and-teachers-are-questioning-ed-tech-are-schools-and-districts-starting-to-listen\">growing worried\u003c/a>. They saw their kids getting distracted by entertainment apps, noticed their attention spans deteriorating and their mental health suffering from the effects of spending hours online. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While many parents already had their own rules for their kids’ use of social media and personal devices, educational technology had opened up a new front. Even when guardrails were put in place to limit the school devices’ usage, parents learned that children had found tricks to bypass protections.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SMFCSD spokesperson Diego Perez said via email that the district has “a ton of restrictions” on its Chromebooks but did not respond to direct questions about whether YouTube was blocked on the devices.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It really made me realize it’s time to look at schools,” Reddy said. “That’s when I started asking questions directly to them.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1386\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097071\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty-1536x1064.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Over the last 15 years, classroom technology use has increased rapidly in districts across the country. Most now have 1:1 device programs, sending children as young as 5 and 6 home with personal tablets or computers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as more research emerges about the potential harms of screen use for children, while test scores in schools across the U.S. struggle to rebound after the COVID-19 pandemic, districts are at an inflection point. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California has mandated \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094226/ousd-cellphone-ban-for-students-takes-effect-on-the-first-day-of-the-school-year\">school cellphone restrictions\u003c/a> across the state, and parents in the Bay Area are pushing their school boards and administrators to pass new policies that limit screen time and institute content guardrails for students — following in the footsteps of the Los Angeles Unified School District, whose board passed a landmark resolution this year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re not anti-technology,” Reddy said. “We’re very much a group in the Bay Area. Many parents work in the tech industry and work for the very companies who produce these tech tools. But because of that, we have a very unique stance where we recognize that there’s not just an upside to this — there are actually a lot of potential problems.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The rise of ed tech\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>One-to-one device programs are now in 88% of public schools across the U.S., according to \u003ca href=\"https://ies.ed.gov/learn/press-release/more-half-public-school-leaders-say-cell-phones-hurt-academic-performance\">data from the National Center for Education Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They gained traction throughout the 2010s, according to neuroscientist and former teacher Jared Cooney Horvath, who said education technology companies pitched their products as an unrivaled opportunity to individualize learning and, later, as the great equalizer for students across demographic groups.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Put a Chromebook in the hand of every child, and that’s how you’re going to close the equity gap,” said Anya Meksin, the deputy director of parent organization Schools Beyond Screens, which advocated for the LAUSD policy. “This idea was sold to school districts without really any data to back it up. It was really a sales pitch.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097074\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students in Karen Finkel’s class at Broadacres Elementary School in Carson explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>While 1:1 device programs first jumped significantly in 2010, Horvath said, they became pervasive during the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Many school districts used federal grants to buy and distribute technology to their students at home, which allowed teachers to continue connecting with their classes and provide some instruction — if limited.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s a Band-Aid,” Horvath said. “The problem is, [districts] invested so much in the tech infrastructure that when COVID ended, rather than pulling the Band-Aid off and going back to what we know works, we just stuck with it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Schools Beyond Screens\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2025, after California passed statewide legislation restricting students’ cellphone use in school, a group of Los Angeles parents founded Schools Beyond Screens, asking LAUSD to rethink its technology policies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When I toured 10 local public elementary schools to decide where my kid was going to go, I was completely appalled to see kindergartners on almost every single school tour sitting on computers with headphones on in a darkened room,” Meksin said. They were “not looking at the teacher, not looking at each other. A lot of times, the kids were just scrolling on YouTube.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meksin and other parents spent months rallying supporters on dozens of district campuses, flooded the public comment period of school board meetings, lobbied district representatives and board members, and redlined draft legislation before passing a slate of historic policies in June. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095057\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Audubon Elementary School on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, in Foster City. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Beginning this fall, the country’s second-largest school district banned the use of student digital devices in early education through first-grade classrooms, and put strict minute caps on older students’ screen time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>LAUSD also rolled back its 1:1 device program, no longer making it the default for a student entering the district to be issued a personal tablet or laptop to use in the classroom and at home. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have to acknowledge that we now know more,” said LAUSD board member Nick Melvoin, who put forward the district’s “Using Technology With Intention” resolution that passed in April. “Yes, we’ve seen some academic benefits, but we’ve also seen a lot of the harms with kids on screens and the addictive nature of things like YouTube algorithms and all that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When you know better, you need to do better,” he continued. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘A hard Pandora’s box to close’\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents in the Bay Area said they also started to question school device use after seeing declines in their children’s learning outcomes. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nationally, standardized reading and math test scores were lower in 2025 than they were in 2015 in \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/upshot/test-scores-school-districts-us.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.G_Ub.cXbz5_-EC4R3&smid=url-share\">83% and 70% of school districts\u003c/a>, respectively. School districts have cited the pandemic as one of the main causes for a dip in the early 2020s, but scores haven’t rebounded since then as education professionals had hoped. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Mateo–Foster City’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/upshot/look-up-district-test-scores.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.zJm-.fi1gEuALEaT6&smid=url-share\">reading scores declined\u003c/a> by 1.2 grade levels over the 10-year period, with the sharpest drop coming between 2022 and 2025. Math scores followed a similar trend. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097080\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Suki Reddy poses for a portrait in Leo J. Ryan Park on Aug. 12, 2026, in San Mateo. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>“It made me look at their curriculum more closely, look at the materials they had and the distractions they were up against,” Reddy said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There was no textbook where [students] could go back and forth between pages to see how to do something and where [they’re] getting things wrong,” she continued. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Despite growing anecdotal concern and research revealing the pitfalls of ed tech, Meksin said rolling it back “was a hard Pandora’s box to close.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During the 2014-15 school year, California public school districts transitioned statewide standardized testing online with the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), eliminating the need for Scantron forms and #2 pencils. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In some districts, digital testing software is also used to track student benchmarks throughout the year and determine which students are placed into advanced courses or receive extra support. Reading quizzes and other small assessments are often embedded in online learning management systems.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents said apps such as i-Ready, a digital program that provides diagnostic math and language arts testing and associated curriculum, are now too ingrained to remove — even if their merit is in question. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s no evidence that it actually helps kids, and a lot of anecdotal evidence that what it does do is create a distance between the student and the teacher, create a lot of confusion and anxiety for the parent because they’re getting these scores and they don’t know what they mean,” Candace Wei, a parent in the Palo Alto Unified School District, said of i-Ready’s format. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said despite this, when Mountain View’s school district tried to get rid of the software, “parents revolted.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They said, ‘If our kids don’t do the i-Ready curriculum, how will they be prepared for the diagnostic [test]? How will they get into honors algebra?” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mountain View Whisman School District spokesperson Shelly Hausman said the district is moving away from using i-Ready diagnostic assessments this year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“MVWSD is moving toward teacher-created tests that are more closely aligned with California state standards and statewide tests,” she said via email. “This work, based on the district’s systems study, ensures our benchmark assessments align with the rigor of state SBAC assessments.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This year, fifth- through eighth-grade students will still take i-Ready math diagnostic exams three times. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For now, i-Ready Math is one of two measures used to determine their placement in math classes, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Using momentum\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After Los Angeles’ historic resolution this spring, though, their tech-limiting movement has gained traction.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We saw a massive influx of interest from across the country, people signing up on our website and emailing and asking, ‘How do I start a chapter?’” Meksin said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There are now more than 200 chapters in 38 states, and Schools Beyond Screens is \u003ca href=\"https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1k46VkFBIFgETIErq09JsqIASJzOCAnPe1JcODxOA-sg/edit?gid=1633699863#gid=1633699863\">tracking more than 70 districts\u003c/a> that have changed or are considering new tech policies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1998\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095609\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1998px) 100vw, 1998px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students arrive at Jose Ortega Elementary School for the first day of their school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>The Bay Area has 11 chapters, including San Mateo’s “\u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/people/Intentional-Tech-in-SchoolsSMFCSD/61589993704088/\">Intentional Tech in Schools\u003c/a>.” More than 580 SMFCSD parents have signed a petition that the group circulated, urging the district to consider a slew of policies modeled after those in Los Angeles. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a message to parents just a week before the school year began this month, Superintendent Diego Ochoa announced that the district would transition away from assigning devices to every student in transitional kindergarten through second grade, and said it’s implementing a new “print-first” math curriculum in elementary schools. SMFCSD is also establishing a technology task force and plans to move toward replacing its 1:1 device strategy with Chromebook carts. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Reddy said that at her child’s back-to-school night earlier this month, multiple teachers told parents that students wouldn’t be allowed to use Chromebooks during class downtime, and that the school planned to restrict use during passing periods, P.E. and lunch. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Some of the educators also said that they planned to give out handwritten assignments and project lessons on a single screen at the front of the classroom, instead of having students follow along on their own devices.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s something. However, it isn’t enough,” Reddy said. “Technology evolves way faster than policy, so we can’t keep sticking to these old-school ways of taking a long time with lengthy stakeholder processes for every decision.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Reddy and other SMFCSD parents plan to attend the district’s school board meeting on Thursday to push for their more robust requests. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, groups in Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, San Francisco and Oakland are also organizing as school resumes, circulating petitions and connecting parents to drum up support at school board meetings. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Many said as they look toward the November election, they’ll also be considering school board candidates’ stance on technology reform at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I will absolutely be thinking about sensible screen policy platforms when it comes to voting for any school board member, now and in the future,” said Miranda Arly, who started a Schools Beyond Screens chapter for the Sunnyvale, Mountain View and Los Altos school districts in May. “I’m paying more attention than I ever would have before.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Reddy’s two children are in the San Mateo–Foster City School District, which includes 21 elementary and middle schools across the two cities. For years, the district has issued each child a Chromebook and integrated them into students’ learning, using them for access to textbooks, class handouts and homework as early as transitional kindergarten.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While many parents already had their own rules for their kids’ use of social media and personal devices, educational technology had opened up a new front. Even when guardrails were put in place to limit the school devices’ usage, parents learned that children had found tricks to bypass protections.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097071\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty-1536x1064.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Over the last 15 years, classroom technology use has increased rapidly in districts across the country. Most now have 1:1 device programs, sending children as young as 5 and 6 home with personal tablets or computers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But as more research emerges about the potential harms of screen use for children, while test scores in schools across the U.S. struggle to rebound after the COVID-19 pandemic, districts are at an inflection point. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But as more research emerges about the potential harms of screen use for children, while test scores in schools across the U.S. struggle to rebound after the COVID-19 pandemic, districts are at an inflection point. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California has mandated \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094226/ousd-cellphone-ban-for-students-takes-effect-on-the-first-day-of-the-school-year\">school cellphone restrictions\u003c/a> across the state, and parents in the Bay Area are pushing their school boards and administrators to pass new policies that limit screen time and institute content guardrails for students — following in the footsteps of the Los Angeles Unified School District, whose board passed a landmark resolution this year. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We’re not anti-technology,” Reddy said. “We’re very much a group in the Bay Area. Many parents work in the tech industry and work for the very companies who produce these tech tools. But because of that, we have a very unique stance where we recognize that there’s not just an upside to this — there are actually a lot of potential problems.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>One-to-one device programs are now in 88% of public schools across the U.S., according to \u003ca href=\"https://ies.ed.gov/learn/press-release/more-half-public-school-leaders-say-cell-phones-hurt-academic-performance\">data from the National Center for Education Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>One-to-one device programs are now in 88% of public schools across the U.S., according to \u003ca href=\"https://ies.ed.gov/learn/press-release/more-half-public-school-leaders-say-cell-phones-hurt-academic-performance\">data from the National Center for Education Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>They gained traction throughout the 2010s, according to neuroscientist and former teacher Jared Cooney Horvath, who said education technology companies pitched their products as an unrivaled opportunity to individualize learning and, later, as the great equalizer for students across demographic groups.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>They gained traction throughout the 2010s, according to neuroscientist and former teacher Jared Cooney Horvath, who said education technology companies pitched their products as an unrivaled opportunity to individualize learning and, later, as the great equalizer for students across demographic groups.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Put a Chromebook in the hand of every child, and that’s how you’re going to close the equity gap,” said Anya Meksin, the deputy director of parent organization Schools Beyond Screens, which advocated for the LAUSD policy. “This idea was sold to school districts without really any data to back it up. It was really a sales pitch.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Put a Chromebook in the hand of every child, and that’s how you’re going to close the equity gap,” said Anya Meksin, the deputy director of parent organization Schools Beyond Screens, which advocated for the LAUSD policy. “This idea was sold to school districts without really any data to back it up. It was really a sales pitch.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097074\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students in Karen Finkel’s class at Broadacres Elementary School in Carson explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097074\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students in Karen Finkel’s class at Broadacres Elementary School in Carson explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While 1:1 device programs first jumped significantly in 2010, Horvath said, they became pervasive during the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Many school districts used federal grants to buy and distribute technology to their students at home, which allowed teachers to continue connecting with their classes and provide some instruction — if limited.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Many school districts used federal grants to buy and distribute technology to their students at home, which allowed teachers to continue connecting with their classes and provide some instruction — if limited.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s a Band-Aid,” Horvath said. “The problem is, [districts] invested so much in the tech infrastructure that when COVID ended, rather than pulling the Band-Aid off and going back to what we know works, we just stuck with it.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s a Band-Aid,” Horvath said. “The problem is, [districts] invested so much in the tech infrastructure that when COVID ended, rather than pulling the Band-Aid off and going back to what we know works, we just stuck with it.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In 2025, after California passed statewide legislation restricting students’ cellphone use in school, a group of Los Angeles parents founded Schools Beyond Screens, asking LAUSD to rethink its technology policies.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“When I toured 10 local public elementary schools to decide where my kid was going to go, I was completely appalled to see kindergartners on almost every single school tour sitting on computers with headphones on in a darkened room,” Meksin said. They were “not looking at the teacher, not looking at each other. A lot of times, the kids were just scrolling on YouTube.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“When I toured 10 local public elementary schools to decide where my kid was going to go, I was completely appalled to see kindergartners on almost every single school tour sitting on computers with headphones on in a darkened room,” Meksin said. They were “not looking at the teacher, not looking at each other. A lot of times, the kids were just scrolling on YouTube.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Meksin and other parents spent months rallying supporters on dozens of district campuses, flooded the public comment period of school board meetings, lobbied district representatives and board members, and redlined draft legislation before passing a slate of historic policies in June. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Meksin and other parents spent months rallying supporters on dozens of district campuses, flooded the public comment period of school board meetings, lobbied district representatives and board members, and redlined draft legislation before passing a slate of historic policies in June. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095057\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Audubon Elementary School on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, in Foster City.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095057\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Audubon Elementary School on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, in Foster City.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Beginning this fall, the country’s second-largest school district banned the use of student digital devices in early education through first-grade classrooms, and put strict minute caps on older students’ screen time. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Beginning this fall, the country’s second-largest school district banned the use of student digital devices in early education through first-grade classrooms, and put strict minute caps on older students’ screen time. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>LAUSD also rolled back its 1:1 device program, no longer making it the default for a student entering the district to be issued a personal tablet or laptop to use in the classroom and at home. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>LAUSD also rolled back its 1:1 device program, no longer making it the default for a student entering the district to be issued a personal tablet or laptop to use in the classroom and at home. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have to acknowledge that we now know more,” said LAUSD board member Nick Melvoin, who put forward the district’s “Using Technology With Intention” resolution that passed in April. “Yes, we’ve seen some academic benefits, but we’ve also seen a lot of the harms with kids on screens and the addictive nature of things like YouTube algorithms and all that.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We have to acknowledge that we now know more,” said LAUSD board member Nick Melvoin, who put forward the district’s “Using Technology With Intention” resolution that passed in April. “Yes, we’ve seen some academic benefits, but we’ve also seen a lot of the harms with kids on screens and the addictive nature of things like YouTube algorithms and all that.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“When you know better, you need to do better,” he continued. \u003c/p>\n",
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"text": "‘A hard Pandora’s box to close’",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘A hard Pandora’s box to close’\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Parents in the Bay Area said they also started to question school device use after seeing declines in their children’s learning outcomes. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Parents in the Bay Area said they also started to question school device use after seeing declines in their children’s learning outcomes. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Nationally, standardized reading and math test scores were lower in 2025 than they were in 2015 in \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/upshot/test-scores-school-districts-us.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.G_Ub.cXbz5_-EC4R3&smid=url-share\">83% and 70% of school districts\u003c/a>, respectively. School districts have cited the pandemic as one of the main causes for a dip in the early 2020s, but scores haven’t rebounded since then as education professionals had hoped. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Nationally, standardized reading and math test scores were lower in 2025 than they were in 2015 in \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/upshot/test-scores-school-districts-us.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.G_Ub.cXbz5_-EC4R3&smid=url-share\">83% and 70% of school districts\u003c/a>, respectively. School districts have cited the pandemic as one of the main causes for a dip in the early 2020s, but scores haven’t rebounded since then as education professionals had hoped. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Mateo–Foster City’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/upshot/look-up-district-test-scores.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.zJm-.fi1gEuALEaT6&smid=url-share\">reading scores declined\u003c/a> by 1.2 grade levels over the 10-year period, with the sharpest drop coming between 2022 and 2025. Math scores followed a similar trend. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Mateo–Foster City’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/upshot/look-up-district-test-scores.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.zJm-.fi1gEuALEaT6&smid=url-share\">reading scores declined\u003c/a> by 1.2 grade levels over the 10-year period, with the sharpest drop coming between 2022 and 2025. Math scores followed a similar trend. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097080\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Suki Reddy poses for a portrait in Leo J. Ryan Park on Aug. 12, 2026, in San Mateo.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097080\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Suki Reddy poses for a portrait in Leo J. Ryan Park on Aug. 12, 2026, in San Mateo.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It made me look at their curriculum more closely, look at the materials they had and the distractions they were up against,” Reddy said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There was no textbook where [students] could go back and forth between pages to see how to do something and where [they’re] getting things wrong,” she continued. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Despite growing anecdotal concern and research revealing the pitfalls of ed tech, Meksin said rolling it back “was a hard Pandora’s box to close.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>During the 2014-15 school year, California public school districts transitioned statewide standardized testing online with the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), eliminating the need for Scantron forms and #2 pencils. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Parents said apps such as i-Ready, a digital program that provides diagnostic math and language arts testing and associated curriculum, are now too ingrained to remove — even if their merit is in question. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said despite this, when Mountain View’s school district tried to get rid of the software, “parents revolted.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“They said, ‘If our kids don’t do the i-Ready curriculum, how will they be prepared for the diagnostic [test]? How will they get into honors algebra?” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mountain View Whisman School District spokesperson Shelly Hausman said the district is moving away from using i-Ready diagnostic assessments this year. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“MVWSD is moving toward teacher-created tests that are more closely aligned with California state standards and statewide tests,” she said via email. “This work, based on the district’s systems study, ensures our benchmark assessments align with the rigor of state SBAC assessments.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This year, fifth- through eighth-grade students will still take i-Ready math diagnostic exams three times. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For now, i-Ready Math is one of two measures used to determine their placement in math classes, she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>After Los Angeles’ historic resolution this spring, though, their tech-limiting movement has gained traction.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We saw a massive influx of interest from across the country, people signing up on our website and emailing and asking, ‘How do I start a chapter?’” Meksin said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There are now more than 200 chapters in 38 states, and Schools Beyond Screens is \u003ca href=\"https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1k46VkFBIFgETIErq09JsqIASJzOCAnPe1JcODxOA-sg/edit?gid=1633699863#gid=1633699863\">tracking more than 70 districts\u003c/a> that have changed or are considering new tech policies.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Bay Area has 11 chapters, including San Mateo’s “\u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/people/Intentional-Tech-in-SchoolsSMFCSD/61589993704088/\">Intentional Tech in Schools\u003c/a>.” More than 580 SMFCSD parents have signed a petition that the group circulated, urging the district to consider a slew of policies modeled after those in Los Angeles. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a message to parents just a week before the school year began this month, Superintendent Diego Ochoa announced that the district would transition away from assigning devices to every student in transitional kindergarten through second grade, and said it’s implementing a new “print-first” math curriculum in elementary schools. SMFCSD is also establishing a technology task force and plans to move toward replacing its 1:1 device strategy with Chromebook carts. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In a message to parents just a week before the school year began this month, Superintendent Diego Ochoa announced that the district would transition away from assigning devices to every student in transitional kindergarten through second grade, and said it’s implementing a new “print-first” math curriculum in elementary schools. SMFCSD is also establishing a technology task force and plans to move toward replacing its 1:1 device strategy with Chromebook carts. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Reddy said that at her child’s back-to-school night earlier this month, multiple teachers told parents that students wouldn’t be allowed to use Chromebooks during class downtime, and that the school planned to restrict use during passing periods, P.E. and lunch. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Some of the educators also said that they planned to give out handwritten assignments and project lessons on a single screen at the front of the classroom, instead of having students follow along on their own devices.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s something. However, it isn’t enough,” Reddy said. “Technology evolves way faster than policy, so we can’t keep sticking to these old-school ways of taking a long time with lengthy stakeholder processes for every decision.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s something. However, it isn’t enough,” Reddy said. “Technology evolves way faster than policy, so we can’t keep sticking to these old-school ways of taking a long time with lengthy stakeholder processes for every decision.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Reddy and other SMFCSD parents plan to attend the district’s school board meeting on Thursday to push for their more robust requests. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, groups in Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, San Francisco and Oakland are also organizing as school resumes, circulating petitions and connecting parents to drum up support at school board meetings. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Many said as they look toward the November election, they’ll also be considering school board candidates’ stance on technology reform at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I will absolutely be thinking about sensible screen policy platforms when it comes to voting for any school board member, now and in the future,” said Miranda Arly, who started a Schools Beyond Screens chapter for the Sunnyvale, Mountain View and Los Altos school districts in May. “I’m paying more attention than I ever would have before.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Classroom technology use has exploded in districts across the U.S., especially since the pandemic. Now, a growing movement of parents is asking schools to rethink their policies.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>Last year, Suki Reddy started to enter her third-grader’s bedroom to find him, face \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/66537/the-school-year-begins-in-la-with-one-big-change-limited-screen-time\">lit up behind the glow of a computer\u003c/a>, watching YouTube. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This didn’t seem possible, she thought; she had put controls on his iPad and closely monitored his screen time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But Reddy’s son didn’t have to use his personal tablet to watch videos in bed. He could open YouTube on his school-issued Chromebook. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They had less controls on their school computer than families have,” Reddy said. “There’s families who don’t have any phones or iPads for their kids. The only access that their kids are getting is through the school computer.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Reddy’s two children are in the San Mateo–Foster City School District, which includes 21 elementary and middle schools across the two cities. For years, the district has issued each child a Chromebook and integrated them into students’ learning, using them for access to textbooks, class handouts and homework as early as transitional kindergarten.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095056\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-09-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Bowditch Middle School on Wednesday, Aug.12, 2026, in Foster City. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Last year, as Reddy became concerned about the amount of screen time her children had through school, she started to speak with other parents who were also \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/66517/families-and-teachers-are-questioning-ed-tech-are-schools-and-districts-starting-to-listen\">growing worried\u003c/a>. They saw their kids getting distracted by entertainment apps, noticed their attention spans deteriorating and their mental health suffering from the effects of spending hours online. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While many parents already had their own rules for their kids’ use of social media and personal devices, educational technology had opened up a new front. Even when guardrails were put in place to limit the school devices’ usage, parents learned that children had found tricks to bypass protections.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>SMFCSD spokesperson Diego Perez said via email that the district has “a ton of restrictions” on its Chromebooks but did not respond to direct questions about whether YouTube was blocked on the devices.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It really made me realize it’s time to look at schools,” Reddy said. “That’s when I started asking questions directly to them.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1386\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097071\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/StudentsTabletsGetty-1536x1064.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Over the last 15 years, classroom technology use has increased rapidly in districts across the country. Most now have 1:1 device programs, sending children as young as 5 and 6 home with personal tablets or computers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as more research emerges about the potential harms of screen use for children, while test scores in schools across the U.S. struggle to rebound after the COVID-19 pandemic, districts are at an inflection point. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California has mandated \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094226/ousd-cellphone-ban-for-students-takes-effect-on-the-first-day-of-the-school-year\">school cellphone restrictions\u003c/a> across the state, and parents in the Bay Area are pushing their school boards and administrators to pass new policies that limit screen time and institute content guardrails for students — following in the footsteps of the Los Angeles Unified School District, whose board passed a landmark resolution this year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re not anti-technology,” Reddy said. “We’re very much a group in the Bay Area. Many parents work in the tech industry and work for the very companies who produce these tech tools. But because of that, we have a very unique stance where we recognize that there’s not just an upside to this — there are actually a lot of potential problems.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The rise of ed tech\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>One-to-one device programs are now in 88% of public schools across the U.S., according to \u003ca href=\"https://ies.ed.gov/learn/press-release/more-half-public-school-leaders-say-cell-phones-hurt-academic-performance\">data from the National Center for Education Statistics\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They gained traction throughout the 2010s, according to neuroscientist and former teacher Jared Cooney Horvath, who said education technology companies pitched their products as an unrivaled opportunity to individualize learning and, later, as the great equalizer for students across demographic groups.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Put a Chromebook in the hand of every child, and that’s how you’re going to close the equity gap,” said Anya Meksin, the deputy director of parent organization Schools Beyond Screens, which advocated for the LAUSD policy. “This idea was sold to school districts without really any data to back it up. It was really a sales pitch.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097074\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-566010757-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students in Karen Finkel’s class at Broadacres Elementary School in Carson explore the possibilities with their new LAUSD-provided iPads on Aug. 27, 2013. (Bob Chamberlin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>While 1:1 device programs first jumped significantly in 2010, Horvath said, they became pervasive during the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Many school districts used federal grants to buy and distribute technology to their students at home, which allowed teachers to continue connecting with their classes and provide some instruction — if limited.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s a Band-Aid,” Horvath said. “The problem is, [districts] invested so much in the tech infrastructure that when COVID ended, rather than pulling the Band-Aid off and going back to what we know works, we just stuck with it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Schools Beyond Screens\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2025, after California passed statewide legislation restricting students’ cellphone use in school, a group of Los Angeles parents founded Schools Beyond Screens, asking LAUSD to rethink its technology policies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When I toured 10 local public elementary schools to decide where my kid was going to go, I was completely appalled to see kindergartners on almost every single school tour sitting on computers with headphones on in a darkened room,” Meksin said. They were “not looking at the teacher, not looking at each other. A lot of times, the kids were just scrolling on YouTube.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meksin and other parents spent months rallying supporters on dozens of district campuses, flooded the public comment period of school board meetings, lobbied district representatives and board members, and redlined draft legislation before passing a slate of historic policies in June. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095057\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-14-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Audubon Elementary School on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, in Foster City. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Beginning this fall, the country’s second-largest school district banned the use of student digital devices in early education through first-grade classrooms, and put strict minute caps on older students’ screen time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>LAUSD also rolled back its 1:1 device program, no longer making it the default for a student entering the district to be issued a personal tablet or laptop to use in the classroom and at home. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have to acknowledge that we now know more,” said LAUSD board member Nick Melvoin, who put forward the district’s “Using Technology With Intention” resolution that passed in April. “Yes, we’ve seen some academic benefits, but we’ve also seen a lot of the harms with kids on screens and the addictive nature of things like YouTube algorithms and all that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When you know better, you need to do better,” he continued. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">‘A hard Pandora’s box to close’\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents in the Bay Area said they also started to question school device use after seeing declines in their children’s learning outcomes. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nationally, standardized reading and math test scores were lower in 2025 than they were in 2015 in \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/13/upshot/test-scores-school-districts-us.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.G_Ub.cXbz5_-EC4R3&smid=url-share\">83% and 70% of school districts\u003c/a>, respectively. School districts have cited the pandemic as one of the main causes for a dip in the early 2020s, but scores haven’t rebounded since then as education professionals had hoped. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Mateo–Foster City’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/upshot/look-up-district-test-scores.html?unlocked_article_code=1.iFA.zJm-.fi1gEuALEaT6&smid=url-share\">reading scores declined\u003c/a> by 1.2 grade levels over the 10-year period, with the sharpest drop coming between 2022 and 2025. Math scores followed a similar trend. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12097080\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081226-SchoolTechBans-02-MC_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Suki Reddy poses for a portrait in Leo J. Ryan Park on Aug. 12, 2026, in San Mateo. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>“It made me look at their curriculum more closely, look at the materials they had and the distractions they were up against,” Reddy said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There was no textbook where [students] could go back and forth between pages to see how to do something and where [they’re] getting things wrong,” she continued. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Despite growing anecdotal concern and research revealing the pitfalls of ed tech, Meksin said rolling it back “was a hard Pandora’s box to close.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During the 2014-15 school year, California public school districts transitioned statewide standardized testing online with the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), eliminating the need for Scantron forms and #2 pencils. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In some districts, digital testing software is also used to track student benchmarks throughout the year and determine which students are placed into advanced courses or receive extra support. Reading quizzes and other small assessments are often embedded in online learning management systems.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents said apps such as i-Ready, a digital program that provides diagnostic math and language arts testing and associated curriculum, are now too ingrained to remove — even if their merit is in question. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s no evidence that it actually helps kids, and a lot of anecdotal evidence that what it does do is create a distance between the student and the teacher, create a lot of confusion and anxiety for the parent because they’re getting these scores and they don’t know what they mean,” Candace Wei, a parent in the Palo Alto Unified School District, said of i-Ready’s format. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said despite this, when Mountain View’s school district tried to get rid of the software, “parents revolted.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“They said, ‘If our kids don’t do the i-Ready curriculum, how will they be prepared for the diagnostic [test]? How will they get into honors algebra?” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mountain View Whisman School District spokesperson Shelly Hausman said the district is moving away from using i-Ready diagnostic assessments this year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“MVWSD is moving toward teacher-created tests that are more closely aligned with California state standards and statewide tests,” she said via email. “This work, based on the district’s systems study, ensures our benchmark assessments align with the rigor of state SBAC assessments.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This year, fifth- through eighth-grade students will still take i-Ready math diagnostic exams three times. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For now, i-Ready Math is one of two measures used to determine their placement in math classes, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Using momentum\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After Los Angeles’ historic resolution this spring, though, their tech-limiting movement has gained traction.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We saw a massive influx of interest from across the country, people signing up on our website and emailing and asking, ‘How do I start a chapter?’” Meksin said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There are now more than 200 chapters in 38 states, and Schools Beyond Screens is \u003ca href=\"https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/1k46VkFBIFgETIErq09JsqIASJzOCAnPe1JcODxOA-sg/edit?gid=1633699863#gid=1633699863\">tracking more than 70 districts\u003c/a> that have changed or are considering new tech policies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1998\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095609\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1998px) 100vw, 1998px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students arrive at Jose Ortega Elementary School for the first day of their school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>The Bay Area has 11 chapters, including San Mateo’s “\u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/people/Intentional-Tech-in-SchoolsSMFCSD/61589993704088/\">Intentional Tech in Schools\u003c/a>.” More than 580 SMFCSD parents have signed a petition that the group circulated, urging the district to consider a slew of policies modeled after those in Los Angeles. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a message to parents just a week before the school year began this month, Superintendent Diego Ochoa announced that the district would transition away from assigning devices to every student in transitional kindergarten through second grade, and said it’s implementing a new “print-first” math curriculum in elementary schools. SMFCSD is also establishing a technology task force and plans to move toward replacing its 1:1 device strategy with Chromebook carts. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Reddy said that at her child’s back-to-school night earlier this month, multiple teachers told parents that students wouldn’t be allowed to use Chromebooks during class downtime, and that the school planned to restrict use during passing periods, P.E. and lunch. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Some of the educators also said that they planned to give out handwritten assignments and project lessons on a single screen at the front of the classroom, instead of having students follow along on their own devices.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s something. However, it isn’t enough,” Reddy said. “Technology evolves way faster than policy, so we can’t keep sticking to these old-school ways of taking a long time with lengthy stakeholder processes for every decision.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Reddy and other SMFCSD parents plan to attend the district’s school board meeting on Thursday to push for their more robust requests. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, groups in Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, San Francisco and Oakland are also organizing as school resumes, circulating petitions and connecting parents to drum up support at school board meetings. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Many said as they look toward the November election, they’ll also be considering school board candidates’ stance on technology reform at the ballot box. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I will absolutely be thinking about sensible screen policy platforms when it comes to voting for any school board member, now and in the future,” said Miranda Arly, who started a Schools Beyond Screens chapter for the Sunnyvale, Mountain View and Los Altos school districts in May. “I’m paying more attention than I ever would have before.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "under-proposed-trump-rule-head-start-would-be-english-only",
"title": "Under Proposed Trump Rule, Head Start Would Be English-Only",
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"headTitle": "Under Proposed Trump Rule, Head Start Would Be English-Only | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>’s Chinatown, toddlers and preschoolers often learn their first English words at Lok Yuen Early Learning Center.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The center serves low-income families who qualify for Head Start, and the children come from households that speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish, Arabic or Nepali. To connect with the kids and get them accustomed to the classroom, teachers greet them in their home languages and hang pictures and signs on the walls in multiple languages.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Even if we don’t know their language, being able to learn one or two words like, ‘Hola, como estas?’ can make them feel welcome,” said Jennifer Lee Yuen, a teacher at the center run by Wu Yee Children’s Services, the largest Head Start provider in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But these practices could end under a proposal to reform the 61-year-old program led by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy. Earlier this month, he unveiled a plan that would remove federal requirements for class sizes, staff qualifications and other standards with the goal of cutting administrative costs and increasing access to Head Start. Within that plan to eliminate “unnecessary bureaucracy,” however, is a \u003ca href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/07/2026-16134/reducing-federal-burden-for-head-start-programs\">new requirement\u003c/a> that programs teach only in English.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096897\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A child opens a bottle of glue at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>If finalized, the requirement for English-only instruction would reverse longstanding regulations that Head Start programs support bilingualism. Administration officials say those regulations are “at odds” with President Donald Trump’s executive order designating English as the official language of the United States. But advocates for Head Start say this mandate would not only conflict with the administration’s messaging around decreasing federal oversight of the program, but it could also potentially cost jobs and millions of dollars to implement — a scenario the administration also acknowledges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the proposed rule, officials with the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), which oversees and funds Head Start, estimated that implementing the English-only mandate would cost about $47 million to replace learning materials at nearly 19,000 classrooms. Some teachers might need retraining, they wrote, “while others may need to be replaced.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposal noted that having fewer bilingual staff might weaken non-English-speaking families’ engagement and suggested the educators use translation apps to communicate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“To me that shows a disrespect of these families,” said Shantel Meek, executive director of the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University. “It’s common sense to have someone on staff who speaks the language of the families being served.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://cep.asu.edu/sites/g/files/litvpz916/files/2026-08/Preserving%20Access%20and%20Opportunity%20in%20Head%20Start%20for%20Children%20Dual%20Language%20Learners%20%20A%20Review%20of%20the%20Science%2C%20Legislative%20Mandates%2C%20and%20Regulatory%20Requirements%20%2811%29.pdf\">Meek co-authored a policy brief\u003c/a> that raises the possibility that the changes may conflict with the Head Start Act, a law passed by Congress which specifies that revisions to the program’s standards will not result in “any reduction in quality, scope, or types” of services already in place.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Education experts say the policy also runs counter to evidence that children learn a second language faster when they \u003ca href=\"https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0002831214545110\">maintain the first language\u003c/a> they learned at home.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This really creates a false choice between learning English and maintaining a child’s home language,” said Martha Hernandez, executive director of Californians Together, an organization based in Long Beach that advocates for English learners and multilingual education in California. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We absolutely want children to develop strong English,” she said. “The question is whether we have to ask a 3- or 4-year-old to give up the language they already know in order to do that. And the research-based approach has always been to build English while continuing to develop the home language\u003cem>.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Head Start programs for American Indian children would be exempt from the English-only requirement, but advocates in California worry the policy would affect Early Head Start, which serves expectant moms and children under the age of 3, as well as Migrant Head Start, which serves the children of farm workers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096895\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children and teachers prepare to work on a craft project at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12096894\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096894\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Signage is in multiple languages at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12096900\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096900\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A pedestrian walks past Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“For Early Head Start, we have classrooms where all of the teachers are monolingual in just, say, Spanish, because that’s what all of the kids in that classroom speak,” said Melanee Cottrill, executive director of Head Start California, an association of Head Start programs serving over 70,000 children in the Golden State. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If you switch to English only, all of those classrooms would be completely devastated, and we would lose all those teachers,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Luis Bautista, who oversees Head Start programs for the Los Angeles County Office of Education, said the proposal has a “chilling effect.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s concerning to think that this is the message we would be sending to children and families across the country, especially when we’re charged to serve children that are in foster care, families that are experiencing homelessness, families that are already dealing with quite a number of challenges,” Bautista said. “We should not be adding more barriers to their participation.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096898\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children play the red light, green light game with preschool lead teacher Tracey O’Brien on the playground at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>The ACF said cutting regulations would save money and give local providers and their parent-led governing bodies more flexibility to run programs that meet their communities’ needs.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“While the proposed rule requires programs to be conducted in English … it allows programs to seek a waiver from any specific requirement in the regulation as long as it does not relate to nutrition, physical activity, or eligibility,” an ACF representative told KQED. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://headstart.gov/program-data/article/head-start-program-facts-fiscal-year-2024\">The most recent data show\u003c/a> more than 30% of Head Start staffers nationwide were bilingual, and 35% of children enrolled in the program were dual-language learners. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The numbers show that families seek out educators who speak the same language as them, said Savitha Moorthy, director of the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096899\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Preschool associate teacher Fanny Liang blows bubbles on the playground at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>“Their value is in their ability to provide instruction that’s in the family’s home languages, so [the proposal] is actually stripping away the diversity of the workforce,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yuen, the teacher, said an English-only mandate would make it harder for her to do her job.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“In order for children to learn how to speak a language, they need to trust a teacher first,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When children feel safe and can trust the adults in their care, Yuen said, they’re open to learning. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed changes on the Federal Register are open to public comment until Oct. 6, and could still be amended before being finalized in the coming months. On Sept. 14, Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment and EDvance College will \u003ca href=\"https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_WBqylHS1SQm1bbvGt0xw1g#/registration\">host a webinar\u003c/a> to explain the public comment process.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The center serves low-income families who qualify for Head Start, and the children come from households that speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish, Arabic or Nepali. To connect with the kids and get them accustomed to the classroom, teachers greet them in their home languages and hang pictures and signs on the walls in multiple languages.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The center serves low-income families who qualify for Head Start, and the children come from households that speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish, Arabic or Nepali. To connect with the kids and get them accustomed to the classroom, teachers greet them in their home languages and hang pictures and signs on the walls in multiple languages.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Even if we don’t know their language, being able to learn one or two words like, ‘Hola, como estas?’ can make them feel welcome,” said Jennifer Lee Yuen, a teacher at the center run by Wu Yee Children’s Services, the largest Head Start provider in the city.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But these practices could end under a proposal to reform the 61-year-old program led by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy. Earlier this month, he unveiled a plan that would remove federal requirements for class sizes, staff qualifications and other standards with the goal of cutting administrative costs and increasing access to Head Start. Within that plan to eliminate “unnecessary bureaucracy,” however, is a \u003ca href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/07/2026-16134/reducing-federal-burden-for-head-start-programs\">new requirement\u003c/a> that programs teach only in English.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But these practices could end under a proposal to reform the 61-year-old program led by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy. Earlier this month, he unveiled a plan that would remove federal requirements for class sizes, staff qualifications and other standards with the goal of cutting administrative costs and increasing access to Head Start. Within that plan to eliminate “unnecessary bureaucracy,” however, is a \u003ca href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/07/2026-16134/reducing-federal-burden-for-head-start-programs\">new requirement\u003c/a> that programs teach only in English.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>If finalized, the requirement for English-only instruction would reverse longstanding regulations that Head Start programs support bilingualism. Administration officials say those regulations are “at odds” with President Donald Trump’s executive order designating English as the official language of the United States. But advocates for Head Start say this mandate would not only conflict with the administration’s messaging around decreasing federal oversight of the program, but it could also potentially cost jobs and millions of dollars to implement — a scenario the administration also acknowledges. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>If finalized, the requirement for English-only instruction would reverse longstanding regulations that Head Start programs support bilingualism. Administration officials say those regulations are “at odds” with President Donald Trump’s executive order designating English as the official language of the United States. But advocates for Head Start say this mandate would not only conflict with the administration’s messaging around decreasing federal oversight of the program, but it could also potentially cost jobs and millions of dollars to implement — a scenario the administration also acknowledges. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In the proposed rule, officials with the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), which oversees and funds Head Start, estimated that implementing the English-only mandate would cost about $47 million to replace learning materials at nearly 19,000 classrooms. Some teachers might need retraining, they wrote, “while others may need to be replaced.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“To me that shows a disrespect of these families,” said Shantel Meek, executive director of the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University. “It’s common sense to have someone on staff who speaks the language of the families being served.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“To me that shows a disrespect of these families,” said Shantel Meek, executive director of the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University. “It’s common sense to have someone on staff who speaks the language of the families being served.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://cep.asu.edu/sites/g/files/litvpz916/files/2026-08/Preserving%20Access%20and%20Opportunity%20in%20Head%20Start%20for%20Children%20Dual%20Language%20Learners%20%20A%20Review%20of%20the%20Science%2C%20Legislative%20Mandates%2C%20and%20Regulatory%20Requirements%20%2811%29.pdf\">Meek co-authored a policy brief\u003c/a> that raises the possibility that the changes may conflict with the Head Start Act, a law passed by Congress which specifies that revisions to the program’s standards will not result in “any reduction in quality, scope, or types” of services already in place.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://cep.asu.edu/sites/g/files/litvpz916/files/2026-08/Preserving%20Access%20and%20Opportunity%20in%20Head%20Start%20for%20Children%20Dual%20Language%20Learners%20%20A%20Review%20of%20the%20Science%2C%20Legislative%20Mandates%2C%20and%20Regulatory%20Requirements%20%2811%29.pdf\">Meek co-authored a policy brief\u003c/a> that raises the possibility that the changes may conflict with the Head Start Act, a law passed by Congress which specifies that revisions to the program’s standards will not result in “any reduction in quality, scope, or types” of services already in place.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Education experts say the policy also runs counter to evidence that children learn a second language faster when they \u003ca href=\"https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0002831214545110\">maintain the first language\u003c/a> they learned at home.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Education experts say the policy also runs counter to evidence that children learn a second language faster when they \u003ca href=\"https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0002831214545110\">maintain the first language\u003c/a> they learned at home.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This really creates a false choice between learning English and maintaining a child’s home language,” said Martha Hernandez, executive director of Californians Together, an organization based in Long Beach that advocates for English learners and multilingual education in California. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“This really creates a false choice between learning English and maintaining a child’s home language,” said Martha Hernandez, executive director of Californians Together, an organization based in Long Beach that advocates for English learners and multilingual education in California. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We absolutely want children to develop strong English,” she said. “The question is whether we have to ask a 3- or 4-year-old to give up the language they already know in order to do that. And the research-based approach has always been to build English while continuing to develop the home language\u003cem>.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Head Start programs for American Indian children would be exempt from the English-only requirement, but advocates in California worry the policy would affect Early Head Start, which serves expectant moms and children under the age of 3, as well as Migrant Head Start, which serves the children of farm workers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“For Early Head Start, we have classrooms where all of the teachers are monolingual in just, say, Spanish, because that’s what all of the kids in that classroom speak,” said Melanee Cottrill, executive director of Head Start California, an association of Head Start programs serving over 70,000 children in the Golden State. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Luis Bautista, who oversees Head Start programs for the Los Angeles County Office of Education, said the proposal has a “chilling effect.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s concerning to think that this is the message we would be sending to children and families across the country, especially when we’re charged to serve children that are in foster care, families that are experiencing homelessness, families that are already dealing with quite a number of challenges,” Bautista said. “We should not be adding more barriers to their participation.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The ACF said cutting regulations would save money and give local providers and their parent-led governing bodies more flexibility to run programs that meet their communities’ needs.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“While the proposed rule requires programs to be conducted in English … it allows programs to seek a waiver from any specific requirement in the regulation as long as it does not relate to nutrition, physical activity, or eligibility,” an ACF representative told KQED. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://headstart.gov/program-data/article/head-start-program-facts-fiscal-year-2024\">The most recent data show\u003c/a> more than 30% of Head Start staffers nationwide were bilingual, and 35% of children enrolled in the program were dual-language learners. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The numbers show that families seek out educators who speak the same language as them, said Savitha Moorthy, director of the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096899\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Preschool associate teacher Fanny Liang blows bubbles on the playground at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Their value is in their ability to provide instruction that’s in the family’s home languages, so [the proposal] is actually stripping away the diversity of the workforce,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yuen, the teacher, said an English-only mandate would make it harder for her to do her job.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“In order for children to learn how to speak a language, they need to trust a teacher first,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>When children feel safe and can trust the adults in their care, Yuen said, they’re open to learning. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The proposed changes on the Federal Register are open to public comment until Oct. 6, and could still be amended before being finalized in the coming months. On Sept. 14, Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment and EDvance College will \u003ca href=\"https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_WBqylHS1SQm1bbvGt0xw1g#/registration\">host a webinar\u003c/a> to explain the public comment process.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Advocates for the early childhood program say the proposal would undermine learning for California children who are dual-language learners and contradict federal law meant to preserve Head Start quality standards. ",
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"title": "Under Proposed Trump Rule, Head Start Would Be English-Only | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a>’s Chinatown, toddlers and preschoolers often learn their first English words at Lok Yuen Early Learning Center.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The center serves low-income families who qualify for Head Start, and the children come from households that speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Spanish, Arabic or Nepali. To connect with the kids and get them accustomed to the classroom, teachers greet them in their home languages and hang pictures and signs on the walls in multiple languages.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Even if we don’t know their language, being able to learn one or two words like, ‘Hola, como estas?’ can make them feel welcome,” said Jennifer Lee Yuen, a teacher at the center run by Wu Yee Children’s Services, the largest Head Start provider in the city.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But these practices could end under a proposal to reform the 61-year-old program led by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy. Earlier this month, he unveiled a plan that would remove federal requirements for class sizes, staff qualifications and other standards with the goal of cutting administrative costs and increasing access to Head Start. Within that plan to eliminate “unnecessary bureaucracy,” however, is a \u003ca href=\"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/07/2026-16134/reducing-federal-burden-for-head-start-programs\">new requirement\u003c/a> that programs teach only in English.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096897\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-26-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A child opens a bottle of glue at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>If finalized, the requirement for English-only instruction would reverse longstanding regulations that Head Start programs support bilingualism. Administration officials say those regulations are “at odds” with President Donald Trump’s executive order designating English as the official language of the United States. But advocates for Head Start say this mandate would not only conflict with the administration’s messaging around decreasing federal oversight of the program, but it could also potentially cost jobs and millions of dollars to implement — a scenario the administration also acknowledges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the proposed rule, officials with the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), which oversees and funds Head Start, estimated that implementing the English-only mandate would cost about $47 million to replace learning materials at nearly 19,000 classrooms. Some teachers might need retraining, they wrote, “while others may need to be replaced.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposal noted that having fewer bilingual staff might weaken non-English-speaking families’ engagement and suggested the educators use translation apps to communicate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“To me that shows a disrespect of these families,” said Shantel Meek, executive director of the Children’s Equity Project at Arizona State University. “It’s common sense to have someone on staff who speaks the language of the families being served.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://cep.asu.edu/sites/g/files/litvpz916/files/2026-08/Preserving%20Access%20and%20Opportunity%20in%20Head%20Start%20for%20Children%20Dual%20Language%20Learners%20%20A%20Review%20of%20the%20Science%2C%20Legislative%20Mandates%2C%20and%20Regulatory%20Requirements%20%2811%29.pdf\">Meek co-authored a policy brief\u003c/a> that raises the possibility that the changes may conflict with the Head Start Act, a law passed by Congress which specifies that revisions to the program’s standards will not result in “any reduction in quality, scope, or types” of services already in place.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Education experts say the policy also runs counter to evidence that children learn a second language faster when they \u003ca href=\"https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3102/0002831214545110\">maintain the first language\u003c/a> they learned at home.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This really creates a false choice between learning English and maintaining a child’s home language,” said Martha Hernandez, executive director of Californians Together, an organization based in Long Beach that advocates for English learners and multilingual education in California. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We absolutely want children to develop strong English,” she said. “The question is whether we have to ask a 3- or 4-year-old to give up the language they already know in order to do that. And the research-based approach has always been to build English while continuing to develop the home language\u003cem>.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Head Start programs for American Indian children would be exempt from the English-only requirement, but advocates in California worry the policy would affect Early Head Start, which serves expectant moms and children under the age of 3, as well as Migrant Head Start, which serves the children of farm workers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096895\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-20-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children and teachers prepare to work on a craft project at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12096894\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096894\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-4-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Signage is in multiple languages at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" data-id=\"12096900\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096900\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-60-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A pedestrian walks past Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“For Early Head Start, we have classrooms where all of the teachers are monolingual in just, say, Spanish, because that’s what all of the kids in that classroom speak,” said Melanee Cottrill, executive director of Head Start California, an association of Head Start programs serving over 70,000 children in the Golden State. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If you switch to English only, all of those classrooms would be completely devastated, and we would lose all those teachers,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Luis Bautista, who oversees Head Start programs for the Los Angeles County Office of Education, said the proposal has a “chilling effect.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s concerning to think that this is the message we would be sending to children and families across the country, especially when we’re charged to serve children that are in foster care, families that are experiencing homelessness, families that are already dealing with quite a number of challenges,” Bautista said. “We should not be adding more barriers to their participation.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096898\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-47-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children play the red light, green light game with preschool lead teacher Tracey O’Brien on the playground at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>The ACF said cutting regulations would save money and give local providers and their parent-led governing bodies more flexibility to run programs that meet their communities’ needs.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“While the proposed rule requires programs to be conducted in English … it allows programs to seek a waiver from any specific requirement in the regulation as long as it does not relate to nutrition, physical activity, or eligibility,” an ACF representative told KQED. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://headstart.gov/program-data/article/head-start-program-facts-fiscal-year-2024\">The most recent data show\u003c/a> more than 30% of Head Start staffers nationwide were bilingual, and 35% of children enrolled in the program were dual-language learners. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The numbers show that families seek out educators who speak the same language as them, said Savitha Moorthy, director of the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096899\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260824-HEADSTARTDEREGULATION-NG-54-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Preschool associate teacher Fanny Liang blows bubbles on the playground at Wu Yee Children’s Services in San Francisco’s Chinatown on Aug. 24, 2026. (Nina Glick/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>“Their value is in their ability to provide instruction that’s in the family’s home languages, so [the proposal] is actually stripping away the diversity of the workforce,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yuen, the teacher, said an English-only mandate would make it harder for her to do her job.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“In order for children to learn how to speak a language, they need to trust a teacher first,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When children feel safe and can trust the adults in their care, Yuen said, they’re open to learning. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposed changes on the Federal Register are open to public comment until Oct. 6, and could still be amended before being finalized in the coming months. On Sept. 14, Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment and EDvance College will \u003ca href=\"https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_WBqylHS1SQm1bbvGt0xw1g#/registration\">host a webinar\u003c/a> to explain the public comment process.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "why-metas-landmark-settlement-could-be-social-medias-big-tobacco-moment",
"title": "Why Meta’s Landmark Settlement Could Be Social Media’s ‘Big Tobacco Moment’",
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"headTitle": "Why Meta’s Landmark Settlement Could Be Social Media’s ‘Big Tobacco Moment’ | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>Meta’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096821/meta-states-agree-to-17-billion-settlement-in-child-safety-trial\">landmark child safety settlement\u003c/a> with 47 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories on Wednesday could set a new industry standard for teen tech protections, potentially reshaping how young people interact with social media. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned other tech titans, including TikTok, Snap and YouTube, that the settlement creates what he called an “enforceable blueprint” for states.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We expect that other members of the industry … will adhere to essentially a similar set of remedies and protections for kids,” Bonta said during a press conference on Wednesday morning. “Whether we do that through litigation, through conversation and resolution, is really up to the other members of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The settlement agreement between Meta and the bipartisan coalition of states and territories was approved by federal district Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on Wednesday, halting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096121/she-died-by-design-meta-on-trial-over-child-safety\">ongoing child safety trial\u003c/a> led by California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey. The states, on behalf of a larger coalition of 29, have accused the company of knowingly designing its products in ways that could harm children.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096038\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2000x1125.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chris Lewis, commissioner of consumer and senior protection of the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, cross-examines psychology professor Jean Twenge on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The settlement requires Meta to make significant changes to its Instagram and Facebook platforms and pay more than $17 billion in financial penalties to states over the next decade. It resolves a number of other pending state lawsuits against Meta, but \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">thousands of other cases\u003c/a> filed by individuals and school districts will continue.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have secured the changes we were after,” Bonta said of the settlement. “I don’t think we compromised on anything here.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Over the next six months, Meta will be required to institute a default daily time limit of two hours for users under 18, a nighttime block between midnight and 6 a.m. and a notification block overnight and during school hours. Those default settings can only be changed by a parent, and some would be expanded if other social media companies commit to similar terms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Their apps will also ban displaying the number of likes or reactions that users under 18 get on their posts, and ban image filters that imitate cosmetic procedures for those users. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta also committed to creating enhanced parent supervision tools, instituting more robust measures to detect users’ ages and bringing on an independent auditor “with expansive access to information and resources, regular reporting and the right to communicate concerns to the attorneys general.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is a really strong down payment on protecting our kids,” Bonta said. “It is transformative. It is a watershed moment.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Marin resident Victoria Hinks, whose daughter Alexandra, nicknamed Owl, died by suicide at 16 after she said she was exposed to harmful content on social media, supported the settlement.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Outside the courthouse on Wednesday morning, she said that while the final dollar amount Meta will have to pay states doesn’t come close to the $1.4 trillion they initially sought, the $17.1 billion figure “is meaningful.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s not about the money — no amount of money is ever going to bring my daughter back,” she said. “But unfortunately, it’s the only language they understand, and it needs to hurt a little bit for them to make changes so that it doesn’t happen again.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California expects to receive upward of $2 billion in total, which Bonta said would be used for efforts addressing social media-related mental health issues, addictive tendencies and learning loss.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095836\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Meta’s lead attorney Paul Schmidt delivers his opening statements for Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. Schmidt told the court that the company doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media,” and some people “post negative things.” (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement, Meta’s chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney said the settlement would create a “new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media” — if other social media companies follow suit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution,” Mahoney said. “We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Google, which operates YouTube, Snap and TikTok, did not immediately respond to requests for comment about whether they plan to consider making similar changes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California and 14 attorneys general have a \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-attorney-general-james-lead-coalition-suing-tiktok\">pending lawsuit\u003c/a> against TikTok over child safety dangers, and Bonta said his office is “very concerned” about YouTube. Pennsylvania’s attorney general on Tuesday \u003ca href=\"https://whyy.org/articles/snapchat-sued-pennsylvania-attorney-general/\">announced a similar lawsuit against Snap\u003c/a>, which operates Snapchat.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-2290506003-1-scaled-e1787755545663.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096824\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks to reporters at a press conference after opening arguments took place in the Meta trial over a lawsuit brought by U.S. states about social media addiction at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building and United States Courthouse in Oakland, California, on Aug. 18, 2026. (Godofredo A. Vasquez/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have a lawsuit against TikTok. We’re gonna be putting more time and attention and focus on that,” Bonta said. “With the momentum that we’ve built, the success that we have secured here, we will be focusing on the rest of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wednesday’s deal followed days of what Bonta called “devastating” testimony for Meta from former employees, social media and mental health experts and, on Tuesday, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On the stand, state lawyers showed Mosseri internal emails and documents that suggested Meta knowingly left information out of presentations and documents shared with him and other top executives at the request of company attorneys, who worried about exposing them to “litigation risk.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mosseri defended the company’s decision to reduce the number of employees with access to internal research after the \u003cem>Wall Street Journal\u003c/em>’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-facebook-files-11631713039\">“Facebook Files”\u003c/a> exposed a bevy of Meta documents showing the platform had flaws that caused harm, but state attorneys questioned why lawyers, not product designers or researchers, would have had final say over what information was deemed important to bring to executives. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s telling that Meta settled midway through Instagram president Adam Mosseri’s testimony, and before CEO Mark Zuckerberg could take the stand,” Bonta said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jim Steyer, the founder of San Francisco-based research and advocacy nonprofit Common Sense Media, called the settlement “social media’s ‘Big Tobacco moment.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Still, he said, the work of state justice departments and advocates moving forward will be to “stay vigilant” about enforcement.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“These are major step forwards,” he said. “My guess is you will see additional legislation and potentially legal action to add further restrictions to the behavior of platforms like Facebook and Instagram, which have been the biggest offenders.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“But this is an ongoing battle,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We expect that other members of the industry … will adhere to essentially a similar set of remedies and protections for kids,” Bonta said during a press conference on Wednesday morning. “Whether we do that through litigation, through conversation and resolution, is really up to the other members of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We expect that other members of the industry … will adhere to essentially a similar set of remedies and protections for kids,” Bonta said during a press conference on Wednesday morning. “Whether we do that through litigation, through conversation and resolution, is really up to the other members of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The settlement agreement between Meta and the bipartisan coalition of states and territories was approved by federal district Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on Wednesday, halting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096121/she-died-by-design-meta-on-trial-over-child-safety\">ongoing child safety trial\u003c/a> led by California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey. The states, on behalf of a larger coalition of 29, have accused the company of knowingly designing its products in ways that could harm children.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The settlement agreement between Meta and the bipartisan coalition of states and territories was approved by federal district Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on Wednesday, halting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096121/she-died-by-design-meta-on-trial-over-child-safety\">ongoing child safety trial\u003c/a> led by California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey. The states, on behalf of a larger coalition of 29, have accused the company of knowingly designing its products in ways that could harm children.\u003c/p>\n"
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096038\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chris Lewis, commissioner of consumer and senior protection of the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, cross-examines psychology professor Jean Twenge on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The settlement requires Meta to make significant changes to its Instagram and Facebook platforms and pay more than $17 billion in financial penalties to states over the next decade. It resolves a number of other pending state lawsuits against Meta, but \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">thousands of other cases\u003c/a> filed by individuals and school districts will continue.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The settlement requires Meta to make significant changes to its Instagram and Facebook platforms and pay more than $17 billion in financial penalties to states over the next decade. It resolves a number of other pending state lawsuits against Meta, but \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">thousands of other cases\u003c/a> filed by individuals and school districts will continue.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have secured the changes we were after,” Bonta said of the settlement. “I don’t think we compromised on anything here.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Over the next six months, Meta will be required to institute a default daily time limit of two hours for users under 18, a nighttime block between midnight and 6 a.m. and a notification block overnight and during school hours. Those default settings can only be changed by a parent, and some would be expanded if other social media companies commit to similar terms.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Over the next six months, Meta will be required to institute a default daily time limit of two hours for users under 18, a nighttime block between midnight and 6 a.m. and a notification block overnight and during school hours. Those default settings can only be changed by a parent, and some would be expanded if other social media companies commit to similar terms.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Their apps will also ban displaying the number of likes or reactions that users under 18 get on their posts, and ban image filters that imitate cosmetic procedures for those users. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Their apps will also ban displaying the number of likes or reactions that users under 18 get on their posts, and ban image filters that imitate cosmetic procedures for those users. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Meta also committed to creating enhanced parent supervision tools, instituting more robust measures to detect users’ ages and bringing on an independent auditor “with expansive access to information and resources, regular reporting and the right to communicate concerns to the attorneys general.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This is a really strong down payment on protecting our kids,” Bonta said. “It is transformative. It is a watershed moment.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Marin resident Victoria Hinks, whose daughter Alexandra, nicknamed Owl, died by suicide at 16 after she said she was exposed to harmful content on social media, supported the settlement.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Outside the courthouse on Wednesday morning, she said that while the final dollar amount Meta will have to pay states doesn’t come close to the $1.4 trillion they initially sought, the $17.1 billion figure “is meaningful.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Outside the courthouse on Wednesday morning, she said that while the final dollar amount Meta will have to pay states doesn’t come close to the $1.4 trillion they initially sought, the $17.1 billion figure “is meaningful.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s not about the money — no amount of money is ever going to bring my daughter back,” she said. “But unfortunately, it’s the only language they understand, and it needs to hurt a little bit for them to make changes so that it doesn’t happen again.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s not about the money — no amount of money is ever going to bring my daughter back,” she said. “But unfortunately, it’s the only language they understand, and it needs to hurt a little bit for them to make changes so that it doesn’t happen again.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California expects to receive upward of $2 billion in total, which Bonta said would be used for efforts addressing social media-related mental health issues, addictive tendencies and learning loss.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>California expects to receive upward of $2 billion in total, which Bonta said would be used for efforts addressing social media-related mental health issues, addictive tendencies and learning loss.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095836\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Meta’s lead attorney Paul Schmidt delivers his opening statements for Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. Schmidt told the court that the company doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media,” and some people “post negative things.”\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095836\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Meta’s lead attorney Paul Schmidt delivers his opening statements for Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. Schmidt told the court that the company doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media,” and some people “post negative things.”\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a statement, Meta’s chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney said the settlement would create a “new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media” — if other social media companies follow suit. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In a statement, Meta’s chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney said the settlement would create a “new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media” — if other social media companies follow suit. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution,” Mahoney said. “We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution,” Mahoney said. “We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Google, which operates YouTube, Snap and TikTok, did not immediately respond to requests for comment about whether they plan to consider making similar changes.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California and 14 attorneys general have a \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-attorney-general-james-lead-coalition-suing-tiktok\">pending lawsuit\u003c/a> against TikTok over child safety dangers, and Bonta said his office is “very concerned” about YouTube. Pennsylvania’s attorney general on Tuesday \u003ca href=\"https://whyy.org/articles/snapchat-sued-pennsylvania-attorney-general/\">announced a similar lawsuit against Snap\u003c/a>, which operates Snapchat.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>California and 14 attorneys general have a \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-attorney-general-james-lead-coalition-suing-tiktok\">pending lawsuit\u003c/a> against TikTok over child safety dangers, and Bonta said his office is “very concerned” about YouTube. Pennsylvania’s attorney general on Tuesday \u003ca href=\"https://whyy.org/articles/snapchat-sued-pennsylvania-attorney-general/\">announced a similar lawsuit against Snap\u003c/a>, which operates Snapchat.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-2290506003-1-scaled-e1787755545663.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096824\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks to reporters at a press conference after opening arguments took place in the Meta trial over a lawsuit brought by U.S. states about social media addiction at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building and United States Courthouse in Oakland, California, on Aug. 18, 2026. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Godofredo A. Vasquez/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-2290506003-1-scaled-e1787755545663.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096824\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks to reporters at a press conference after opening arguments took place in the Meta trial over a lawsuit brought by U.S. states about social media addiction at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building and United States Courthouse in Oakland, California, on Aug. 18, 2026. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Godofredo A. Vasquez/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have a lawsuit against TikTok. We’re gonna be putting more time and attention and focus on that,” Bonta said. “With the momentum that we’ve built, the success that we have secured here, we will be focusing on the rest of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wednesday’s deal followed days of what Bonta called “devastating” testimony for Meta from former employees, social media and mental health experts and, on Tuesday, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On the stand, state lawyers showed Mosseri internal emails and documents that suggested Meta knowingly left information out of presentations and documents shared with him and other top executives at the request of company attorneys, who worried about exposing them to “litigation risk.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mosseri defended the company’s decision to reduce the number of employees with access to internal research after the \u003cem>Wall Street Journal\u003c/em>’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-facebook-files-11631713039\">“Facebook Files”\u003c/a> exposed a bevy of Meta documents showing the platform had flaws that caused harm, but state attorneys questioned why lawyers, not product designers or researchers, would have had final say over what information was deemed important to bring to executives. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Mosseri defended the company’s decision to reduce the number of employees with access to internal research after the \u003cem>Wall Street Journal\u003c/em>’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-facebook-files-11631713039\">“Facebook Files”\u003c/a> exposed a bevy of Meta documents showing the platform had flaws that caused harm, but state attorneys questioned why lawyers, not product designers or researchers, would have had final say over what information was deemed important to bring to executives. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s telling that Meta settled midway through Instagram president Adam Mosseri’s testimony, and before CEO Mark Zuckerberg could take the stand,” Bonta said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jim Steyer, the founder of San Francisco-based research and advocacy nonprofit Common Sense Media, called the settlement “social media’s ‘Big Tobacco moment.’”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Still, he said, the work of state justice departments and advocates moving forward will be to “stay vigilant” about enforcement.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“These are major step forwards,” he said. “My guess is you will see additional legislation and potentially legal action to add further restrictions to the behavior of platforms like Facebook and Instagram, which have been the biggest offenders.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“These are major step forwards,” he said. “My guess is you will see additional legislation and potentially legal action to add further restrictions to the behavior of platforms like Facebook and Instagram, which have been the biggest offenders.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“But this is an ongoing battle,” he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned other industry giants that states now have an “enforceable blueprint” for child social media protections.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>Meta’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096821/meta-states-agree-to-17-billion-settlement-in-child-safety-trial\">landmark child safety settlement\u003c/a> with 47 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories on Wednesday could set a new industry standard for teen tech protections, potentially reshaping how young people interact with social media. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned other tech titans, including TikTok, Snap and YouTube, that the settlement creates what he called an “enforceable blueprint” for states.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We expect that other members of the industry … will adhere to essentially a similar set of remedies and protections for kids,” Bonta said during a press conference on Wednesday morning. “Whether we do that through litigation, through conversation and resolution, is really up to the other members of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The settlement agreement between Meta and the bipartisan coalition of states and territories was approved by federal district Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers on Wednesday, halting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12096121/she-died-by-design-meta-on-trial-over-child-safety\">ongoing child safety trial\u003c/a> led by California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey. The states, on behalf of a larger coalition of 29, have accused the company of knowingly designing its products in ways that could harm children.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096038\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2000x1125.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chris Lewis, commissioner of consumer and senior protection of the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, cross-examines psychology professor Jean Twenge on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The settlement requires Meta to make significant changes to its Instagram and Facebook platforms and pay more than $17 billion in financial penalties to states over the next decade. It resolves a number of other pending state lawsuits against Meta, but \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">thousands of other cases\u003c/a> filed by individuals and school districts will continue.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have secured the changes we were after,” Bonta said of the settlement. “I don’t think we compromised on anything here.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Over the next six months, Meta will be required to institute a default daily time limit of two hours for users under 18, a nighttime block between midnight and 6 a.m. and a notification block overnight and during school hours. Those default settings can only be changed by a parent, and some would be expanded if other social media companies commit to similar terms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Their apps will also ban displaying the number of likes or reactions that users under 18 get on their posts, and ban image filters that imitate cosmetic procedures for those users. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta also committed to creating enhanced parent supervision tools, instituting more robust measures to detect users’ ages and bringing on an independent auditor “with expansive access to information and resources, regular reporting and the right to communicate concerns to the attorneys general.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This is a really strong down payment on protecting our kids,” Bonta said. “It is transformative. It is a watershed moment.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Marin resident Victoria Hinks, whose daughter Alexandra, nicknamed Owl, died by suicide at 16 after she said she was exposed to harmful content on social media, supported the settlement.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Outside the courthouse on Wednesday morning, she said that while the final dollar amount Meta will have to pay states doesn’t come close to the $1.4 trillion they initially sought, the $17.1 billion figure “is meaningful.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s not about the money — no amount of money is ever going to bring my daughter back,” she said. “But unfortunately, it’s the only language they understand, and it needs to hurt a little bit for them to make changes so that it doesn’t happen again.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California expects to receive upward of $2 billion in total, which Bonta said would be used for efforts addressing social media-related mental health issues, addictive tendencies and learning loss.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095836\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Meta’s lead attorney Paul Schmidt delivers his opening statements for Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. Schmidt told the court that the company doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media,” and some people “post negative things.” (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement, Meta’s chief legal officer C.J. Mahoney said the settlement would create a “new set of rules governing teens’ use of social media” — if other social media companies follow suit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution,” Mahoney said. “We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Google, which operates YouTube, Snap and TikTok, did not immediately respond to requests for comment about whether they plan to consider making similar changes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>California and 14 attorneys general have a \u003ca href=\"https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-attorney-general-james-lead-coalition-suing-tiktok\">pending lawsuit\u003c/a> against TikTok over child safety dangers, and Bonta said his office is “very concerned” about YouTube. Pennsylvania’s attorney general on Tuesday \u003ca href=\"https://whyy.org/articles/snapchat-sued-pennsylvania-attorney-general/\">announced a similar lawsuit against Snap\u003c/a>, which operates Snapchat.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-2290506003-1-scaled-e1787755545663.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096824\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks to reporters at a press conference after opening arguments took place in the Meta trial over a lawsuit brought by U.S. states about social media addiction at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building and United States Courthouse in Oakland, California, on Aug. 18, 2026. (Godofredo A. Vasquez/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have a lawsuit against TikTok. We’re gonna be putting more time and attention and focus on that,” Bonta said. “With the momentum that we’ve built, the success that we have secured here, we will be focusing on the rest of the industry.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wednesday’s deal followed days of what Bonta called “devastating” testimony for Meta from former employees, social media and mental health experts and, on Tuesday, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On the stand, state lawyers showed Mosseri internal emails and documents that suggested Meta knowingly left information out of presentations and documents shared with him and other top executives at the request of company attorneys, who worried about exposing them to “litigation risk.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mosseri defended the company’s decision to reduce the number of employees with access to internal research after the \u003cem>Wall Street Journal\u003c/em>’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-facebook-files-11631713039\">“Facebook Files”\u003c/a> exposed a bevy of Meta documents showing the platform had flaws that caused harm, but state attorneys questioned why lawyers, not product designers or researchers, would have had final say over what information was deemed important to bring to executives. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s telling that Meta settled midway through Instagram president Adam Mosseri’s testimony, and before CEO Mark Zuckerberg could take the stand,” Bonta said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jim Steyer, the founder of San Francisco-based research and advocacy nonprofit Common Sense Media, called the settlement “social media’s ‘Big Tobacco moment.’”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Still, he said, the work of state justice departments and advocates moving forward will be to “stay vigilant” about enforcement.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“These are major step forwards,” he said. “My guess is you will see additional legislation and potentially legal action to add further restrictions to the behavior of platforms like Facebook and Instagram, which have been the biggest offenders.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“But this is an ongoing battle,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "‘She Died by Design’: Meta on Trial Over Child Safety",
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"content": "\u003cp>This month, a federal trial against the world’s biggest social media kicked off in Oakland. California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are leading a lawsuit that accuses Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating products that put children and teenagers at risk. And as KQED’s Rachael Myrow explains, the outcome of this trial could force Meta to pay up and make big changes to its platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This episode discusses suicide. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Links:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">‘Meta Hooked Kids’: Federal Trial Against Tech Giant Kicks Off in Oakland\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-megaphone wp-block-embed-megaphone\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=KQINC5270418614\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003cstrong>Episode transcript\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This transcript is computer-generated. While our team has reviewed it, there may be errors.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Just a quick note before we get started here, this episode discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Line. I’m Ericka Cruz Guevarra and welcome to The Bay, local news to keep you rooted.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>My name is Lori Schott and I am Annalee’s mom. I’m here today because my daughter should still be alive.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Outside the federal courthouse in Oakland on Tuesday, advocates and parents held a large white banner. On it were hundreds of names of children and teenagers written in black ink who have died. And these parents say that social media is to blame.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Behind my daughter, we knew and loved she was fighting a battle we could not see. A battle within the world of social media.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>These parents were there to support a landmark federal lawsuit, one that accuses Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating a product that harms children and puts them at risk.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Annalee wrote, I look at other girls’ profiles and it makes me feel worse. Nobody will love somebody as ugly and broken as me. Advertisers were allegedly giving access to our children so beauty ads could be delivered at the very moments these girls were at their most vulnerable. Let that sink in. When my daughter was struggling, it became Meta’s bottom line.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>California is leading a group of states in a lawsuit against the largest social media company in the world. And the case could reshape social media as we know it. Today, Meta goes on trial in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s basically, you know, a product liability case, if you will.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Rachael Myrow is senior editor of KQED’s Silicon Valley Desk. What is this case about exactly, and why is Meta on trial right now?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>A lot of this case focuses on internal documents, internal conversations about what Meta knew about these products, and yet they continue to put profits over safety, over the mental health of children and teenagers. And if that makes you think of the big tobacco cases of the 1990s, that’s exactly what this is. It’s an attempt to hold these companies liable for putting unsafe products in front of the American public.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who exactly is suing who in this case, Rachael, and how did this all even start?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>There’s a coalition of 29 state attorneys general, but the case is being pursued by four states in particular, California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey. It’s one of thousands, thousands of lawsuits that are pending all over the country, and they’re brought by state attorneys, general, they’re bought by school districts, and they brought by individuals. Platform developers have argued successfully in court that federal law protects them from all sorts of claims made on free speech grounds. But here’s the thing. This case is not about free speech. It’s not about allowing bad people to post bad things on social media. This is about consumer product safety, which is something Attorney General Rob Bonta has talked about.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>Meta’s conduct is deceptive, it is dangerous, and as we make clear in our lawsuit and is most important in a court of law, it illegal.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like all of these different plaintiffs have found the soft underbelly of this giant, and they’re going right in there.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>We laid out our case today, which is essentially this, that Meta has designed and deployed a dangerous product with dangerous features that they knew would create excessive use and compulsive use by children, and it would create mental health harms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>I mean, you were just talking a little bit about the stakes. What are the stakes of this trial?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>You know, there’s some disagreement as to how much money the states are asking for. Now the number you’re getting is about 200 billion dollars, which would definitely be a big pound of flesh out of Meta’s hide. But even more importantly, the states are also asking, in addition to some form of financial penalties, they’re asking for Meta to be forced to change up its products in a way that could make them a lot less profitable for Meta. So there’s a lot at stake here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I know that some parents of children who have died by suicide, not just in California, but elsewhere, have actually spoken out ahead of this trial, right?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Even though they’re not plaintiffs in this particular case, they were outside the courthouse on day one of the trial.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>Good morning. My name is Victoria Hinks and we live in Marin County.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Victoria wanted to make sure that people understand that the design of this platform, whether it’s Facebook or Instagram, has real-world consequences.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>We’re here on behalf of our daughter, Alexandra, lovingly known as Owl, forever 16, and taken from us too soon by Big Tech. Owl didn’t die by accident. She died by design. Meta’s own engineers built an algorithm that knew exactly what to show a struggling 16-year-old girl to keep her scrolling and what that content could do to her. They knew and they did it anyway. That’s why this trial matters.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And Rachael, haven’t there also been efforts to regulate social media companies around some of these things? I mean, why has this sort of risen to the level of a federal lawsuit?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>These social media companies, not just Meta, they have brought themselves to this awful-for-them moment because they have been spending millions, millions of dollars at the federal and the state level to either block legislation and regulation or neuter it. I mean, even in California, where you have, let’s say, a handful of earnest state lawmakers who want to try and get in there, especially to protect children, but all they can manage to do at the state level is nibble around the edges. There’s also no redress for the parents and children who have suffered up until now over the last couple of decades.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So you’re saying there’s just been a lot of lobbying and a lot money put into lobbying against regulation around these social media companies?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And a lot of resistance, you know. You can imagine somebody on the corporate side saying, you know, let us regulate ourselves. And I think, yeah, at least in the beginning, when nobody really understood what was going on, there were a lot people out there that said, you know government is always, you now, leagues behind the cutting edge of technology. You remember when we used to see those congressional sessions where there’d be somebody old as the hills saying, what is this? The Facebook.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Orrin Hatch: \u003c/strong>If so, how do you sustain a business model in which users don’t pay for your service?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Senator, we run ads.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Orrin Hatch: \u003c/strong>I see. That’s great.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And we’d all laugh and we’d say, wow, they are really, they don’t know what’s going on. So maybe the companies are right. It’s better not to regulate this thing. But there are a lot of people who are angry and they want redress and they haven’t been able to get redress in Washington DC or Sacramento or any of the other state capitals. And what typically happens in that kind of a situation again, like the fight against big tobacco right like the fight against car makers who didn’t want to put seat belts in the cars. It ends up in the courts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>We’ll have more with KQED’s Rachael Myrow right after this break. By the way, if you appreciate the deep dives into local Bay Area news that we bring you here on The Bay, the best way that you can support the journalism that we do here is by becoming a sustaining KQED member. We can’t do this work without you. Just go to donate.kqed.org/podcasts. We’ll be right back.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>What has Meta said so far about this trial?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Meta has basically argued that they have been earnestly working to make their products better. Not just recently, but going back years, they do their own internal research, and they’re arguing actually that the state attorneys general, you know, waving around internal research and internal email conversations, has managed to sort of cherry-pick the bits that build its argument. That Meta knew what was happening and leadership decided not to make the changes that were necessary to make their products safer. They’ve been trying to do better, they continue to try to do better, and the kind of money that the state attorneys general are asking for is wildly out of proportion from their perspective. From Meta’s perspective, right, they have been working hard at things and their internal conversations are honest. You know, sometimes it’s not clear what the right step is.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Is Mark Zuckerberg himself expected to testify at this trial or has he talked about his company’s record on this and maybe other places?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Chairman Durbin, ranking member Graham, and members of the committee.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>He has testified on Capitol Hill.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Being a parent is one of the hardest jobs in the world. Technology gives us new ways to communicate with our kids and feel connected to their lives, but it can also make parenting more complicated.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>But certainly, he would be the big name to hear from. The state attorneys general have listed him in pre-trial filings. You’re supposed to say who you wanna talk to, who you want to bring into the courtroom. We’re gonna have to watch how this plays out because we’ve already heard Arturo Béjar, a former safety executive for Facebook and later consultant in the same field for Instagram, that internal staff in numerous instances would recommend either doing something or not doing something, and the final decision would go to Mark Zuckerberg’s desk, and Zuckerberg would say, no, I’m countermanding what staff had recommended.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who else can we expect maybe to testify in this trial?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>We’re expecting to hear from whistleblowers, some better known than others. We’re expected to hear from academic researchers who can talk to the broader impact of Meta’s behavior over the years. And we’re also hoping to hear from CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So what is the timeline from here, Rachael? What happens next?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Well, so opening arguments concluded on the first day, and off we went to the races with the testimony. And there will be testimonies expected to go for, I don’t know, about six weeks. And so it won’t be until early October, probably, that we will see the jury consider what penalties might be and then advise the judge who will go from there to make her ruling.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I mean, what are the potential outcomes of this trial? I mean is, does this trial have the potential to change social media or at least meta as we know it?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Meta’s CFO, Chief Financial Officer, has said as much in recent shareholder meetings. She has said to the shareholders, yep, we’re keeping our eye on these lawsuits because they could have a big impact.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And that could look like forcing Meta to maybe place stronger restrictions somehow, ending infinite scroll, I imagine.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Infinite scroll, right? We all know this because as adults we’re addicted, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Oh yeah.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Everything from that little red dot that tells you, ooh, is there something new? Yeah. We’re all vulnerable to this sort of form of manipulation through design. And just imagine, if you’re forced, there are a number of ways to do it, technically. One thing is for sure, it would have an impact on Meta’s bottom line. With this much on the line, you know that there’s going to be appeals. Whatever the story is with the judge’s ruling, that is just the beginning of the conversation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Rachael, thank you so much as always. Thank you. That was Rachael Myrow, Senior Editor of KQED’s Silicon Valley Desk. This conversation was cut down and edited by Senior Editor Alan Montecillo. Gabriela Glueck is our producer, she scored this episode and added all the tape, music courtesy of APM. The Bay is made every week by me and… Alan Montecillo,\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>Gabriella Glueck. With support from Jen Chien. Katie Springer. Maha Sanad. Ethan Toven-Lindsey.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>If you want to get in touch with us here at The Bay, feel free to send us an email. We’re at thebay.kqed.org. Support for The Bay is provided in part by the Osher Production Fund. Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by the Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco, Northern California Local. And I’m Ericka Cruz Guevarra. Thanks so much for listening. Talk to you next time.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This month, a federal trial against the world’s biggest social media kicked off in Oakland. California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are leading a lawsuit that accuses Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating products that put children and teenagers at risk. And as KQED’s Rachael Myrow explains, the outcome of this trial could force Meta to pay up and make big changes to its platforms.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Just a quick note before we get started here, this episode discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Line. I’m Ericka Cruz Guevarra and welcome to The Bay, local news to keep you rooted.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Just a quick note before we get started here, this episode discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Line. I’m Ericka Cruz Guevarra and welcome to The Bay, local news to keep you rooted.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>My name is Lori Schott and I am Annalee’s mom. I’m here today because my daughter should still be alive.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>My name is Lori Schott and I am Annalee’s mom. I’m here today because my daughter should still be alive.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Outside the federal courthouse in Oakland on Tuesday, advocates and parents held a large white banner. On it were hundreds of names of children and teenagers written in black ink who have died. And these parents say that social media is to blame.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Outside the federal courthouse in Oakland on Tuesday, advocates and parents held a large white banner. On it were hundreds of names of children and teenagers written in black ink who have died. And these parents say that social media is to blame.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Behind my daughter, we knew and loved she was fighting a battle we could not see. A battle within the world of social media.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Behind my daughter, we knew and loved she was fighting a battle we could not see. A battle within the world of social media.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>These parents were there to support a landmark federal lawsuit, one that accuses Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating a product that harms children and puts them at risk.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>These parents were there to support a landmark federal lawsuit, one that accuses Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating a product that harms children and puts them at risk.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Annalee wrote, I look at other girls’ profiles and it makes me feel worse. Nobody will love somebody as ugly and broken as me. Advertisers were allegedly giving access to our children so beauty ads could be delivered at the very moments these girls were at their most vulnerable. Let that sink in. When my daughter was struggling, it became Meta’s bottom line.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Annalee wrote, I look at other girls’ profiles and it makes me feel worse. Nobody will love somebody as ugly and broken as me. Advertisers were allegedly giving access to our children so beauty ads could be delivered at the very moments these girls were at their most vulnerable. Let that sink in. When my daughter was struggling, it became Meta’s bottom line.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>California is leading a group of states in a lawsuit against the largest social media company in the world. And the case could reshape social media as we know it. Today, Meta goes on trial in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>California is leading a group of states in a lawsuit against the largest social media company in the world. And the case could reshape social media as we know it. Today, Meta goes on trial in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s basically, you know, a product liability case, if you will.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s basically, you know, a product liability case, if you will.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Rachael Myrow is senior editor of KQED’s Silicon Valley Desk. What is this case about exactly, and why is Meta on trial right now?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>A lot of this case focuses on internal documents, internal conversations about what Meta knew about these products, and yet they continue to put profits over safety, over the mental health of children and teenagers. And if that makes you think of the big tobacco cases of the 1990s, that’s exactly what this is. It’s an attempt to hold these companies liable for putting unsafe products in front of the American public.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>A lot of this case focuses on internal documents, internal conversations about what Meta knew about these products, and yet they continue to put profits over safety, over the mental health of children and teenagers. And if that makes you think of the big tobacco cases of the 1990s, that’s exactly what this is. It’s an attempt to hold these companies liable for putting unsafe products in front of the American public.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who exactly is suing who in this case, Rachael, and how did this all even start?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who exactly is suing who in this case, Rachael, and how did this all even start?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>There’s a coalition of 29 state attorneys general, but the case is being pursued by four states in particular, California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey. It’s one of thousands, thousands of lawsuits that are pending all over the country, and they’re brought by state attorneys, general, they’re bought by school districts, and they brought by individuals. Platform developers have argued successfully in court that federal law protects them from all sorts of claims made on free speech grounds. But here’s the thing. This case is not about free speech. It’s not about allowing bad people to post bad things on social media. This is about consumer product safety, which is something Attorney General Rob Bonta has talked about.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>There’s a coalition of 29 state attorneys general, but the case is being pursued by four states in particular, California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey. It’s one of thousands, thousands of lawsuits that are pending all over the country, and they’re brought by state attorneys, general, they’re bought by school districts, and they brought by individuals. Platform developers have argued successfully in court that federal law protects them from all sorts of claims made on free speech grounds. But here’s the thing. This case is not about free speech. It’s not about allowing bad people to post bad things on social media. This is about consumer product safety, which is something Attorney General Rob Bonta has talked about.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>Meta’s conduct is deceptive, it is dangerous, and as we make clear in our lawsuit and is most important in a court of law, it illegal.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>Meta’s conduct is deceptive, it is dangerous, and as we make clear in our lawsuit and is most important in a court of law, it illegal.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like all of these different plaintiffs have found the soft underbelly of this giant, and they’re going right in there.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like all of these different plaintiffs have found the soft underbelly of this giant, and they’re going right in there.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>We laid out our case today, which is essentially this, that Meta has designed and deployed a dangerous product with dangerous features that they knew would create excessive use and compulsive use by children, and it would create mental health harms.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>We laid out our case today, which is essentially this, that Meta has designed and deployed a dangerous product with dangerous features that they knew would create excessive use and compulsive use by children, and it would create mental health harms.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>I mean, you were just talking a little bit about the stakes. What are the stakes of this trial?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>I mean, you were just talking a little bit about the stakes. What are the stakes of this trial?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>You know, there’s some disagreement as to how much money the states are asking for. Now the number you’re getting is about 200 billion dollars, which would definitely be a big pound of flesh out of Meta’s hide. But even more importantly, the states are also asking, in addition to some form of financial penalties, they’re asking for Meta to be forced to change up its products in a way that could make them a lot less profitable for Meta. So there’s a lot at stake here.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>You know, there’s some disagreement as to how much money the states are asking for. Now the number you’re getting is about 200 billion dollars, which would definitely be a big pound of flesh out of Meta’s hide. But even more importantly, the states are also asking, in addition to some form of financial penalties, they’re asking for Meta to be forced to change up its products in a way that could make them a lot less profitable for Meta. So there’s a lot at stake here.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I know that some parents of children who have died by suicide, not just in California, but elsewhere, have actually spoken out ahead of this trial, right?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I know that some parents of children who have died by suicide, not just in California, but elsewhere, have actually spoken out ahead of this trial, right?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Even though they’re not plaintiffs in this particular case, they were outside the courthouse on day one of the trial.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Even though they’re not plaintiffs in this particular case, they were outside the courthouse on day one of the trial.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>Good morning. My name is Victoria Hinks and we live in Marin County.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>Good morning. My name is Victoria Hinks and we live in Marin County.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Victoria wanted to make sure that people understand that the design of this platform, whether it’s Facebook or Instagram, has real-world consequences.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>We’re here on behalf of our daughter, Alexandra, lovingly known as Owl, forever 16, and taken from us too soon by Big Tech. Owl didn’t die by accident. She died by design. Meta’s own engineers built an algorithm that knew exactly what to show a struggling 16-year-old girl to keep her scrolling and what that content could do to her. They knew and they did it anyway. That’s why this trial matters.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>We’re here on behalf of our daughter, Alexandra, lovingly known as Owl, forever 16, and taken from us too soon by Big Tech. Owl didn’t die by accident. She died by design. Meta’s own engineers built an algorithm that knew exactly what to show a struggling 16-year-old girl to keep her scrolling and what that content could do to her. They knew and they did it anyway. That’s why this trial matters.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And Rachael, haven’t there also been efforts to regulate social media companies around some of these things? I mean, why has this sort of risen to the level of a federal lawsuit?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And Rachael, haven’t there also been efforts to regulate social media companies around some of these things? I mean, why has this sort of risen to the level of a federal lawsuit?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>These social media companies, not just Meta, they have brought themselves to this awful-for-them moment because they have been spending millions, millions of dollars at the federal and the state level to either block legislation and regulation or neuter it. I mean, even in California, where you have, let’s say, a handful of earnest state lawmakers who want to try and get in there, especially to protect children, but all they can manage to do at the state level is nibble around the edges. There’s also no redress for the parents and children who have suffered up until now over the last couple of decades.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>These social media companies, not just Meta, they have brought themselves to this awful-for-them moment because they have been spending millions, millions of dollars at the federal and the state level to either block legislation and regulation or neuter it. I mean, even in California, where you have, let’s say, a handful of earnest state lawmakers who want to try and get in there, especially to protect children, but all they can manage to do at the state level is nibble around the edges. There’s also no redress for the parents and children who have suffered up until now over the last couple of decades.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So you’re saying there’s just been a lot of lobbying and a lot money put into lobbying against regulation around these social media companies?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So you’re saying there’s just been a lot of lobbying and a lot money put into lobbying against regulation around these social media companies?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And a lot of resistance, you know. You can imagine somebody on the corporate side saying, you know, let us regulate ourselves. And I think, yeah, at least in the beginning, when nobody really understood what was going on, there were a lot people out there that said, you know government is always, you now, leagues behind the cutting edge of technology. You remember when we used to see those congressional sessions where there’d be somebody old as the hills saying, what is this? The Facebook.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Orrin Hatch: \u003c/strong>If so, how do you sustain a business model in which users don’t pay for your service?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Orrin Hatch: \u003c/strong>I see. That’s great.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And we’d all laugh and we’d say, wow, they are really, they don’t know what’s going on. So maybe the companies are right. It’s better not to regulate this thing. But there are a lot of people who are angry and they want redress and they haven’t been able to get redress in Washington DC or Sacramento or any of the other state capitals. And what typically happens in that kind of a situation again, like the fight against big tobacco right like the fight against car makers who didn’t want to put seat belts in the cars. It ends up in the courts.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And we’d all laugh and we’d say, wow, they are really, they don’t know what’s going on. So maybe the companies are right. It’s better not to regulate this thing. But there are a lot of people who are angry and they want redress and they haven’t been able to get redress in Washington DC or Sacramento or any of the other state capitals. And what typically happens in that kind of a situation again, like the fight against big tobacco right like the fight against car makers who didn’t want to put seat belts in the cars. It ends up in the courts.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>We’ll have more with KQED’s Rachael Myrow right after this break. By the way, if you appreciate the deep dives into local Bay Area news that we bring you here on The Bay, the best way that you can support the journalism that we do here is by becoming a sustaining KQED member. We can’t do this work without you. Just go to donate.kqed.org/podcasts. We’ll be right back.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>We’ll have more with KQED’s Rachael Myrow right after this break. By the way, if you appreciate the deep dives into local Bay Area news that we bring you here on The Bay, the best way that you can support the journalism that we do here is by becoming a sustaining KQED member. We can’t do this work without you. Just go to donate.kqed.org/podcasts. We’ll be right back.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>What has Meta said so far about this trial?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Meta has basically argued that they have been earnestly working to make their products better. Not just recently, but going back years, they do their own internal research, and they’re arguing actually that the state attorneys general, you know, waving around internal research and internal email conversations, has managed to sort of cherry-pick the bits that build its argument. That Meta knew what was happening and leadership decided not to make the changes that were necessary to make their products safer. They’ve been trying to do better, they continue to try to do better, and the kind of money that the state attorneys general are asking for is wildly out of proportion from their perspective. From Meta’s perspective, right, they have been working hard at things and their internal conversations are honest. You know, sometimes it’s not clear what the right step is.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Meta has basically argued that they have been earnestly working to make their products better. Not just recently, but going back years, they do their own internal research, and they’re arguing actually that the state attorneys general, you know, waving around internal research and internal email conversations, has managed to sort of cherry-pick the bits that build its argument. That Meta knew what was happening and leadership decided not to make the changes that were necessary to make their products safer. They’ve been trying to do better, they continue to try to do better, and the kind of money that the state attorneys general are asking for is wildly out of proportion from their perspective. From Meta’s perspective, right, they have been working hard at things and their internal conversations are honest. You know, sometimes it’s not clear what the right step is.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Is Mark Zuckerberg himself expected to testify at this trial or has he talked about his company’s record on this and maybe other places?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Chairman Durbin, ranking member Graham, and members of the committee.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>He has testified on Capitol Hill.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Being a parent is one of the hardest jobs in the world. Technology gives us new ways to communicate with our kids and feel connected to their lives, but it can also make parenting more complicated.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>But certainly, he would be the big name to hear from. The state attorneys general have listed him in pre-trial filings. You’re supposed to say who you wanna talk to, who you want to bring into the courtroom. We’re gonna have to watch how this plays out because we’ve already heard Arturo Béjar, a former safety executive for Facebook and later consultant in the same field for Instagram, that internal staff in numerous instances would recommend either doing something or not doing something, and the final decision would go to Mark Zuckerberg’s desk, and Zuckerberg would say, no, I’m countermanding what staff had recommended.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>But certainly, he would be the big name to hear from. The state attorneys general have listed him in pre-trial filings. You’re supposed to say who you wanna talk to, who you want to bring into the courtroom. We’re gonna have to watch how this plays out because we’ve already heard Arturo Béjar, a former safety executive for Facebook and later consultant in the same field for Instagram, that internal staff in numerous instances would recommend either doing something or not doing something, and the final decision would go to Mark Zuckerberg’s desk, and Zuckerberg would say, no, I’m countermanding what staff had recommended.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who else can we expect maybe to testify in this trial?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>We’re expecting to hear from whistleblowers, some better known than others. We’re expected to hear from academic researchers who can talk to the broader impact of Meta’s behavior over the years. And we’re also hoping to hear from CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>We’re expecting to hear from whistleblowers, some better known than others. We’re expected to hear from academic researchers who can talk to the broader impact of Meta’s behavior over the years. And we’re also hoping to hear from CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So what is the timeline from here, Rachael? What happens next?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Well, so opening arguments concluded on the first day, and off we went to the races with the testimony. And there will be testimonies expected to go for, I don’t know, about six weeks. And so it won’t be until early October, probably, that we will see the jury consider what penalties might be and then advise the judge who will go from there to make her ruling.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Well, so opening arguments concluded on the first day, and off we went to the races with the testimony. And there will be testimonies expected to go for, I don’t know, about six weeks. And so it won’t be until early October, probably, that we will see the jury consider what penalties might be and then advise the judge who will go from there to make her ruling.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I mean, what are the potential outcomes of this trial? I mean is, does this trial have the potential to change social media or at least meta as we know it?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I mean, what are the potential outcomes of this trial? I mean is, does this trial have the potential to change social media or at least meta as we know it?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Meta’s CFO, Chief Financial Officer, has said as much in recent shareholder meetings. She has said to the shareholders, yep, we’re keeping our eye on these lawsuits because they could have a big impact.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Meta’s CFO, Chief Financial Officer, has said as much in recent shareholder meetings. She has said to the shareholders, yep, we’re keeping our eye on these lawsuits because they could have a big impact.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And that could look like forcing Meta to maybe place stronger restrictions somehow, ending infinite scroll, I imagine.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And that could look like forcing Meta to maybe place stronger restrictions somehow, ending infinite scroll, I imagine.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Infinite scroll, right? We all know this because as adults we’re addicted, you know?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Infinite scroll, right? We all know this because as adults we’re addicted, you know?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Oh yeah.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Everything from that little red dot that tells you, ooh, is there something new? Yeah. We’re all vulnerable to this sort of form of manipulation through design. And just imagine, if you’re forced, there are a number of ways to do it, technically. One thing is for sure, it would have an impact on Meta’s bottom line. With this much on the line, you know that there’s going to be appeals. Whatever the story is with the judge’s ruling, that is just the beginning of the conversation.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Everything from that little red dot that tells you, ooh, is there something new? Yeah. We’re all vulnerable to this sort of form of manipulation through design. And just imagine, if you’re forced, there are a number of ways to do it, technically. One thing is for sure, it would have an impact on Meta’s bottom line. With this much on the line, you know that there’s going to be appeals. Whatever the story is with the judge’s ruling, that is just the beginning of the conversation.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Rachael, thank you so much as always. Thank you. That was Rachael Myrow, Senior Editor of KQED’s Silicon Valley Desk. This conversation was cut down and edited by Senior Editor Alan Montecillo. Gabriela Glueck is our producer, she scored this episode and added all the tape, music courtesy of APM. The Bay is made every week by me and… Alan Montecillo,\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>Gabriella Glueck. With support from Jen Chien. Katie Springer. Maha Sanad. Ethan Toven-Lindsey.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "A federal trial against the world’s biggest social media has kicked off in Oakland. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>This month, a federal trial against the world’s biggest social media kicked off in Oakland. California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are leading a lawsuit that accuses Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating products that put children and teenagers at risk. And as KQED’s Rachael Myrow explains, the outcome of this trial could force Meta to pay up and make big changes to its platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This episode discusses suicide. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Links:\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">‘Meta Hooked Kids’: Federal Trial Against Tech Giant Kicks Off in Oakland\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-megaphone wp-block-embed-megaphone\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://playlist.megaphone.fm/?e=KQINC5270418614\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u003cstrong>Episode transcript\u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This transcript is computer-generated. While our team has reviewed it, there may be errors.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Just a quick note before we get started here, this episode discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide Prevention Line. I’m Ericka Cruz Guevarra and welcome to The Bay, local news to keep you rooted.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>My name is Lori Schott and I am Annalee’s mom. I’m here today because my daughter should still be alive.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Outside the federal courthouse in Oakland on Tuesday, advocates and parents held a large white banner. On it were hundreds of names of children and teenagers written in black ink who have died. And these parents say that social media is to blame.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Behind my daughter, we knew and loved she was fighting a battle we could not see. A battle within the world of social media.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>These parents were there to support a landmark federal lawsuit, one that accuses Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, of knowingly creating a product that harms children and puts them at risk.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Lori Schott: \u003c/strong>Annalee wrote, I look at other girls’ profiles and it makes me feel worse. Nobody will love somebody as ugly and broken as me. Advertisers were allegedly giving access to our children so beauty ads could be delivered at the very moments these girls were at their most vulnerable. Let that sink in. When my daughter was struggling, it became Meta’s bottom line.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>California is leading a group of states in a lawsuit against the largest social media company in the world. And the case could reshape social media as we know it. Today, Meta goes on trial in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s basically, you know, a product liability case, if you will.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Rachael Myrow is senior editor of KQED’s Silicon Valley Desk. What is this case about exactly, and why is Meta on trial right now?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>A lot of this case focuses on internal documents, internal conversations about what Meta knew about these products, and yet they continue to put profits over safety, over the mental health of children and teenagers. And if that makes you think of the big tobacco cases of the 1990s, that’s exactly what this is. It’s an attempt to hold these companies liable for putting unsafe products in front of the American public.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who exactly is suing who in this case, Rachael, and how did this all even start?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>There’s a coalition of 29 state attorneys general, but the case is being pursued by four states in particular, California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey. It’s one of thousands, thousands of lawsuits that are pending all over the country, and they’re brought by state attorneys, general, they’re bought by school districts, and they brought by individuals. Platform developers have argued successfully in court that federal law protects them from all sorts of claims made on free speech grounds. But here’s the thing. This case is not about free speech. It’s not about allowing bad people to post bad things on social media. This is about consumer product safety, which is something Attorney General Rob Bonta has talked about.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>Meta’s conduct is deceptive, it is dangerous, and as we make clear in our lawsuit and is most important in a court of law, it illegal.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like all of these different plaintiffs have found the soft underbelly of this giant, and they’re going right in there.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rob Bonta: \u003c/strong>We laid out our case today, which is essentially this, that Meta has designed and deployed a dangerous product with dangerous features that they knew would create excessive use and compulsive use by children, and it would create mental health harms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>I mean, you were just talking a little bit about the stakes. What are the stakes of this trial?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>You know, there’s some disagreement as to how much money the states are asking for. Now the number you’re getting is about 200 billion dollars, which would definitely be a big pound of flesh out of Meta’s hide. But even more importantly, the states are also asking, in addition to some form of financial penalties, they’re asking for Meta to be forced to change up its products in a way that could make them a lot less profitable for Meta. So there’s a lot at stake here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I know that some parents of children who have died by suicide, not just in California, but elsewhere, have actually spoken out ahead of this trial, right?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Even though they’re not plaintiffs in this particular case, they were outside the courthouse on day one of the trial.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>Good morning. My name is Victoria Hinks and we live in Marin County.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Victoria wanted to make sure that people understand that the design of this platform, whether it’s Facebook or Instagram, has real-world consequences.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Victoria Hinks: \u003c/strong>We’re here on behalf of our daughter, Alexandra, lovingly known as Owl, forever 16, and taken from us too soon by Big Tech. Owl didn’t die by accident. She died by design. Meta’s own engineers built an algorithm that knew exactly what to show a struggling 16-year-old girl to keep her scrolling and what that content could do to her. They knew and they did it anyway. That’s why this trial matters.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And Rachael, haven’t there also been efforts to regulate social media companies around some of these things? I mean, why has this sort of risen to the level of a federal lawsuit?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>These social media companies, not just Meta, they have brought themselves to this awful-for-them moment because they have been spending millions, millions of dollars at the federal and the state level to either block legislation and regulation or neuter it. I mean, even in California, where you have, let’s say, a handful of earnest state lawmakers who want to try and get in there, especially to protect children, but all they can manage to do at the state level is nibble around the edges. There’s also no redress for the parents and children who have suffered up until now over the last couple of decades.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So you’re saying there’s just been a lot of lobbying and a lot money put into lobbying against regulation around these social media companies?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And a lot of resistance, you know. You can imagine somebody on the corporate side saying, you know, let us regulate ourselves. And I think, yeah, at least in the beginning, when nobody really understood what was going on, there were a lot people out there that said, you know government is always, you now, leagues behind the cutting edge of technology. You remember when we used to see those congressional sessions where there’d be somebody old as the hills saying, what is this? The Facebook.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Orrin Hatch: \u003c/strong>If so, how do you sustain a business model in which users don’t pay for your service?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Senator, we run ads.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Orrin Hatch: \u003c/strong>I see. That’s great.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>And we’d all laugh and we’d say, wow, they are really, they don’t know what’s going on. So maybe the companies are right. It’s better not to regulate this thing. But there are a lot of people who are angry and they want redress and they haven’t been able to get redress in Washington DC or Sacramento or any of the other state capitals. And what typically happens in that kind of a situation again, like the fight against big tobacco right like the fight against car makers who didn’t want to put seat belts in the cars. It ends up in the courts.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>We’ll have more with KQED’s Rachael Myrow right after this break. By the way, if you appreciate the deep dives into local Bay Area news that we bring you here on The Bay, the best way that you can support the journalism that we do here is by becoming a sustaining KQED member. We can’t do this work without you. Just go to donate.kqed.org/podcasts. We’ll be right back.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>What has Meta said so far about this trial?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Meta has basically argued that they have been earnestly working to make their products better. Not just recently, but going back years, they do their own internal research, and they’re arguing actually that the state attorneys general, you know, waving around internal research and internal email conversations, has managed to sort of cherry-pick the bits that build its argument. That Meta knew what was happening and leadership decided not to make the changes that were necessary to make their products safer. They’ve been trying to do better, they continue to try to do better, and the kind of money that the state attorneys general are asking for is wildly out of proportion from their perspective. From Meta’s perspective, right, they have been working hard at things and their internal conversations are honest. You know, sometimes it’s not clear what the right step is.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Is Mark Zuckerberg himself expected to testify at this trial or has he talked about his company’s record on this and maybe other places?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Chairman Durbin, ranking member Graham, and members of the committee.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>He has testified on Capitol Hill.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Mark Zuckerberg: \u003c/strong>Being a parent is one of the hardest jobs in the world. Technology gives us new ways to communicate with our kids and feel connected to their lives, but it can also make parenting more complicated.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>But certainly, he would be the big name to hear from. The state attorneys general have listed him in pre-trial filings. You’re supposed to say who you wanna talk to, who you want to bring into the courtroom. We’re gonna have to watch how this plays out because we’ve already heard Arturo Béjar, a former safety executive for Facebook and later consultant in the same field for Instagram, that internal staff in numerous instances would recommend either doing something or not doing something, and the final decision would go to Mark Zuckerberg’s desk, and Zuckerberg would say, no, I’m countermanding what staff had recommended.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Who else can we expect maybe to testify in this trial?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>We’re expecting to hear from whistleblowers, some better known than others. We’re expected to hear from academic researchers who can talk to the broader impact of Meta’s behavior over the years. And we’re also hoping to hear from CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>So what is the timeline from here, Rachael? What happens next?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Well, so opening arguments concluded on the first day, and off we went to the races with the testimony. And there will be testimonies expected to go for, I don’t know, about six weeks. And so it won’t be until early October, probably, that we will see the jury consider what penalties might be and then advise the judge who will go from there to make her ruling.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And I mean, what are the potential outcomes of this trial? I mean is, does this trial have the potential to change social media or at least meta as we know it?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Absolutely. Meta’s CFO, Chief Financial Officer, has said as much in recent shareholder meetings. She has said to the shareholders, yep, we’re keeping our eye on these lawsuits because they could have a big impact.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>And that could look like forcing Meta to maybe place stronger restrictions somehow, ending infinite scroll, I imagine.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Infinite scroll, right? We all know this because as adults we’re addicted, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Oh yeah.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Rachael Myrow: \u003c/strong>Everything from that little red dot that tells you, ooh, is there something new? Yeah. We’re all vulnerable to this sort of form of manipulation through design. And just imagine, if you’re forced, there are a number of ways to do it, technically. One thing is for sure, it would have an impact on Meta’s bottom line. With this much on the line, you know that there’s going to be appeals. Whatever the story is with the judge’s ruling, that is just the beginning of the conversation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>Rachael, thank you so much as always. Thank you. That was Rachael Myrow, Senior Editor of KQED’s Silicon Valley Desk. This conversation was cut down and edited by Senior Editor Alan Montecillo. Gabriela Glueck is our producer, she scored this episode and added all the tape, music courtesy of APM. The Bay is made every week by me and… Alan Montecillo,\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>Gabriella Glueck. With support from Jen Chien. Katie Springer. Maha Sanad. Ethan Toven-Lindsey.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ericka Cruz Guevarra: \u003c/strong>If you want to get in touch with us here at The Bay, feel free to send us an email. We’re at thebay.kqed.org. Support for The Bay is provided in part by the Osher Production Fund. Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by the Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco, Northern California Local. And I’m Ericka Cruz Guevarra. Thanks so much for listening. Talk to you next time.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Mark Zuckerberg created a company culture that made it “practically impossible” to address safety and well-being issues in its products, Meta whistleblower Arturo Béjar said in a federal courtroom in Oakland on Wednesday during the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">landmark child safety trial\u003c/a> against the tech company. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The former Meta safety engineer said that features the company built to support mental health and counter social media addiction were “designed to fail.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s like [if] you have a car and they give you some brakes, but the brakes are in the trunk,” he said. “You have to go look for it and install it before you turn it on.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096038\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2000x1125.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chris Lewis, commissioner of consumer and senior protection of the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, cross-examines psychology professor Jean Twenge on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar was the first witness called by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey, who allege that the largest social media company in the world knowingly designed its products in ways that could harm children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, has denied the allegations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company has acknowledged that it has a role to play in addressing teen well-being, and that some teens struggle to manage their time on social media, but said that it acts on those issues. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta also said in a statement via email that it emphasized ongoing feedback, research and learning to improve safety features.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In his second day on the stand, Béjar said the company’s goal was to get products into users’ hands quickly. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While Béjar worked at Meta, leading Facebook’s Protect and Care team for six years in the 2010s, and as a consultant on Instagram’s well-being team from 2019 to 2021, he said office walls featured posters of Zuckerberg saying “Move Fast and Break Things.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Most of the time, safety and security was an afterthought,” Béjar said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar said during his first stint with the company, he felt that it cared about safety. When he returned between 2019 and 2021, though, he said he was not proud of the well-being products Instagram was sending. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar said features that Instagram introduced over the years, advertised as helping users manage the amount of time they spent on the apps, were intentionally ineffective. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096013\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Meta Attorney Brian Stekloff cross-examined Meta whistleblower Arturo Béjar on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He pointed specifically to “Quiet Mode,” which pauses notifications and sets an account’s status as “away,” and a “Take a Break” button, a full-screen pop-up that gives users a nudge to close the app after a certain amount of continuous scrolling time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both are optional and user-initiated. They can also be ignored. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If ‘Take a Break’ was designed to be effective, it would have been designed and measured by how effective it was to getting people to stop using the product,” Béjar said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Under cross-examination, Meta attorney Brian Stekloff got Béjar to affirm his belief that there are benefits to social media, including for teens. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar said that Meta hired highly educated and well-qualified people to work on safety, many of whom remained at the company after he left, and that during his first, full-time role, Zuckerberg and other executives would work to correct issues when they found them. Both times he departed the company were on good terms, Béjar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the company hid evidence of the psychological harm it caused children behind euphemistic language and misleading metrics, Béjar said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096040\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill delivered her opening statement in the state’s case against Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. O’Neill accused Meta of hiding its own research that showed children were being harmed by its platforms. Opening arguments began Tuesday in the federal suit brought by four attorneys general against Meta. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was the company culture that made it near impossible to deliver things that would have been invaluable to learn about harm so that you could reduce it,” Béjar said, adding that he “tried to do it the first year” he returned as a consultant. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said that when Meta was accused of harming children, it responded with data showing that more kids benefited.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If we make, out of 100 kids, 31 kids less anxious and 30 kids more anxious … [that to Meta is] more good than harm,” he said. “It’s like math with harm.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The work should be to protect the good … while bringing the harm as close to zero as possible,” Béjar said.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096040\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill delivered her opening statement in the state’s case against Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. O’Neill accused Meta of hiding its own research that showed children were being harmed by its platforms. Opening arguments began Tuesday in the federal suit brought by four attorneys general against Meta. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"title": "Former Meta Engineer Arturo Béjar Testifies Mark Zuckerberg Put Profits Over Child Safety | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Mark Zuckerberg created a company culture that made it “practically impossible” to address safety and well-being issues in its products, Meta whistleblower Arturo Béjar said in a federal courtroom in Oakland on Wednesday during the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095583/meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland\">landmark child safety trial\u003c/a> against the tech company. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The former Meta safety engineer said that features the company built to support mental health and counter social media addiction were “designed to fail.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s like [if] you have a car and they give you some brakes, but the brakes are in the trunk,” he said. “You have to go look for it and install it before you turn it on.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096038\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2000x1125.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch3_VB-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Chris Lewis, commissioner of consumer and senior protection of the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, cross-examines psychology professor Jean Twenge on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar was the first witness called by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey, who allege that the largest social media company in the world knowingly designed its products in ways that could harm children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, has denied the allegations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company has acknowledged that it has a role to play in addressing teen well-being, and that some teens struggle to manage their time on social media, but said that it acts on those issues. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta also said in a statement via email that it emphasized ongoing feedback, research and learning to improve safety features.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In his second day on the stand, Béjar said the company’s goal was to get products into users’ hands quickly. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While Béjar worked at Meta, leading Facebook’s Protect and Care team for six years in the 2010s, and as a consultant on Instagram’s well-being team from 2019 to 2021, he said office walls featured posters of Zuckerberg saying “Move Fast and Break Things.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Most of the time, safety and security was an afterthought,” Béjar said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar said during his first stint with the company, he felt that it cared about safety. When he returned between 2019 and 2021, though, he said he was not proud of the well-being products Instagram was sending. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar said features that Instagram introduced over the years, advertised as helping users manage the amount of time they spent on the apps, were intentionally ineffective. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096013\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260819-MetaTrialSketch2_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Meta Attorney Brian Stekloff cross-examined Meta whistleblower Arturo Béjar on Aug. 19, 2026, in an Oakland courtroom. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He pointed specifically to “Quiet Mode,” which pauses notifications and sets an account’s status as “away,” and a “Take a Break” button, a full-screen pop-up that gives users a nudge to close the app after a certain amount of continuous scrolling time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both are optional and user-initiated. They can also be ignored. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If ‘Take a Break’ was designed to be effective, it would have been designed and measured by how effective it was to getting people to stop using the product,” Béjar said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Under cross-examination, Meta attorney Brian Stekloff got Béjar to affirm his belief that there are benefits to social media, including for teens. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar said that Meta hired highly educated and well-qualified people to work on safety, many of whom remained at the company after he left, and that during his first, full-time role, Zuckerberg and other executives would work to correct issues when they found them. Both times he departed the company were on good terms, Béjar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the company hid evidence of the psychological harm it caused children behind euphemistic language and misleading metrics, Béjar said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12096040\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill delivered her opening statement in the state’s case against Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. O’Neill accused Meta of hiding its own research that showed children were being harmed by its platforms. Opening arguments began Tuesday in the federal suit brought by four attorneys general against Meta. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was the company culture that made it near impossible to deliver things that would have been invaluable to learn about harm so that you could reduce it,” Béjar said, adding that he “tried to do it the first year” he returned as a consultant. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said that when Meta was accused of harming children, it responded with data showing that more kids benefited.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“If we make, out of 100 kids, 31 kids less anxious and 30 kids more anxious … [that to Meta is] more good than harm,” he said. “It’s like math with harm.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The work should be to protect the good … while bringing the harm as close to zero as possible,” Béjar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "meta-hooked-kids-federal-trial-against-tech-giant-kicks-off-in-oakland",
"title": "‘Meta Hooked Kids’: Federal Trial Against Tech Giant Kicks Off in Oakland",
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"headTitle": "‘Meta Hooked Kids’: Federal Trial Against Tech Giant Kicks Off in Oakland | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094595/meta-faces-up-to-1-4-trillion-reckoning-as-youth-addiction-trial-opens-in-oakland\">landmark trial against Meta\u003c/a> opened in Oakland on Tuesday, with California leading a coalition of states accusing the largest social media company in the world of knowingly designing its products in ways that could harm children.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“What you’re going to hear in this trial is how Meta hooked kids on its platforms. How it designed those platforms so that kids kept coming back,” Megan O’Neill, a deputy attorney general for California, told the court during her opening statement on Tuesday morning. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Meta had its own research showing how kids had bad, even traumatic, experiences on its apps,” O’Neill said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If the states succeed, Meta could be held liable for up to $1.4 trillion in damages — roughly what the company is worth on Wall Street — and required to make changes to how it runs Instagram and Facebook platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095798\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill delivered her opening statement in the state’s case against Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. O’Neill accused Meta of hiding its own research that showed children were being harmed by its platforms. Opening arguments began Tuesday in the federal suit brought by four attorneys general against Meta. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In recent years, Meta and other social media companies have been slammed with thousands of lawsuits brought by families and school districts, claiming social media addiction has harmed children’s mental health.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over several decades, the companies have been able to defeat many lawsuits, arguing federal law protects platforms from being held liable for the content users publish on their sites. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But states, school districts and individuals have begun employing a different strategy that led to Meta losses in district courts in Los Angeles and New Mexico in recent years: arguing that social media platforms like Meta have deliberately engineered products to be addictive, even or especially for children, and misled the public about their behavior and the risks in order to make money and increase its customer base. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Tens of millions of teens and children under 13 have Instagram and Facebook accounts, earning Meta ad revenue and allowing it to harvest emails, phone numbers, images of kids’ faces and other personal information.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Time and time again, profits won,” O’Neill said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The federal suit — brought by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey and joined by 29 others, whose cases will go to trial at a later time — argues that Meta built features that it knew would hook young people and did little to remove children under 13 from its platforms, while telling parents and regulators otherwise. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are not here to hold Meta responsible for the fact that there are bad people out there who post bad things that may harm kids,” O’Neill said. “We are holding Meta responsible for its own conduct. What Meta said and didn’t say, what Meta did and didn’t do. The choices that Meta made.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Internal company documents and whistleblowers, including Arturo Béjar, the former leader of Integrity and Care Facebook, have revealed that Instagram aimed to increase the minutes that teen users spent on their platform each year, and that the company hid its own research showing the negative impacts its apps had on teens. The company also knew, they allege, that millions of children under the age of 13, barred from Facebook and Instagram in the company’s terms and conditions, were users. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar testified that the company “has taken a ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ approach” to children under 13 using its platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Coco was 12 when she opened Instagram for the first time in 2017, four years before the world learned what Meta already knew: Instagram was harming teenage girls,” mom Julianna Arnold said outside the Oakland courtroom. There, advocates gathered to pay tribute to nearly 400 deceased young people who were allegedly lured into sexual exploitation through Facebook, or served content that made them feel worse about themselves and their bodies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“By her teens, [Coco] could not look away. Her scrolling became depression, then anxiety she couldn’t escape,” Arnold said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said her daughter was groomed by a man on Instagram, who sold her what she thought was Percocet, but turned out to be a fatal dose of fentanyl, when she was 17. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Coco’s story was not an accident. We know it was the predictable outcome of a platform Meta knew harmed children,” Arnold said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095855\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Arturo Béjar, a security consultant who formerly worked for Meta, testified on Aug. 18, 2026, in a federal courthouse in Oakland. Béjar testified before the Senate in 2023 that the company knew about harms its platforms caused to children and teens, but failed to act. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta has repeatedly denied that its platforms are responsible for this harm. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The company’s lead attorney, Paul Schmidt, told the court during his opening statement that Meta doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media, and some people “post negative things.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That’s something Meta takes seriously, and tries to act on,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said the whistleblower accounts and data shared by the states lacked context and were needles picked out of the haystack of employee and user statements over many years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to one internal report, one in five teens said Instagram made them feel worse about themselves, a statistic O’Neill quoted in her opening statement before the advisory jury in Oakland. Schmidt said that the same report noted 40% of those surveyed said they felt better, and 41% felt no different. In other internal documents, employees discussed making a product that “intentionally promotes wellbeing.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Schmidt also said there are “real challenges in verifying age,” but that Meta has always required users to be at least 13, and has more recently developed detection tools to identify accounts belonging to children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta said in a statement that it was “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people,” but parents and advocates at the courthouse on Tuesday said they believe the company will be held accountable in the coming weeks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re going to make history here,” said Erin Popolo, whose daughter Emily died by suicide after being cyberbullied and harassed. “This is going to be a groundbreaking trial. They’re going to be found liable for what they are doing to people.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The trial is expected to go on for weeks and feature testimony from high-level Meta executives, including founder Mark Zuckerberg, who wasn’t present in the courtroom on Tuesday, as well as state health and education officials.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The jury will provide an advisory verdict, but Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers — who has a track record of presiding over blockbuster tech industry cases, including this spring’s trial between \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081290/how-to-unscramble-an-omelet-in-silicon-valley-the-musk-v-altman-trial-that-will-try\">Sam Altman and Elon Musk\u003c/a> — will decide the civil penalties and any changes Meta will be required to make, if it is found liable.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Meta, one of the largest, most powerful companies in the world, carried out a campaign to deceive, to mislead its users, legislators, teachers and parents,” O’Neill said. “At the end of this trial, we’re going to ask you to hold Meta accountable.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095798\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill delivered her opening statement in the state’s case against Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. O’Neill accused Meta of hiding its own research that showed children were being harmed by its platforms. Opening arguments began Tuesday in the federal suit brought by four attorneys general against Meta.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The federal suit — brought by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey and joined by 29 others, whose cases will go to trial at a later time — argues that Meta built features that it knew would hook young people and did little to remove children under 13 from its platforms, while telling parents and regulators otherwise. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We are not here to hold Meta responsible for the fact that there are bad people out there who post bad things that may harm kids,” O’Neill said. “We are holding Meta responsible for its own conduct. What Meta said and didn’t say, what Meta did and didn’t do. The choices that Meta made.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Coco was 12 when she opened Instagram for the first time in 2017, four years before the world learned what Meta already knew: Instagram was harming teenage girls,” mom Julianna Arnold said outside the Oakland courtroom. There, advocates gathered to pay tribute to nearly 400 deceased young people who were allegedly lured into sexual exploitation through Facebook, or served content that made them feel worse about themselves and their bodies.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“By her teens, [Coco] could not look away. Her scrolling became depression, then anxiety she couldn’t escape,” Arnold said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said her daughter was groomed by a man on Instagram, who sold her what she thought was Percocet, but turned out to be a fatal dose of fentanyl, when she was 17. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Coco’s story was not an accident. We know it was the predictable outcome of a platform Meta knew harmed children,” Arnold said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The company’s lead attorney, Paul Schmidt, told the court during his opening statement that Meta doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media, and some people “post negative things.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Schmidt also said there are “real challenges in verifying age,” but that Meta has always required users to be at least 13, and has more recently developed detection tools to identify accounts belonging to children. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Meta said in a statement that it was “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people,” but parents and advocates at the courthouse on Tuesday said they believe the company will be held accountable in the coming weeks. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We’re going to make history here,” said Erin Popolo, whose daughter Emily died by suicide after being cyberbullied and harassed. “This is going to be a groundbreaking trial. They’re going to be found liable for what they are doing to people.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The jury will provide an advisory verdict, but Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers — who has a track record of presiding over blockbuster tech industry cases, including this spring’s trial between \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081290/how-to-unscramble-an-omelet-in-silicon-valley-the-musk-v-altman-trial-that-will-try\">Sam Altman and Elon Musk\u003c/a> — will decide the civil penalties and any changes Meta will be required to make, if it is found liable.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Meta, one of the largest, most powerful companies in the world, carried out a campaign to deceive, to mislead its users, legislators, teachers and parents,” O’Neill said. “At the end of this trial, we’re going to ask you to hold Meta accountable.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094595/meta-faces-up-to-1-4-trillion-reckoning-as-youth-addiction-trial-opens-in-oakland\">landmark trial against Meta\u003c/a> opened in Oakland on Tuesday, with California leading a coalition of states accusing the largest social media company in the world of knowingly designing its products in ways that could harm children.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“What you’re going to hear in this trial is how Meta hooked kids on its platforms. How it designed those platforms so that kids kept coming back,” Megan O’Neill, a deputy attorney general for California, told the court during her opening statement on Tuesday morning. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Meta had its own research showing how kids had bad, even traumatic, experiences on its apps,” O’Neill said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If the states succeed, Meta could be held liable for up to $1.4 trillion in damages — roughly what the company is worth on Wall Street — and required to make changes to how it runs Instagram and Facebook platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095798\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch1_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill delivered her opening statement in the state’s case against Meta on Aug. 18, 2026, in Oakland. O’Neill accused Meta of hiding its own research that showed children were being harmed by its platforms. Opening arguments began Tuesday in the federal suit brought by four attorneys general against Meta. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In recent years, Meta and other social media companies have been slammed with thousands of lawsuits brought by families and school districts, claiming social media addiction has harmed children’s mental health.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over several decades, the companies have been able to defeat many lawsuits, arguing federal law protects platforms from being held liable for the content users publish on their sites. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But states, school districts and individuals have begun employing a different strategy that led to Meta losses in district courts in Los Angeles and New Mexico in recent years: arguing that social media platforms like Meta have deliberately engineered products to be addictive, even or especially for children, and misled the public about their behavior and the risks in order to make money and increase its customer base. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Tens of millions of teens and children under 13 have Instagram and Facebook accounts, earning Meta ad revenue and allowing it to harvest emails, phone numbers, images of kids’ faces and other personal information.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Time and time again, profits won,” O’Neill said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The federal suit — brought by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey and joined by 29 others, whose cases will go to trial at a later time — argues that Meta built features that it knew would hook young people and did little to remove children under 13 from its platforms, while telling parents and regulators otherwise. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are not here to hold Meta responsible for the fact that there are bad people out there who post bad things that may harm kids,” O’Neill said. “We are holding Meta responsible for its own conduct. What Meta said and didn’t say, what Meta did and didn’t do. The choices that Meta made.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Internal company documents and whistleblowers, including Arturo Béjar, the former leader of Integrity and Care Facebook, have revealed that Instagram aimed to increase the minutes that teen users spent on their platform each year, and that the company hid its own research showing the negative impacts its apps had on teens. The company also knew, they allege, that millions of children under the age of 13, barred from Facebook and Instagram in the company’s terms and conditions, were users. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Béjar testified that the company “has taken a ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ approach” to children under 13 using its platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Coco was 12 when she opened Instagram for the first time in 2017, four years before the world learned what Meta already knew: Instagram was harming teenage girls,” mom Julianna Arnold said outside the Oakland courtroom. There, advocates gathered to pay tribute to nearly 400 deceased young people who were allegedly lured into sexual exploitation through Facebook, or served content that made them feel worse about themselves and their bodies.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“By her teens, [Coco] could not look away. Her scrolling became depression, then anxiety she couldn’t escape,” Arnold said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said her daughter was groomed by a man on Instagram, who sold her what she thought was Percocet, but turned out to be a fatal dose of fentanyl, when she was 17. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Coco’s story was not an accident. We know it was the predictable outcome of a platform Meta knew harmed children,” Arnold said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1125\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095855\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/MetaTrialSketch3_VB-KQED-1200x675.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Arturo Béjar, a security consultant who formerly worked for Meta, testified on Aug. 18, 2026, in a federal courthouse in Oakland. Béjar testified before the Senate in 2023 that the company knew about harms its platforms caused to children and teens, but failed to act. (Vicki Behringer for KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta has repeatedly denied that its platforms are responsible for this harm. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The company’s lead attorney, Paul Schmidt, told the court during his opening statement that Meta doesn’t deny that “some teens struggle to manage their time on social media, and some people “post negative things.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That’s something Meta takes seriously, and tries to act on,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He said the whistleblower accounts and data shared by the states lacked context and were needles picked out of the haystack of employee and user statements over many years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to one internal report, one in five teens said Instagram made them feel worse about themselves, a statistic O’Neill quoted in her opening statement before the advisory jury in Oakland. Schmidt said that the same report noted 40% of those surveyed said they felt better, and 41% felt no different. In other internal documents, employees discussed making a product that “intentionally promotes wellbeing.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Schmidt also said there are “real challenges in verifying age,” but that Meta has always required users to be at least 13, and has more recently developed detection tools to identify accounts belonging to children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Meta said in a statement that it was “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people,” but parents and advocates at the courthouse on Tuesday said they believe the company will be held accountable in the coming weeks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re going to make history here,” said Erin Popolo, whose daughter Emily died by suicide after being cyberbullied and harassed. “This is going to be a groundbreaking trial. They’re going to be found liable for what they are doing to people.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The trial is expected to go on for weeks and feature testimony from high-level Meta executives, including founder Mark Zuckerberg, who wasn’t present in the courtroom on Tuesday, as well as state health and education officials.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The jury will provide an advisory verdict, but Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers — who has a track record of presiding over blockbuster tech industry cases, including this spring’s trial between \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081290/how-to-unscramble-an-omelet-in-silicon-valley-the-musk-v-altman-trial-that-will-try\">Sam Altman and Elon Musk\u003c/a> — will decide the civil penalties and any changes Meta will be required to make, if it is found liable.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Meta, one of the largest, most powerful companies in the world, carried out a campaign to deceive, to mislead its users, legislators, teachers and parents,” O’Neill said. “At the end of this trial, we’re going to ask you to hold Meta accountable.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Unaccompanied Migrant Kids May Face Legal Gaps as Bay Area Groups Lose Federal Funding",
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"headTitle": "Unaccompanied Migrant Kids May Face Legal Gaps as Bay Area Groups Lose Federal Funding | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>Legal aid groups said they will continue to represent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/immigration\">unaccompanied immigrant children\u003c/a> in the Bay Area even after the Trump administration shifted federal funding away from seasoned service providers to a controversial anti-trafficking group.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/08/12/nx-s1-5929456/migrant-children-our-rescue\">$158 million contract —\u003c/a> which could grow to $244 million — to Our Rescue, a Utah-based anti-human-trafficking group whose founder was accused of sexual exploitation and whose current director led Homeland Security Investigations, a branch of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, during the first Trump administration. The group touts its expertise assisting law enforcement with sting operations, but advocates say it lacks experience representing children in immigration court.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Katrina Logan, executive director of \u003ca href=\"https://clsepa.org\">Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto,\u003c/a> said her team of lawyers and social workers is not walking away from the 33 children they represent, even though their contract funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services expired July 31. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Immigration cases can go on for years and can involve complex forms of humanitarian relief, especially for children, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/GettyImages-1838184632-scaled-e1786995916941.jpg\" alt=\"a line of kids outside in the desert\" class=\"wp-image-11986452\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Immigrant children await transport from the U.S.-Mexico border in December 2023. (John Moore/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our attorneys have been doing this type of law for many years. They’ve developed the expertise,” Logan said. “They understand how to support clients. So it’s definitely tough to be losing this funding.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Logan’s organization is the lead plaintiff in a federal lawsuit that blocked HHS last year when it tried to terminate funding for lawyers to represent more than 20,000 children — including more than 4,000 in California. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On Aug. 6, an Oakland federal judge ordered HHS to release $65 million in back-due payments to the network of legal service providers, including Logan’s group and several others in California. The agency had stopped cutting checks in December, after the groups refused to comply with a new requirement to turn over information about the children and their cases. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín rejected the information-sharing requirement — which was not part of the original contract — and said the government was violating her 2025 order to pay for legal services, as Congress intended.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A 2008 law, the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, requires the government to ensure that unaccompanied migrant children “have counsel to represent them in legal proceedings or matters and protect them from mistreatment, exploitation, and trafficking,” Martínez-Olguín wrote. She noted that Congress has funded those services through 2027.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The $65 million — with interest — has now been paid, said Bilal Askaryar, spokesperson for the \u003ca href=\"https://acaciajustice.org\">Acacia Center for Justice\u003c/a>, which holds the master contract on behalf of Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto and roughly 100 other nonprofits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>With the contract now expired, he said, HHS’s \u003ca href=\"https://acf.gov/orr\">Office of Refugee Resettlement\u003c/a>, which is tasked with the welfare of unaccompanied migrant children, made the sharing of what he called confidential information — including the children’s alien numbers and their lawyers’ plans for arguing their cases — a requirement to renew.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We told ORR that we would be happy to continue providing these services because we are the network with the trauma-informed lawyers who know how to work with children,” Askaryar said. “And we would not hand over our clients’ sensitive, confidential, privileged data in exchange for considering that work. ORR made that a requirement, and that was a red line that we would not cross.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Acacia did not apply to renew the contract under those terms, and, with the expiration of the old contract, Martínez-Olguín said the government seemed to be scrambling to meet its legal obligation to ensure kids have lawyers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It appears to the Court that no mechanism presently exists by which Defendants are complying with the preliminary injunction,” she wrote in her Aug. 6 ruling, and ordered the government to explain how it would comply with the law.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/01/gettyimages-91547950_slide-4d6100270cc91128d1beb27eca778a6dcd952acd-e1548610211215.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11721432\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children of Mexican immigrants wait to receive a free health checkup inside a mobile clinic at the Mexican Consulate in Denver, Colorado, in 2009. (John Moore/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a declaration last week, the government said it was looking for additional contractors to provide legal representation for kids and trying to work out a transitional contract with Acacia to “support an orderly transition of cases to new legal service providers, including \u003ca href=\"https://ourrescue.org\">Our Rescue\u003c/a>.”\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It also said it had engaged the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants on a short-term $20 million contract to provide legal services for the 1,800 children who are in ORR shelters. The Virginia-based nonprofit has performed immigration legal services for Afghan arrivals and \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/05/12/g-s1-65984/south-african-afrikaner-refugee-us\">helped settle\u003c/a> white South Africans granted refugee status in an expedited process last year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“These interim measures are intended to ensure that eligible children appearing without counsel have immediate access to representation while successor contracts are being negotiated,” attorneys for the government wrote. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But lawyers representing Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto and the other legal aid groups in the suit say they anticipate gaps — that could have big consequences for unaccompanied children, who are navigating an often-bewildering legal system without a parent for guidance.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It really does unfortunately mean that a lot of children may have court next week and may not have an attorney by their side,” said Álvaro Huerta, with Los Angeles-based \u003ca href=\"https://www.immdef.org\">Immigrant Defenders Law Center\u003c/a>, which represents children in immigration court and is also fighting the lawsuit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As the advocates wait for Martínez-Olguín’s next move in the case, leaders like Logan, at Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto, say they’ll keep forging ahead, in spite of uncertainty. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re just in that mode of being ready for whatever is going to come and hopefully having the capacity to continue to do the important work that we’ve been doing,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Askaryar said the stakes of the work are greater than a contract or a federal program.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is about what kind of country the United States of America wants to be … when a child stumbles onto our doorstep asking for help,” he said. “Do we offer them a lawyer that knows how to work with kids in a child-friendly way to help them rebuild their life, or do we offer them someone who is just going to rubber stamp their deportation?”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On Aug. 6, an Oakland federal judge ordered HHS to release $65 million in back-due payments to the network of legal service providers, including Logan’s group and several others in California. The agency had stopped cutting checks in December, after the groups refused to comply with a new requirement to turn over information about the children and their cases. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A 2008 law, the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, requires the government to ensure that unaccompanied migrant children “have counsel to represent them in legal proceedings or matters and protect them from mistreatment, exploitation, and trafficking,” Martínez-Olguín wrote. She noted that Congress has funded those services through 2027.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The $65 million — with interest — has now been paid, said Bilal Askaryar, spokesperson for the \u003ca href=\"https://acaciajustice.org\">Acacia Center for Justice\u003c/a>, which holds the master contract on behalf of Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto and roughly 100 other nonprofits. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We told ORR that we would be happy to continue providing these services because we are the network with the trauma-informed lawyers who know how to work with children,” Askaryar said. “And we would not hand over our clients’ sensitive, confidential, privileged data in exchange for considering that work. ORR made that a requirement, and that was a red line that we would not cross.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Acacia did not apply to renew the contract under those terms, and, with the expiration of the old contract, Martínez-Olguín said the government seemed to be scrambling to meet its legal obligation to ensure kids have lawyers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It appears to the Court that no mechanism presently exists by which Defendants are complying with the preliminary injunction,” she wrote in her Aug. 6 ruling, and ordered the government to explain how it would comply with the law.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a declaration last week, the government said it was looking for additional contractors to provide legal representation for kids and trying to work out a transitional contract with Acacia to “support an orderly transition of cases to new legal service providers, including \u003ca href=\"https://ourrescue.org\">Our Rescue\u003c/a>.”\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It also said it had engaged the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants on a short-term $20 million contract to provide legal services for the 1,800 children who are in ORR shelters. The Virginia-based nonprofit has performed immigration legal services for Afghan arrivals and \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/05/12/g-s1-65984/south-african-afrikaner-refugee-us\">helped settle\u003c/a> white South Africans granted refugee status in an expedited process last year. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But lawyers representing Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto and the other legal aid groups in the suit say they anticipate gaps — that could have big consequences for unaccompanied children, who are navigating an often-bewildering legal system without a parent for guidance.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It really does unfortunately mean that a lot of children may have court next week and may not have an attorney by their side,” said Álvaro Huerta, with Los Angeles-based \u003ca href=\"https://www.immdef.org\">Immigrant Defenders Law Center\u003c/a>, which represents children in immigration court and is also fighting the lawsuit. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As the advocates wait for Martínez-Olguín’s next move in the case, leaders like Logan, at Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto, say they’ll keep forging ahead, in spite of uncertainty. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This is about what kind of country the United States of America wants to be … when a child stumbles onto our doorstep asking for help,” he said. “Do we offer them a lawyer that knows how to work with kids in a child-friendly way to help them rebuild their life, or do we offer them someone who is just going to rubber stamp their deportation?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "An Oakland judge is weighing whether a new Trump administration plan ensures that children are represented in immigration court as federal law requires. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Legal aid groups said they will continue to represent \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/immigration\">unaccompanied immigrant children\u003c/a> in the Bay Area even after the Trump administration shifted federal funding away from seasoned service providers to a controversial anti-trafficking group.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2026/08/12/nx-s1-5929456/migrant-children-our-rescue\">$158 million contract —\u003c/a> which could grow to $244 million — to Our Rescue, a Utah-based anti-human-trafficking group whose founder was accused of sexual exploitation and whose current director led Homeland Security Investigations, a branch of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, during the first Trump administration. The group touts its expertise assisting law enforcement with sting operations, but advocates say it lacks experience representing children in immigration court.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Katrina Logan, executive director of \u003ca href=\"https://clsepa.org\">Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto,\u003c/a> said her team of lawyers and social workers is not walking away from the 33 children they represent, even though their contract funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services expired July 31. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Immigration cases can go on for years and can involve complex forms of humanitarian relief, especially for children, she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/GettyImages-1838184632-scaled-e1786995916941.jpg\" alt=\"a line of kids outside in the desert\" class=\"wp-image-11986452\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Immigrant children await transport from the U.S.-Mexico border in December 2023. (John Moore/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our attorneys have been doing this type of law for many years. They’ve developed the expertise,” Logan said. “They understand how to support clients. So it’s definitely tough to be losing this funding.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Logan’s organization is the lead plaintiff in a federal lawsuit that blocked HHS last year when it tried to terminate funding for lawyers to represent more than 20,000 children — including more than 4,000 in California. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On Aug. 6, an Oakland federal judge ordered HHS to release $65 million in back-due payments to the network of legal service providers, including Logan’s group and several others in California. The agency had stopped cutting checks in December, after the groups refused to comply with a new requirement to turn over information about the children and their cases. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín rejected the information-sharing requirement — which was not part of the original contract — and said the government was violating her 2025 order to pay for legal services, as Congress intended.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A 2008 law, the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, requires the government to ensure that unaccompanied migrant children “have counsel to represent them in legal proceedings or matters and protect them from mistreatment, exploitation, and trafficking,” Martínez-Olguín wrote. She noted that Congress has funded those services through 2027.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The $65 million — with interest — has now been paid, said Bilal Askaryar, spokesperson for the \u003ca href=\"https://acaciajustice.org\">Acacia Center for Justice\u003c/a>, which holds the master contract on behalf of Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto and roughly 100 other nonprofits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>With the contract now expired, he said, HHS’s \u003ca href=\"https://acf.gov/orr\">Office of Refugee Resettlement\u003c/a>, which is tasked with the welfare of unaccompanied migrant children, made the sharing of what he called confidential information — including the children’s alien numbers and their lawyers’ plans for arguing their cases — a requirement to renew.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We told ORR that we would be happy to continue providing these services because we are the network with the trauma-informed lawyers who know how to work with children,” Askaryar said. “And we would not hand over our clients’ sensitive, confidential, privileged data in exchange for considering that work. ORR made that a requirement, and that was a red line that we would not cross.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Acacia did not apply to renew the contract under those terms, and, with the expiration of the old contract, Martínez-Olguín said the government seemed to be scrambling to meet its legal obligation to ensure kids have lawyers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It appears to the Court that no mechanism presently exists by which Defendants are complying with the preliminary injunction,” she wrote in her Aug. 6 ruling, and ordered the government to explain how it would comply with the law.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2019/01/gettyimages-91547950_slide-4d6100270cc91128d1beb27eca778a6dcd952acd-e1548610211215.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11721432\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Children of Mexican immigrants wait to receive a free health checkup inside a mobile clinic at the Mexican Consulate in Denver, Colorado, in 2009. (John Moore/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a declaration last week, the government said it was looking for additional contractors to provide legal representation for kids and trying to work out a transitional contract with Acacia to “support an orderly transition of cases to new legal service providers, including \u003ca href=\"https://ourrescue.org\">Our Rescue\u003c/a>.”\u003cbr>\u003cbr>It also said it had engaged the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants on a short-term $20 million contract to provide legal services for the 1,800 children who are in ORR shelters. The Virginia-based nonprofit has performed immigration legal services for Afghan arrivals and \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2025/05/12/g-s1-65984/south-african-afrikaner-refugee-us\">helped settle\u003c/a> white South Africans granted refugee status in an expedited process last year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“These interim measures are intended to ensure that eligible children appearing without counsel have immediate access to representation while successor contracts are being negotiated,” attorneys for the government wrote. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But lawyers representing Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto and the other legal aid groups in the suit say they anticipate gaps — that could have big consequences for unaccompanied children, who are navigating an often-bewildering legal system without a parent for guidance.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It really does unfortunately mean that a lot of children may have court next week and may not have an attorney by their side,” said Álvaro Huerta, with Los Angeles-based \u003ca href=\"https://www.immdef.org\">Immigrant Defenders Law Center\u003c/a>, which represents children in immigration court and is also fighting the lawsuit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As the advocates wait for Martínez-Olguín’s next move in the case, leaders like Logan, at Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto, say they’ll keep forging ahead, in spite of uncertainty. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re just in that mode of being ready for whatever is going to come and hopefully having the capacity to continue to do the important work that we’ve been doing,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Askaryar said the stakes of the work are greater than a contract or a federal program.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies",
"title": "San Francisco Is Expanding Access to Free or Discounted Childcare. How Do Families Sign Up?",
"publishDate": 1786964400,
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Is Expanding Access to Free or Discounted Childcare. How Do Families Sign Up? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">widening access to early childhood education\u003c/a> and care for children from birth to 5 years old — by offering families financial aid.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s what San Francisco families need to know about the system and how they can sign up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who qualifies for San Francisco’s financial aid for childcare?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Free tuition\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Full tuition credit\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Passing staff background checks\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Maintaining specific staff-to-child ratios\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The department also covers tuition for educators who want to complete their degrees in early childhood education at local colleges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. Last year, a study by \u003ca href=\"https://cscce.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/state-of-ece-san-francisco-2025-updated-jan2026.pdf\">UC Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment\u003c/a> found that the turnover rate for teachers and assistant teachers in San Francisco was 17%, which is 23% to 35% lower than in other places in California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’re getting better paid, hopefully you’re going to stay in your job,” Yashar said. A stable staff is a marker of quality, she said, because it allows children to strengthen relationships with their educator. \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n"
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"items": [
"Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month",
"Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month",
"Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month"
],
"ordered": false,
"values": ""
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n\n\n\u003c/ul>\n",
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"\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">",
null,
"\n\n",
null,
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null,
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n"
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
"attrs": [],
"innerBlocks": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n"
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
"attrs": [],
"innerBlocks": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n"
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}
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"level": 3,
"text": "50% tuition discount"
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n",
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"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n"
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" Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month",
"Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month",
"Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n\n\n\u003c/ul>\n",
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null,
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null,
"\n\n",
null,
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n"
]
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{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
"attrs": [],
"innerBlocks": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n"
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
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"innerBlocks": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n"
]
}
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "How is income eligibility determined?",
"level": 2
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?",
"level": 2
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerBlocks": []
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n"
],
"innerBlocks": []
},
{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
"dropCap": false
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n"
],
"innerBlocks": []
},
{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? ",
"level": 2
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n"
],
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},
{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n"
],
"innerBlocks": []
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n"
],
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{
"blockName": "core/image",
"attrs": {
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"imageCredit": "Beth LaBerge/KQED",
"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n"
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},
{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?",
"level": 2
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n",
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"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "What’s the quality of these programs?",
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},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n"
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"Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003c/ul>\n",
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null,
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"innerBlocks": [
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Passing staff background checks\u003c/li>\n",
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{
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid\u003c/li>\n",
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},
{
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Maintaining specific staff-to-child ratios\u003c/li>\n",
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},
{
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"attrs": [],
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n",
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"\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The department also covers tuition for educators who want to complete their degrees in early childhood education at local colleges. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. Last year, a study by \u003ca href=\"https://cscce.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/state-of-ece-san-francisco-2025-updated-jan2026.pdf\">UC Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment\u003c/a> found that the turnover rate for teachers and assistant teachers in San Francisco was 17%, which is 23% to 35% lower than in other places in California.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“If you’re getting better paid, hopefully you’re going to stay in your job,” Yashar said. A stable staff is a marker of quality, she said, because it allows children to strengthen relationships with their educator. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "San Francisco is the first U.S. city to offer a robust early childhood education program for children under 5. Here’s how families can opt into its Early Learning For All system. ",
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"title": "San Francisco Is Expanding Access to Free or Discounted Childcare. How Do Families Sign Up? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">widening access to early childhood education\u003c/a> and care for children from birth to 5 years old — by offering families financial aid.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s what San Francisco families need to know about the system and how they can sign up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who qualifies for San Francisco’s financial aid for childcare?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Free tuition\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Full tuition credit\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Passing staff background checks\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Maintaining specific staff-to-child ratios\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The department also covers tuition for educators who want to complete their degrees in early childhood education at local colleges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. 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"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
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"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"radiolab": {
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"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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"soldout": {
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"title": "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America",
"tagline": "A new future for housing",
"info": "Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
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"info": "",
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"tech-nation": {
"id": "tech-nation",
"title": "Tech Nation Radio Podcast",
"info": "Tech Nation is a weekly public radio program, hosted by Dr. Moira Gunn. Founded in 1993, it has grown from a simple interview show to a multi-faceted production, featuring conversations with noted technology and science leaders, and a weekly science and technology-related commentary.",
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"ted-radio-hour": {
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"title": "TED Radio Hour",
"info": "The TED Radio Hour is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.",
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