Conversations with influential legislators, officials, experts, educators, entrepreneurs, parents, attorneys, and others who want to help give every child a chance to grow up safe, healthy, and educated.
Anticipated Coverage:
Education: Early Childhood Education (ECE); Early Child Care (Daycare); Special Education; School Environment; Education for Children in Foster Care; and Automation in Childhood Education
Protection and Welfare: Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention; Child Welfare Systems; Juvenile Justice; and Positive Youth Development.
Health and Hunger: Health Insurance Access; Mental Health Services; Nutrition and Food Security; and Maternal and Infant Health.
Family Supports and Economic Stability: Economic Mobility; Support for Kin Caregivers; and Affordable Housing
Special Needs: Developmental Services and System Navigation.
Values Based Families: Building Values Based Families; and Religious Institutions, Clerics and Child Advocacy.
Why Pediatricians Say They Can't Do Their Jobs Without This Program
In this episode of Let's Talk Kids, we sit down with Pamela Winkler-Tew, licensed social worker and Senior Sustainability Manager for HealthySteps, a program of Zero to Three. Pamela explains how HealthySteps places a child development specialist right in the pediatric practice to support babies and toddlers (ages 0-3) and their caregivers, from developmental concerns and parental mental health to food and housing needs. We dig into "serve and return" interactions, how New Jersey Family Care ...
28 Sept 2026
Grief Doesn't Look the Same for Everyone (Here's Why That Matters)
Lindsay Schambach, Executive Director of ImagineNJ, a center for coping and loss, describes how being a principal and experiencing impactful losses throughout her life led to her discovering her purpose as an advocate of family bereavement. She digs deep into grief and death: why processing it is so important, how different people process differently, how our society overlooks the process, and how Imagine is making a positive impact in all of these aspects! Learn more about ImagineNJ below!...
21 Sept 2026
Newark is Growing and so are its Kids! Here’s how parents and schools can help them succeed…
Kaleena Berryman, Executive Director of Newark Youth Career Pathways, shares how her organization helps young adults and teens across Newark, NJ gain the confidence and skills necessary to have a thriving career. She also shares insights on how parents and students should tap into the power of their voices to make improvements in their school community and legislatively. “Newark is poppin’!” Learn more about Newark Youth Career Pathways and Future Policymakers below! Newark Youth Career Pat...
24 Aug 2026
Why the Y? - How YMCAs Evolved from a Shelter for Young Men into a Community for Everyone!
Dr. Julie Gallanty, CEO of the NJ YMCA State Alliance, discusses the history of the YMCA, all that YMCA's offer, and how they have become an incredible community. Learn more about the NJ YMCA State Alliance below! NJ YMCA State Alliance - https://www.njymca.org/ VIDEO OUTLINE 00:00 - Intro & What led Dr. Gallanty to the YMCA? 00:55 - What’s the YMCA’s mission and what’s the NJ YMCA State Alliance? 02:26 - YMCA Offerings & How the YMCA helps children 06:31 - How the YMCA remedies th...
18 Aug 2026
Helping Parents Help Each Other to Help Their Children Grow | Let’s Talk Kids
Andrea Breitwieser, Assistant Director of the NJ Division of Family Development, Office of Child Care, explains the purpose of New Jersey Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies. Learn more about Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies below! CCR&R Official Website - https://www.childcarenj.gov/CCRR Grow NJ Kids Official Website - https://www.childcarenj.gov/GrowNJKids VIDEO OUTLINE 00:00 - Intro & How did Andrea end up at the Department of Human Services? 03:15 - What a...
12 Aug 2026
What Excellent Afterschool Organization Looks Like | Let’s Talk Kids
Ebony Grace, CEO of New Jersey’s Afterschool and Out-of-School Time Professional Network (NJSACC), explores what makes afterschool learning so special and impactful for the next generation of children. She explains how her organization operates in terms of education, safety, finances, and how it serves such a diverse population of kids across New Jersey. Learn more about NJSACC below! NJSACC Official Website - https://www.njsacc.org/ OUTLINE 00:00 - Who Ebony is and how she ended up at NJSA...
3 Aug 2026
How One of the Worst Schools in America Became Top-Tier in Just 10 Years | Let’s Talk Kids
Dr. Christine Johnson, Superintendent of Hoboken Public Schools, takes a deep dive into how she helped to transform the local school system from underperforming academically into one where underprivileged and previously neglected students are reading and writing high above average and rivaling their more fortunate peers effortlessly. They are even performing better than many school systems nationwide, including those being observed by leading pedagogy researchers at Stanford University. Make ...
20 Jul 2026
Nonprofits MUST Self Promote & Collaborate More Effectively! Here’s How I Do It… | Let’s Talk Kids Podcast
Shavonda E. Sumter, former Assemblywoman and CEO of Children’s Aid and Family Services, discusses her transition from government to CEO of a nonprofit organization and exposes what she feels nonprofits could improve upon when it comes to communicating with Legislators. She also explains how CAFSNJ collaborates with other organizations like NJ4S to combat the rising anxiety and depression in teens. Learn more about Children’s Aid and Family Services below! Children’s Aid and Family Services ...
8 Jul 2026
Stop Teaching Students Without Doing THIS First! | Let’s Talk Kids
Dr. Maurice Elias, Rutgers Psychology Professor and Director of the Social-Emotional and Character Development Lab, explains how teachers and administrators can positively enhance their school environment and educational methods in order to engage students, improve their mental health, and set them up for success rather than contributors to the rising rate of absenteeism. Learn more about Dr. Elias and his book below! Reinvigorating Classroom Climate by Maurice Elias - https://shorturl.at/v...
1 Jul 2026
Tooth Truth - The Untold Connection Between Your Teeth & Your Daily Life | Let’s Talk Kids
Nicole McGrath-Barnes DDS FACD, Founder and CEO of KinderSmile Foundation, discusses why dental care for babies and young children is more critical than most parents realize—and why the system is failing them. She shares the story behind building KinderSmile, how the foundation operates, and why its model deserves to be adopted more widely. The conversation digs into the overlooked connection between oral health and whole-body health, the financial and social repercussions of untreated dental...
5 Jun 2026
What Americans NEED to Know About Food Insecurity (Food Bank CEO Reveals All) | Let’s Talk Kids
Elizabeth McCarthy, President and CEO of the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, explains the purposes and services provided by modern Food Banks in America, as well as the current state of SNAP Benefits, child nutrition programs, and Food Insecurity / Hunger in New Jersey and across the country. Learn more about the Community FoodBank of NJ below! https://cfbnj.org/ - Community FoodBank of NJ https://cfbnj.org/find-foods-services/ - Find Food Services through CFBNJ ----------------------------...
15 May 2026
Why SNAP Benefits are *NECESSARY* | Let’s Talk Kids
Lisa Pitz, Director of Hunger Free New Jersey, shares unique insights and growing concerns regarding Food Insecurity in the state and country as a whole. This episode covers everything from the inner workings of Food Pantries, to the future of SNAP Benefits. Learn more about Hunger Free New Jersey below! hungerfreenj.org - Hunger Free NJ www.nj.gov/humanservices/njsnap/recipients/stay/ - Learn More about SNAP Benefits lsnj.org - Legal Services of New Jersey VIDEO OUTLINE 00:00 - Intro 0...
Diane Travers, Senior Director of NJ4S Essex, speaks about how her organization has worked with schools to directly meet the ever-changing mental health needs of the next generation of students as well as their parents and teachers. NJ4S clinicians host events and workshops covering a variety of topics such as anti-bullying, substance abuse prevention, financial literacy, healthy communication, absenteeism, and more. Learn more about the NJ4S Essex below! https://www.familyconnectionsnj.org...
28 Apr 2026
How Parent’s Health Affects Children’s Health | Let’s Talk Kids
Andrea Martinez-Mejia, Executive Director of the Greater Newark Healthcare Coalition, discusses the importance of many aspects of mental and physical well-being that are overlooked in New Jersey and the United States, as well as how Healthcare systems can be improved to better address these issues for families at risk. Learn more about the Greater Newark Healthcare Coalition below! https://greaternewarkhcc.org/ - Greater Newark Healthcare Coalition https://www.newarkmom.org/ - Newark Mom ...
6 Apr 2026
Communicating with and Supporting Fathers | Let’s Talk Kids
David Sims, Director of Stakeholder Engagement at Safe Babies Court Team, discusses Child Protective Services and how the system has been improved and can be further improved in its treatment of fathers; what initiatives exist for supporting fathers and how case workers can better communicate with fathers. Learn more about FELLAS below! https://pmch.org/fellas/ - FELLAS Fatherhood Program https://www.njsafebabies.com/ - Safe Babies Court Team - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itY28vyW...
1 Apr 2026
The Power and Potential of Special Education | Let’s Talk Kids
John Mulholland, an attorney and the Executive Director of the New Jersey Association of Special Education Partner Schools (NJASEPS), sheds light on the incredible advances made for improving the livelihood of kids with learning disabilities, as well as on the many challenges the organization faces. Learn more about NJASEPS below! https://njaseps.org/ - New Jersey Association of Special Education Partner Schools ----------------------------------------------------------------------------...
1 Apr 2026
Unifying Government & Community to Support Next Gen | Let’s Talk Kids
Charlie Venti, President of Inventive Strategies LLC and Board Member of the Let’s Talk Kids parent non-profit ACNJ, explores his experiences with how the U.S. and state governments have worked with American communities in the past to support families and kids, as well as how this alliance could be revitalized. Learn more about the Family Success Institute and how you can get involved below! https://familysuccessinstitute.com/ - Family Success Institute https://monmouthacts.org/ - Monmouth...
1 Apr 2026
Empowering Communities and Teens | Let’s Talk Kids
Dashaan Jennings, a member of leadership at Powerful Families Powerful Communities (PFPC) and founder of Str8Up Employment Services, discusses how we can improve the process of Mandated Reporting and educate members of communities to support each other in ways that deescalate conflicts, create understanding and avoid State Intervention so all children have the chance to grow up and lead exceptional careers. Learn more about Str8Up Employment Services or make a donation below! https://www.st...
1 Apr 2026
Finding a Foster Child’s Forever Home | Let’s Talk Kids
Davetta Ford, State Coordinator of Safe Babies Court Team, discusses how her team’s approach aims to support parents and children involved in the child welfare system, as well as the impacts of family detachment on infants’ brain development, and how their parent organization Child Focus aims to grow their resources and reach in the future. Learn more about the Safe Babies Court Team or make a donation below! https://www.njsafebabies.com/ - Safe Babies Court Team https://www.childfocusnj.org/...
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