Are You Kidding Me?

James and Gail Blais were barred from fostering their one-year-old great-granddaughter due to their religious beliefs. During the foster parent application process, the Washington state government led the Blaises through hypothetical questions assessing how they would respond if their great-granddaughter were to identify as homosexual or transgender at some point in the future. As Seventh-Day Adventists, the Blaises said they would certainly continue to love the child, but they could not support the child’s decision in that circumstance. This raises an important question: can state governments deny foster applications due to the religious beliefs of potential foster parents? In this episode, Naomi and Ian are joined by Eugene Volokh, an expert in first amendment law and professor of law at UCLA, to explore how state adoption authorities can ensure the well-being of foster children while respecting the religious beliefs of prospective foster parents. Volokh notes that because the Blaises were applying to care for a relative, and the decision to deny their application was based on responses to hypothetical scenarios, this case signals a particularly concerning overreach by the Washington state government.Resources:Couple Barred from Fostering Their 1-Year-Old Great-Granddaughter Because of They Oppose Homosexuality and Gender Transitioning | Eugene Volokh | ReasonShow notes:01:05 | Why did Washington's child welfare department deny the Blais’ foster application?04:05 | How should we think about the boundaries the government places around foster parenting?07:10 | Should foster agencies incorporate speculative scenarios in the decision-making process?09:20 | Do people with non-religious conscientious objections have rights as well?12:40 | How can foster agencies recruit the greatest volume of high-quality foster parents possible?18:25 | Should the perspective of children’s biological parents be taken into account?21:39 | Regardless of legality, is it prudent for the government to place its “hand on the scale” and emphasize one factor over all others when determining the fit of a foster family?

Much research demonstrates the academic benefits of school choice. But schools don’t just convey academic knowledge to children — they also play a critical role in developing a child’s social and moral life.In this episode, Naomi and Ian are joined by Patrick Wolf, professor of education policy at the University of Arkansas. They discuss a recent paper Wolf co-authored with AEI visiting scholar and UVA professor Brad Wilcox, exploring how enrollment in public, Catholic, Protestant, and secular private schools shapes children’s family outcomes later in life. The results suggest the moral ecologies of these different school types are powerfully linked to the family lives students will ultimately lead as they grow into adulthood. In other words, private schools — especially Protestant ones — may offer a clear advantage to children when it comes to family life. Resources:The Protestant family ethic | American Enterprise InstitutePrivate schools outpace public schools in putting kids on the path to marriage | NationalReview.comTime stamps:02:00 | Why did Wolf partner with Brad Wilcox to study the intersection of education and family life?03:10 | Which schools put children at an advantage when it comes to family life?06:45 | What are “moral ecologies” and why are they important?10:35 | How do the moral messages Protestant and Catholic schools send to their students differ?14:20 | What are the implications of these findings for public schools?

The Opioid epidemic has received a great deal of attention in the national media, but little has focused on how this tragic crisis is affecting children. New research suggests the drug crisis has torn at least 1.5 million children away from a parent since the mid-nineties. Such large disruptions to children’s living arrangements will have long-reaching impacts.In this episode, Ian and Naomi are joined by Kasey Buckles, a professor of economics at the University of Notre Dame. She recently co-authored an important new study on the drug crisis and its effects on children. Dr. Buckles and her co-authors reveal that laws favoring OxyContin advertisement and prescriptions likely contributed to a rise in the number of children separated from their parents. As we continue to grapple with the drug crisis in this country, the evidence from this study suggests that our policies can have a strong impact on children’s well-being.Resources:The drug crisis and the living arrangements of children | National Bureau for Economic ResearchTime Stamps:01:05 | Key findings of the study04:08 | How do the authors isolate the effects of the drug crisis, versus other causes? 09:55 | How did the drug crisis impact children of different races?13:30 | Most important interventions to uplift child-wellbeing 14:15 | How the effects of this crisis extend beyond the foster care system

Startling pictures of starving, neglected, naked children were the first images seen by American parents after Ceaușescu’s communist dictatorship in Romania fell in the late 80s. But a well-intentioned rush to adopt these children led to difficulties for many Romanian children and their American parents, because families and adoption agencies did not fully understand the brain damage these children had incurred under squalor conditions in Romanian orphanages. How does a lack of personal affection shape a child’s development? Why are strong familial bonds so important?In this episode, Naomi and Ian are joined by Melissa Fay Greene, Kirk Distinguished Writer in Residence at Agnes Scott College, to discuss her recent Atlantic article on the wave of Romanian adoptees brought to the US in the 1980s. The lack of personal attachment experienced by these children caused severe impairments to their development, speaking to the critical importance of love for healthy child development.Resources:30 Years Ago, Romania Deprived Thousands of Babies of Human Contact | The AtlanticTime stamps:01:10 | Greene’s personal connection to adoption in Romania03:50 | Discovering brain damage in the Romanian children due to lack of nurture in orphanages05:15 | What happened when the adoptees went from scarcity to abundance in an American home?10:45 | Importance of love and stability for child development16:45 | How long can a child be without a nurturer?

It is good to fight against racism in schools and in the workplace. But a new wave of “anti-bias” trainings in public and private organizations are pushing a divisive and disempowering narrative surrounding race. Organizations ranging from local school districts to the Seattle government and the Treasury Department have singled out white employees for “anti-racism” trainings and engaged in humiliating practices that studies have shown to be ineffective.In this episode, Naomi and Ian are joined by Christopher Rufo, director of the Discovery Institute’s Center on Wealth & Poverty, to discuss the impacts of critical race theory, a growing philosophy that seeks to distill a person’s identity to his or her race.Resources:The truth about critical race theory | The Wall Street JournalSummary of critical race theory investigations | Christopherrufo.comTime Stamps: 01:25 | How a public request led to uncovering divisive training sessions sponsored by the FBI, Treasury Department, NASA, and other core federal agencies04:19 | The “weaponization” of anti-bias trainings 07:40 | Harvard study finds critical race theory anti-bias trainings are ineffective 10:35 | How do non-white employees respond to these trainings?13:10 | What are children being taught in school about their race?

Loving homes are important for adoptive children, regardless of the race of the adoptee. But recent articles from the Brookings Institution and America Magazine have called into question whether race is a more important factor when matching a child with their adoptive parents. Particularly, they suggest that white parents adopting black children can be damaging. Should adoption be determined by race or by merit? What are the consequences of limiting adoption to only racial matches? In this episode, Naomi and Ian are joined by Malka Groden, adoptive mother of two young children and deputy director of development at the Manhattan Institute, to discuss the importance of transracial adoption. As Malka, Naomi and Ian reveal, science and scholarship suggest that love wins out over racial differences when offering any child a stable home where he or she can flourish.Resources:Abby Johnson’s comments about her adopted Black son are problematic. Here’s why. | Brookings InstitutionWhite parents adopting Black kids raises hard questions. We can all learn from them | America MagazineShow Notes:01:05 | Is it problematic for a white family to adopt a black child?03:10 | Loving adoption over the foster system06:55 | Building genuine relationships with diverse communities08:25 | Multiethnic Placement Act of 1994 prioritizes loving placement over race-based placement12:05 | Science affirms need for attachment, regardless of skin color15:30 | Traumas felt by all adoptees and biological children, due to imperfect parents

By nearly all measures, remote learning fell short for a majority of students in the spring of 2020. With most schools opting to forego in-person teaching this fall, educators desperately need an effective virtual learning model to guide their teaching efforts. How can teachers engage students in their coursework, even as they tune in from […] The post Remote learning that works appeared first on American Enterprise Institute - AEI.

With a large majority of public schools opting to continue remote learning this fall in lieu of reopening, parents face a unique set of challenges as home-based education becomes a more permanent fixture of life. How will life change for the millions of working parents whose children will now be at home for the fall? […] The post How to homeschool in a pandemic appeared first on American Enterprise Institute - AEI.

A member of the Los Angeles County Commission for Children and Families recently issued a call to abolish foster care. Is the foster care system inherently racist? Are children being removed from their homes simply because their families are experiencing poverty? How can we ensure that disadvantaged children can have a brighter, more prosperous future? […] The post Addressing racial disparities in foster care and inspiring agency in kids appeared first on American Enterprise Institute - AEI.

The Children’s Scholarship Fund (CSF) recently surveyed parents who receive need-based scholarships from their organization to send their children to inner-city private schools. How has the coronavirus affected the lives of low-income children attending these private schools? Were private schools in the CSF network prepared to meet the needs of vulnerable students this past spring […] The post Private schools can help low-income kids, too appeared first on American Enterprise Institute - AEI.