Education

Combatting a Dental Health Epidemic

Published

11 years ago

May 21, 2015

In San Francisco, nearly 40 percent of children have experienced tooth decay by the time they reach kindergarten, and low-income kindergartners are eight times more likely to have untreated tooth decay, reports the San Francisco Children’s Oral Health Collaborative (SF COH).

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Oral health disparities are specific to local neighborhoods, with the highest rates in Chinatown, where more than 50 percent of all kindergarteners suffer from cavities.

To inform and elicit community feedback about the importance of children’s oral health – and continue to learn why some ethnicities are more at-risk – the SF COH, which includes UC San Francisco, the SF Department of Public Health and community health providers and advocates, hosted a community stakeholder meeting on April 30 in Chinatown.

Attendees at the two-hour meeting at the Chinatown YMCA included City and County of San Francisco Supervisors Julie Christensen and Scott Wiener, and Health Commissioner Ed Chow.

“Good oral health is critical to the well-being of our city, and we need to expand access to dental care as well as healthy and nutritious food, particularly in our low-income communities,” Wiener said.

Similar stakeholder meetings are planned for Latino and African American communities in San Francisco.

“Because of this meeting, we were able to raise the level of awareness of children’s dental caries that is disproportionately affecting the Chinatown neighborhood,” said Lisa Chung, DDS, MPH, associate professor in the UCSF School of Dentistry Department of Preventive and Restorative Dental Sciences and SF COH co-director.

“We were able to bring together local health and child care providers and organizations and engage in a spirited discussion about what could be causing these Chinatown disparities, existing barriers to addressing them, and how we can collaborate and move forward,” she said.

Tooth decay and periodontal disease are the two biggest threats to oral health and among the most common chronic diseases in the United States. In fact, former U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin called oral diseases a “silent epidemic.”

Children with untreated cavities may experience pain, dysfunction, school absences, difficulty concentrating and low self-esteem, according to the SF COH.

“It is better to prevent tooth decay than to provide extensive dental treatment for a very young child,” said Dr. Steven Ambrose, director of Dental Services for the San Francisco Department of Public Health, a co-leading agency of the Children’s Oral Health Collaborative. “If we can help parents understand how to keep their babies’ teeth healthy, we can prevent unnecessary disease and pain, and promote and protect our children’s oral health in a far easier and cost-effective manner.”

Dental caries is largely preventable through dental sealants, fluoride varnish, healthy eating habits, daily oral care at home and routine dental visits. However, many parents, medical providers and even dental providers do not fully understand their critical roles in preventing this disease.

A cross-sector initiative designed to improve the health and wellness of all San Franciscans, the San Francisco Children’s Oral Health Collaborative coordinated the San Francisco Children’s Oral Health Strategic Plan 2014-2017 toward making the city cavity-free. The plan identifies the most effective, evidence-based actions each group can take to make the most impact. Target groups are children under 10, pregnant women, low-income communities of color, recent immigrants and other populations most at risk.

“Involving the community and collaborating with its members are essential in efforts to improve public health, and is at the core of SF HIP’s Children’s Oral Health Collaborative,” Chung said. “We prioritized this first meeting in Chinatown on public and private health professionals and Chinatown program planners, community leaders, and school administrators as they are working closest with the target population – young children and their caregivers.”

The San Francisco Children’s Oral Health Collaborative is supported by the Hellman Foundation. The Chinatown community stakeholder meeting was sponsored by the Chinatown YMCA, the Asian Pacific Islander Health Parity Coalition, APA Family Support Services, NICOS Chinese Health Coalition and API Council.

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Bay Area

How Is AI Affecting California? The State Wants You to Share Your Story

The program marks the first time the state has opened the platform to all Californians. State officials said the effort is designed to give residents a direct role in discussions about how AI should be regulated and used as the technology rapidly expands across industries.

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

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By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced May 7 that California is expanding its Engaged California digital democracy initiative statewide, inviting residents to help shape future state policies on artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on jobs and the economy.

“We’ve got to be clear-eyed about this moment: AI is moving fast, bringing enormous opportunity, but also real risks,” Newsom said in a statement. “Californians deserve a seat at the table as we shape what’s to come.”

The initiative will roll out in two phases. Beginning immediately, Californians can sign up online to share how AI is affecting their work and communities and provide ideas for possible government action. Later this summer, a smaller group reflecting the state’s workforce demographics will participate in live discussions focused on developing policy recommendations.

State officials said the goal is to identify areas of agreement among Californians and provide policymakers with public feedback as the state develops future AI regulations and workforce strategies.

Engaged California is modeled after digital democracy programs used in Taiwan and is intended to encourage structured public discussion rather than social media-style debate. Officials described the effort as a form of “deliberative democracy” aimed at helping residents engage directly in state decision-making.

“The more Californians are engaged in the democratic process, the better able we’ll be to confront the challenges we face together,” said Nick Maduros, California Secretary of Government Operations, in a statement.

The statewide launch builds on two earlier pilot programs. One pilot gathered public input following the Los Angeles firestorms to help guide recovery efforts, while another collected ideas from state employees about improving government operations.

California has positioned itself as a national leader in AI policy and development. Since 2023, the Newsom administration has introduced initiatives focused on responsible AI use in government, cybersecurity protections, workforce training and regulations targeting risks such as deepfakes and AI-generated robocalls.

The state has also partnered with companies in Silicon Valley — including NVIDIA, Google, Adobe, IBM and Microsoft — to expand AI education and workforce training programs across California schools and universities.

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Advice

Book Review: Books for College-Bound Students

The kind of workday your Grandpa had is probably over, and you can’t count on toiling at the same place for 40 years for a pension and a gold watch. You already know that, and these books will help you decide your next step. You’ll learn what kind of worker you are, what’s stopping you from finding a job or occupation you’ll love, how to determine the purpose you envision for your future, and how to get where you need to be.

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Book covers. Photo courtesy of Terri Schlichenmeyer.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

Authors: Various, Copyright: c.2026, Publishers: Various, SRP: $21.00 – $29.00, Page Counts: Various

The videos and news reports were inspiring.

In them, a hesitant prospective college student became a happy, new college-bound student with the click of a key. They were accepted into the college of their dreams – so how can you get the same feeling next spring, when you’re the one with the highest of hopes?

You can start by reading these great books and sharing them with your family…

You probably already know that getting into the college of your choice is not something you do last-minute. In “The People’s Guide to College Applications: A Week-by-Week Approach to Writing, Connecting, and Getting in” (Prometheus Books, $ 21.95), Jill Constantino takes you through each step, but not in a frantic way. There’s no pressure here, just easy-to-grasp, makes-sense methods to apply for the college you want. There are reminders here, things you can’t forget and things you can, hints on asking for referrals and writing essays, and plenty of reminders to take a deep breath. Bonus: it’s also a book for parents, who may feel just as much pressure as their child does.

Okay, but let’s say that you’re an adult, a parent who’s sweating those college applications, classes, and the FAFSA for yourself, ugh! Then you’ll want to read “Student Parent: The Fight for Families, the Cost of Poverty, and the Power of College” by Nicole Lynn Lewis (Beacon Press, $26.97). an urgent call meant for nontraditional students who are also Black, Latinx, gay, Moms, or Dads.

Inside this book, you’ll find stats and stories that may already sound familiar, tales of not enough money, not enough support, not enough arms or sleep or resources. If you’re looking for a book of advice, this isn’t it, though. It’s more of a resource that you’ll want to take to your guidance counselor or any local politician.

Alright, but what if you’ve decided that college can wait? Is that okay? Look for “The Mission Generation: Reclaim Your Purpose, Rewrite Success, Rebuild Our Future” by Arun Gupta and Thomas J. Fewer (Wiley, $29.00) because – guess what? – you have many options for your future.

The kind of workday your Grandpa had is probably over, and you can’t count on toiling at the same place for 40 years for a pension and a gold watch. You already know that, and this book will help you decide your next step. You’ll learn what kind of worker you are, what’s stopping you from finding a job or occupation you’ll love, how to determine the purpose you envision for your future, and how to get where you need to be. This book isn’t just for high schoolers, but for anyone ages 16 and beyond who’s feeling restless, ready for change, or who’s thinking about some kind of purposeful retirement.

And if these aren’t the college-based or not-college-bound books you need, then be sure to ask your favorite bookseller or librarian for help on ideas, how-to’s, test prep books, or study guides. They’ll have books for you, and maybe a little inspiration, too.

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Arts and Culture

Against All Odds: Mary Jackson’s Journey to NASA Engineer

Jackson’s life took a significant turn when she was offered the opportunity to work in a wind tunnel, a facility used to test the effects of air moving over aircraft structures. It was here that her passion for engineering truly took flight. However, there was a challenge: to become an engineer, she needed to take advanced courses that were only offered at a segregated high school.

Published

3 days ago

May 15, 2026

Oakland Post

Mary Jackson. Public domain.

By Tamara Shiloh

When we talk about breaking barriers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, the name Mary Jackson deserves a place at the top of the list.

Jackson was born in 1921 in Hampton, Virginia, a place that would later become central to her groundbreaking work. From an early age, she showed a strong aptitude for math and science—subjects that, at the time, were not widely encouraged for African American women. But Jackson was not one to be limited by expectations. She earned degrees in mathematics and physical science from Hampton Institute (now Hampton University), setting the foundation for a career that would change history.

Before joining NASA, Jackson worked as a teacher and later as a research mathematician at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the agency that eventually became NASA. Like many African American women of her time, she began her career as a “human computer,” performing complex calculations by hand. It was in this environment that she worked alongside brilliant minds like Katherine Johnson, forming part of a powerful group of African American women whose calculations helped launch America into space.

Jackson did something truly remarkable. She petitioned the city of Hampton for permission to attend those classes. She didn’t accept “no” as an answer. And she won.

In 1958, Jackson became NASA’s first African American female engineer.

But Jackson’s impact didn’t stop there.

Later in her career, she chose to step away from her engineering position—not because she couldn’t continue, but because she wanted to make a difference. She moved into roles focused on equal opportunity, working to ensure that women and minorities had access to the same opportunities she fought so hard to get.

Jackson’s story gained wider recognition through the book and film Hidden Figures, which highlighted the contributions of African American women at NASA. But long before the spotlight found her, Jackson was doing the work—quietly, persistently, and brilliantly.

Jackson retired from Langley in 1985. Among her many honors were an Apollo Group Achievement Award and being named Langley’s Volunteer of the Year in 1976. She served as the chair of one of the center’s annual United Way campaigns and a member of the National Technical Association (the oldest African American technical organization in the United States).

She and her husband Levi had an open-door policy for young Langley recruits trying to gain their footing in a new town and a new career. A 1976 Langley Researcher profile might have done the best job capturing Mary’s spirit and character, calling her a “gentlelady, wife and mother, humanitarian and scientist.”

For Jackson, science and service went hand in hand.

She died on Feb. 11, 2005, at age 83, at a convalescent home in Hampton, Virginia.