By: Jennifer Fergesen

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has declared that children and young adults in this country are facing a “mental health crisis.” More than a third of high school students experienced poor mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, and many struggled to transition to and from remote learning. Add in the usual stresses of grades, relationships and friendships — not to mention the trauma of war for the region’s many young refugees — and it’s clear that mental health resources are crucial to students’ well-being and educational performance. 

Efforts are underway to address this issue across the state and the region. Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled a plan to invest $4.7 billion into the mental health of California’s children. The Capital Region’s schools and institutions are also working to improve students’ mental health on a local scale. 

Learn more about the educators and mental health professionals supporting the region’s young people in this week’s feature story by new contributor Owen Racer. 

Here’s the rest of the Capital Region Rundown: Contributor Graham Womack walks into a church, a synagogue and a Buddhist temple to see how they’re recovering financially from the pandemic; Off the Beaten Track visits the country’s oldest Daoist house of worship (which inspired the Pixar film “Turning Red”; we check in on the region’s composting facilities a year after organic recycling became mandatory in California; and a Roseville-based doctor shares her experience mothering a teenager with autism. 

Recommendations from our editors:

In this section we editors share what we’re reading, listening to, watching or even eating. Here’s what we’re consuming this week:

Judy: I recently read “Daisy Jones and the Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid and now I’m watching the miniseries of the book, which is loosely based on the rock group Fleetwood Mac. The book and series have all the elements of LA in the 70s with drugs, beaches and rock ‘n roll. But the tender scenes are between the title character Daisy and band leader Billy when they collaborate on song writing. The lead character of Daisy is played by actress Riley Keough. She’s the granddaughter of Elvis and you just can’t help but be mesmerized by her, especially her eyes. 

Jennifer: This weekend I caught Andrew Bird on his “Outside Problems” tour, promoting his 16th studio album. I’ve been listening to Andrew Bird since middle school but never saw him in concert. His complex, yet irresistibly catchy compositions are even more impressive live than on a recording. For local audiences, I especially recommend the song “Lone Didion” from the new album, inspired by one of Sacramento’s most famous daughters. 

Odds and Ends

We’ve extended our deadline for Young Professionals nominations to Friday, April 28. Please take a few minutes to nominate a mover and shaker age 40 or under who inspires you. 

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