Sarah Gonzales
mail (at) kidsthesedays (dot) org | About Sarah
Alaska Cultural Connections: Adoption
As part of an on-going series on Alaska’s cultural connections, we’re taking A Closer Look at cross-cultural adoption. Last winter, Anchorage resident Sarah Gonzales and her husband adopted a beautiful healthy baby boy; they met him when he was one day old at the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage. She shares her thoughts about how to integrate his birth culture in their family life.
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Mental Health & the Alaskan Family
Kids These Days! is back with a special 4-part series on Family Mental Health! Join the whole Kids These Days! team as we delve into issues that affect our kids, ourselves and our communities. From learning what to do in a mental health crisis, to how schools manage behavioral health issues to supporting our caregivers and helping adult children transition to independence, those are the conversation on a special mental health series airing Tuesdays in January.
Alcohol Abuse Not Always Talked About In Rural Alaska
Rates of alcohol abuse in Alaska are some of the highest in the nation and communities across the state regularly suffer from domestic violence, suicide and other related issues because of it. Tonight, we reach the conclusion of our reporting series “Being Young In Rural Alaska”, from the producers of Kids These Days. Traveling and reporting in rural Alaska, it’s impossible to miss the signs of alcohol abuse, and yet people often don’t talk about it: it’s such a part of life that it’s almost taken for granted. So what’s it like to be a kid growing up around heavy alcohol use in small-town Alaska? Sarah Gonzales heads to Kotzebue to find out.
Young & Rural in Alaska: Sharing Hopes, Dreams
Over the past few months, we’ve been hearing a lot of perspectives on the experience of childhood in rural Alaska. In today’s installment of our series “Being Young in Rural Alaska” we hear from some of those kids who are growing up, looking for the next step.
The Need For Alaska Native Teachers
Alaska Native students make up nearly one-quarter of the student body in the state, but only five percent of teachers are Alaska Native. And new research from UAA shows despite years of effort, it’s been difficult to get more Native educators into Alaska Schools. In the next installment of our “Being Young in rural Alaska” series, from the producers of Kids These Days, Sarah Gonzales takes a closer look at the problem.
Being Young In Rural Alaska: Learning Indigenous Language
This week we’re bringing you the first in a new reporting series from the producers of Kids These Days! In twelve reports from across the state, they’re asking the question: “What’s it like to be young in rural Alaska?” Today, Sarah Gonzales in Kake and Anne Hillman in Barrow find out why teaching indigenous language to children is so important.
Laughing Matters
Everyone knows that maintaining a good sense of humor is important in everyday life - especially when it comes to the ups and downs of raising a family. On this program we'll explore how we can all insert more laughter (the best medicine!) into our day-to-day lives while learning to laugh more as a family. We'll find out why laughing is good for the bodies, minds and spirits of people of all ages and why with humor educator Mark Kay Morrison, medical laughter researcher Dr. Lee Berk and Scared Scriptless Improv's Jason Martin.
Life’s Detours
Sometimes life detours. Even the most organized plans can change and things don’t always happen as we expect. Especially when it comes to family life - a new baby, a marriage, a divorce, falling in love, a death - these are all things that can cause detours in our lives. This time on KTD, we’ve gathered touching, funny, amazing, heartbreaking and uniquely Alaskan stories from those who've experienced a detour in their life - a young family whose complicated pregnancy meant relocating to a new city, a novelist who detoured from Mongolia to Alaska, a single mom of three teens in Ohio who moved to a rural Denali homestead for the love of a dog musher and an injured Olympian gets back on track. And much more!
KSKA: Tuesday 6/19 @ 2p & 7p
Fatherhood Then & Now
With Father's Day coming up, we at Kids These Days! thought it the perfect time to explore the role of fathers through history. How have dads changed, and how have they stayed the same through wars, civil rights movements, evolving social expectations and shifting economic times? We'll learn about the growing Alaska Native Fatherhood Movement and the groups that advocate for an active, engaged father (or father figure) in every child's life - and why it matters. Join us for this discussion that spans decades, cultures and a country as we look at dads in the USA, then and now.
KSKA: Tuesday 6/11 @ 2p & 7p
Inside the Teenage Brain
New technologies are giving us an unprecendented view of the inner-workings of our brains. So this time on Kids These Days!, we're talking about brain development during a child's teenage years. Adolescent development expert and author, Dr. Laurence Steinberg & UAA's Dr. John Petraitis join us to discuss how your teen's odd or risky behavior could be explained by normal adolescent brain development. Plus, motivational expert to the teens, Josh Shipp aka 'The Teen Whisperer' and a new Dr. KTD.
KSKA: Tuesday, 6/5 @ 2p & 7p
Dating & the Family
Looking for love, companionship and a life partner means dating - for better or for worse. So this time on Kids These Days! we're exploring what happens when mom or dad start dating again after a divorce or death of a spouse, and we'll also turn an eye to teens and dating - how are the kids these days doing relationships (or not). Plus, Susie Carter, founder of Alaskan Men magazine offers her best advice from 25 years of matchmaking.
KSKA: Tuesday, 5/29 @ 2p & 7p
Teacher Appreciation
Whether you graduated last week or 30 years ago, chances are that there was a standout teacher at some point in your school career. Perhaps they had a unique teaching style. Maybe they took extra time or showed you special kindness. Or, they may have seen the potential in you earlier than anyone else. So on this program we celebrate and appreciate those educators who have made us all better people as a result of their work. We're joined by special guests Anchorage School District Superintendent, Carol Comeau, and two previous Alaska Teachers of the Year, Lorrie Heagy and Patricia Truman.
KSKA: Tuesday 5/22 @ 2pm & 7pm
Child Obesity
Child obesity is a heavy problem in the country and our state is no different - 1 in 3 children in Alaska enter kindergarten overweight. Kids who are fat can have serious, even fatal, health conditions, they get picked on and they don't feel good about themselves. Sick and teased with low self-esteem - that's no way to be young! That's why this time we're talking about preventing childhood obesity and overweight in Alaska.
KSKA: Tuesday, May 15 @ 2p & 7p
Motherhood Throughout History
This Mother's Day special explores how motherhood has evolved since the Greek and Roman times. We'll be looking at moms through the ages as well as discussing modern trends in motherhood with our guest Dr. Shari Thurer, author of Myths of Motherhood: How Culture Reinvents the Good Mother. It's a fascinating discussion on family structure, societal expectations and the importance of moms.
KSKA: Tuesday, May 8 @ 2p & 7p
Get Ready for College!
Preparing for college can be an entire family affair, not to mention the teachers and counselors who all pull together to help a young person get ready to succeed in higher education. This time on KTD we're talking about what it takes to get to university - and once accepted - how to do one's best during those college years. For this conversation we check in with advisors from two of Alaska's higher learning institutions: University of Alaska, Anchorage and Alaska Pacific University.
KSKA: Tuesday 5/1 @ 2p & 7p
The Cultural Education Debate
Place-based education means learning about the immediate environment and cultural history and heritage, too, as part of a student's overall education. This time on KTD educators Paul Ongtooguk and Lynda Prince, join host Shana Sheehy in the studio to talk about the philosophy behind the movement and explain its origins. And we'll hear from Dr. Ben Chavis, a School Choice supporter who is critical of the idea that schools should teach culture.
KSKA: Tuesday 4/24 @ 2p & 7p
All About Autism
Autism is being diagnosed with more and more frequency; recent reports say 1 in 88 kids in the United States have it. So next week on Kids These Days! we're talking about autism spectrum disorders wit our guests Teresa Hirst, ANP and Kris Green, Autism and Services Manager for the State of Alaska. We’ll learn about screening, supports and resources for Alaska families, and what's changing for autism when new diagnostic criteria come out in 2013.
KSKA: Tuesday 2/17 @ 2p & 7p
License to Drive
Car, boat or snowmachine, driving is a reponsibility, a privilege, a rite of passage, a danger and a freedom at any age! This time on KTD we're exploring all the facets of what it means to be young with a license to drive in Alaska with our guests, Don McDermott, a retired-educator-turned-driving-instructor, and Lt. Arthur "Tom" Dunn, the deputy commander of the Alaska Highway Patrol. We'll discuss safety issues, driver's ed, licensing, preventing drunk driving and why modern teens aren't getting their licenses as early as teens of yore.
KSKA: Tuesday 4/10 @ 2pm & 7pm
Technology in the Classroom
Technology is changing the way we do so many things - how we communicate, navigate and regulate our every day lives. So how is it changing the way that we educate? We'll explore what technological innovation means to the future of classroom learning with Dr. Mark Bailey, an Oregon professor who is developing "play-based" digital curricula for early learners, and with Amanda Duvall, an Alaskan teacher who educates educators on using technology. That and distance learning in rural Alaska and we'll look at video games in a new light!
KSKA: Tuesday, 4/3 @ 2pm & 7pm
Developing Sexual Identity
Growing up means forming a solid sense of your self, figuring out who you are and what you like in order to eventually become a fully realized adult. When a young person begins to identify as GLBT (gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgender) it can be a difficult time in an already fragile period of life. So, what is "coming out" truly like for Alaska's rural and urban youth and how can loved ones can best support these kids as they struggle to accept themselves - and to be accepted? The president of Alaska PFLAG and two of Alaska's young GLBT leaders join us to discuss developing a sexual identity.
KSKA: Tuesday 3/27 @ 2pm & 7pm