CFCC’s second Urban Child Symposium, Health and the Urban Child:  Diagnosing Problems and Prescribing Solutions, was held last Thursday, April 1, and drew a crowd of approximately two hundred people. A wide array of people from all professions and walks of life, including doctors, lawyers, judges, activists, academics, mental health professionals, services providers, parents, and other community members, attended and participated. The audience filled the School of Law’s Moot Courtroom and also watched the action from monitors in the law school lobby. Our panelists gave thoughtful presentations that covered the gamut of problems and solutions for the health of urban children. Extensive audience participation created a vibrant conversation about the practical realities of urban child health and some of the steps needed to make improvements. Congressman Cummings keynote luncheon speech was a call to action, encouraging all of us to increase our expectations and work to ensure that all children have what we want for our own children.

CFCC would like to thank all who participated – both as speakers and as audience members, and we encourage everyone interested to keep this lively and important discussion going–on this blog and in your communities. One of our conference panelists, Dr. Alan Lyles, will take the lead on continuing the discussion by writing his own blog post about childhood obesity, a topic that he also discussed at the symposium. Be on the lookout for his guest post! Also, be sure to check out the discussion on our post about the Health Care Reform Legislation, which includes a comment from another of our conference panelists, Janice Cooper.