youth

Growing up in Northeast Kansas City, Kansas, LaNya Meade, 14, remembers her mom saying she didn’t want LaNya to get stuck here.

“And so I always thought like, okay, I need to work my hardest and be the best so that I could make it out,” she says.

It’s a familiar refrain for many teens in the area around Quindaro Boulevard. But it’s a refrain many residents, young and old, are hoping to change.

Segment 1: After the incumbent's endorsement, Kris Kobach emerges as the GOP nominee to face Greg Orman and Laura Kelly in November's midterm.

With the field set for this fall's gubernatorial election in Kansas, the three campaigns left standing will turn their full attention to winning in November. Before we follow suit, we invited political watchers in Topeka to consider the implications a Kobach-Hartman ticket will have on down-ballot Republicans hoping to appeal to moderate voters.

The Kansas City Police Department is spending its summer reaching out to some of the younger members of the community.

KCPD wants to improve officers' relationships with teens. “Just because a kid lives at 28th and Prospect versus 135th and State Line, a 13-year-old is a 13-year-old," says Deputy Chief Karl Oakman.

Segment 1: Keeping kids engaged, fed and healthy during summer months.

Most students are overjoyed when summer break rolls around. But what about the families who rely on school for access to meals, health care and mentorship? Today, we learned about what local school districts are doing to minimize the downsides of students being away from the classroom during the summer months.

Segment 1: Few infected convicts in Missouri prisons are receiving newer hepatitis C drugs that are more effective, and more expensive.

Student activists have taken the lead on conversations about gun control after last month's school shooting in Parkland, Florida. Their calls to action have spurred youth demonstrations across the country, including here in Kansas City. How are teenagers organizing so effectively, and what should parents know about their own kids' interest in social activism? Today, we get answers from family psychologist Wes Crenshaw, and three area high school students.

Segment 1: High-energy ensemble re-imagines jazz music for a younger generation.

The combination of french fries and Champagne, casual and sophisticated, is an accurate representation of The Hot Sardines' lively music. (It's also the title of their latest album.) Today, we talked with members of the group about their younger audiences, their resident tap dancer and how they fill old tunes with new energy.

Today, a look at how a new initiative is gearing up to combat youth violence in Kansas City, Kansas. Then, we get some insight into the Kansas City Municipal Domestic Violence Court. The U.S. Department of Justice's  STOP Violence Against Women initiative recently awarded the court "mentor" status — the first municipal court to earn such a distinction.

Jordan Reeves can get a little annoyed when people stare at her left arm, but "I ask them if they have any questions for me," the 11-year-old says. Today, we speak with Reeves about her multifaceted work spreading acceptance of limb difference. Then, we meet a couple of sportsmen who take to Midwest streams and lakes to pull stubborn catfish out of the water by hand. It's a practice with many names, but the most fun one to say is "noodling."

Parents want to know their kids are on track when it comes to hitting key developmental milestones. At what age should your child be able to perform certain tasks — feeding themselves, walking, or talking, for instance — and when is it time to worry? We talk with pediatric experts about gauging your little one's progress, and how to keep an eye out for potentially critical delays.

Some symptoms of allergies are easily recognizable: itchy eyes, runny nose, congestion and coughing. But excessive ear infections and sore throats — even snoring — can be a harbinger of sensitivity in some kids to the environment. Even doctors can be challenged to suss out whether little ones have a run-of-the-mill cold or something more. Today, pediatricians offer guidance for dealing with kids suffering from allergies.