It’s the question every parent worries about – dreads, even. ‘Where do babies come from?” And tempting as it can be to blame the ‘aul stork once again, experts all agree that this is not the way to go about things when your kids get to an age where they start to wonder about these things.

Nevada ranks worst in the nation for both overall mental health and youth mental health. To make matters worse, the state has a shortage of health workers in those fields. UNLV hosted a mental health forum Friday to highlight three university-led efforts to improve mental health and the health worker shortage in Nevada.

More than a third of the students in the Clark County (Nevada) School District were chronically absent from school during in 2022-2023, the state Department of Education says. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the 38.3% rate is a slight improvement from the prior school year’s 40.6%, but it’s still much higher than the district’s pre-pandemic chronic absenteeism rate of 21.9%.

More than a third of Clark County School District students were chronically absent from school during the 2022-2023 school year, according to the state Department of Education. That 38.3 percent is a slight improvement from the prior school year’s 40.6 percent, but it’s still much higher than the school district’s pre-pandemic chronic absenteeism rate of 21.9 percent.

Local organizations have been working together for a year to address the issue. And in September, the school district announced its “Every Day Matters” campaign. The nonprofits involved include the CHARISMA Lab at UNLV.

The truth is, school avoidance in teens is increasing. As a psychologist who primarily works with anxious teens and young adults, I know that it’s never too early to talk about school avoidance.  

Rob Lang, a renowned public policy expert in Southern Nevada, may have died in June 2021, but his legacy won’t soon be forgotten. You can drive around Las Vegas and see the fruits of his labor everywhere, from UNLV’s Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine to Allegiant Stadium — two projects on which Lang consulted. UNLV, where Lang was a longtime professor, is looking to raise some of the next “Rob Langs,” and the university has found its first of many.

Imagine this scenario: you're making dinner one night and your 4-year-old, who has just finished putting together a puzzle with their older sibling, looks up and asks, "Where do babies come from?"