i want to ask you to stay. we will talk more about school policies including some districts that

thurman.

management do you support? >> i got a call just as a parents, rubble call saying that our school district was temporarily canceling sporting events. now, the practices have been different district to district. a number of districts had already been using rapid tests for athletes and afterschool activities. they feel they are capable of continuing these programs. others may say that because of the sheer size of participation we need to wait and give it time and see how things go. so we are seeing different things at various districts. we are seeing everyone taking special consideration on how to keep athletes and the participants in our programs safe. >> edwin has a question. is covid spreading in public schools and how fast? there is not a definitive answer

to that. when we look at the fall or during previous outbreaks, where the school environments any more dangerous than the community at large? or, where they safer due to mitigation measures? >> think that one. the data we sought -- things at one, the data we saw coming into the new year was that kids did not get covid at school. typically, they came to school or work and that is how someone else not exposed to covid. using code for testing in -- covid testing in the ready can -- the beginning of the air. we already secured 3 million cover tests for free for school so they can have awareness. so, people that would have awareness for that very reason. it is typically the case someone had covid and him to school or work and someone else got exposed to it.

classes for public schools after the teachers union voted to go remote instead of back to the classroom. could that happen in california? if it did, what would be your stance? >> we are doing all we can. i want to thank all of the educators. they have demonstrated commitment. we know a lot of other educators must have been out. they have had covid or have been exposed. we have had others stepping in. we have administrators helping manage classrooms in san francisco and other places across the state.

an email saying that lunch lines may be longer because we don't have as many people working. i sent him to school with a packed lunch. i know a lot of parents can. -- cannot. do we have enough people in the pipeline that can help out whether substitute teachers or staff? >> we are seeing staff shortages we were seeing even before the pandemic. they have grown. i have named a new working group that will focus on just one thing, how do we recruit more staff to work in schools in california? this is a nationwide challenge. workforce shortages are an issue across the country. in everything a sector. this new work group will give us ways to think about, what we do around compensation, training? affordable housing, as we know

in 2019, i led an effort that got us more funding for educators. one of the biggest challenges is folks cannot afford to live where they work. we will look at all of these issues and again anybody that wants to be a part of our group that is focused on workforce recruitment, how we support them, we welcome you. this is a top right ready for us in the state and we will do all that we can. need breast divers, teachers, substitute teachers. -- we need bust arbors, teachers, substitute teachers to keep teachers teaching now in our classrooms that need some additional training to complete their fireman's. -- their requirements. we are working on proposals to do that and will do all we can to build the work boards. >> you know what percentage of california teachers and staff is vaccinated? i know there is a state mandate. it does give the tipton -- the testing option still but reports suggest many districts are not enforcing the policy because they cannot afford to lose anybody. >> let me see if i can get you a

stat before we end today. i don't have one in front of me. but i know that from the beginning of this school year we have seen among teachers some of the highest rates of vaccination anywhere in some of the national teaching organizations as well as the state teaching organizations, the california teachers association, the california federation of teachers. they encouraged members to get tests. at the beginning of the school year we heard across the country national organization saying teachers might have been 90% vaccinated. we will work to get you some data we can share with you before we leave and see if our team can get us a stat we can share with area -- share with you. >> i know you would like to see the school-age vaccination rate higher. what are you doing to make it as easy as possible for kids to get their shots if they have not yet? there is a state vaccine mandate for kids too.

the deadlines have been extended. what are you doing in that regard? >> we have been doing vaccine clinics, walk-up the next so you do not need. we have done outreach to families. we have done town halls. we get celebrities to speak on it. we get young people to speak on it. at every chance, we support vaccine outreach. we are working on a campaign with group called why wait for million more californians. we are constantly thinking about how we support young people. i have two teenage daughters that have been vaccinated. one has gotten a booster i got my booster in public as a way of sending the message should public that it is ok. it is safe. we will continue to print out vaccine outreach. vaccines are showing us the way to save. the state will have a vaccine mandate that will probably roll out at about july. the point is to say that it

creates a way for students in say grades seven to 12 to get a vaccine under this mandate and then to work with students younger than that. but, we try to get past the mandate. we say, this is about saving lives. it is about keeping those and businesses in the community open and we will encourage everybody, please, get your vaccine. when you are eligible, please, get a booster. >> on that note, we will in the conversation. superintendent tony thurman, thank you for >> joining us today. >>thank you, kristin. >> up next, we talk about the quality of life here in california. a new study is breaking down the key indicators. we are exploring what the research means for various (son) fixed. no charge. ah, that's my son. he always takes care of his mama. ooh, what's up with granny's casserole? (mom) it's for after your uncle joe's funeral. my brother didn't have a life insurance policy. i hear there's a collection to help aunt adele. (mom) yeah. a funeral costs north of $9,000 these days.

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measure of america. the study provides a detailed picture of the well-being of california residents broken down by race, ethnicity, and gender. join us to talk about the findings from among asian americans specifically, the director of major -- measure of america kristin lewis. our staff you. that's is nice to have you. -- nice to have you. >> thank you for having me on. >> talk to me about the study and what it sets out to do. >> measure of america is a project of the century old social science research council - that aims to mobilize social science for the public good. our public in particular help ask the nation how it is progressing by focusing on indicators about regular people rather than focus on economic indicators that we typically see with a focus on gdp.

the way we do that is we use the american human development index which is a composite measure of well-being. it combines the latest and best data on health, education, and living standard into one number. that goes on a scale from zero to 10 area so, we use that to tt create scores for racial and ethnic for places and places over time. we did a first report of a trip, you -- of a portrait of california in 2011, 1 decade ago area this report -- one decade ago. this report revisit that and looks at all being and access to opportunity across the state. >> what is the biggest finding with regard to life expectancy? which groups lift longest? -- lives longest? >> asian americans by a significant margin. asian american

american baby born today can expect to live 87 years. if she is a little girl, she had that she can expect to live 89.3 years. -- she can expect to live 89.3 years, almost 90 years for asian american women. >> i do notice a big difference between the chinese ethnic group and the mung ethnic group. -- >> >> asia is home to 60% of the world's, almost 60 countries. naturally, the asian american relation in california is extremely diverse. we see tremendous differences. even if we look at the index combined. even if we do not to say life expectancy. let's look at the index as a whole that combines life

expectancy, access to knowledge, then, living standards, median personal earnings. we see that taiwanese californians have a score, again, on our 10 point scale of 9.58 area that is one of the highest scores we -- 9.8. that is one of the highest anywhere in the country. on the other hand, if we look at hmong californians their score is 4.33, well alone -- well below the average of 5.85. when we do not disaggregate among asian groups, we overlook the fact that some asian groups are really struggling. so, laotian's, cambodians and hmong californians have much lower scores and other groups in the state. >> health, standards of living, education and financial situations are all intertwined, aren't they? >> they are.

but we do see findings that might surprise some people. for instance, usually, life expectancy fairly closely tracks educational attainment. the world over, the more education a population has, the longer life it tends to have. but, for latino californians, we do not see this. latino californians live the second-longest of the six major racial and ethnic groups in the state, but, they have the lowest educational attainment scores. here, it is broken. >> what do we attribute that to? is it, may become closer relationships? -- may become a closer relationships, happiness, something else? >> that is a great question. lots of people have tried to answer it. for a long time, people thought it might be the high -- the healthy migrant bias. that in order to have the stamina and wherewithal to go to a new country, it is our to be an immigrant. you have to be and usually --

hard to be an immigrant. you had to be in usually healthy. another is the salmon bias. . that, people might go home to their home countries when they are sick. so, their death is not recorded in the u.s.. none of the studies are really conclusive on either of those points. there is data to suggest that family cohesion, social support is a factor, especially, for instance in the healthy pregnancy outcomes you see among latino women. >> i hope there was something in that conversation to take

this interactive show getting answers. today, we answered questions

about covid testing in schools, the end are mask land -- indoor mask mandate extension and a new tonight, the horrific fire in the northeast. at least 13 people killed, including seven children in philadelphia. the fire in a three-story row house, heavy flames shooting out from the second floor. firefighters working to knock it down when the toll became clear. firefighters embracing one another. tonight, what authorities are now saying. we're on the scene. there is also news just in tonight from the cdc involving boosters and teenagers. and the battle tonight over schools. in chicago, for one, teachers voting not to return to the classroom. city officials there insisting schools are safe. and tonight, president biden on schools staying open. we're tracking two storms tonight. winter alerts across 38 states, from washington state all the way east. and in the east, washington, d.c., philadelphia, new york,