Mindful Shopping
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CDC school guidelines and universal masking: A shopping guide

Kristen S. Sykes

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just updated its K-12 school guidance to recommend that, alongside universal masking in schools, students should maintain a distance of at least 3 feet in classroom settings. Previous guidance advised at least 6 feet of physical distance between students in schools — the same distance recommended in the CDC’s general Covid-19 guidelines.

Like all things we introduce to kids, doing it slowly, comfortably and making it fun all help with compliance

Danette Swanson Glassy, MD

The CDC first released its K-12 guidance in February to help facilitate the opening of schools across the country, and keep schools open for in-person instruction. The updated guidance about physical distancing in schools reflects results of three studies published in the CDC’s weekly roundup of public health news, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The studies “build on evidence that physical distancing of at

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Mindful Shopping
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As a Millennial, I’m Letting Gen-Z School Me On Sustainable Fashion

Kristen S. Sykes

Allow me to introduce the ray-of-effing-sunshine that is Jazmine Rogers. The YouTube star is living proof that you don’t need to have a PhD in sustainability in order to enact a more eco-friendly lifestyle. Watch just one video on her YouTube channel or take one scroll through her social media feed, and you’ll be overcome with a jolt of color you didn’t know you needed. More importantly (for me, at least, considering my 2021 goal of becoming a more mindful consumer of fashion), you’ll get exposed to a bevy of tips about how to limit your usage of materials and realize, damn, I need to follow her lead stat.

The two of us got to talking, and Rogers told me her mission when shopping is to first and foremost make sure she’s investing in high-quality pieces that are made ethically and more sustainably. One brand she frequently

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Mindful Shopping
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School mindfulness programs try to calm ‘storm of stresses’

Kristen S. Sykes

A small group of sixth-graders filtered into socially distanced seats on a recent Wednesday in a classroom at Pleasant Hills Middle School — a room whose very design indicated that this would be a different sort of class.

Overhead, instead of the glare of fluorescent lights, muted colors were backlighting cutouts in the shape of clouds. Floor lamps and decorative lights created a calming effect. In opposite corners of the room, smaller arrangements of seats offered comfortable settings where students could drop in during the day, collect their thoughts and relax.

Various affirmations were posted: “In a world full of doing, doing, doing, it’s important to take a moment to just breathe.” And: “Wherever you go, there you are.”

For some of the students, this was their first in an occasional set of classes in the “Chill Room.” Instructor Shelly Meier calmly greeted them with a brief explanation.


“The main

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Fashion & Shopping
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Tracee Ellis Ross’s Signature Braid Got An Old School Upgrade For The 2020 E! People’s Choice Awards

Whether virtually distanced or up close, Tracee Ellis Ross is always going to wow in the beauty department. Last Sunday was no different when the actress and Instagram’s proclaimed favorite rich auntie accepted her Fashion Icon Award at the 2020 E! People’s Choice Awards.

And while what she was wearing was obviously the key focus of the evening, we couldn’t help swooning about what was happening from the neck up.

First, let’s talk that derriere-brushing braid, which boasted finger waves in the front for a vintage feel. The look, created by Nai’vasha Johnson, is just one of many hair masterpieces created for Ross, including the looks for Ross’s ESSENCE October 2019 cover.

Tracee Ellis Ross arrives at the 2020 E! People’s Choice Awards held at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California and on broadcast on Sunday, November 15, 2020. (Photo by Rich Polk/E! Entertainment/NBCU Photo Bank via
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