youth.gov

Did you pay a scammer?
• Contact the company you used to send the money
• Tell them it was a scam
• Ask if they can get your money back.
Recover from scams: https://bit.ly/3N1lxtM

Share with youth:

The love and romance this week are just as real as the crime! Watch out for romance scam red flags this time of year:

🚩 Do not send money or gift cards or crypto to someone you have not met in person.
🚩 If they push secrecy or urgency or an emergency, it's a scam!
🚩 If they always have excuses to avoid meeting in person and rarely or briefly meet over a live video call, walk away.
🚩 Never open accounts or transfer money to someone you only know online.

Find out how to prevent being a victim at https://www.secretservice.gov/investigations/romancescams

New Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data show U.S. high school students are lacking the necessary nutrition, physical activity, and sleep.

Healthy eating, physical activity, and sleep can all play a role in improving students’ mental health and lessening the effects of anxiety, stress, and depression.

Explore the report: https://www.cdc.gov/yrbs/dstr/dietary-physical-sleep-behaviors.html

Access newly released data files to explore data on public schools at state, district, and school levels: https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/files.asp

This video from Federal Student Aid can help youth explore ways to pay for college or career school: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVr2XDBgsYY&t=6s

Recently, Institute of Education Sciences announced a new National Research and Development Center focusing on K–12 teacher recruitment and retention policy: the Center for Longitudinal Data in Education Research - Teacher Recruitment & Retention (CALDER-R&R).

Read this blog post to learn about the Center and its mission: https://ies.ed.gov/blogs/research/post/evaluating-the-impact-and-implementation-of-k-12-teacher-recruitment-and-retention-policy-ies-announces-new-research-and-development-center

A new U.S. Department of Education National Center for Homeless Education report presents findings on student homelessness in America from school years 2020–21 to 2022–23.

Access the report here: https://www.ed.gov/media/document/student-homelessness-america-school-years-2020-21-2022-23

Learn about a free, secure mobile app from the U.S. Department of Education Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools Technical Assistance Center designed to help users examine the safety, security, accessibility, and emergency preparedness of their K–12 school: https://rems.ed.gov/SITEASSESS.aspx

NEW: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary & Trends Report for Dietary, Physical Activity, and Sleep Behaviors: 2013–2023 is now available.

Overall, U.S. high school students aren’t getting adequate nutrition, physical activity, and sleep. But in the last 2 years (2021 to 2023), there were improvements in a few areas, including fruit intake and engaging in muscle-strengthening activities.

Read the report: https://www.cdc.gov/yrbs/dstr/dietary-physical-sleep-behaviors.html

Each year, thousands of U.S. youth run away from home, are asked to leave their homes, or become homeless.

Explore resources from Administration for Children and Families - ACF that can help them: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/programs/runaway-homeless-youth

A recent Office of Justice Programs report explores data on victimization of teachers by their students, as well as school responses to these events.

Read the report here: https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/many-teachers-are-victimized-students-and-schools-response-matters-their-well-being

This new Federal Student Aid resource can help counselors and mentors guide students and their families through the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form:https://financialaidtoolkit.ed.gov/resources/2025-26-fafsa-counselor-resource.pdf