ATLANTA — Researchers at Emory University are digging into what really keeps Georgia parents up at night.
We all want healthy, happy children, but a snapshot of what families are navigating in 2025 shows challenges.
Dr. Stephen Patrick is the Chair of Health Policy and Management at Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health.
Researchers are asking Georgia parents about their top concerns about issues like schools and school safety.
“Do they feel like the schools are safer today than 10 years ago,” Patrick said. “And what did they tell you?” Channel 2’s Linda Stouffer asked. “60% of parents say no,” Patrick replied.
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“We also asked parents, ‘Has your kid’s school been on lockdown in the last year?’ 30% said yes,” Patrick said.
Some answers vary by race. “Overall, we saw that the number one concern is education and school quality- but that’s not true for Black and Hispanic parents. Their number one concern is gun violence,” Patrick said.
Gun violence also shows up in the top five for everyone.
“We asked parents, ‘Do you own a firearm?’ and about half of Georgia parents own a firearm. We know that firearms are the leading cause of death for children over one year old, and one of the things we can do is make sure firearms are safely stored,” Patrick said.
On mental health and suicide concerns, 15% of Georgia parents told researchers that their child has an anxiety diagnosis.
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“Another 15% said, ‘I’m worried that my child has anxiety,’ so we’re talking about a third of parents have some worry or diagnosis that their child is anxious,” Patrick said.
Bullying and cyberbullying are a top concern, some of which tie back to social media.
Researchers are hoping this data gets families talking and educators and community leaders working on better solutions.
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