When I look back on this year, I am blown away. Kate Gordon called it, “The year of climate action.” In many ways it’s also been a year for kids and families.

In case you missed it, San Francisco distinguished itself as a leader again, by passing the first legislation in the country that addresses last minute employment scheduling by large, chain retailers.

The commitment, unveiled in conjunction with today’s White House Early Learning Summit, builds on “Pequeños y Valiosos” (Young and Valuable), the joint campaign launched by Univision and Too Small to Fail in February 2014 that has since reached millions of Hispanic families with messages, tools and resources.

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is expected to pass the San Francisco Predictable Scheduling and Fair Treatment for Formula Retail Employees Ordinance – legislation that will give at least 35,000 hourly workers in the city of San Francisco, who work for major chain-stores, the predictable schedules and regular pay they need to secure their families’ well-being.

Amid the growing sense of stalled progress in our nation’s capital, a rare bipartisan effort this week resulted in the successful passage and signing of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act (CCDBG). Last reauthorized in 1996, the bill will provide more than $15 billion over five years for child care programs across the country.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. I’ll be taking the week off from NextGen News to spend some time with my family and to reflect on all there is to be grateful for. Top of mind this week is the extraordinary work done by our team and our partners on the issue of predictable scheduling.

In San Francisco, the first legislation of its kind is currently being considered to increase predictable scheduling among certain retail and food service workers. Although San Francisco currently has the highest minimum wage in the country, it also has one of the highest costs of living in the United States. Nearly a quarter of San Francisco workers are employed part-time and face unpredictable s

Not only did voters approve measures to raise the minimum wage in Nebraska, Arkansas, Alaska, and South Dakota, but Massachusetts voters also passed a historic measure to guarantee employees access to paid sick days, making it the third state in the country to pass such a law.

Halloween is a special holiday for children – it’s one of the few times a year when the entire country actively encourages kids and adults to engage their creative sides, build outrageous/brilliant/hilarious costumes, place decorative gourds on our front porches, and eat too much candy.

A triple play is an uncommon event in the sport of baseball – a subject fresh on my mind thanks to our San Francisco Giants’ winning the NLCS pennant this week. Only 696 triple plays have ever occurred in the entire professional history of the sport. This week, however, our Too Small To Fail Initiative pulled off the rare act with three successful high profile events on two coasts.