In March, our region’s schools shifted online and a massive experiment began. Parenting has always been difficult, but the pandemic has added additional stress, anxiety and childcare issues for many parents. Many parents suddenly found themselves overseeing technology and schooling while working from home or after completing their shifts at their essential jobs.

Throughout all of this, the added burden has often fallen on mothers, who in many families still take on a larger share of childcare and housework. Some women are even leaving jobs to stay home with their kids. Others continue to work but are feeling overwhelmed as local schools remain virtual at least through the fall.

So how are parents coping six months into this forced experiment? What does this mean for women in the workforce? And are men taking on their share of parenting duties?

Join Kojo and a panel of experts for our next Kojo In Your Virtual Community on Wednesday, September 30, at 7:30 p.m. for an in-depth discussion on parenting during the pandemic. Kojo will be joined by Heidi Shierholz, senior economist and director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute; Anya Kamenetz, education correspondent at NPR; and Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, clinical assistant professor for the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the George Washington University School of Medicine. Also joining Kojo is special guest Mercedes Samudio, parent coach, speaker, bestselling author and founder of the Diversity in Parenting Conference.

The event is free, but to participate you must pre-register by 5 p.m. EST on September 30. All registered participants will receive an email with instructions on how to connect to our virtual event on Zoom upon registration. Live closed captioning will be available.

This event will be recorded, and an edited version will be aired on The Kojo Nnamdi Show on Wednesday, October 7.

If you have questions, please contact us at events@wamu.org or connect with us on social media @kojoshow.

Kojo In Your Community is a series of live events aimed at providing area residents with a forum to ask questions, make comments and share the view from their neighborhoods. We’re now bringing them to you in a virtual setting with discussions that focus on surviving — and thriving — during the current public health crisis.