By Dina Alexander, MS, Founder of Educate and Empower Kids
For years, I’ve worked with parents who are doing their absolute best.
They monitor.
They delay phones.
They install filters.
They have hard conversations.
They show up.
And still, their children encounter content, design features, and data practices no parent knowingly agreed to.
I’ve written books. I’ve spoken across the country. I’ve testified on legislation. I’ve sat in hearing rooms lined with tech lobbyists. I’ve met parents who thought they were alone in their frustration.
Here’s what I know:
This is not a parenting failure.
It’s a system problem.
More than 88% of children’s internet use happens on apps. Those apps are distributed, rated, described, and approved through app stores — yet child protection is not the default design standard.
Parents have been told to “monitor better.”
To “parent harder.”
To simply keep up.
But you cannot outparent an ecosystem engineered by billion-dollar companies optimizing for engagement.
Parenting harder isn’t the answer.
Guardrails are.
We require safety standards for toys, cribs, car seats, and food labels. It is not radical to expect basic safety standards in the digital spaces where children now spend hours each day.
This Substack exists because it’s time to move from coping to changing the ecosystem.
We will still talk about parenting and child development.
But we will also talk about:
What real online safety looks like
How legislation works
The role of app stores
AI systems interacting with minors
How parents can influence policy in their own states
Not with outrage.
Not with fear.
But with clarity and steady leadership.
Across the country, I’m supporting the App Store Accountability Act, bringing accurate age ratings, parental approval, and transparency to the app ecosystem
Here in Utah, we’re advancing the SAFE Act, ensuring classroom software is safe and effective before adoption, and the Balance Act, restoring instructional focus so technology serves learning, not distraction
We’re also working with communities nationwide to establish bell-to-bell phone-free school policies that protect attention and reduce social pressure during the school day.
These efforts are gaining momentum.
But laws don’t change because experts speak.
They change because parents show up.
If you believe parents deserve structural support — not just more responsibility — subscribe.
If you believe we can build technology that respects childhood, forward this to three other parents.
We’ve talked about screens long enough.
Now it’s time to fix the system.
Together.
In the meantime, check out some simple family night lessons to help you up your parenting game.
