Back to School: How community is helping each other as Bay Area students head back to classroom

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- As millions of students across the Bay Area head back to school, ABC7 Eyewitness News has you covered.

From traffic to weather, we're here to help you start the school year off right.

All week long, we will be sharing the latest tips and tricks when it comes to buying backpacks, school supplies and even making sure your little one gets back to a normal sleeping schedule.

ABC7 Eyewitness News Mornings anchor Amanda del Castillo will be bringing you the stories highlighting parents helping parents around the Bay Area.

Make sure to tune into ABC7 all week long to see the latest on everything back to school.

The kids call it the "TikTok Special." 💈🔥 Now, one Bay Area barber is booking weeks out as students look for that fresh-cut confidence ahead of the new school year.

San Mateo barber Ritz Bautista, also known as Beast Cutz, has gained a large social media following for his viral haircut videos, the popular "TikTok Special," a blowout taper with a textured fringe.

His online success has helped attract clients from across California and even overseas.

Bautista says a fresh haircut can be a confidence booster, and his viral content continues to connect with students looking to start the school year feeling their best.

Bay Area dad gains massive following, boosts confidence one braid at a time

A Bay Area dad's mission to master his daughter's hairstyles has grown into "Dad Braids," an online community of more than 543,000 followers learning, connecting and creating memories together.

A Bay Area dad has built quite the online following by documenting himself doing his daughter's hair.

Strider Patton's passion project, known online as Dad Braids, focuses on turning a morning task into a moment of togetherness.

Patton is behind the popular online account "Dad Braids," used as a resource by more than 543,000 others.

Parents navigate their own return to class routine as kids go back to school

Beer and braids: the unlikely pairing that recently put parents in a room, offering dads a space to learn and lean on one another as students head back to school.

Beer and braids: the unlikely pairing that recently put parents in a room, offering dads a space to learn and lean on one another.

"I knew that I had something really important because just looking around the room, seeing dads laugh, helping each other," Fatherhood Coach Mark Punzal reflected.

A sold-out session for the man who is curating local events with the goal of building community. As students head back to school, solidifying a support group is something clinical psychologist Dr. Andrea Zorbas can get behind.

"Community is everything. That's how we get our support, that's how we feel like we can get through it. We also get tips from everybody else. We feel a little bit more calm when we feel somebody else is going through the same thing," Dr. Zorbas said. "And then they give us ideas of how they deal with it."