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Products -- Safe from the Start Newsletter Archives
SFTS April 2002 News
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month!
The March
12th event drew over 200 community leaders and organizers from 42 counties.
Participants heard from Attorney General Bill Lockyer, Superintendent of
Public Instruction Delaine Eastin, and Secretary of Health and Human Services
Grantland Johnson about their collaboration to reduce the impact of violence
on children.
The day included a keynote speaker Dennis Maloney,
who discussed innovative ideas from the Oregon Criminal Justice System.
Also, Jerry Tello, through his humorous, insightful and inspiring presentation
at lunch, left participants with the idea that collaborations should not
be contingent upon funding, boundaries or status. Expo attendees spent the
afternoon attending workshops related to finding funding, sustaining collaborations,
performing evaluations, changing community systems, and hearing too about
strategies that are working well.
At the conclusion of the event "Tool Boxes"
containing new Safe from the Start products were distributed. For more information
on how to order Safe from the Start materials check out the
publications
section of our web site.
Since 1983, April has been designated as Child Abuse Prevention Month. April
2002 provides us another opportunity to increase public awareness on the
treatment of our youngest Californians. This year's theme, "The Little Things
You Can Do to Prevent Child Abuse and Neglect," suggests we all have a role
in preventing child abuse and neglect, and everyone assumes some responsibility
for the health and well-being of our children.
Child abuse and neglect have both human and economic costs. In 2001, the California Department of Social
Services estimated that 359,740
referrals for investigation of child abuse and neglect involving 671,422 children were handled by
child protective agencies. According
to a 1998 audit by the California Department of Health Services, approximately 125 children died in
the state as a result of child abuse
and neglect. Prevent Child Abuse-America, the nation's leading child abuse prevention organization,
estimates the total direct and
indirect costs of child abuse and neglect are approximately $94,076,882,227 per year. The death or
suffering of even one child due to
abuse or neglect is a tragedy. We all need to become involved and find better ways to prevent and
intervene in the lives of maltreated
children. Wear a blue ribbon during the month to show your support for child abuse prevention.
This Resource Guide published by Safe from the Start was introduced at the Tools for the Future Expo last month. If you were unable to
attend the Expo but would like to have a copy of this resource guide, send your request to sfts@doj.ca.gov. Please include your mailing
information. This guide is also available in PDF format on our website at
pdfs/promisingStrategies.pdf [748k/103pgs.].
The Bureau of Justice Assistance's evaluation web site is designed to provide state administrative agency staff, criminal justice
planners, researchers and evaluators, as well as local practitioners with a variety of resources for evaluating criminal justice
programs. Check out their web site at www.bja.evaluationwebsite.org.
A study done in North Carolina followed 644 mother-infant pairs to determine if father surrogates are a risk factor for child
maltreatment. They found that 15 percent reported child abuse between the fourth and sixth year, and an additional 15 percent reported
child abuse between the sixth and the eighth year. The study also found that children with a father surrogate living at home were twice
as likely to be reported for maltreatment after the man's entry into the home as are those with either a biological father at home or no
father figure at all. The implications of this study are clear: programs and services are needed to reduce the risk that father
substitutes will harm children, and children in homes with an unrelated adult male may need special attention to keep them safe. For
more information contact radhakri@email.unc.edu.
FUNDING NEWS
Gateway has recently announced that they will donate the computers used
during the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City to nonprofit
organizations. The Gateway Olympic Sponsorship PC Donation Program will donate up to 4,500 computers to nonprofits, with priority given
to schools and community centers that assist traditionally underserved communities. These systems were supplied to the Salt Lake
Organizing Committee for use during 2002 Olympic Winter Games to track official event results, statistics and standings for athletes,
coaches, spectators, officials, and the media. Groups interested in receiving a donated computer need to complete an application
online. The application will be posted on the above web site from April 8 to July 31. Check out their web site at
www.gateway.com/olympics/donations.shtml.
Need some help writing a federal grant? The Environmental Protection Agency offers an online grant-writing tutorial. While some of the
material is designed to help people apply for EPA grants, other information on the web site is generic to the federal government's grant
process. Check out their web site at www.epa.gov/grtlakes/seahome/grants.html.
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