Throughout April, Child Abuse Prevention Month, Texas CASA and other groups will be sharing information and resources about preventing child abuse and neglect. The idea of preventing child abuse and neglect can seem daunting – how do we as individuals and society solve this issue? It starts with each of playing an active role. We’ve outlined small steps you can take to help raise awareness and make a difference this Child Abuse Prevention Month and beyond.
Start with the basics.
The best place to start is at the beginning. If you are new to this work (or need a refresher), begin by familiarizing yourself with definitions, signs of abuse and neglect, and what prevention efforts are currently out there.
Our CASA Deep Dive on child abuse prevention covers what we mean by prevention, why child abuse and neglect occurs, and what Texas specific services are available.
Learn from the Experts.
Whether you only have 5 minutes or an hour, Texas CASA has trainings and videos for you that will help you start your journey of understanding child abuse and neglect and prevention.
Under 5 Minutes
“Don’t save me from my family, save my family for me.”
In this episode of The Fix, DFPS Chief Prevention and Community Wellbeing Officer Sasha Rasco discusses the importance of a two-generation approach to advocacy, where we aren’t only focusing on helping children, but helping their parents—and preserving and supporting that family relationship in whatever ways are safe and possible.
The Fix is a video series from Texas CASA exploring issues in the foster care system that need fixing and proposing solutions, in 5 minutes or less.
Get caught up on the full series.
Under 30 Minutes
Watch Emily’s Dragon and read Emily’s Story. The short film Emily’s Dragon, tells the emotional story of a young girl removed from her home and placed in foster care, and how her CASA volunteer made a difference during this critical point in her life. Based off of the film, Emily’s Story is a month by month look at what a year in foster care looks like for children as their case progresses. Emily’s Story, while fictional, is based on real-life situations that many children in the foster care system face.
I got the time
The Distinguished Speaker Series is an advocacy-focused learning opportunity for the CASA network and other community partners involved in the child welfare system. The multi-part series features high-caliber speakers sharing their expertise on topics and issues impacting the child welfare system and how we can all enhance our advocacy for children and families involved in the system.
All episodes are available online here.
Know Where to Get Help.
Texas CASA compiled a list of emergency hotlines and resources covering various types of crisis situations that many families may face. These hotlines are staffed by experienced counselors who will be able to assist callers and connect them with professional resources and services. Please keep these somewhere you can easily access and refer back to so that you can share them when needed. You can find a few abuse and neglect specific helplines below. For the full list, visit here.
Get Parenting Tips: A website offering support for parents to foster child safety and prevent child abuse. Includes a vast amount of resources for parents.
Texas Parent Helpline:
A team is ready to listen, find solutions, and direct you to the right local resources.
Call or text: 833-680-0611
Texas Youth Helpline:
For peer counseling to youth and family members for family conflicts, delinquency, truancy, abuse, neglect and running away. Available 24/7.
Call or text: 1-800-989-6884
Chat: https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/youth-helpline
Texas Abuse Hotline:
Call: 1-800-252-5400
Visit: https://www.txabusehotline.org/Login/Default.aspx
National Parent Helpline:
Call 855-427-2736, available 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on weekdays
Wear blue on Friday, April 14.
Friday, April 14, is Texas #GoBlueDay. Wear blue and share pictures online to show your support. Encourage your friends and family to join you!
Share on Social Media.
The goal for Child Abuse Prevention Month is spreading awareness and everyone has a platform to help share resources and information. Plus! it’s never been easier for you to share online as there are multiple toolkits with premade images and text to choose from.
DFPS Toolkit: This toolkit includes daily messages to use in promoting child abuse prevention awareness, CAPM resources, and sample CAPM imagery to share and post.
Child Welfare Gateway Toolkit: Use these free prevention outreach tools to engage your community in supporting children, youth, and families this National Child Abuse Prevention Month!
Texas CASA Toolkit: Texas CASA offers a Child Abuse Prevention Month toolkit that features media relations strategies, social media strategies, and many other promotional materials, templates and resources that local programs and individuals can use to make the most impact in their communities all month long.
National CASA/GAL Toolkit: This toolkit provides helpful information on how to recognize National Child Abuse Prevention Month in April. We encourage you to make use of the resources to increase brand awareness and understanding of who we are and what we do. Login required.
Make sure you’re using the hashtags: #ChildAbusePreventionMonth #CAPM #ThrivingFamilies #PreventionMatters