Missouri Children's Trust Fund

"Be Aware Now"

Please join us during the Children's Trust Fund "Be Aware Now" child abuse and neglect prevention conference March 14-16, 2007 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City (Download Program/ Registraion Form). Registration deadlines are fast approaching. Call 800-338-8088 to make your hotel reservation by February 26 to ensure the $61.80 room rate.

We have a great line-up of presenters on important and useful topics:

• Strengthening Families
• Management/Fund Development/Grant Writing
• Poverty Simulation
• Sexual Abuse Prevention
• Family Development Credentialing
• Internet Safety

A rally, planned in conjuction with Prevent Child Abuse Missouri (PCAM), Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Missouri and the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), will be held March 16, 2007 on the south lawn of the Capitol to kick-off April as child abuse prevention month! 

Effective parenting programs, home visiting evaluated

In a recent report reviewing 150 studies of parenting programs for at-risk parents, home visiting programs held the most promise for parents of young children.  The study, conducted at the University of California at Berkeley Center for the Study of Social Services Research (CSSR), concluded that parents who are at risk for child maltreatment may benefit from different parent education and training programs targeted for the age of the children, the type of abuse or neglect that has placed the families at risk, or certain parental or family characteristics. 

In addition to programs serving parents of young children, the researchers looked at programs which were more effective with parents of older children, with ethnic minority families in low-income communities, with substance-abusing parents, and with parents at risk of neglecting their children.  The report, Assessing Parent Education Programs for Families Involved With Child Welfare Services: Evidence and Implications, offers some guidance to child welfare agencies and staff in trying to identify the right program for a particular family by discussing specific promising programs and providing program descriptions, outcomes, estimated costs, and contact information for each.

In addition, the report (Download PDF) places its findings in context by describing what is understood to be effective parenting, as well as parenting issues for families at risk for maltreatment. 

The youngest, and most vulnerable

Children younger than a year old are the ones most often found to be physically abused, neglected and killed by abuse in Missouri, according to the most recent numbers reported by the Department of Social Services. Missouri's Child Abuse and Neglect annual report found that 32 children in the state died as a result of abuse or neglect in 2005. Of those, 47 percent were less than a year old. The greatest number of substantiated child abuse and neglect allegations — 585 of 8,158 total — also affected this age group.

Nationwide, infants accounted for 44 percent of child abuse deaths in 2003, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [Story by Aisha Sultan, STLtoday.com]

Invest in Kids Working Group

The Invest in Kids Working Group was created to examine and document the economic benefits of investments in young children and explore policies to finance expansion of such services. Working group members are leading experts in economics, business, advocacy and public policy. The group is chaired by Robert Dugger (bio), a CED Trustee and Chairman of the Partnership for America's Economic Success Advisory Board.

The Partnership for America's Economic Success is a collaborative initiative of 11 funders created to document the economic impacts of children growing to be successful, productive adults, and is administered by the Pew Charitable Trusts.

The Committee for Economic Development has information and links to a wealth of research from some of the nation's top researchers on topics in the economics of investing in early childhood and various position papers.

Wisconsin gearing up for National Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Month

Norma Sampson reports the Wisconsin Children's Trust Fund is gearing up for National Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Month (April).

"In the past, you've loved our blue KEEP KIDS SAFE awareness wristbands and KEEP KIDS SAFE stickers. NEW this year are blue ribbon temporary tattoos, Post-it notes, Spanish bookmarks, and a full-color poster that promotes reading as a family.

Our old stand-bys are still available -- customizable English bookmarks and a plastic blue ribbon lapel pin to attach to the bookmarks besides the wristbands and stickers. You can order materials separately or launch your prevention campaign with our Blue Ribbon Community Kit that contains most of our materials and a CD full of resources. Visit our catalog page to learn more. 

Our Blue Ribbons for KIDS site also features downloadable resources including project ideas, media releases, and marketing tips."

You can get in touch with Norma at: Wisconsin Children's Trust Fund, 110 E. Main Street, Suite 614, Madison, WI 53703; Voice: 608-266-5789; E-mail

WIC: Improving health of MO women, infants and children

Every month, more than 130,000 Missourians participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, commonly known as WIC. The program provides nutrition information and food assistance to pregnant women, new mothers, infants and children up to five years of age.

In Missouri, 42 percent of all the live births recorded from 2000 to 2005 were to mothers receiving WIC services to improve the birth outcome for themselves and their babies. The percentage of babies receiving WIC services during their first year of life increased to 55 percent of all infants born in Missouri. More on the WIC Program