Blog

Above, left to right: Megan Bryant, Thomas Grieb, Aubree Vance, Annie Harrison, and Alex Brace in the room at Small Talk where, pre-pandemic, the multidisciplinary team would meet.   When the pandemic first prompted a wave of shutdowns across the country, most of us assumed we’d be back in the office before too long. When… Continue Reading

Above: Dakota CAC Executive Director Paula Condol, MS, LPCC, (seated) and Red River CAC’s Heidi Tupa, MSW, LICSW, (onscreen) demonstrate how the telehealth system works.   Long before the pandemic made telehealth part of the “new normal” for CACs, North Dakota was ahead of the curve. In last year’s Annual Report, we introduced you to Paula… Continue Reading

For Michelle Miller, NCA’s mental health project coordinator, her proudest moment from 2020 was seeing our field come together in a crisis, everyone mobilizing at once to keep services available to kids and families. “We’ve spent the last two years exploring and planning how to integrate telehealth services into CACs. We see its value for… Continue Reading

Teaming up to help kids, above from left to right: Jen Howe, CHKD forensic interviewer; Quiana Bradley, CHKD therapist; Brandy Etter from McDonald Army Hospital; Jackie Johnson, CHKD case manager; Louis Heyward from the Army Family Advocacy program; and Heather Larkin, CHKD medical social worker.   National Children’s Alliance prioritizes developing strong relationships between Children’s… Continue Reading

It’s not often we make public statements about news events not directly related to our work of serving child victims of abuse. Yet what took place here in Washington, D.C., last week was no ordinary event. Just blocks from my house and to National Children’s Alliance headquarters here on Capitol Hill, a violent mob stormed… Continue Reading

Welcome to April. As I normally do in April, I want to focus on the fact that it is National Child Abuse Awareness Month—but this year, under these extraordinary circumstances, the designation takes on an even greater and more urgent significance. We know that, under the best of circumstances, it is challenging to protect the… Continue Reading

For Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs), family engagement refers to the process of family members accepting a referral for mental health treatment, then attending and participating in that treatment to successful completion. CAC staff know the importance of mental health treatment to help children and families who have experienced trauma heal from that trauma.  We also… Continue Reading

The original mission of Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs) was to improve a community’s response to the investigation of child abuse. The advances in our knowledge of trauma and the availability of mental health treatments effective in reducing the negative impact of trauma expanded the focus of CACs to include helping children and families heal. In… Continue Reading

Every year, Child Abuse Prevention Month pushes us to focus on the ways in which we can engage our communities to better protect children—in the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) world, we say that the shared goal of our efforts is to work ourselves “out of a job.” We combine forces to unify our messages and… Continue Reading

Children’s Advocacy Centers (CACs) work through the strength of partnership—no single professional or agency can counter child abuse on their own, and survivors need and deserve support when abuse comes to light. Being a good partner means being a good active listener, and active listening is the main medium in which CACs do their work…. Continue Reading