Children suffer higher rates of exposure to violence than do adults. In the first National Survey of Children’s Exposure to Violence (2009), 60.6% of children 17 and under had witnessed or experienced a type of direct violence in the past year. Almost half experienced physical assault, 1 in 4 had witnessed violence in their community or home, 1 in 10 experienced child maltreatment. More than 38% experienced more than one exposure in the last year.
Such exposure is responsible for a considerable burden of physical and mental health illness in the U.S.
A groundbreaking study of over 17,000 adults known as the ACE Study (Adverse Childhood Experiences) linked the majority of the leading causes of preventable death in the U.S. to the frequency and variety of exposures to violence adults had as children. www.ACEStudy.org
Universal, primary prevention programs that emphasize social and emotional learning with children are highly evidence based methods of violence reduction. Communities for Safe Kids supports the development of positive social and emotional skills to maximize every child's ability to participate successfully in school.
Communities for Safe Kids emphasizes community involvement; a key component of effective violence prevention. Research shows that effective violence prevention involves a child’s entire community – including teachers, school administrators, and families.
Communities for Safe Kids provides trainings for both teachers and parents before we work directly with students to ensure adults in a child’s life – parents, caregivers, teachers, school counselors and other community members – have access to relevant resources and tools they need to support these issues.
Communities for Safe Kids seeks to increasingly fill our community with positive and supportive conditions, leaving less and less room for violence and maltreatment.