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Recently Recorded Webinars
Mandated Supporters: Shifting from a Culture of Report to Support
While it is important for Mandated Reporters to understand their role in recognizing and reporting abuse, expanding their scope to that of Mandated Supporter empowers them to be proactive in their response against child abuse and neglect. The concept of Mandated Supporters replaces family surveillance with a variety of supportive responses to bolster and nurture family well-being. This presentation will help participants better understand strategies to connect families to resources and support to reduce ‘family overwhelm’ and prevent child abuse and neglect.
Presenters: Jyll Walsh, DrPH, Assistant Director; Kimberly Stewart-Lucas, Training and Resource Coordinator
Presented: April 23, 2024
Resources: Recording | Lean on Me Resource Page
Harnessing the Power of Parent Leadership
Fostering parent leadership in a meaningful way gives parents and other caregivers the opportunity for personal growth to gain the knowledge and skills to function in leadership roles and represent a “parent voice” to help shape the direction of their families, programs, and communities. Programs also benefit from being more responsive and accountable to the families they serve. In this webinar you will learn how to successfully integrate parent leadership as a key program component, build shared responsibility in decision making, and hear from providers and caregivers who have benefited from parent leadership.
Presenters:
Kendra Cole, MPA, Strengthening Families Georgia Coordinator, PCA Georgia
Melody Weaver, Georgia Family Support Network Coordinator, PCA Georgia
Octavia Trammell and Lindsey Dale, Prevention and Community Support, Georgia Department of Human Services
Kimberly Fowler and Carmen Coates, Parent Representatives from the Georgia Parent Advisory Council
Presented: February 28, 2024
Resources: Webinar Recording | Slides on Parent Advisory Council | Community Toolbox | Parent Advisory Council Info and Application
Motherhood Beyond Bars: Supporting Families Impacted by Maternal Incarceration
Each year, an average of 50 women give birth in Georgia prisons. Motherhood Beyond Bars, a nonprofit organization, ensures a healthy start for infants born to incarcerated women by providing a network of comprehensive support for mothers and caregivers. MBB is also conducting research on the impacts of incarceration on infants and the significant challenges of family reunification when the mother is incarcerated. This workshop will highlight the significant challenges mothers behind bars face and the opportunities within the judicial and child welfare systems to support family unity.
Presenter: Amy Ard, Executive Director, Motherhood Beyond Bars
Presented: January 2024
Resources: Webinar Recording | Slides | www.MotherhoodBeyond.org
On Demand Trainings for Child Abuse Prevention and Strengthening Families
Looking Beyond Behavior: A Whole Child Approach to Student Success
Can you imagine sitting in a classroom, trying to understand math when you can’t see the screen? What about if you had a toothache? Health barriers to learning and development, like uncorrected vision problems and dental pain, interfere with students’ ability to learn, and disproportionately impact children in underserved communities. This presentation is designed to encourage school and community stakeholders to look beyond presenting behaviors to identify and address the root cause of disrupted physical and mental health. Participants will leave with tangible resources, action items, and greater understanding of a whole child approach to student well-being.
Presenter: Mary Lauren Salvatore, MPH, CHES, Integrated Wellness Manager, Georgia Department of Education
Presented: August 2022
Resources: Webinar Recording | Slides
Creating Trauma-Informed Community Spaces (April 2022)
Georgia’s Athens-Clarke County Library became the first trauma-informed library in the nation in 2018 through a partnership with the University of Georgia. Hear about their nationally recognized program and learn how their approach can be applied to various family serving organizations across the state.
Presenters:
Elise Stangle, Social Worker, Athens Regional Library System
Trudi Green, Assistant Director for Public Services, Athens Regional Library System
Resources: Webinar Recording
Championing Wellness and Modeling Self-Care in the Workplace (April 2022)
Whether family-serving professionals experience trauma in their personal lives or through secondary trauma as a result of their work, the need to address wellness and self-care in the workplace is essential. By approaching wellness from a holistic perspective, participants will leave with actionable items to develop a more supportive culture within their scope of influence and self-care routine for themselves. When leaders and workplace peers invest in the overall well-being of staff and model the practice of self-care, organizations become stronger and better positioned to serve families.
Presenter: Jacquelyn Zahm, Psy.D., Clinical Director for Georgia Psychological Associates Canton Location
Resources: Webinar Recording
Starting a Home Visiting Program in Your Community February 2022
The state-level leaders and community partners involved in protecting children seek to mobilize individuals and communities to challenge the notion that children and families are “on their own” and should pull themselves up by their bootstraps. Learn about how you can initiate a prevention strategy using evidence based home visiting services to support families, enhance protective factors and create conditions that give every child a chance to thrive. Paige Ferrell, Healthy Families State Lead, and other Healthy Families Georgia program implementers will discuss phases of preparation to start your own Healthy Families Georgia Program.
Shifting the Culture: A Family Centered Approach November 2021
When the entire system focuses on the unique needs of every family and child, we allow parents to become the experts on their specific challenges and to adopt new ways for them to overcome and develop solutions for themselves. This workshop will review simple strategies for professionals to gain a mindset and approach to family-centered services. The benefits to implementing these practices and strategies improves family engagement while netting better outcomes for families utilizing family support services.
Presenter: Jennifer Stein, MBA, Executive Director of Prevent Child Abuse Georgia
Shifting the Culture from Mandated Reporter to Mandated Supporters, Claire Louge, Executive Director of PCA Arizona, April 2021
- Slides | Recording | PCA Arizona Facebook– Lean on Me Messages
- 1-800-CHILDREN Helpline, GA’s centralized place for families to be connected with supportive resources
Equipping Professionals to Better Address the Use of Physical Punishment by Caregivers, February 2022
Approximately 70% of adults believe it is sometimes necessary to give a child a “good hard spanking.” However, a substantial body of research reveals that even moderate spanking can negatively impact the brain region that regulates behaviors and emotions and has similar outcomes to that of other Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs).
Parents’ attitudes toward and use of spanking are influenced by trusted child and family serving professionals. When family serving professionals receive training on communication strategies and organizational practices, they can shift parents’ perspective, which leads to healthier outcomes for children.
Learning Objectives
- Understand the consequences and ineffectiveness of spanking.
- Address current beliefs and reasons for spanking, such as “I was spanked, and I turned out fine,” and “spanking is the only thing that seems to work” through practice scenarios.
- Build practical communication skills to address the use of spanking by caregivers through role-playing
- Understand how policies and practices your organization can implement such as “No Hit Zones” to support staff and parents to utilize positive discipline methods.
Who is the training for? The training is geared toward organizations who directly work with children and families but can also be beneficial for any professional working closely with families who have young children.
Resources: Recording | Slides | No Hit Zone Resources
Housing: Where Do We Start?
July 21, 2021
Unstable or inadequate housing increases the risk of children entering foster care or can delay reunification—even when housing was not the reason for out-of-home placement. Currently in Georgia, about 20% of households with children are unsure if they will be able to make their next rent or mortgage payment.
Understanding that housing is essential for family stability and the healthy development of children, this webinar will help participants:
• Identify housing resources to best support families
• Understand how they can advocate to improve housing stability and conditions
• Be aware of state and national policies and initiatives to stay informed and learn more
Presenter: Caroline Durham, JD, Legal and Policy Director at Georgia Appleseed
Caroline Durham brings thirty-plus years of justice advocacy to her role as Legal and Policy Director. In addition to serving as a public defender in state and federal courts, she has extensive experience training advocates and lawyers on how to effectively navigate criminal courts, provide client-centered services, and bring about systemic change through case-by-case work. A graduate of Tulane Law School, Caroline is committed to strengthening communities in the South and leads the Georgia Healthy Housing Project at Georgia Appleseed.
Racism, Anti-Racism, and the Social Ecology
Presenters: Cailin O’Connor, MS, Senior Associate at Center for the Study of Social Policy
Charlyn Harper Brown, PhD, Senior Associate at Center for the Study of Social Policy
Additional Resources:
- Using an Anti-Racist Intersectional Framework from CSSP
- AAP: The Impact of Racism on Child and Adolescent Health
Racism, It’s Baked In, Alex Camardelle, Senior Policy Analyst at GBPI
Recording | Slides | Discussion Reading: Cash Matters: Reimagining Anti-Racist TANF Policies in Georgia
When Home is Where the Hurt Is: An Exploration of Family Facilitated CSEC
Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) refers to a range of crimes and activities involving the sexual abuse or exploitation of a child for the financial benefit of any person or in exchange for anything of value (including monetary and non-monetary benefits). One form of CSEC is Family Facilitated CSEC/Familial Exploitation, which occurs when a family member exchanges sexual acts with a child for goods, substances, rent, services, money, or status within the community. Family members can include parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc. This workshop will provide attendees with a foundational understanding of family facilitated CSEC and utilize case studies to help participants identify family facilitated CSEC, which often hides under the guise of traditional child sexual abuse or neglect.
Presenter: Naeshia McDowell, CSEC Response Team Director, Children’s Advocacy Center of Georgia
Presented: November 2023
Resources: Webinar Recording | Handout
Preventing, Recognizing and Responding to CSEC
Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC), also known as child sex trafficking, refers to a range of crimes and activities involving the sexual abuse or exploitation of a child for the financial benefit of any person or in exchange for anything of value (including monetary and non-monetary benefits). CSEC is a crime that is impacting children and youth across the State of Georgia. This webinar provides a foundational understanding of CSEC and identifies steps that can be taken to spread awareness and respond to this issue in communities.
Presenters:
Naeshia McDowell, Director of the CSEC Response Team at the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Georgia
Tiffany Sawyer, Director of Prevention and Education at the Georgia Center for Child Advocacy
Presented: August 30, 2022
Webinar Resources: Recording| Handout
Georgia’s Response to the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children
The Children’s Advocacy Centers of Georgia (CACGA) is now coordinating Georgia’s statewide Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) response team. Learn about the state’s improved multi-disciplinary response to child and youth trafficking, how your organization can be engaged, and what professionals need to know to refer potential victims to services.
Presenters:
Naeshia McDowell, Statewide Child and Youth Care Coordinator
Amy Boney, CSEC Response Team Director
Resources:
- Recording
- Slides
- To report suspected or disclosed child sex trafficking please call 1-866-END-HTGA (363-4842)
- Georgia’s CSEC Response Team Website
- CJCC’s Labor Trafficking Report
The Intersection of CSEC Victims and Gangs: How Do We Learn From Survivors to Prevent Future Victims?
Presenter: Latera Davis, Director of Victim and Volunteer Services at the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Objective: The purpose of this presentation is to educate and raise awareness on the impact of sexual exploitation of girls within gangs. The link between child maltreatment, sex trafficking and gangs is explored. Finally, this presentation will discusses criminal street gang culture and the emerging trend of domestic minor sex trafficking being used as a means to exploit girls and support criminal related activities.
Perspectives on Poverty
Any professional working with children and families can attest to witnessing the detrimental impacts of poverty, yet very few have ever had any formal training or education on it. This training will help professionals remove barriers, improve practices, and promote better communication and relationships with vulnerable families. Using first-hand stories and perspectives, participants will learn the facts, underlying myths, examine their own perceptions, and be able to enact tangible strategies to uplift our community’s vulnerable populations.
Just as we believe in a trauma-informed approach, we also believe that poverty-informed practices will greatly change our communities’ ability to assist those facing poverty.
Presenter:
Jyll Walsh, MPH
Prevent Child Abuse Georgia
Resources:
Slides
Recording
ComBarriers.com
Protecting Children in a New Normal: Resources for School Personnel
Prevent Child Abuse Georgia | Georgia Department of Education | Georgia Division of Family and Children Services | ProSolutions
- View Slides
- Webinar Recording
- Dear Teacher: I Feel
Parent Questions - View additional Mandated Reporter Resources
Schools On Deck: Preparing for the Return of Students
Beyond the physical safety considerations for returning to school, educators are preparing to interact with students in different ways. The impact of school closures has been different for every child as have their experiences with being socially and physically distanced. This webinar will provide school personnel with resources and information on how to respond to and assist students as they return to schools and begin interacting with peers and school staff, with an overview on recognizing basic signs of abuse and trauma.
Webinar: Protecting Children Amidst Crisis: A Mandated Reporter’s Role
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and we know risk factors for child abuse and neglect – including parental stress, economic instability and housing insecurity – increase in situations resulting from crisis. PCA Georgia is hosting this webinar to provide information on protecting children during the COVID-19 outbreak. This webinar will update child and family serving professionals on pertinent definitions and reporting methods, provide an update on the impact of sheltering in place has had on child abuse and neglect reports and DFCS’ response, equip mandated reporters with useful resources, and address reporting concerns.
*This webinar series is intended to address additional mandated reporter questions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and is not a full mandated reporter training. Please utilize the free online training to fulfill any mandated reporter training needs.
Data Dive: Exploring the Needs and Strengths of Your Community
There are so many state and community level data resources available for organizations to utilize when doing community needs assessments, funding rationales, or program/policy evaluation. Join Prevent Child Abuse Georgia and Rebecca Rice with KIDS COUNT as we dive into data-driven child advocacy. The KIDS COUNT Data Center maintains the best available data and statistics on the educational, social, economic and physical well-being of children. Rebecca will demonstrate how data tools are used by communities to improve child and family well-being. Rebecca will also introduce the Get Georgia Reading Data tool which was developed to help state and local leaders understand and address the challenges our children are facing on the path to literacy.
Gearing Up for Child Abuse Prevention Month 2020
Gearing Up for Child Abuse Prevention Month
Gear up for Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Month, April, with Prevent Child Abuse Georgia’s tools and tips! We will share sample communications pieces and community ideas to help promote awareness, educate the general public, and also target specific audiences.
We are also excited to share highlights of our newest program, Strengthening Families Georgia, and outline ways you can embed protective factors in your work.
Presenter: Jyll Walsh, MPH, Communication and Outreach Coordinator, PCA Georgia
February 19, 2020
Gearing Up for Child Abuse Prevention Month 2019
Prevent Child Abuse Georgia and Jennifer Stein with the Family Resource Center of Northeast Georgia share tools and tips on how to prepare for Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Month in April! We provide sample communications pieces and community event ideas to be used during CAP Month and year round to help promote awareness, educate the general public, and also target specific audiences.
The more we can show people how simple actions can prevent child abuse and neglect, the more people will understand how it is preventable.
PCA Georgia’s CAP month webinar
View Slides
Go to CAP Month Toolkit
Engaging Communities of Faith in Child Abuse Prevention Month
Presenters: Pamela Perkins Carn, Coordinator of Interfaith Children’s Movement and Naeshia McDowell, Program Coordinator of Prevent Child Abuse Georgia
Sexual Abuse Prevention in Schools
A New Georgia Mandate
View Webinar *Webinar begins at the 20 minute mark
Partnering with Dads
Prevent Child Abuse Georgia partnered with Professional Excellence in this unique Ask the Expert session.
Experts featured are Darrell Green (Professional Excellence Program and father), Clinton Boyd Jr.(SafeCare and father), and Shannon Self-Brown (Associate Director for Research & Development in the National SafeCare Training and Research Center) in an interactive and open dialogue about what it means to not only “Identify” fathers, but how to engage and involve them in a partnership, by helping them firmly establish a relationship with their children.
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| Physical: | 140 Decatur Street SE 1st Floor, Suite 178 Atlanta, GA 30303 |
| Mailing: | P.O. Box 3995 Atlanta, GA 30302 |
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Prevent Child Abuse Georgia is not a child abuse and neglect reporting agency. To make a report of child abuse and neglect in Georgia, visit cps.dhs.ga.gov, or call the 24/7 reporting hotline 1-855-GACHILD (1-855-422-4453).
Looking for resources to help a family? Visit Find Help Georgia.