Highlight

National Convening of

Prevent Child Abuse America Executive Directors

Last month in Denver, Prevent Child Abuse America hosted its annual Executive Directors meeting, engaging our network of 47 state chapters in generative discussions about promoting conditions that prevent child abuse and neglect. The meeting was held jointly with Children’s Trust Alliance, the national membership organization for state Children’s Trust and Prevention funds. This year, Executive Director Claire Louge and Program & Training Director Meghan Hays Davis represented Prevent Child Abuse Arizona, and Tené Marion and Edward Casillas represented the Children’s Trust of Arizona. Claire described the most rewarding part of the gathering: “Connecting with other chapters of Prevent Child Abuse America and the leaders of Children’s Trust Funds across the nation was deeply meaningful. We got the chance to learn together, get inspired by each other’s work, and nerd out about preventing child adversity. I left with a sense of hope, feeling lucky that I get to do this work.”

Impact Story

First-Ever Protective Factors Summit

In 2015, thanks to support from Strong Families AZ, Arizona had its first Strengthening Families^TM Protective Factors Framework training of trainers, certifying 20 people to offer presentations on Protective Factors. Since then, with support from the DCS Office of Prevention, Arizona has grown its trainer base to 96 trainers! Our state has also certified 24 people in Youth Thrive, a parallel framework that focuses on building strengths in youths, and an additional 207 practitioners of Flourishing Families, a curriculum designed for family-serving professionals to support families in building protective factors.



On November 7, 2022, trainers of all three approaches gathered for a Protective Factors Summit, supported by funding from the DCS Office of Prevention. The Summit brought together trainers from 14 of Arizona’s 15 counties. 

Early Relational Health Messaging Guide

What is “Early Relational Health?” The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) describes it as “the state of emotional well-being that grows from the positive emotional connection between babies and toddlers and their parents/caregivers when they experience strong, positive, and nurturing relationships with each other.” Learn more about Early Relational Health and how to advocate for change and spread awareness through CSSP’s recently published messaging guide below. 

Today in Prevention

The Landscape of Positive Childhood Experiences in Arizona

The Arizona Department of Health Services, the Arizona State University College of Health Solutions, Midwestern University, and the Maternal & Child Health Translational Research Team partnered to derive an Arizona-focused report on Positive Childhood Experiences from the U.S. National Survey for Children’s Health. 

Fundraising

End-of-Year Giving

Every child is filled with great promise.

I’ve always known this, but I feel it now more than ever. This year, my first child, Kira, was born. Becoming a parent has given me even deeper gratitude for your support of our work at Prevent Child Abuse Arizona.

I want my daughter to grow up in a state in which she and her peers are safe and nurtured. I want her and her peers to reach their potential. I want children in Arizona to feel loved and experience the wild joy of childhood.

With your support, Prevent Child Abuse Arizona is working to make that happen.

By donating to Prevent Child Abuse Arizona, you are helping us do more to strengthen Arizona families. Your impact ripples across the state. Your support creates protective communities, strong families, and safe children.

We can prevent child abuse, Arizona. And we need to do it now: Children cannot wait for the world to change. Their brains and bodies are developing, laying the foundation for their future, and our collective futures. 

Director's Corner

The One Gift Everyone Needs

In November, Prevent Child Abuse America celebrated its 50-year anniversary in Chicago. The celebration included a discussion with Dr. Bruce Perry, who is a member of the board, and Oprah Winfrey, who is, well, Oprah.

In her address to the crowd, Oprah talked about one thing that all children need. And that one thing blew my mind. It’s simple. It’s free. It takes only a second. And it’s the best gift that we can give to kids in our lives, all year round. It’s also the best gift we can give to each other. And the presence of this gift is ultimately what our work is working to achieve.

What is this gift? This gift answers ‘yes’ to the following question . . . 

As a 501(c)3 organization, Prevent Child Abuse Arizona is eligible to receive bequests. Please contact Molly Peterson at molly@pcaaz.org if you would like to discuss including Prevent Child Abuse Arizona in your legacy.

Prevent Child Abuse Arizona can only accept donations from individuals, businesses, and foundations located in the State of Arizona.

Tax ID #86-0832901