On Tuesday, May 20 more than a dozen groups led by Futures Without Violence released their new recommendations called, Safe, Healthy and Ready to Learn: Policy recommendations to ensure children thrive in supportive communities free from violence and trauma. The recommendations focus on seven goals:
* invest early in parents and young children;
* help schools promote positive school climates, be trauma sensitive and raise achievement;
* train educators healthcare workers and other child serving professionals about preventing and responding to
youth violence and trauma;
* prevent violence and trauma;
* improve intra/inter-governmental coordination and alignment;
* increase the availability of trauma-informed services for children and families; and
* increase public awareness and knowledge of childhood violence and trauma.
Much of the panel discussion focused on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) studies and other research that highlight the long and the short term connections between childhood exposure to violence and childhood trauma and the impact on adult health and behaviors. The session which was moderated by Esta Solar, Founder of Futures Without Violence, and it included observations by a number of the report sponsors including the National Education Association (NEA), the Parent Teachers Association (PTA), the National Governors Association (NGA), Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, the American Psychological Association (APA), and District of Colombia educator, Dwight Davis.