April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This month and throughout the year, NJ Department of Children and Families encourages all individuals and organizations to play a role in making the Garden State a better place for children and families. By ensuring that parents have the knowledge, skills, and resources they need to care for their children, we can help prevent child abuse and neglect by strengthening families, making meaningful connections with children, youth and families in our communities.
April is also time to celebrate the important role that communities play in protecting children and strengthening families. Everyone’s participation is critical. Focusing on ways to connect with families is the best thing our community can do to strengthen families and prevent child abuse and neglect. The theme for the NJ Network of Family Success Centers sponsored event for National Child Abuse Prevention Month is “Strong Communities... Strong families”.
We will be led by keynote speaker Melissa T. Merrieck, PhD. Ms. Merrick is a Behavioral Scientist with the Surveillance Branch in the Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) at the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). Her major research interests focus on the etiology, course, and prevention of child maltreatment. In particular, much of her current work examines safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments as they relate to child maltreatment prevention. Dr. Merrick serves as the Lead Scientist for the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study in DVP and as a Subject Matter Expert for Child Maltreatment. She is also a Scientist on the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) Team, interested primarily in violence experienced in childhood and adolescence.
All attendees will participate in one of our 10 workshops focused on different areas of our work in prevention. You will also have the opportunity to hear from a panel of experts in the field of prevention and ask questions you may have about this work.
Enjoy a continental breakfast and lunch, network with others who are making an impact in our communities and learn about taking prevention of child abuse and neglect to the next level.
The New Jersey Department of Children and Families is a proud partner of this years NJ Statewide Child Abuse Prevention Conference, hosted by the NJ Family Success Center Network and encourages all partners who feel moved to help their communities to visit their local Family Success Center and connect with each other in order to increase collective impact in New Jersey.
Join us in celebrating the progress we have made by working together to prevent child abuse and neglect and learn how collectively we can make an even bigger impact.
We look forward to seeing you there!