Witnessing Arrests May Increase Stress Risk in Children: Study

A University of Illinois at Chicago study says children in the nation's child welfare system who witnessed the arrest of a household member may have been psychologically traumatized by the arrest.

Susan D. Phillips, assistant professor of social work and the study's lead author, found that children who saw the arrest of a household member had elevated symptoms of posttraumatic stress or PTS -- a psychological response to witnessing a traumatic or life-threatening event.

Even after accounting for other factors that might explain the condition, such as maltreatment or child abuse, the elevated symptoms associated with PTS remained, the study found.

Phillips suggests mental health professionals should be regularly screening to see if children have witnessed an arrest of someone they lived with and get them the help they need.

Data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being was used to examine the experiences of children ages 8 and up who were suspected victims of child abuse and neglect.
The results are published online in the journal Children and Youth Services Review.

CASA's Kinship Care Center provides support for children of arrested parents. For more inforamtion call Reana Gonzales at 575.625.0112.

It's a Girl Thing! Day Camp

Day Four: Middle School Here We Come

Town & Country Bowling generously opened early to take our crowd when the park was rained out. But the sun came out in time for a swim partyat ENMU-R!

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Grils Camp Day 3: Peppers Grill Saves the Day!

It's a Girl Thing! Girls Camp

Day Three: Friendships, Feuds, and Feelings

Though a day at the park was rained out, Peppers Grill and Bar quickly jumped in to save the day by grilling up all of the burgers and hotdogs for us. Thanks Chef Robert!

It's a Girl Thing!

Day Camp for Girls Going Into 6th Grade

Day Two: Being a Girl

Learning middle school girls skills like dancing and opening lockers and navigating relationships

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

It's A Girl Thing!
Girls Camp for Girls Going Into 6th Grade

Day One: Celebrating Who We Are and What Makes Us Unique

Many thanks to Altons Power Block Gym for hosting us!



Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Thank You Assistance League!

Adelina Mendez, Pat Coronado, Bettie Lou Cheney, Carrie-Leigh Cloutier,

Sue Evans, Jean Maley, Linda Rhodes, and Jean Lashinsky

Thank you Assistance League!

The Assistance League's Kids Are Pretty Special (KAPS) Program has been supporting CASA for years with donations of diapers, wipes, and car seats in support of abused and drug addicted babies. Now they have received a grant from the Chaves County Community Foundation to keep the donations coming!

We are expecially grateful to Bettie Lou Cheney. She faithfully shops for and delivers diapers and wipes at the drop of a hat.

About CASA

In 1976 Seattle Superior Court Judge David Soukup began to suspect that the children in legal disputes over which he presided were not being adequately represented. Unlike their parents and the government agencies involved, the kids had no voice in court. In cases of abuse and neglect or in bitter custody battles the real story often seemed to go untold or was drowned in the exchange of allegations. This kept the judge up nights wondering if he had made the right decisions.

Increasingly consumed by what he saw as the lack of sufficient information about children in these cases, Soukup put out a call for volunteers. He would enlist a few concerned citizens to be his eyes and ears, to advocate for kids who might otherwise fall through cracks in the overburdened legal system and make objective recommendations on their behalf. Word of the new initiative spread rapidly to other jurisdictions in other states as judges across the country began appointing citizen advocates to ensure the voices of children would be heard. In 1990 the United States Congress passed the Victims of Child Abuse Act which recognized the critical importance of child advocacy and encouraged the expansion of CASA programs.

Today CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) has grown into a network of more than 59,000 volunteers serving 954 program offices nationwide. Since its inception, volunteers have stood with and contended for well over two million kids, making CASA one of the most successful children’s programs in history. Each year state and local CASA organizations represent nearly a quarter of a million children who are caught up in the legal system.