2023 Annual Report
A Message from our CEO + Board Chair
Dr. Melissa T. Merrick, PHD
President & CEO
Matthew W. Walch
Board Chair
In 2023 Prevent Child Abuse America unveiled a roadmap that leads to a primary prevention ecosystem in the US. The PCA America Theory of Change was created with an ambitious, yet achievable North Star: All children and families live a purposeful and happy life with hope for the future. Hopeful, positive outcomes continue to be our most important metric, and this theory of change allows for our incredible prevention network and their partners to join this movement. This notion took root, beginning with internal conversations and rapidly gained traction with chapters and other prevention partners as we began to build the concept of this prevention ecosystem – a roadmap – to ensuring that children have the healthy, happy, stable and nurturing environments necessary to thrive.
This new vision was unveiled at our sold-out National Conference, appropriately themed Together for Prevention, held Aug 22 -24 in Baltimore, Maryland. More than 1,200 attendees engaged in over 80 sessions and keynote conversations that were curated to identify and advance toward our collective aspirations for children and families, moving the theory into action. The conference was an incredible success, meeting for the first time as a national organization since the pandemic. Joining us were keynote speakers from across the field and industries, including Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, filmmakers David Goldblum, Prevent Child Abuse America Board Member Dr. Clinton Boyd, Jr., and Raven Goodson and Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, the pediatrician who first uncovered the Flint, Mich. water crisis.
Building on our 50+ year history, we know that another key driver of our work continues to be the partnerships we are so lucky to have. Business leaders from Verizon, TransUnion and First Women’s Bank joined us for our inaugural luncheon in September to focus on the importance of family-focused corporate policies and benefits that create stronger workforces. We were also joined by partner families who shared their stories of challenge and success and how our signature home visiting program, Healthy Families America, had in helping them achieve milestones for themselves and their families. And we honored our board’s co-vice chair, Bob Mayo, with the inaugural PCA America Partner in Prevention Award.
A Message from our CEO + Board Chair
Dr. Melissa T. Merrick, PHD
President & CEO
Matthew W. Walch
Board Chair
In 2023 Prevent Child Abuse America unveiled a roadmap that leads to a primary prevention ecosystem in the US. The PCA America Theory of Change was created with an ambitious, yet achievable North Star: All children and families live a purposeful and happy life with hope for the future. Hopeful, positive outcomes continue to be our most important metric, and this theory of change allows for our incredible prevention network and their partners to join this movement. This notion began with internal conversations and rapidly gained traction with chapters and other prevention partners. Together, we built the concept of this prevention ecosystem to ensure that children have the healthy, happy, stable and nurturing environments necessary to thrive.
This new vision was unveiled at our sold-out National Conference, appropriately themed Together for Prevention, held Aug 22 -24 in Baltimore, Maryland. More than 1,200 attendees engaged in over 80 sessions and keynote conversations that were curated to identify and advance toward our collective aspirations for children and families, moving the theory into action. The conference was an incredible success, meeting for the first time as a national organization since the pandemic. Joining us were keynote speakers from across the field and industries, including Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, filmmakers David Goldblum, Prevent Child Abuse America Board Member Dr. Clinton Boyd, Jr., and Raven Goodson and Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, the pediatrician who first uncovered the Flint, Mich. water crisis.
Building on our 50+ year history, we know that another key driver of our work continues to be the partnerships we are so lucky to have. Business leaders from Verizon, TransUnion and First Women’s Bank joined us for our inaugural luncheon in September to focus on the importance of family-focused corporate policies and benefits that create stronger workforces. We were also joined by partner families who shared their life successes and challenges and how our signature home visiting program, Healthy Families America, helped them identify and reach their milestones. And we honored our board’s co-vice chair, Bob Mayo, with the inaugural PCA America Partner in Prevention Award.
At Prevent Child Abuse America, we’re proud of the momentum we’ve build toward a brighter future for children and families nationwide. Let’s continue to unite, innovate, and take action, knowing our collective efforts will create a lasting change for generations to come. Together, we can prevent child abuse, America… because childhood lasts a lifetime.
Healthy Families America
In 2023, Healthy Families America continued to learn and grow.
Forty-five new sites joined HFA, and we added new members to our National Advisory Committees: National Advisory Committee (NAC), Accreditation Panel, Training Advisory Committee (TAC) and the Racial Equity and Cultural Humility Committee (REaCH). We are also proud that with the support of our accreditation system, including more than 200 volunteer members of our Peer Reviewer network and Accreditation Panel, 70 sites had an accreditation site visit, 11 sites had a fidelity assessment, and 2 Multi-Site Systems completed the Accreditation Process. We saw how changes to HFA’s 8th Edition Best Practice Standards were being implemented, and with help from REaCH hosted a series of network meetings focused on policy and practice expectations related to diversity, equity and inclusion.
HFA partnered with
Other key highlights include:
- We hosted the very first HFA Parent graduate focus groups – and in 2024 will launch our first-ever National HFA Parent Advisory Committee.
- We increased our Spanish accessibility– developing Spanish versions of HFA materials with the great insights of VIVA HFA – a group of Spanish-speaking HFA experts who ensure our translations make sense and fit within the spirit of HFA.
- In 2023, we expanded the LEAP (Learn, Evaluation, and Advance Practice) data warehouse initiative. Four HFA multi-site systems and 2 additional HFA sites (~13,000 families) engaged with LEAP representing 18% of families served annually in the HFA network.
It is abundantly clear, that HFA’s goals to 1) cultivate and strengthen nurturing parent-child relationships, 2) promote healthy childhood growth and development and 3) enhance family wellbeing, are being realized.
State Chapter Network Highlights of 2023
6
Welcomed 12 new chapter directors in the states of California, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Texas, launched a new mentorship program in partnership with the Chapter Network Executive Council (CNEC).
5
Heal PA in Pennsylvania and Canopy Children’s Solution in Mississippi obtained a two-year provisional license from PCA America. Over the next two years, PCA America will work closely with these partners to build capacity at the state level to obtain chartered status in 2026.
4
Our affiliates in these states successfully completed the organization’s strength-based chartering process, helping to extend PCA America’s mission throughout the United States. Many thanks to our peer reviewers, Sue Williams, Sharon Pierce, Sheila Boxley, Kristen Davis and Roger Sherman.
3
2023 PCA America Discretionary Grants
The purpose of the Prevent Child Abuse America’s Chapter Discretionary Grants is to elevate innovative child maltreatment prevention work across the state chapter network and to support organizational capacity building at the state level.
PCA Kentucky partnered with the University of Louisville’s Center for Family and Community Wellbeing to develop a Poverty Simulation tool for statewide use with feedback from participants.
PCA South Carolina supported two components of the organization’s plan to improve its evaluation capacity: 1) the completion of a process evaluation to assist Children’s Trust in evaluating the intermediary support services it provides; and 2) the implementation of a new data management system with improved capabilities for tracking intermediary support as well as program-level data.
PCA Oregon built capacity and contracted with resource and organizational development consultants to achieve organizational stability goals, including areas of growth identified during the chartering process.
2
Through our Government Affairs Initiative (GAI) –an approach aimed to increase the public policy and government affairs capacity of state chapters – we selected and supported seven states: Arizona, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Wyoming during 2023 to build their capacity around state level advocacy and education efforts.
1
Currently, 12 chapters are engaged in the national Thriving Families Safer Children (TFSC) movement. With support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, PCA America provided grants to PCA state chapters in nine of the Thriving Families sites, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Virginia.
Policy
Prevention is possible, and PCA America has led efforts to engage our partners to understand what prevention advocacy priorities are most important and where we can collaborate. Through a very intentional process, we heard from our staff, our network and partners and created a strategy to focus on the following policy priorities:
Investments in Primary Prevention
Comprehensive Family Supports
Economic Stability and Mobility
For 2023, we implemented activities to uplift funding for prevention at the federal level. While most years, advocating for reasonable increases makes sense, in times of tough fiscal decisions, PCA America focused on making sure priority areas, including Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) prevention, child sexual abuse prevention, and Community Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) did not see any funding cuts.
In addition, PCA America advocated for policies and programs to support children and families thrive. Specifically, we focused on bills to end child poverty, increase support for childcare, expand the child tax credit, and improve data and programs to prevent ACEs.
We also supported the implementation of the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program, ensuring states had the resources they needed to maximize the recent reauthorization and expand evidence-based home visiting programs. Working with national and state advocates, we provided technical assistance and advocacy support to more than 15 states, including testimony before the Nebraska Legislature on the opportunity the MIECHV reauthorization provides. PCA America also continues to support state partners and advocates as they work to maximize Family First Prevention Services Act and Medicaid funding to further expand home visiting to serve more families.
PCA America supports states to build advocacy capacity and knowledge. Through these efforts:
Highlights of the support provided includes:
Strategy
A New Direction for the Prevention Field
PCA America is leading the movement to change the narrative regarding prevention in this country and has developed a Theory of Change for Primary Prevention in the U.S. Over the past two years, we have been on an exciting adaptive strategy planning process to write our next chapter to ensure all children and families are living a purposeful and happy life with hope for the future. We have laid out a bold North Star vision that all children and families are living a purposeful and happy life with hope for the future.
In August 2023, at our sold-out National Conference in Baltimore, MD, Dr. Merrick officially unveiled PCA America’s Theory of Change, including a vision of creating a Primary Prevention Ecosystem in partnership with families, communities, elected officials and policy-makers, and cross-sector (e.g., child welfare, education, business and economic development, health, housing, government, etc.) organizations and institutions at regional, state, and national levels. The Theory of Change represents a comprehensive, evidenced-based, and bold prevention framework that can guide not only the work of PCA America, but also the broader prevention field and policy makers. It allows us to broaden our partnerships and elevate our role as a national catalyst of change.
We are moving the Theory of Change to action by providing support to our Network of Chapters and HFA sites as they implement various components into their respective organizations. Our ‘Plug and Play’ template allows organizations to insert their strategies into the PCA America Theory of Change and align their work to our shared aspirational outcomes. Additionally, through funding from a private donor and the Annie E. Casey Foundation, PCA America is developing a full suite of tools and resources to support our Chapter Network and HFA sites, and partner organizations as they implement the Theory of Change.
The Theory of Change will continually evolve and adapt in response to emerging evidence about what works to advance the wellbeing of children and families in our ever-changing world.
Thriving Families, Safer Children
The Thriving Families, Safer Children (TFSC) initiative embraces PCA America’s belief that prevention happens in partnership. Working collaboratively and strategically with The Annie E. Casey Foundation, Casey Family Programs, the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), The Children’s Bureau, and a group of leaders representing young people and families with experience in the child welfare system, PCA America, has been supporting the efforts of 22 sites nationwide to co-create solutions to improve child and family wellbeing and safely reduce the number of families who have contact with child welfare. The TFSC national movement works collectively through the adoption of these guiding principles: partnering with lived expert leaders, centering the work in communities; addressing issues of equity and disproportionality; and emphasizing upstream strategies for prevention, health promotion, and wellbeing.
To further advance the work of TFSC, PCA America continues to support localized efforts through the facilitation of two learning communities for a total of thirteen grant recipients, including PCA America state chapters and community-based organizations. Four of these grantees are grass roots, community-based non-profits with a history of engaging Black, Latino, and Indigenous youth, and families within designated TFSC sites and are supported through funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The remaining nine grantees, PCA America state chapters, are supported by funding from The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF). These grantees were provided financial and technical assistance resources that helped to innovate and improve their primary prevention efforts and center their work on the core components of public health.
In October 2023, and for the first time in its three-year history, TFSC convened an in-person working session with over two hundred attendees—including over sixty lived experts and youth leaders. This convening provided an opportunity for national partners and site teams to foster connections and learning, as well as to strategize priorities and next steps for this collective work.
Communications
In 2023, Prevent Child Abuse America marked significant milestones in prevention and partnerships.
Our National Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Month
Our 2023 National Child Abuse (CAP) Month in April saw amazing collaborations of new and existing partners to raise public awareness under the theme “Building Together: Prevention in Partnership.”
Notable contributions included Reach TV’s collaboration in the creation and distribution of engaging and impactful assets like the “Did You Know” Series featuring Dr. Melissa Merrick, and the “Community and Culture” series featuring renowned figures like Dr. Bruce Perry and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey, emphasizing a reframed approach to prevention.
The National Conference
The National Conference, held in August was promoted across the PCA America’s ever-growing e-marketing, digital and social networks. While there, daily wrap up videos, a new podcast and a host of rebranded designs, a selfie step and repeat and other activation in common areas immersed the 1200-person gathering in PCA America’s first gathering since the pandemic. It was a sold-out event with a dynamic lineup focused on effective prevention strategies and the launch of the Theory of Change for Primary Prevention in the United States, in which the communications team ensured a timed reveal of the strategy on the web site in real time, making it a memorable and transformative experience.
PCA America’s Annual Luncheon
PCA America’s First Annual Luncheon served as an opportunity to connect with Chicago area supporters, collecting testimonials and images that helped continue the narrative around the value of a prevention ecosystem that includes all of us, including corporations, families, board members and community leaders as partners.
Research
Sponsored Projects
The research team at PCA America is conducting cutting-edge evaluation research on child maltreatment prevention policies. Two of PCA America’s policy evaluation research projects are currently funded by the CDC.
Our CDC grant examines how family friendly policies in states (paid family leave and childcare subsidies) affect rates of child maltreatment and IPV. Our research suggests that expansive childcare policies, like higher income limits and lower work requirements, may lead to fewer child abuse and neglect reports and cases to child welfare. For each article published, we created a “research highlight” or a one-page summary outlining the key takeaways. More information on the project, including access to the Research Highlights, are located on the project’s landing page.
The other CDC sponsored project examines the effects of school-based child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention policies on rates of CSA. This includes school-based policies that address training on CSA signs and symptoms; improve educator job application screening and employee dismissal practices; and criminalize educators for having inappropriate sexual relationships with students. These policies are common in states and territories across the U.S. For this project, the research team has prioritized using a multidisciplinary advisory board, which includes survivors/advocates, to help guide the research process (e.g., study design, questions, and interpretation) and dissemination strategy for project findings.
Additional Contributions to the Field
In addition to PCA America’s funded policy evaluation projects, the research team published 7 primary prevention research papers on topics including corporal punishment in public schools and understanding child maltreatment during the pandemic.
$100,000+
Kappa Delta Foundation
Sigma Delta Tau Foundation
Three Sisters Foundation
James, House, Swann & Downing, P.A. Lawyers
Lilli Emily Ross
Barbara Smith
Pinwheel Giving Circle
Supporters who gave $5,000+ in 2023.
$25,000+
Individuals
Navneet Arora
Michael E. Axelrod
Tom and Dita Carhart
Victoria Dudley
Bruce and Barbara Perry
Jodi Scheurenbrand and Michael Smith
Corporations and Foundations
Annie E. Casey Foundation
Eva G. Smayo Fund
Kay Family Foundation
The Wasily Family Foundation
William J and Dorothy K O’Neill Foundation
$10,000+
Individuals
Brian and MaryEllen Alden
Stephen and Wendy Ban
Chris and Myrna Barton
Mary and Mike Carpenter
Maura Somers Dughi and Robert Dughi
Michela Katz
Barry and Laura Korobkin
Christine Marie
Bob and Cindy Mayo
Alexis and Steven Strongin
P. Thalman
Matt Walch and Sandra Muhlenbeck
Corporations and Foundations
Chris and Melody Malachowsky Family Foundation
Foglia Family Foundation
Leibowitz and Greenway Family Foundation
ReachTV
Smidt Family Foundation
World Childhood Foundation
$5,000+
Individuals
Mark Danfield Barrows
Linda and Thomas Bonelli
Robert A. Cook
Charlotte Farmer
Angelo and Eileen Giardino
Jordan Menzin
Robert and Heather Rotondi
Brian Watson
Ruth Wilmer and Tim Chorba
Linda Wisnewski
Vijay Yelundur
Corporations and Foundations
artbyFORM, Inc
Carlsen-Merrimac Charitable Fund
City of Chicago
Get Your Teach On
Kappa Delta, Beta Rho (San Diego State Univeristy)
Michael and Susan Dell Foundation
Puri Family Giving Fund
Third Sector New England, Inc
W S & M L Meyers Charitable Foundation
Donna J. Stone Legacy Society
Supporters who have included PCA America in their estate plans.
Michael E. Axelrod
Sharon Benjamin
Howard Dubowitz
SueEllen Fried
Susan Kelley and Ronard Verni
Matt Walch and Sandra Muhlenbeck
Annual Luncheon
2023 Luncheon Sponsors:
Stephen and Wendy Ban
BMO Commercial Bank
Deborah Daro & Coleman Tuggle
Huntington National Bank
Latham & Watkins
Muller & Monroe Asset Management
Bruce & Barbara Perry
Andrea & Kenneth Robertson
Terri Ucci
Fabrizio Valentini & Chiara Delpero
Verizon Wireless
National Conference
2023 Conference Sponsors:
ACE Resource Network
American Institutes for Research (AIR)
American Solutions for Business
Annie E. Casey Foundation
Bonterra
Center for Hope
EndCAN: The National Foundation to End Child Abuse and Neglect
Family Tree
Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital
Kennedy Krieger Institute, Office for Health, Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity
Mining for Gold (MFG)
National Family Support Network
NBA Cares
PACEs Connection
PNC Bank
Second Step
Youth Villages
2023 Conference Exhibitors:
American Academy of Pediatrics – Healthy Mental Development
American Institutes for Research (AIR)
Author Krystaelynne Sanders Diggs
Banyan
Bonterra
Center for Hope
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Circle of Parents, Inc.
Compass Abuse Prevention Services
DataKeeper Technologies
Discovery Toys
The Family Tree
FRIENDS National Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention
Great Kids
Human Rights Campaign Foundation
Infant Massage USA
Lost Imaginations
Made for Freedom
Maryland Family Network
Mining for Gold (MFG)
The New York Foundling
Pathways to Resilience
Prevent Child Abuse Vermont
Safe Families for Children
Service Access and Management
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Blue Campaign
Financials
| Revenue Sources | |
|---|---|
| Associations & Corporations | $1,223,009 |
| Grants | $992,759 |
| Individuals | $1,558,878 |
| Programs & Conferences | $5,044,053 |
| Special Events & Pinwheels | $239,515 |
| Investment Returns | $1,335,712 |
| Total Revenue | $10,393,926 |
| Program Expenses | |
|---|---|
| Advocacy | $574,794 |
| Chapter Activities | $377,570 |
| Education | $1,120,195 |
| Programs | $3,057,597 |
| Research | $2,334,667 |
| Strategic Activities | $695,855 |
| Total Program Expenses | $8,160,678 |
| Functional Expenses | |
|---|---|
| Total Program Expenses | $8,160,678 |
| Total Supporting Service Expenses | $2,184,461 |
| Total Functional Expenses | $10,345,129 |
| Assets | |
|---|---|
| Cash & Equivalents | $2,211,005 |
| Accounts Receivables | $1,278,853 |
| Deposits & Prepaid Expenses | $106,793 |
| Endowment Investments | $5,253,516 |
| Investments without Donor Restrictions | $5,766,309 |
| Right-of-Use Lease Asset | $1,516,612 |
| Copyright, net | $6,667 |
| Furniture & Equipment, net | $737,112 |
| Total Assets | $16,876,867 |
| Liabilities | |
|---|---|
| Accounts Payable | $244,022 |
| Accrued Expenses | $87,408 |
| Operating Lease Liability | $1,589,478 |
| Deferred Revenue | $170,270 |
| Total Liabilities | $2,091,178 |
| Net Assets | |
|---|---|
| Without Donor Restrictions | $7,655,703 |
| With Donor Restrictions | $7,129,986 |
| Total Net Assets | $14,785,689 |
| Total Liabilities and Net Assets | $16,876,867 |
|---|
2023
Board of Directors
Stephen Ban
Former Managing Director | Investment Solutions, Hightower Advisors, Retired
Sandford (Sandy) L. Bohrer
Senior Partner, Holland & Knight, Retired
William D. Boltz, PhD
Chair, Resource Development, Retired
Dr. Clinton Boyd, Jr.
Researcher – Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago
Andrew Brady
Market President, Consumer Group’s Great Lakes | Verizon
Thomas Carhart
Founding Principal | South Street Advisors LLC
Dwayne A. Crawford
Executive Director | National Organization of Black Law Enforcement
Kathy Dang
Vice President Operations and Health Plans | Spring Health
Vicky Dudley
CFO & Treasurer – TTX Company
Maura Somers Dughi
Lifetime Member, Retired
Jeff Duncan-Andrade, PhD
Professor | San Francisco State University
SueEllen Fried
Lifetime Member, Retired
Habeebah Grimes
Chief Executive Officer | Positive Education Program
Harold Hong, MD
CEO & Medical Director, MedPsych Integrated PLLC
Carley Kramer
Senior Manager | Deloitte Consulting LLP
Dr. Antoinette (Toni) Laskey
Professor of Pediatrics | University of Utah School of Medicine and Division Chief
Danielle Laraque-Arena, MD, FAAP
Senior Research Scientist | New York Academy of Medicine
Bob Mayo, Co-Vice Chair
President & CEO at Mayo Consultants
Lolita McDavid, MD, MPA
Medical Director of Child Advocacy and Protection | University Hospitals
Kimberly Merchant
Managing Director | BMO Financial Group
Melissa T. Merrick, PhD
President & CEO | Prevent Child Abuse America
Kevin Moore
Chief Executive Officer | UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Wisconsin
Bruce Perry, MD, PhD, Co-Vice Chair
Principal, Senior Fellow, and Professor | Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University
Jodi Scheurenbrand
CFO | New York Private Schools
National Vice President of Finance | Kappa Delta
Susan Stockton
National President | Kappa Delta Sorority
Matt Walch, Board Chair
Partner, Latham & Watkins
Bernardo Wolfson
Founder & CEO | Realize, LLC
Marilyn Zimmerman, PhD
Co-Principal Investigator and Senior Director of Policy & Programs | National Native Children’s
Trauma Center
2023
Our Staff
Dr. Melissa Merrick
President & CEO
Jennifer Jones
Chief Strategy Officer
Kathleen Strader
National Director, Healthy Families America and Chief Program Officer, PCA America
Kerrie Trebonsky
Chief Financial Officer
Elizabeth Solhtalab
Chief Public Policy and Government Relations Officer
Bart Klika, PhD
Chief Research Officer
Kelly Christopher
Chief Development Officer
Gelasia Croom
Chief Communications Officer
Anita Odom
Chief Operations Officer for Chapters
2023
Leadership Council
- Rev. Darrell Armstrong, Pastor (President/CEO), Shiloh Baptist Church
- Dr. Deborah Daro, Senior Research Fellow, Chapin Hall at University of Chicago
- Anne Cohn Donnelly, Adjunct Lecturer in Executive Education at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University; former President and CEO of Prevent Child Abuse America
- Thomas (TJ) Fox, SVP of Industrial IoT and Automotive for Verizon Business
- Alexandra Dickson Gray, Documentary Filmmaker
- Spencer Halpin
- Andrè Rice, President Muller & Monroe Asset Management, LLC
- Michael Ritter, Senior Business Advisor, Accenture
- Andrea Robertson, Immediate Past Chair, Prevent Child Abuse America Board of Directors; Group Executive, MasterCard Worldwide (retired)
- Robert D. Rotondi, CTP, Managing Director; Head of Business Management and Transformation, Global Liquidity & Cash Management, HSBC US
- Michael Wozniak, President/CEO, Wozniak Industries