News

Prevent Child Abuse America Welcomes Jennifer Jones as Its New Chief Strategy Officer

Chicago—Prevent Child Abuse America (PCA America) announced today that Jennifer Jones (pictured below) will join the organization as its new Chief Strategy Officer, effective February 15. She currently serves as the director of the Change in Mind Institute and the co-director for Safety and Resilience for the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities (which recently announced a merger with the Council on Accreditation).

A Message from Dr. Merrick on Violence at the US Capitol

Many of you, like me, had to try to explain to your children the news and troubling images that flashed across our many screens yesterday. We attempted to answer questions and allay fears about safety and freedoms that we take for granted in a democratic society. As if parenting during a global pandemic was not hard enough, parenting during such deeply disturbing events shook many of us to the core.

The Scientific Reason Why It’s Important to Salvage the Holiday Spirit

This will be a holiday season truly unlike any other. With travel, parties, and in-person religious services canceled due to rising coronavirus cases, the loss of these holiday traditions takes an added toll on those already struggling to parent through a physically distant and socially distancing pandemic. Yet, this holiday season offers us, as adults, the opportunity to help our children process all that has happened.

Protecting Children Is a Team Effort

Our commitment to keeping children safe now includes a partnership with the Doris Duke Fellowship for the Promotion of Child Well-Being, administered by Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago.

Support Home Visiting in COVID-19 Stimulus Bill

Sharon Pierce, Longtime Advocate for Indiana Children and Families, Announces Retirement

After a 47-year career serving children and families, nearly 30 of which have been spent advocating on behalf of Indiana’s children as CEO of The Villages (PCA Indiana), Sharon Pierce is retiring.

COVID-19, ACEs & Children: A Conversation Between Dr. Melissa Merrick & Paul Gionfriddo

In this video dialogue, Dr. Melissa Merrick and Paul Gionfriddo, President & CEO of Mental Health America, explore the overarching impact of COVID-19 on children, families, and mental health in America.

Prevent Child Abuse America Awarded $1M CDC Grant to Examine Public Policy Impact on Reducing Child Abuse and Intimate Partner Violence

Chicago—Prevent Child Abuse America (PCA America), the nation’s oldest and largest nonprofit organization dedicated to the primary prevention of child abuse and neglect, announced today the award of a three-year $1.05 million CDC grant to examine the preventive effects of key public policy strategies, such as paid family leave and child care provisions, on rates of child abuse and neglect and intimate partner violence (IPV).

A Back-to-school Message From Dr. Melissa Merrick

In this special back-to-school monthly message, Dr. Melissa Merrick reinforces, “Whatever your child’s learning program—in-person, remote, or a hybrid of the two—there is no perfect answer, just the best solution you can provide right now…What’s important is how we as parents, friends, neighbors, teachers, and communities continue to create the safe, stable, and nurturing environments and relationships that enable our children to succeed and thrive.”

First-of-its-kind National Partnership Aims to Redesign Child Welfare Into Child- and Family Well-Being Systems

Chicago—The U.S. Children’s Bureau, Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Prevent Child Abuse America are partnering to launch a national effort to prove it is possible to fundamentally rethink child welfare by creating the conditions for strong, thriving families where children are free from harm.