The number of children and families in Texas that need child abuse and neglect protection and support.
Author: Candice Paddock
Project HOPES – Community Based Prevention
A breakdown of the benefits of Project HOPES to high-risk counties throughout Texas.
Health Services Initiatives (HIS)
A breakdown of how Health Services Initiatives provides federal funds to impact maternal and child health outcomes.
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Prevalence in Texas
The National Survey of Children’s Health most comprehensive data available on the prevalence of ACEs in Texas.
Winter Storm Uri Reminds Us To Put Kids and Families First This Legislative Session
Dallas – Last week was hard for all of us; it was heartbreaking and traumatizing for Texans. We hope you and your loved ones are faring well after what seemed like a week that would never end.
As the beautiful weather ushers out the intense cold of last week, many of us are fortunate enough to put these hardships behind us. While many of us can ease back into some stability and normalcy, maybe with an anecdotal story about the hardships or inconveniences we experienced, they are likely different than the stories of families that were in an existing storm of what surely feels like insurmountable challenges.
Too many Texans who are already experiencing a too-wide disparity gap and who have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 will see the aftermath of the winter storms compound already record-high levels of stress and trauma.
This crisis reminds us there is a clear and urgent need to put children and their families first in this legislative session.
We need to ensure the immediate safety and protection of children who are survivors of child abuse and neglect. We must work with the Legislature on smart solutions to invest in upstream programs that prevent child abuse and neglect and mitigate the negative impact of events like Winter Storm Uri.
Although Texas families are experiencing back-to-back, once-in-a-lifetime events, we at TexProtects recognize that these hardships do not define families nor lead to child abuse. But what we do know is that thousands of little precious lives and families need our help and support more than ever. It’s our collective responsibility to ensure we have networks in place for families to turn to.
Here are ways you can help:
- Look for ways to help your community by donating or volunteering.
- Learn to recognize the signs of child abuse and neglect and how to help
families in need.
- Encourage policymakers to listen to their constituents’ stories and work across
the aisle for the common good of children and the state. You can even share
your own story!
Thank you for your support and your dedication to helping us build safer childhoods for all children to secure Texas’s future.
The safety of our children is not an either-or-situation
Read the latest op-ed by Sophie Phillips, TexProtects CEO, at the Austin-American Statesman.
“We must consider additional actions we can take to prevent children from experiencing the trauma of abuse altogether. According to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, nearly 80 percent of child abuse in Texas is severe neglect often caused by a lack of basic supports or skills, unhealthy coping mechanisms, or underlying mental health challenges, all of which parents and caregivers can be equipped to combat if provided access to needed support. The proven, most effective way to prevent abuse and neglect is to invest in community-driven prevention programs that get to root causes.”
TexProtects on Gov. Abbott’s Pledge to Comply with Foster Care Lawsuit
Austin – Yesterday, Gov. Greg Abbott pledged to comply with orders by U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack in a nearly 10-year-old class-action lawsuit over long-term foster care conditions.
Sophie Phillips, CEO, TexProtects:
“We applaud Governor Abbott in his vow to bring the state of Texas into compliance with the longstanding lawsuit against the Texas Foster Care system, recognizing that it is fundamental to ensuring the immediate safety and protection of the nearly 50,000 children who are survivors of child abuse and neglect and come through the state’s foster care doors every year. The CPS system was built to protect. However, for thousands of children, it caused trauma on par, if not more significant than what launched them into foster care initially.
The Governor’s vow is a substantial promise and will require from our Legislature this session an investment to the tune of $126 million – significant, yet worth every penny to protect the safety of our children. It will also require leaders within our child protection agency to positively disrupt the challenges that have plagued the system for so long – coming up with innovative solutions and significant overhauls to infrastructure and systems. The reality is that while compliance with the lawsuit is necessary to solve many grave problems, it will not bring about transformational change – it is just the foundation and floor upon which we must build.
An investment of $126 million to address the many issues in the lawsuit will not erase the trauma those kids suffered.
We must consider what additional actions can be taken to prevent children from experiencing the trauma of abuse in the first place. The proven, most effective way to prevent abuse and neglect is to invest in community-driven prevention programs that get to root causes.
In addition to the $126 million investment needed, the state will spend more than $2 billion on the “back end” of the child protection system this year (i.e., foster care, abuse investigations, case management). Less than 5% – will be spent on programs and strategies that prevent abuse – which has demonstrated upwards of a 50% reduction in CPS involvement.
There should not be an “either” “or” when it comes to protecting our state’s most vulnerable. We urge Gov. Abbott and our lawmakers to fulfill the promise to comply with the lawsuit and further commit to fewer children in foster care, which is no permanent place for a child to grow up. Together we can build and restore the foundations of childhood and build healthy families – securing the future of Texas.”
TexProtects is the only nonprofit and nonpartisan advocacy organization with a singular focus: smart solutions to child abuse and neglect for the state of Texas. Visit texprotects.org for more resources.
How Texas Bills Become Laws
The process of bills becoming laws in Texas.
The Impact of COVID-19 on Home Visiting Programs in Texas
Responses from 72 home visiting programs funded through Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI).
