Tulsa World: Back on the porch

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Back on the porch
Rethinking child welfare

By JANET PEARSON Associate Editor
Published: 6/7/2009 2:28 AM
Last Modified: 6/7/2009 4:18 AM

There was a time in America when children took off from their homes early in the day and roamed near and sometimes far, to destinations unknown to their parents, who worried little if at all about them, as long as they were home for dinner.

They worried little because they knew other parents and adults, even ones they didn't know, would keep on eye on the young wanderers, just as they would keep an eye on someone else's kids.

Would children today be safer if we could somehow turn back the clock to that time? Annette Jacobi and her colleagues who search ceaselessly for ways to prevent child abuse and neglect wondered.

Jacobi, chief of the state Health Department's family support and prevention service, is among state officials and advocates who are charged with developing a statewide child-abuse prevention plan. The plan must be reviewed annually and updated at least every five years.

An interagency task force representing state agencies, law enforcement, service providers and private stakeholders annually undertakes this task with the diligence and earnestness one would expect from such advocates.

Last winter, task force members dutifully scheduled meetings, held focus groups, brought in experts, researched new literature and staged a big retreat as they went about the update process.

Throughout the effort, a nagging thought took hold. "We're just making a list," Jacobi recalled thinking, "a report that's going to gather dust on a shelf somewhere."

Not that the recommended prevention programs and services, current and future, weren't good, proven ideas. It was that the planners knew many of them, maybe most of them, would never receive adequate funding. Some parents would never have access to many of the worthwhile services, they knew. Even in larger communities, parents in need might never be directed to the right service, even if it existed.

Despite these nagging concerns, the planners continued carrying out their statutory mandate. They focused on the contributing factors and causes of child abuse, and they agreed to continue researching the connections and to aim for a comprehensive plan that could provide help far and wide.

But that feeling that something had to change lingered. "We left with lists of needs, but not a clear understanding of how to implement any changes," said Jacobi.

"The state prevention plan needed to take a different direction."

One new planning exercise may have helped set the stage for a change in direction: a series of focus groups with parents, some of whom are at risk for child abuse and neglect, and some who were already moving through child-welfare system.

What a novel idea: asking the people experiencing the problem what might help address it. While the parents confirmed that services such as parenting training were helpful, "overwhelmingly it was heard that parents turn to family and friends most often for advice on parenting — even if they are involved in services," noted Jacobi. "This means that education and information regarding parenting and services needs to be widely available to all in the community. Hence the need to not just work solely with identified families, but with the community as a whole."

The prevention advocates honed in on this approach: How could help be directed to parents in need in affordable, timely and easily accessible ways?

That goal and other nontraditional approaches are what the planners are aiming for now. "Without additional funds to provide direct services to families in need, we will concentrate our efforts on forging new partnerships in communities. It will be a goal of ours to bring nontraditional partners to the table, such as those in the business and faith communities," said Jacobi. "In addition, we would like to provide the ordinary citizen ways in which he or she can become involved in preventing child abuse and neglect."

Research shows that the strengthening of child-protection bureaucracies since the 1970s has resulted in the unfortunate by-product of contributing to the breakdown in informal community and neighborhood protections. People think "the system" should address the issue so they mind their own business. But mounting experience shows that informal help from a friend or neighbor can be surprisingly effective.

"We want to help establish informal networks for families so that they have support when they need it. All parents need help at one time or another. Not all families need a 'service.' They may just need words of advice from a trusted friend, a package of diapers or a ride to an appointment," said Jacobi.

Could it really be that simple in some cases?

The Front Porch Project, developed by the American Humane Association (which advocates for children as well as animals), shows promise in other states and is under consideration here.

The AHA program teaches ordinary people how they can intervene in simple, even subtle ways if they suspect trouble.

Some real-life examples: knocking over a store display to interrupt an escalating parent-child conflict; hosting a neighborhood barbecue so neighbors could get to know each other; stopping the car to observe older children chasing a younger child to ensure the child was safe; making eye contact and smiling at a stressed-out parent; offering to watch someone's child so the parent can have a respite.

It all sounds awfully simple, and obviously one approach like this won't eradicate child abuse and neglect. But consider the consequences of doing nothing. The AHA points to this news report:

"A group of hunters saw a

young child fastened in a child's seat in the front seat of a pick-up truck out in the woods. As the hunters passed the truck, they commented to one another about how they would never leave a child in a car like that. However, they did not take action." The unattended child lost his life when he managed to get out of the truck and got lost in the woods.

Is it possible to return to the time when children were always under the watchful eyes of protective adults? Time will tell.

Janet Pearson 581-8328
janet.pearson@tulsaworld.com By JANET PEARSON Associate Editor

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	Report Comment wardog, Miami (6/7/2009 7:34:42 AM) Oh I'm sure this would be way to simple. Go back to simple ways of doing. The state not have a full out plan on how to run the lives of all they believe are doing it wrong? Why can't they just look back at what they have accomplished, taking childrens out of their homes, because somebody, thought they were doing something wrong. Do they know what this does to a child, in school, in their lives for the future. They think they are the do gooders of the world. In truth they cause much harm. Many may be helped but what I've seen is so many lives touched and ruined. Its a sad thing that a agency that first set out to do noting but good, could turn out to be so bad.
	Report Comment droopy, wagoner (6/7/2009 7:35:39 AM) Wow, we have heard from the three top liberals in one paper! How far behind can be Mr Jones?
	Report Comment billy8, Sand Springs (6/7/2009 10:51:08 AM) When I see kids wandering aimlessly in the stores or on the streets, I search to see if there is a parent around, most of the time I just sit and watch the kids till I see a responsible adult show up. People need to watch their kids better, not leave them to wander in the stores or leave them alone in the cart.
	Report Comment caresabouttulsa, (6/11/2009 2:07:20 PM) Billy8, while it may be true that some people do need to watch their children better, the Front Porch mindset teaches community members to be aware of the neighborhoods’ children and families; to lend a helping hand to neighbors in need and to watch out for ALL children. You said that when you see children not being supervised you watch them to make sure they have a caregiver present. That is exactly what everyone should do. Good for you! Sometimes it is the most simple of actions that can keep a child out of harms way and why should a community be held responsible for all its’ children. I hope that every local community will be able to have an opportunity to experience a Front Porch paradigm shift in the way we view our community.
	Report Comment 52favoriteteacher, Washburn--used to be Broken Arrow (6/12/2009 12:31:17 AM) Parents being responsible Could it really be that simple in some cases? very much so Would mom and dad have to turn off the TV and be a mom and dad yes Janet Kids need an adult role model like... Lets see who do you really want your child to be like? There are many many kids with no Dad in the picture...

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