Category: Selfharm

December 2014 Community Education E-bulletin

12/1/2014

Welcome to the December 2014 edition of Hope House's Community Education E-bulletin!

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Hope House's Holiday Wish List
Hope House Donation Needs
High School Students Re-Writing Unhealthy Lyrics
Sexual Assault
Domestic Violence
Children and Youth
Campus
Miscellaneous
Local News
Parents' & Youth Service Providers' Section
Faith Communities' Section
Resources

Hope House's Holiday Wish List
Around the holidays, people often ask what gift items they can donate to Hope House for the people we work with. Here is our holiday wish list:
- For Children and Teens: board games, arts and craft supplies, pajamas, slippers, jewelry, candy or chocolate, sports balls, winter outdoor toys and activities, gloves or mittens, socks, family-friendly DVDs and toys
- For Adults: area spa certificates, Walmart gift cards, gas cards, bathrobes, slippers, bath products, manicure/pedicure sets, coffee or tea, calendars or weekly planners, journals, gloves or mittens, socks and underwear

Please note that all items should be donated unwrapped. You may donate wrapping paper if you wish for parents to be able to wrap the presents for their children.

Hope House Donation Needs
Monetary donations are most needed. Individuals have the option of donating online. Please note that a portion of your online donation will go towards PayPal fees. Donations can be mailed to Hope House, P.O. Box 557, Baraboo, WI 53913. We also appreciate gas cards, gift cards (Walmart, Kwik Trip, Walgreens, Kohl’s), taxi vouchers from Baraboo Taxi, and used cell phones, iPods and iPads. Please note that we are not accepting stuffed animals, clothes (except for sweatshirts and sweatpants), shoes, TVs, bar soap, hats, scarves or travel-size bottles of shampoo, conditioner, or body wash. Current needs include

Bathrooms: Toilet paper, Deodorant, Small garbage cans, Nail clippers, Toilet bowl cleaner, Cleaning supplies such as Lysol disinfecting spray and floor cleaner, Clorox wipes, Hairspray, Bleach, Bathroom rugs and bath mats
Kitchen: Dishwasher soap, 13-Gallon garbage bags, Paper towels, Silverware, Pots and pans, Brush for cleaning bottles, Fruit juice, Sip cups, Milk, Saran wrap, Aluminum foil
Laundry: Laundry detergent, Dryer sheets, Liquid fabric softener
Clothing for Women and Kids: Winter boots, Adult-size gloves/mittens, Socks, Women’s underwear, Medium-Large size pajamas, Sweatshirts and sweatpants
Misc: Baby wipes, Band-Aids, Diapers and pull-ups, Pocket-sized calendars, Strollers, Baby bottles, Umbrellas, Hangers, Weather radio, Journals, Exercise balls, Yoga/exercise DVDs, Relaxation CDs, Baby thermometer, CD players, Regular light bulbs, New twin bed sheets

Special Note about Travel-Size Items: We encourage those looking to donate travel-size items to donate them to the Backpack Project. The Backpack Project strives to provide Baraboo School District students who are financially challenged to enter the school doors on the first day ‘just like everyone else’ and to show these children the community supports and encourages them to learn and do their best. If interested in donating towards this project, please contact Becky Hovde at 608-963-8230 or hivebiz@centurytel.net.

High School Students Re-Writing Unhealthy Lyrics
One of the presentations that Hope House offers for teens involves analyzing song lyrics for healthy and unhealthy messages about relationships. Students then take lyrics that are unhealthy and re-write them into a more positive message about relationships. Below are a few examples of what students recently wrote during a presentation to the Portage High School Sophomore English classes and the Montello High School health class.

News & Research
Sexual Assault

Bill Cosby Raped Me. Why Did It Take 30 Years for People to Believe My Story?: "Only after a man, Hannibal Buress, called Bill Cosby a rapist in a comedy act last month did the public outcry begin in earnest. The original video of Buress’s performance went viral. This week, Twitter turned against him, too, with a meme that emblazoned rape scenarios across pictures of his face. While I am grateful for the new attention to Cosby’s crimes, I must ask my own questions: Why wasn’t I believed? ...The women victimized by Bill Cosby have been talking about his crimes for more than a decade. Why didn’t our stories go viral?"...Read more...Read related: Everything You Need to Know about the Bill Cosby Sexual Assault Allegations...Bill Cosby Biographer Admits ‘I Was Wrong’ to Ignore Sexual-Assault Allegations...Cosby Allegations Lead to Spike in Hotline Use...NBC, Netflix Cancel Bill Cosby Projects

Postal Workers Get Thanks for Thwarting a Predator: “Perfetti was pulling into the post office parking lot when she saw an older man taking a young boy behind a shed. She had a gut instinct something was wrong…So Perfetti went inside and got her supervisor Stacie Pence-Bailey to come out. ‘Well, they were walking behind the shed and they stopped...and I asked him, are you okay? He just shook his head...and I asked him if he wanted to stay with me,’ said Pence-Bailey. The boy nodded and Pence-Bailey took his arm and pulled him away from the man…A photo taken by mail carrier Steve Plunkett as the man was running away allowed police to take a mug shot later…Turns out 52-year-old Teddy Meyer was a registered sex offender”…Read more
Unprotected: The Sex Abuse Scandal Plaguing USA Swimming: "Last summer she told her story to Al Jazeera and signed her name to a petition filed by the Women’s Sport Foundation (WSF), which asked 19 other women who have reported sexual abuse...to protest the fact that USA Swimming’s executive director, 64-year-old Chuck Wielgus, was about to be inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF)…‘As of May 1, 2014, more than 100 USA Swimming coaches have been banned for life, making this one of the worst sexual abuse scandals in the U.S. Olympics sports world,’ it stated. ‘Many of these coaches had well-known, long histories of sexual abuse, yet Wielgus enabled these men to continue to coach for years’"...Read more

How to Help Someone Who’s Been Sexually Assaulted Without Making Things Worse: "For example, telling a rape survivor to 'stop thinking about it,' or 'try to move on' can send an unintentional message that something is wrong with the survivor for being preoccupied and hurt…Thinking about what happened for prolonged periods of time is a normal reaction to trauma as the survivor works to integrate the experience into his or her life narrative. Recognizing and respecting this is the first step victims’ friends and loved ones can take to lend support. Another way to help is to assist with practical matters…Above all, friends and loved ones should simply try to listen”…Read more

After A Sexual Assault And A Pregnancy, Vet Kept Her Pain Secret: "In 1998, Trista Matascastillo was training to become an officer in the Navy, when she was sexually assaulted by someone she had served with. She told no one about the attack. 'I used to say when I put my uniform on, I was in my Superwoman suit. Nothing could happen, nothing could hurt me...And yet, it did. Someone who I had worked with, I had served with, someone that I had called my brother, ultimately became my perpetrator'"...Read more
NY Prosecutor to Fund Rape Kit Testing Nationally: "Evidence from up to 70,000 rape cases nationwide will get long-awaited DNA testing, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. announced Wednesday as he pledged as much as $35 million to help eliminate a backlog"...Read more
Inspector: No Sign of Investigation in 1,111 New Orleans Sex Crime-Related Calls: "The report is full of harrowing details alleging that five New Orleans Police Department detectives in the special victims unit may have failed to investigate sex crimes over a three-year period. But one case stands out. According to the seven-page document released Wednesday by the city's Office of Inspector General, a 2-year-old was brought to a hospital emergency room after an alleged sexual assault. Tests would show the toddler had a sexually transmitted disease, the report said. The detective in the case, who worked in the child abuse unit, wrote in his report that the 2-year-old ‘did not disclose any information that would warrant a criminal investigation and closed the case’"...Read more
Texas Police Officer Caught on Video: ‘Go Ahead, Call the Cops. They Can’t Un-Rape You’: "The Austin Police Department has validated the video/audio publicly released pursuant to the Texas Open Records Act. The officers in the video/audio have been identified as Austin Police officers...The investigation will include a comprehensive audit of the involved officers’ contacts with victims of sexual assault to ensure the actions taken during the contacts meet the expectations of the Department, the public and most importantly, the victims"...Read more
Chicago Archdiocese Offers Sex Abuse Data: "The Roman Catholic archdiocese here released thousands of internal documents on Thursday that detailed decades of sexual abuse by its priests, a disclosure timed just days before the retirement of the current archbishop...In a statement, David Clohessy, the director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, criticized the archdiocese for not releasing the documents earlier. The roughly 15,000 pages published Thursday included graphic descriptions of abuse and, in some cases, evidence of a less-than-swift response from church leaders"...Read more

Domestic Violence

Ray Rice Wins Reinstatement to N.F.L. in Arbitration: "Mr. Goodell had contended that the video revealed a 'starkly different sequence of events' from what Mr. Rice had described in his initial meeting with the commissioner. But Judge Jones concluded that Mr. Rice never misrepresented to Mr. Goodell what occurred and thus did not deserve to be punished a second time"...Read more

Small Steps Toward Changing the World: NFL Starts to Address Domestic Violence: "Public service announcements featuring NFL players are now broadcast during games. The league will implement a new Domestic Violence/Sexual Abuse Workplace Policy in November, one of the first of its kind in the nation, that trains team and league employees on critical initial-response techniques. A coaching video on educating youth football players about gender violence and other character issues, with the NFL's imprint, will soon be sent to colleges and high schools across the country"...Read more
NFL Educates Teams on Basics of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault: “The mandatory presentation has been presented to all 32 NFL owners and will be given to all of the teams by the end of the season. It includes video clips that feature a testimonial from Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback William Gay and a call to action from Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson…‘We understand that the majority of the NFL family are making good choices. Most men are not perpetrators and they will never be perpetrators. It's important that we understand that we as men play a role in addressing domestic violence'”…Read more
Possible Adrian Peterson Return Could Undercut NFL's Domestic Violence Message: "Since Peterson, unlike Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice, is still a member of the Vikings due to the commissioner exempt list...he could conceivably rejoin the Vikings for their very next game...This flies in the face of everything the NFL is trying to do. It's currently still trying to project an image of seriousness on domestic violence"...Read more...Read related: Adrian Peterson Suspension: Is the NFL Cracking Down on Domestic Abuse?

NFL Didn't Enforce Own Policies: “But an ‘Outside the Lines’ analysis shows that policy -- and variations crafted by the NFL over the past two decades -- did not yield a suspension after a domestic violence conviction until 2000, according to data compiled from court records and media reports. And out of 48 players considered guilty of domestic violence under the league policy between 2000 through 2014, the league suspended players for one game or not at all in 88 percent of the cases”…Read more
Whisked Out of Jail, and Back to the N.F.L.: N.F.L. Teams’ Ties to Police Put Victims of Domestic Violence in a Bind: “When allegations of crimes such as domestic violence arise, the bond between officers and team security officials can favor the player while leaving the accuser feeling isolated”…Read more
NBA Suspends Hornets’ Jeffery Taylor for 24 Games over Domestic Abuse
After Abuse, Survivors of Domestic Violence Face Lonely Legal Battle: “When survivors of domestic violence seek restraining orders in civil court or go to family court to determine custody and placement of children, there’s no guarantee they will have an attorney to represent their interests. If they can’t afford to hire a lawyer — and many can’t — those victims are left to navigate the legal system alone…A report this summer from the Governor’s Council on Domestic Abuse and End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin spotlighted the issue, and called on the state to fund legal services for domestic violence survivors”…Read more
New Law Takes Guns from Domestic Violence Suspects: "The Firearm Surrender Law, which took effect Nov. 1, requires anyone accused of violence in a domestic abuse restraining order to turn over all of his or her firearms to either their local sheriff or to a person not involved in the case. The law is intended to cut down on the number of people killed by guns in domestic situations and was sparked by the case of a woman in Brookfield who was killed by her estranged husband at the salon where she worked, days after she requested a restraining order against him"...Read more
Limited English Can Lead to Domestic Violence Victims' Arrests: "Too often among San Francisco’s non-English speaking community members, Chan says the wrong people arrested because of miscommunication. Now civil rights groups are concerned that the victims, mostly Asian and Latina women, were simply denied their right to bilingual assistance, as required by police department policy"...Read more

Meet Beverly Gooden, the Woman Behind #WhyIStayed: "An hour later, thousands of people had used her hashtag to share why they stayed, too. The result? A social media firestorm that finally encapsulated how very hard it is to leave an abusive relationship. NO MORE talked to her about how she harnessed the power of social media to shift the blame from survivors to where it belongs"...Read the interview
This Is Why I Didn’t Tell You He Was Beating Me: "Because when you’re in the thick of things, in the middle of a Hell that you’re convinced is of your own making, you can’t see anything clearly. Fear and shame consume you—they’re your constant companions. And when you look at your family and friends, you often can only see judgment and derision. You know their opinions about women who stay in abusive relationships"...Read more
I'm A Survivor Of Domestic Abuse, & I'm A Male: “I was 21 when I met Stephanie, the woman who would eventually become my abuser. I might not seem like your 'typical' abuse survivor, but domestic/relationship violence doesn’t always look like what you see on Law & Order. Generally, it’s about control. Though it can include physical violence, it can also include insults, lying, manipulation, and intimidation. And, I’m not alone: According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, about one in 14 men has been physically assaulted by a partner, spouse, or date”…Read more
4 Myths About Intimate Partner Violence in Lesbian Relationships: “Family and friends may not know about her sexual orientation and might reject her if they did. This is one reason why some survivors feel that reaching out to the people they know is actually more frightening than remaining in the relationship. Couple that with the fact that many abusers use isolation as a tactic to keep their partners from having access to reach out to loved ones, and you’ve got a difficult situation on your hands”…Read more
Above the Law: Responding to Domestic Violence on Indian Reservations: “Lisa says that as an adult, she seldom went to the police — and that much of that has to do with the fact that some of the men who attacked her were non-Native, not American Indians…In a 1978 decision, the US Supreme Court said Indian tribes with their own tribal justice systems and courts were not allowed to charge non-Indians — unless Congress passed a law. But Congress didn’t act for 35 years. Then just last year, when lawmakers were reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, sometimes called VAWA, they included a new provision granting tribal courts jurisdiction over a limited number of domestic and dating violence crimes committed by non-Indians on reservations — perhaps allowing people like Lisa Brunner to see justice”…Read more
'Heartsick' Elias-Case Judge Challenges Domestic-Violence Myths: Guest Opinion: "On Nov. 10, Ian Elias kicked in the door of the home of his ex-wife, Nicolette Elias, and shot her to death with a handgun... am the Multnomah County Circuit Court judge who has been presiding over Ian and Nikki Elias' highly contentious custody and parenting-time case...As a professional who has fought the good fight against domestic violence throughout my 27-year career, first as a prosecutor and now as a judge, it's hard not to give up in despair. As a society, it's tempting to throw up our hands and walk away saying, ‘there's nothing we can do.’ That would be a mistake. There's a lot we can do"...Read more
Domestic Violence Drives Up New York Shelter Population as Housing Options Are Scarce: "Having walked away, victims of abuse are often left with no place to live and little means of support, and frequently end up homeless. In New York, this has helped drive the shelter population to a record high, with more than a quarter of all families in shelters citing abuse as the cause for their stay, city officials said. And, nationwide, many cities report a similar experience"...Read more
China Drafts First National Law Against Domestic Violence: "The draft legislation, which was released on Tuesday, creates a formal definition of domestic violence for the first time and streamlines the process of obtaining restraining orders...However, Hong Fincher cautioned that there are problems in the draft bill that should not be overlooked. Right now, the language only applies to married partners, she said, excluding the LGBT community and dating partners. And once a woman is granted a restraining order, she only has 30 days to take legal action against her partner, otherwise the order is dropped"...Read more

Children & Youth

Oklahoma High Schoolers Will Walk Out Of Class Today To Protest The Bullying Of Rape Victims: “Student organizers are standing in solidarity with three rape victims who say they were assaulted by the same male student. Although school administrators did suspend the alleged assailant, activists are concerned about the fact that the teen girls have faced bullying and harassment from other students since coming forward with their stories”…Read more...Read related: Why Were Three Teenage Rape Victims Bullied Out of School in Oklahoma?
Department Of Education Investigating K-12 School Districts For Mishandling Sexual Assault: “As of Nov. 12, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights was investigating 24 elementary and secondary schools for potential mishandling of sexual violence incidents under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972…When a district is found guilty of violating Title IX, schools are typically asked to make a number of changes to address the issue at hand. If the school does not comply with these changes, the government can take more extreme measures -- including pulling federal funding”…Read more...Read related: By the Numbers: Sexual Violence in High School
When Teachers Sleep With Students, the Student Is Always the Victim: “Though the circumstances of each case are different, one thing should be clear to us: The young people involved are never at fault. The teachers aren’t just adults; they’re people in positions of power, who are abusing their duty to take care of the students in their classes. Yet this is often not the message we hear when these cases hit the courts or the media. Sometimes media outlets and other members of the public blame the victim. Sometimes—especially when the teacher is female and the students are male—we suggest that there is no victim at all”…Read more

Many Teens Suffer Cyber Dating Abuse: “The study authors surveyed slightly more than 1,000 teens aged 14 to 19 who visited on-campus health clinics from 2012 to 2013 in search of care for issues such as sexually transmitted diseases, birth control and annual checkups. The schools were located in urban and suburban areas, and 95 percent of the participants were not white. More than 40 percent of the teens said they'd experienced cyber dating abuse within the past three months: 45 percent of females and 31 percent of males”…Read more...Read related: Texting Tangles with Abuse in Teen Relationships

Research Finds Sexting is 'New Norm' for Teens

NFL Sends Domestic Violence Video to Schools: “The NFL sent a 17-minute video Wednesday to high school and college coaches nationwide to encourage them to be aware of and act against domestic violence and abuse. Entitled 'NFL Call To Coaches — Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Awareness,' the video includes strong messages from Seahawks coach Pete Carroll and Steelers coach Mike Tomlin; NFL football operations executive Troy Vincent; Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin; former player and coach Joe Ehrmann; and Mike Rowe, the coach at Rocori High School in Minnesota”…Read more
Open Letter to Young People Who Are Growing Up With Domestic Violence: “Last month you heard a lot about domestic violence in the news. It must have been difficult, I understand. I grew up living with domestic violence from the time I was 5 until my late teens”…Read more
Self-Harm In Teenage Years Predicts Substance Abuse, Lower Grades, And Difficulties At Work: "Self-harm can include cutting yourself, burning yourself, banging your head, sticking hurtful objects into your body, or taking too many pills. While some people self-harm only once or twice and then abandon the behavior, others do it routinely. Now, a new study finds self-harming teens are more likely to develop emotional problems while also encountering difficulties at both school and work later in life"...Read more
Teens Whose Parents Exert More Psychological Control Have Trouble with Closeness, Independence: "Parents' psychological control involved such tactics as using guilt, withdrawing love, fostering anxiety, or other psychologically manipulative tactics aimed at controlling youths' motivations and behaviors"...Read more
Matt Sandusky Announces New Child Sex Abuse Prevention Effort: "On Wednesday, he announced a new partnership between the sexual abuse awareness organization he founded, the Peaceful Hearts Foundation, and Darkness to Light, a national sexual abuse prevention nonprofit. The goal of the partnership is to raise the profile of child sexual abuse, encourage victims to come forward and train adults on how to spot abuse. One important part of the strategy, Sandusky said, is to encourage Congress to pass a law requiring all schools to educate children from a young age about what sexual abuse is, so they can identify it and have the words to communicate it when it happens to them"...Read more
Sibling Sexual Assault is Epidemic. No Wonder Lena Dunham Caused an Uproar: "Sibling sexual abuse is the most closely kept secret in the field of family violence. More than one in three cases of sexual assault against children in the U.S. are committed by other minors. Siblings often are the perpetrators...But the fact that some sexual contact between siblings is normal has allowed society to ignore a lot of unhealthy behavior"...Read more

Campus

'It's On Us' Week Of Action Aims To Raise Awareness Of College Sexual Assault: Check out the Bystander PSA here
A Rape on Campus: A Brutal Assault and Struggle for Justice at UVA: “Jackie was just starting her freshman year at the University of Virginia when she was brutally assaulted by seven men at a frat party. When she tried to hold them accountable, a whole new kind of abuse began”…Read more…Read related: University Of Virginia Suspends All Fraternities For 48 Days After Horrifying Gang Rape Accusations
One Woman Tells Us What It’s Like To Be Raped—And Have Your Town Turn Against You: "These guys were star athletes—basketball players—and it seemed like everyone supported them. It didn’t take long for the blame to be put on me. The basketball coach even confronted me at a game once with his players in tow—including two of my attackers—and as a result I was thrown out of the game. And banned from campus. People I thought were my friends dropped me in a second to jump on the ‘FREE PARIS’ bandwagon—including some of my former roommates. There were flyers at school, kids wore T-shirts in his honor and even brought huge signs to his court appearances supporting him…I received threatening text messages from players and people I didn’t even know. I was harassed walking down the street"...Read more

Miscellaneous

Sweden Considers Special Labels for Sexist Video Games: “A government-funded innovation agency in Sweden is considering creating specials label for video games based on whether or not the games’ portrayals of women are sexist…Only 16% of people working in Sweden’s growing, $935 million gaming industry are women, according to Dataspelsbranchen”…Read more
40,000 Suicides Annually, Yet America Simply Shrugs: "Homicides have fallen by half since 1991, but the U.S. suicide rate keeps climbing. The nearly 40,000 American lives lost each year make suicide the nation's 10th-leading cause of death, and the second-leading killer for those ages 15-34. Each suicide costs society about $1 million in medical and lost-work expenses and emotionally victimizes an average of 10 other people. Yet a national effort to stem this raging river of self-destruction — 90% of which occurs among Americans suffering mental illness — is in disarray"...Read more
I’m a Black Woman with a White Husband. People Assume I’m a Prostitute All the Time: "Our relationship now spans a decade. But that hasn’t stopped the repeated propositions a few times each year. Just last month, at another event, several male acquaintances propositioned me. Comments ranged anywhere from, ‘You’re on the wrong arm, sweetie, I wish I could go home with you…’ to the incredibly forward, ‘We have this whole place to ourselves, it’ll be a shame if we don’t maximize our time here and slip away?’ all said within 10 to 15 feet of my husband...This has happened to dozens of my friends and colleagues"...Read more

When Living on Tips Means Putting Up With Harassment: "Earlier in the month, ROC, along with another group, had released a report based on extensive interviews with 700 former and current restaurant workers in New York and other major cities…which concluded that more than 90 percent of female restaurant workers experienced sexual harassment, with more than half reporting incidents on a weekly basis. Although the restaurant industry employs only 7 percent of American women, the sector is responsible for 37 percent of sexual harassment claims filed with the E.E.O.C. It isn’t just the notoriously sexist culture of restaurant kitchens that is at fault, but the economic structure that turns customers into shadow employers, leaving servers — so often women — vulnerable to the predations anyone picking up the bill might feel entitled to exercise"...Read more
A Hollaback Response Video: Women of Color on Street Harassment: "Additionally, black and brown women were excluded, as if we do not exist, or are not affected by street harassment when, in fact, we are more endangered by it...So last weekend, I took to the streets of New York to speak to some fellow black and brown women about their experiences with street harassment"...Read more and watch the video...Read related article: A Model Recreated That Catcalling Video in New Zealand — And the Difference Is Telling
The Demographic Trends For Every Social Network: "In a new report from BI Intelligence, we unpack data from over a dozen sources to understand how social media demographics are still shifting. Here are a few of the key takeaways from the BI Intelligence report"...Read more

Local News

Summer Schneller, 20, of Portage, has been charged with felony child abuse towards a 5-year-old boy in her care…Read more
Ty Kearney, 21, of Rio, charged with felony second-degree sexual assault of a child...Read more
Joey Hicks of Adams County was sentenced to 75 years in prison on multiple counts of child sexual assault...Read more
Charles Siegler Jr., 31, sex offender living in Pardeeville, charged with felony child sexual assaults...Read more
Kevin Knight, 58, of Baraboo, pleaded no contest to repeated child sexual assault...Read more
Robert Tlusty, 28, Poynette, sentenced to 15 years in prison after receiving child pornography...Read more
State Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced this week that the state Department of Justice filed a petition under the state’s sexual predator law against Larry Whiteeagle, 68, of Juneau County...Read more

Parents' & Youth Service Providers' Section
- What Age Should My Kids Be Before I Let Them Use Instagram, Facebook, and Other Social Media Services?: “If your kid is expressing interest in joining a social network, discuss the pros and cons and do your own research so you fully understand the implications of joining a particular network. If you want your kid to wait to sign up, consider pointing him or her toward more age-appropriate sites such as Yoursphere or Fanlala. Kuddle is also a quality Instagram substitute...If your kid does end up joining a social network -- whether she's 10 or 16 -- here are some ground rules that work for many parents”…Read more

- NSTeens Challenge is an online quiz for students in grades 5-8 that covers a number of Internet safety topics and teaches students how to be good digital citizens. The interactive quiz includes videos about different Internet safety concepts. After watching each video, students complete an activity that tests their understanding of the topic.

- Bullying of Students with Disabilities Addressed in Guidance to America’s Schools: “If a student with a disability is being bullied, federal law requires schools to take immediate and appropriate action to investigate the issue and, as necessary, take steps to stop the bullying and prevent it from recurring”…Read more

- Working with Youth who Experience Homelessness & Sexual Violence: (From the National Sexual Violence Resource Center) "Rural communities are unique and can shape the ways in which services are designed and delivered to youth who are homeless. This guide has three aims: (a) to provide an overview for the intersections between identity, trauma experiences, and resiliency among youth who are homeless; (b) to highlight core skills and techniques for advocates; and (c) to discuss how to tailor these skills in order to improve services for youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning (LGBTQ)."

- In New GoldieBlox Ad, Little Girls Smash The Idea That 'Beauty Is Perfection'

- Bad Ad and Counter Ad Contests: The Media Literacy Project’s contests are for students in grades 6-12. The deadline is January 30. For the Bad Ad Contest, you find a bad ad in a magazine and write an essay about why it's inaccurate and/or offensive and how it could be better. For the Counter Ad Contest, you find an original ad and then recreate it to send a different message that is more accurate, humorous, and/or reveals untold stories. Winners for both contests receive $200 and runners-up receive $100!

- A Group Of 9-Year-Olds Share What They Don’t Like About Being Boys: “The list above comes from a 2012 workshop held by Jeff Perera, the community engagement manager for White Ribbon, an organization that works to stop violence against women by educating men and boys. Says Perera — ‘Boys are pressured to assert their masculinity and prove their manhood in everyday activities everyday all day. This leaves us with a world of boys and men pretending: trying to achieve an unattainable state of manhood’”…Read more

- “Boys Know What Girls Want”: Messages in Popular Music: “Prevalent in so many of these songs are male artists’ claims to know what females want and what they need: a boldly presumptuous and dangerous message. How do they determine what a female wants if that female hasn’t communicated her wants, desires and needs to that male narrator?...One of the fundamentals of social justice education is helping students avoid the trap of assuming things about other people, including qualities, characteristics, beliefs, wants and needs…If you work with high school students in a capacity that offers an opportunity to do close textual analysis, consider using this activity as a way to help students investigate and question the messages behind these popular songs”…Read more

- How White Parents Should Talk to Their Young Kids about Race: "White parents can also make kids’ in-group biases work for them: Point out that even though Lily has darker skin, she, too, seems to really like playing with dolls. The more similarities young kids see between themselves and children of other races, the more they may embrace them. That said, for older kids, it may be smarter to encourage kids to embrace racial differences, rather than to downplay these differences. A Northwestern University study found that when kids aged 8 to 11 were taught about diversity as a value, they were better able to detect evidence of racial discrimination than were kids who had been taught a 'color-blind' message. Pointing out how much diversity exists within races may help foster diversity acceptance, too"...Read more

Faith Communities' Section
- 16 Days: From Peaceful Homes to a Peaceful World: The Faith Trust Institute is releasing a blog post for each day during the 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence. The first post comes from Rev. Marie Fortune: “‘From Peaceful Homes to a Peaceful World’ is the theme of 16 Days. Take a moment to reflect on where we would be if the vibrant, curious girls of the world had been able to develop and grow as God intended. Imagine the things they could have accomplished had they been spared their suffering. Celebrate the amazing things we have accomplished, despite it all”...Read more

- 16 Days of Activism Resources: The ‘We Will Speak Out’ International Coalition has produced its first resource specific to the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence. The resource for prayer, reflection and action during the 16 days is available for use by individuals, churches and communities.

- Human Trafficking: Trafficking is Modern Day Slavery. It Ruins Lives. The Church Must Act: “‘The church cannot ignore this issue. We cannot be silent or pretend that this issue is not affecting our daughters, our sisters, our families and the most vulnerable of God’s children. We must begin to pay attention. Lives are at stake. Our churches cannot be silent. We are called to act,' said the Rev. Laura Easto"...Read more

- Faith Leaders for Healthy Relationships Luncheons: Thanks to everyone that participated in the QPR Suicide Prevention luncheons on Nov. 12 and 19 in Baraboo and Wisconsin Dells. Debbie Millman and Liesa Zastrow from Columbia County Human Services trained over 50 people on recognizing the signs of suicide and on how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help. More information about the next luncheon in late January coming soon!

Resources
- See the Signs: "The Ohio Domestic Violence Network and the Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence are proud to announce the launch of this new bystander training program focused on employers and employees. Two other projects were funded: The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, focusing on children; and JWI, focusing on teens." Click here to see the training courses.

- SAMHSA's Concept of Trauma and Guidance for a Trauma-Informed Approach: This publication "introduces a concept of trauma and offers a framework for how an organization, system, service sector can become trauma-informed. Includes a definition of trauma (the three 'E's'), a definition of a trauma-informed approach (the four 'R's'), 6 key principles, and 10 implementation domains."

- OVC's Human Trafficking Website: "The Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) has launched its new mobile-friendly human trafficking Web site, which contains a wide range of information including resources and research from the Federal Government, publications and products from OVC, local and national direct assistance information, and related funding opportunities for victims and survivors of human trafficking, victim service providers, law enforcement, and allied professionals."

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December 2014 Community Education E-bulletin

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