Creator of Childhood Trauma Pilot In Manchester Will Join Pappas at State of the Union [Pappas.House.Gov]

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01) announced that Lara Quiroga of Manchester will be his guest at the State of the Union address on February 4, 2020.

In October 2019, Pappas introduced the National ACERT Grant Program Authorization Act, which would establish a federal grant program to provide resources for law enforcement and first responders to connect with local child specialists and professionals to intervene and mitigate the impacts of childhood trauma.

ACEs, or Adverse Childhood Experiences, are events in a child’s life which have a heavy impact on their future wellbeing, success in life, and risk of violence. This legislation would allow for the creation of ACE Response Teams (ACERTs) which would deploy as soon as the scene has been cleared to provide services and care to children who have experienced trauma. 

Lara Quiroga started the first ACERT program in Manchester in 2015 at Amoskeag Health, in collaboration with the Manchester Police Department and YWCA NH, which has since expanded to Laconia and Concord.

“Our law enforcement officers, fire fighters, and first responders are often the first face a child sees after a traumatic experience,” said Congressman Pappas. “Adverse childhood experiences can have a lifelong impact on kids. These response teams are crucial tools for communities to help mitigate trauma and ensure our kids have bright futures. Lara’s role in bringing ACERT to New Hampshire has been instrumental in addressing these challenges and protecting our kids. I’m proud to have her join me at the State of the Union next week to highlight her work and legislation that will expand ACERT in communities across the country.”

“I’m honored to join Congressman Pappas at the State of the Union to highlight an innovative and cross-sector approach to addressing trauma in children and preventing the poor health and behavioral outcomes in adults associated with ACEs,” said Lara Quiroga. “ACERT has proven to be an asset in Manchester and other communities and I believe it will support children and families in communities throughout our nation to move upstream and protect our next generation from some of the public health crisis we are currently facing.”

Background: The National ACERT Grant Program Authorization Act of 2019 would amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to establish the Adverse Childhood Experiences Response Team (ACERT) grant program. Local governments and community-based organizations may apply for grants to address adverse childhood experiences associated with exposure to trauma.