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Dr. Vincent Felitti, author of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE ) study, inspired the Young Parents Team by at the recent Global Health Summit on Violence and Abuse at Florida State University. Our team serves court-involved pregnant teens with histories of trauma, and often trafficking, to help cope and heal. We are grateful for Dr. Felitti’s research that guides our work to change the life trajectory for so many with ACEs. Thanks to FSU School of Social Work Dean James Clark and...

Photo by Douglas Harding, The Parthenon. Marshall University students and community members watched the documentary “Resilience” and discussed the science of toxic stress and its impacts, Tuesday, Nov. 2, in the Memorial Student Center. “Resilience,” a documentary based on recent medical studies linking heart disease to adverse childhood experiences, was released in 2016 and directed by James Redford, who also directed the 2015 documentary “Paper Tigers.” To read the rest of this post by...

Over 11 million undocumented immigrants reside in the United States. Many arrived as children, attended school in the U.S. and consider the country their home. Over 60 percent of the undocumented population has lived in the U.S. for 10 years or more. However, undocumented students face substantial barriers to higher education due to their legal status. This brief outlines key facts about the barriers undocumented students face in terms of access to higher education. Undocumented families...

Note from Karen: The American Psychological Association is dedicating their November Issue to ACEs related information. This is just one of several interesting articles. Check it out! The whole student: Understanding students through the intersections of their past and present contexts Secondary students sharing their work to develop a trauma-informed university. By Suzette Fromm Reed, PhD , and Claudia Pitts, PhD Two decades have passed since Felitti et al.’s (1998) foundational study on...

Gail's note: Dr, Andres Sciolla from University of CA, Davis shared this link about an interesting interdisciplinary model from the University of Texas, Austin. Take a look! WHOLE COMMUNITIES –WHOLE HEALTH In Texas, many children live in poverty, suffer from chronic illness, or endure abuse and neglect. Despite years of targeted intervention, these issues persist. Changing the way science helps society thrive is our grand challenge. We have the unprecedented technological ability to study...

[Editor's note: Dr. Harise Stein at Stanford University edits a web site -- abuseresearch.info -- that focuses on the health effects of abuse, and includes research articles on ACEs. Every month, she's posting the summaries of the abstracts and links to research articles that address only ACEs. Thank you, Harise!! -- Jane Stevens] Harris HR, Wieser F, Vitonis AF, Rich-Edwards J, et. al. Early life abuse and risk of endometriosis. Hum Reprod. 2018 Sep 1;33(9):1657-1668. PMID: 30016439 Using...

Cissy's note: This is a great podcast for parents, educators, and community organizers and change makers. It is an interview with @Rebecca Lewis-Pankratz interviewed by Danny Bowers "Sunshine" of Better Leaders Better Schools . Rebecca Lewis-Pankratz says things like, " We all need each other. Everyone here is important," and " The community is who we are," but they aren't inclusive-sounding platitudes. She is a tireless optimist but also understands, personally and professionally, how...

A growing number of public universities are becoming less affordable and accessible for low-income students and people of color, according to two new reports released today. In its report , New America found that more than half of the 600 public universities it examined expect the neediest first-year students to pay more than $10,000 in annual tuition to attend, which equals more than a third of their families’ yearly earnings. About 8 percent of public institutions expect low-income...

Ascend is pleased to invite you to a webinar on Thursday, November 8 at 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EST to learn more about a new initiative we are launching along with briefs featuring recommendations for policymakers and practitioners working to advance solutions for students who are parents. REGISTER HERE Parents are a key segment of today's postsecondary students . According to research from the Institute for Women's Policy Research , approximately one in four college students -- 5 million...

As the federal government increases immigrant detention and attempts to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, many California colleges are finding new ways to help undocumented students succeed and get assistance to their families as well. The latest effort is the California Campus Catalyst Fund , established by a group of educators, funders and advocates, and administered by the nonprofit organization Immigrants Rising, which announced last week that it has awarded...

There’s a small burst of air that explodes from every clap. And when hundreds of people are clapping in unison, it begins to feel like a breeze—one that was pulsing through the Phelps Stokes Chapel at Berea College in Kentucky. The students and staff that had gathered here were stomping, clapping, and singing along, as they were led in a rendition of the Civil Rights era anthem, “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around.” They had packed into the wood-framed building for a convocation address,...

"Investigators from The Jed Foundation (JED) and the University of Massachusetts Medical School examined the literature in education, business, psychology and sociology regarding the college-to-career transition. Knowledge gained informed a national survey of 1,929 college seniors, recent graduates and employers exploring specific challenges to the transition, as well as existing strategies to support young adults and their emotional health. Data from the literature review and the survey...