What’s New?

New Report Details Opportunities to Address Adverse Childhood Experiences in NJ

Posted on July 30, 2019

The Burke Foundation, The Nicholson Foundation and Turrell Fund, in collaboration with FSG, released the report, Adverse Childhood Experiences: Opportunities to Prevent, Protect Against, and Heal from the Effects of ACEs in New Jersey. The report details the challenges New Jersey faces in addressing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and the areas of opportunities for a coordinated statewide response to mitigate the lasting effects on children’s health and well-being.

Did you know:

  • Children who experience 4 or more ACEs are at least 7 times more likely to self-identify as alcoholics in adulthood than those with no ACEs.
  • Children who experience 4 or more ACEs are nearly 4 times more likely to develop lung disease in adulthood than those with no ACEs.
  • Children who experience 2 or more ACEs are nearly 3 times more likely to repeat a grade than those with no ACEs.
  • Juvenile offenders are 4 times more likely to self-report experiencing 4 or more ACEs than the mostly college-educated adults from the seminal ACEs study.

Read the report 

Blog: Addressing Adverse Childhood Experiences through a Coordinated Statewide Response in New Jersey

Sana Hashim, MPH, CPH, CHES from the Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc. writes about the New Jersey Funders ACEs Collaborative (the Collaborative) to advance a coordinated statewide response to tackle this issue. This unique collaboration is committing significant resource to reduce early life stress and promote positive life trajectories for all children in the state. Although these efforts are New Jersey-based, lessons from the statewide initiative can inform activities in other states.

Webinar: Addressing ACEs in New Jersey

Aug 6, 2019 1:00 p.m.

With the release of the report, join in this webinar focused on local efforts to prevent, protect against, and heal from the effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in New Jersey. The webinar will also provide an overview of the science of ACEs and trauma, ways in which a coordinated statewide response can mitigate the lasting effects of ACEs on children and families, and opportunities for local champions to join the Funders Collaborative to address ACEs in New Jersey.

Register here.

 

Also, visit our Birth to Three Campaign aimed at making babies a higher state priority.  Learn about  ACNJ's campaign prioirities which includes ensuring healthy social development of

infants in NJ.

Good news for children and their families in NJ FY2020 budget.

Posted on July 8, 2019

Good news! On June 30th, Governor Murphy signed into law the 2020 budget that included $9 million in increased child care funds, so providers can continue to care for children from low-income families, despite increases to the minimum wage. Last May, ACNJ highlighted this funding crisis with a news conference and petition collecting more than 1,100 signatures. Our hard work paid off! The Governor and Legislature has increased funds for human services workers across the board to offset the rising minimum wage. Read more on NJ Spotlight.

The 2020 budget also includes:

  • $68 million to expand preschool to additional districts, support existing preschool programs and assist in wraparound services
  • $9 million for state and local census outreach

Congratulations to all those who took action for children and families! These additional dollars would not have been available without your hard work as advocates! Now let's thank Governor Murphy for helping support programs that make a difference in the lives of children and families.  PLEASE, call or email the Governor today!

Click here to send Governor Murphy a message now or call his office at 609-292-6000.

Supreme Court Decision Blocks Citizenship Question, Helping Ensure Complete Census Count in New Jersey

Posted on June 27, 2019

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a victory for census advocates, keeping the citizenship question off the 2020 Census. Read opinion.

Encouraged by this ruling, non-profits and communities across New Jersey will continue our work to ensure maximum participation and inclusion in the 2020 Census — particularly among hard-to-count communities like people of color, urban and low-income households, immigrants, limited-English proficient populations and young children.

"The census clock is ticking. We must continue to remind our leaders of the widespread support of a fair and accurate census that does not include an untested, unnecessary and harmful citizenship question," said Peter Chen, policy counsel at Advocates for Children of New Jersey and coordinator of the Census 2020 NJ Coalition. "We must continue to raise our voices to ensure maximum participation and inclusion in the 2020 census — particularly among hard-to-count communities like people of color, urban and low-income households, immigrants, limited-English proficient populations and young children." Read more.

Report on Department of Children and Families’ Progress Released

Posted on June 26, 2019

Last week, the federal monitor released her latest report on New Jersey’s progress in working with troubled families and children in foster care and meeting the requirements of the Sustainability and Exit Plan (SEP). The report covers July to December 2018.  

The Department of Children and Families (DCF) has now satisfied 42 of the 48 performance measures that are required as part of the court-ordered settlement plan, including, for the first time, the requirement to conduct monthly visits with siblings placed apart.

Read the monitor’s press release.
Read the monitor’s report. 

#2020Census – “This is the time to get involved.”

Posted on June 18, 2019

Visit 2020censusnj.org to learn how you can get involved.

Policy Counsel Peter Chen states that, though the 2020 Census seems far away, now is the time to act to ensure an accurate count. Otherwise, New Jersey risks missing individuals in known hard-to-count populations, particularly residents who are part of a racial or ethnic minority, who rent their home, who are immigrants, or who are children under 5. And the state stands to lose billions in federal funding if we have an undercount, including support for critical programs such as children’s health insurance, school funding, school lunch and breakfast programs, Head Start, highway funding, college scholarships, and housing programs.

Read the blog post on Center for Non-Profits about why the Census matters, and learn what steps you can take to help ensure an accurate count in New Jersey by visiting 2020censusnj.org.