October 2002Vol. 3, No. 8Conferences

Fourteenth National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect

The Fourteenth National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect will be held in St. Louis, Missouri, March 31 through April 5, 2003. The conference theme, Gateways to Prevention, focuses on efforts to challenge existing assumptions about how to prevent child maltreatment and consider a range of strategies to protect children and support families and communities.

The Fourteenth National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect is sponsored by the Children's Bureau's Office on Child Abuse and Neglect in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The conference is designed for child protection workers and administrators, social workers, educators, researchers, health care practitioners, law enforcement professionals, policy makers, child advocates, members of the clergy, parents, volunteers, and others committed to ensuring the protection of children. Those attending will have the opportunity to hear from staff of demonstration projects and learn from the experiences of colleagues who are working to engage both families and communities in preventing the occurrence and recurrence of child maltreatment. Six Learning Clusters will focus on serving diverse populations, child protective services systems changes, faith-based and community initiatives, research to practice, strengthening families, and interagency collaboration.

More information about the conference can be found at http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/profess/conferences/cbconference/fourteenth/index.cfm.

Nominations Requested for the Lisa Renee Putman Excellence in Direct Service Award

The Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, within the Children's Bureau, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, requests nominations for the Lisa Renee Putman Excellence in Direct Service Award, to be presented at the Fourteenth National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect. The conference is held biennially for all professionals, volunteers, advocates, and community members who work to make children safe and families strong. An award description and nomination form are now available on the conference website (note: this is no longer available). Please submit nominations no later than December 31, 2002.

Upcoming national conferences on adoption and child abuse and neglect through January 2003 include:

November

• Eleventh Biennial National Open Adoption Conference "Open Adoption in Practice" (The National Federation for Open Adoption Education; November 4 and 5, N. Lake Tahoe; http://www.adoptionhelp.org/).
• 2002 CWLA National Adoption Conference--Lifetime Connections: Achieving Excellence in Adoption (Child Welfare League of America; November 5 through 8, Ft. Lauderdale, FL; http://www.cwla.org/conferences/2002adoptrfp.htm -- this link is no longer available).
• 5th Annual National Survivors of Violence "From Pain to Power and Anger to Action: A United Voice for Prevention" (The Harvard School of Public Health; November 8 and 9, Boston, MA; call (617) 495-7777).
• APHA's 130th Annual Meeting and Exposition (American Public Health Association; November 9 through 13, Philadelphia, PA; http://www.apha.org/meetings/).
• "From Blues to Bluegrass…Toppin' the Charts in Training Excellence" (American Public Human Service Association – National Staff Development and Training Association; November 17 through 20, Nashville, TN; http://www.aphsa.org/).
• Communities Connecting For Youth: Research, Innovations and Trends in Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting and Prevention (National Organization on Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting and Prevention; November 20 through 23, San Diego, CA; http://www.noappp.org/).
• National Council on Family Relations 64th Annual Conference (National Council on Family Relations (NCFR); November 21 through 24, Houston, TX; http://www.ncfr.org/).

December

• Zero to Three National Training Institute (Zero to Three; December 6 through 8, Washington, DC; http://www.zerotothree.org/nti00/index_main00.html -- this link is no longer available).

January

• The Annual Meeting of State and Tribal Child Welfare Officials "Partners in Progress: Lessons Learned from the CFSR" (National Child Welfare Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice; January 27 through 29, Washington, DC).

Further details about national and regional child abuse and neglect conferences can be found in the "conference" section on the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information website at http://nccanch.acf.hhs.gov/profess/conferences/index.cfm.

Further details about national and regional adoption conferences can be found in the "conference" section on the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse's website at http://naic.acf.hhs.gov/general/conferences/index.cfm.