The Missouri Children's Trust Fund has an eye toward protecting youth during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Reports to the child abuse hotline have plummeted because kids aren't going to school - people aren't seeing their coaches, their teachers," said Emily van Schenkhof, CTF executive director. "This is a very dangerous time for our kids. That's something that's given me a great deal of sadness in all of this."
CTF is a quasi-governmental nonprofit dedicated to preventing child abuse. It was founded by the Missouri General Assembly, and part of its board of directors is chosen by the governor, van Schenkhof said. It funds local prevention programs throughout the state, runs public education and awareness campaigns, and lobbies for policies and laws that support its mission.
Van Schenkhof, who lives in Fulton, spoke to the Fulton Rotary Club during a virtual meeting Wednesday.
She said CTF is adjusting how and when its funding is released to the programs it supports in light of the novel coronavirus's spread.
"We have considerable worries," she said.
Van Schenkhof said CTF had hoped to persuade Missouri's government to include additional funding for "services for children and struggling families" in the next fiscal year's budget. Specifically, the CTF wanted to direct funds toward programs to prevent child sexual abuse.
Given the economic impact of COVID-19, that's looking unlikely, she said. But they'll try again next year.
"It's only a matter of time," van Schenkhof said. "We'll get additional funding in our budget for child sexual abuse prevention, if not now then later."
She said child sexual abuse is much more of a problem in Missouri than many realize. According to the Missouri Department of Social Services, of the 5,852 substantiated cases of child abuse or neglect recorded in 2016, about one-quarter involved sexual abuse.
"Because of the discomfort we have in talking about, we haven't done nearly enough to prevent it," she said.
She's currently researching its prevalence throughout the state and recently assembled a map showing the 30 zip codes in Missouri with the highest rates and numbers of reported cases, based on the last 10 years of data.
The zip code surrounding Auxvasse, 65231, had one of the highest rates (cases compared to population) in the state, while the zip code surrounding Fulton, 65251, is in the top 30 for number of cases.
"This tells us something about need in our community," van Schenkhof said.
Once funding becomes available, the CTF hopes to target those zip codes in an effort to "take those numbers down," she said.
"We really focus on word prevention," van Schenkhof said of CTF's mission. "What can we do before a child gets hurt so the child never gets hurt?"
Many cases of child abuse or neglect stem from a lack of education or resources, she said.
During one house visit, she met parents who had been giving juice to their four-month-old infant. They weren't trying to hurt the baby - they just had never been told it was unsafe.
Sometimes, the parents are teens trying to raise a first child with little outside support. Other times, they face mental health or substance abuse issues that make safely caring for a child more difficult.
"Parenting in poverty is very hard," van Schenkhof said. "When you don't know where next paycheck coming from, not enough food, no health care, homeless - all these things compromise ability to provide maximum safety for children. We want to (transform) society so families can have what they need to safely care for their children."
CTF puts a big emphasis on home visits, directing much of its funding toward supporting those programs on a local level. During a home visit, a trained professional visits the house of a low-income or high-risk family to provide social support, material support (such as diapers and wipes) and parenting education.
"Home visits are evidence-based and shown to improve children's health and educational outcomes," van Schenkhof said.
CTF also supports public policy and advocacy. Board members include four Missouri legislators, Sen. Jeanie Riddle, R-Mokane, among them.
"She's always been fierce on children's issues because of her experience as a teacher at South Callaway," van Schenkhof said. "We have a progressive and thoughtful board that really supports us."
Learn more about CTF's efforts at ctf4kids.org/about-childrens-trust-fun. CTF is partially supported through sales of the specialty CTF license plate, which you can also learn about at the website.
Van Schenkhof urged her listeners not to turn away from this difficult topic.
"The suffering of children occurs behind closed door, and it's not something most of us experience firsthand," she said. "That doesn't make it any less real for those children. It's up to us to better open our eyes and create a society where less of this happens."
The child abuse and neglect hotline can be reached at 1-800-392-3738.