Adult Responsibility Project Trainings:

Nurturing Healthy Sexual Development

Gain information and skills to develop and maintain open communication with children, identify and respond to normal as well as concerning sexual behaviors in children, answer children's questions, and give children positive messages. Nurturing healthy sexual development plays an important role in protecting children from sexual abuse and/or developing sexually abusive behaviors. Participants will: a) summarize healthy sexual development in children at different developmental stages; b) give examples of how to nurture healthy sexual development in children. This training is useful for infant through after-school teachers, educators, social workers, volunteers for children, mentors, coaches, professionals in many fields, parents, caregivers, grandparents, and foster parents.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Earn Continuing Education credits (CE) if you are a Vermont professional in some fields.

Overcoming Barriers to Protecting Children from Sexual Abuse

Participants will: a) distinguish healthy behaviors from boundary violations and pre-offending behaviors; b) practice directly addressing concerning behaviors. Individuals and communities have a strong desire to prevent child sexual abuse. However, they often face barriers to protecting children, including having relationships with those exhibiting concerning behaviors. In this workshop participants will consider what adults can do to assist communities in overcoming these common barriers to protecting children, creating safe spaces through a trauma-informed lens. This training is useful for infant through after-school teachers, educators, social workers, volunteers for children, mentors, coaches, professionals in many fields, parents, caregivers, grandparents, and foster parents.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

TECHNICOOL: Keeping Kids Safe on the Internet

There are multiple kinds of digital risks for children today, such as internet pornography, online groomers, and sexting. It is important for caregivers and teachers to have the information and tools to respond. Adults in this workshop will: a) learn the digital risks for children and strategize ways to keep children and youth safe in digital environments and b) learn effective strategies for dealing with children exhibiting concerning digital behaviors. Please join us to learn how to support youth in digital environments! This training is useful for infant through after-school teachers, educators, social workers, volunteers for children, mentors, coaches, professionals in many fields, parents, caregivers, grandparents, and foster parents.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

A word about language: The term child pornography is now recognized as misleading.  This is now referred to as child sexual abuse material, which reflects that sexual acts on or with children or the documentation of this in images or videos is sexual violence.

Everything Everyone Needs to Know to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse

This interactive training covers essential information for all adults to be better prepared to protect children from sexual abuse.  Adults who are parents, caregivers, teachers, and other professionals want children to have abuse-free childhoods.  This training is an important step! As a participant, you will: a) learn interactive tools that work to keep children safe from sexual abuse c) learn what grooming is and ways to respond to protect children d) discover how to talk to children at different developmental stages about healthy behaviors c) determine how to respond to incidents of potential child sexual abuse (including understanding the mandated reporter expectations in your state). Through talking about child sexual abuse and how it happens, you will develop skills to recognize and respond to concerning situations. This training is particularly designed for adults caring for infants up to children ages 14. Educators, After-school professionals, educators, social workers, mentors, coaches, parents, caregivers, grandparents, and foster parents are invited to participate.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Earn Continuing Education credits (CE) if you are a Vermont professional in some fields.

Nurturing, Valuing, and Protecting LGBTQIA+ Youth

Adults may have questions about ways to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual youth. This training, while examining what it means to be inclusive, also discusses current methods of prevention that youth-serving organizations and all adults who care can take. Participants will a) discuss ways to nurture the formation of gender identity b) examine why LGBTQIA+ youth may be at an increased risk of experiencing child sexual abuse, particularly homeless LGBTQIA+ youth c) learn primary prevention skills with LGBTQIA+ youth in mind. This training is for early childhood educators, after school professionals, and caregivers.The information can also be useful for parents, grandparents, and foster parents.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Earn Continuing Education credits (CE) if you are a Vermont professional in some fields.

Brain Development and Learning Consent during Childhood

Adults want children to grow up with healthy relationship skills. Learning to respect others’ feelings about touch is called empathy-based consent. Brain science findings show that the optimal window for children to learn empathy skills occurs early in life. Raising children who can empathize, and honor others’ wishes about consent will build protective factors to prevent child sexual abuse. In this training you will: a) understand the skills involved in respecting consent b) learn the developmental connections between childhood empathy and adult actions c) learn brain science findings on empathy and the optimal developmental window to acquire it d) learn about primary prevention strategies beginning in early childhood to prevent child sexual abuse and perpetration. You will receive practical steps you can take to teach children empathy-based consent. This training is for professionals who work with at-risk youth, such as residential care staff, therapeutic foster parents, counselors, social workers, educators, early childhood educators, after school staff, and mentors.  The information can also be useful for parents, grandparents, and foster parents.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Earn Continuing Education credits (CE) if you are a Vermont professional in some fields.

Nurturing and Safe Environments

for Children with Disabilities

Children with disabilities are at a higher risk of child sexual abuse than their peers, but prevention is possible! Parents and professionals alike want to create safe environments for this important group of children. Participants will: a) understand the higher prevalence of child sexual abuse among children with disabilities b) learn the specific challenges that these children experience that may raise risk c) strategize organizational policies and practices as well as family norms that will better protect this vulnerable group of children. Please join us to learn how to keep children with disabilities safe at school, at home, in youth serving organizations, in residential settings, and in the neighborhood. This training is useful for educators, special education teachers, paraprofessionals, social workers, health care professionals, home health providers, residential care staff, mentors, volunteers for children, coaches, parents, caregivers, grandparents, and foster parents.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Understanding and Responding to the Sexual Behaviors of Children

Adults can do much to promote healthy sexual development in prepubescent children.  In this training you will: a) be able to distinguish between expected, problematic, and abusive behaviors of children b) be prepared to promote health and prevent perpetration behaviors in children c) be ready to intervene with children to prevent reinforcement of repeated harmful behaviors.  You will develop the skills to keep children safe from other children with problematic behaviors and to promote healthy development in all children. This training is for professionals who work with at-risk children, such as residential care staff, therapeutic foster parents, counselors, social workers, educators, early childhood educators, after school staff, and mentors.  The information can also be useful for parents, grandparents, and foster parents.

Some content was developed at the Kempe Center for Prevention & Treatment of Child Abuse & Neglect. Gail Ryan, MA; Director, Kempe Perpetration Prevention Program, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, with support from the Kempe Foundation.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Understanding and Responding to the Sexual Behaviors of Adolescents

Adults can do much to promote healthy sexual development in adolescents.  In this training you will: a) be able to distinguish between expected, problematic, and abusive behaviors of adolescents b) know the risk factors and protective factors associated with harmful sexual behaviors in adolescents c) be prepared to respond to prevent harmful sexual behaviors in adolescents and to be proactive when these behaviors are observed. You will develop the skills to keep children safe from youth with problematic behaviors and to promote healthy development in all youth. This training is for professionals who work with at-risk youth, such as residential care staff, therapeutic foster parents, counselors, social workers, educators, early childhood educators, after school staff, and mentors.  The information can also be useful for parents, grandparents, and foster parents.

Some content was developed at the Kempe Center for Prevention & Treatment of Child Abuse & Neglect. Gail Ryan, MA; Director, Kempe Perpetration Prevention Program, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, with support from the Kempe Foundation.

This training counts for afterschool and advanced specialized care in BFIS.

Professionals in a variety of fields find our trainings very useful to their professional development. We can also tailor a training to fit the needs of your organization!

To see scheduled workshops and register to attend:

Healthy Relationships Project

If you are an educator working in a school, you may be interested in the Care for Kids curriculum for children PK-2, the We Care Elementary program for grades 3-6, or the SAFE-T program for 7th and 8th grades.