Alaska Children's Alliance

Any individual concerned for a child can report abuse or neglect!

If you suspect a child under the age of 18 is being abused or neglected, or is at risk for abuse or neglect, you should call the Alaska Child Abuse Hot Line, 1-800-478-4444 or contact your local police department.

If this is after normal business hours and/or is an emergency please call 911
To learn more about how to identify child abuse and who must report by law,or to view or order a Mandated Reporting CD, click here.

• More than 800,000 children are  confirmed as victims of abuse or neglect each year in the U.S.
• Neglect is the most common form of child maltreatment, followed by physical abuse.
• Younger children (ages 0-6) are the most vulnerable to abuse.
• One in three girls and one in five boys will be  sexually abused or assaulted before they reach the age of 18.

Perpetrators are often family members, friends, and acquaintances. Ninety five percent of all victims know the  perpetrators.

Some consequences of child sexual abuse include fear, loneliness, self-blame, poor self-esteem, anger, and mental health issues.

Disclosure of child sexual abuse is a process. It is estimated that only one in ten child victims disclose abuse. Some victims never disclose.

In 2006, researchers at the Crimes Against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire released findings from the five-year multi-site national evaluation of the CAC model. Data from over 1000 cases of sexual abuse handled by communities with and without a CAC were collected and subject to comparison analysis.
Highlights

CACs showed significantly more evidence of coordinated investigations.
More children involved with a CAC received a specialized medical evaluation.
More children involved in a CAC were referred to mental health services.
Parents and caregivers of children served by CACs were more satisfied with the investigation (than those in comparison sample.

Child Advocacy Centers Save Money

A recent national cost-benefit analysis of the Children’s Advocacy Center model shows that CACs save approximately $1,000 per case in services to children and families during the course of a child abuse investigation.

On a per-case basis, traditional investigations were 36% more expensive than a CAC investigation. The cost of a CAC investigation averaged $2,902 compared to $3,949 for a traditional abuse investigation.

Alaska Child Advocacy Center Websites

Other useful resources/links:

• Alaska Office of Children’s Services
• Child Welfare Information Gateway
• Child Welfare League of America
• FBI Sex Offender Registry
• Midwest Regional CAC
• National Children’s Alliance
• National Coalition to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation
• National Sexual Violence Resource Center
• Northeast Regional CAC
• Prevent Child Abuse America
• Southern Regional CAC
• (BOOK) There’s No Place Like Home… for Sex Education
• Western Regional CAC