The Exchange Club/ Holland J. Stephens Center for the Prevention of Child Abuse

Established in 1988, The Exchange Club/Holland J. Stephens Center for the Prevention of Child Abuse is a non-profit 501(c)3 agency that serves Putnam, Cumberland, Overton, White, DeKalb, and Macon counties. Licensed by the TN Dept. of Children’s services as a child abuse prevention agency, the agency’s mission is to identify families with children (prenatal through age 12) at-risk of child abuse and neglect and to prevent the abuse/neglect through appropriate in-home visitation, group parenting, or community education program. The funds requested in the application will support three full time family service coordinators to conduct home-visits, teach parenting classes, and complete community education projects. Of the parents that successfully complete the minimum of 12 weekly home-visits or 8 public classes employing the Nurturing Skills for Families program during the grant term, 85% (68 out of 80) will demonstrate a decrease in level of risk for child abuse/neglect as demonstrated by the AAPI-2.1 The AAPI-2.1 is an inventory evaluation designed to assess the parenting and child rearing attitudes of adolescents and adult parent and pre-parent populations. 85% (68 out of 80) will demonstrate that abuse and neglect have been prevented shown by a positive follow-up contact revealing no incidents of abuse or neglect at one year after ending participation in the Friends for Families program.