Outcomes and Impacts

In 2002, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded MassKids a 5-year, $1.2 million grant to develop a comprehensive social change model aimed at building adult and community responsibility for preventing child sexual abuse.

With public and private agency collaborators, the Enough Abuse Campaign was launched to mobilize communities, educate citizens, strengthen school and youth organization policies, and advocate for prevention legislation. With subsequent support from the Ms. Foundation for Women, the Cummings Foundation, and ongoing contributions of in-kind resources from collaborating partners, the Enough Abuse Campaign has made a significant impact.

Selected Outcomes and Impacts

2002-2007

  • Convened two statewide conferences that brought together over 500 professionals to discuss latest findings in the field and to showcase effective prevention programs (2003, 2007)
  • Developed a comprehensive Enough Abuse Branding Campaign and logo, posters, ads, and outreach materials, including enoughabuse.org as a child sexual abuse prevention online resource for the state (2003)
  • Established Campaign sites in North Quabbin, Gloucester/Cape Ann, and Newton areas and conducted “Training of Trainers” sessions for professionals in western rural counties
  • Conducted four Random Digit Dial surveys to assess public knowledge and attitudes (2003 and 2007)
  • Developed the comprehensive core training curriculum “Preventing Child Sexual Abuse: Strategies for Your Family and Community”
  • Developed “Understanding and Responding to the Sexual Behaviors of Children” training curricula for parents and  professionals
  • Educated thousands of citizens and professionals in community workshops and presentations
  • Participated in  Sexual Offender Registry Board community presentations in several communities, e.g. Maynard, Topsfield, Waltham, Foxboro, N. Attleboro
  • Co-produced a Sex Offender Registry Board video on sexual abuse for distribution to police departments and a wide variety of community agencies
  • Educated the public through television, radio and print media and through presentations at several state and national conferences
  • Helped lead the effort that successfully passed legislation to reform the Statute of Limitations in criminal cases of child sexual abuse (2006)
  • Supported legislation for licensure to ensure that clinicians providing sex offender-specific treatment are adequately trained and abide by legal standards of accountability
  • As a member of the Massachusetts Coalition on Sex Offender Management, helped identify and disseminate information on clinicians qualified to provide sex offender-specific treatment

2008-2012

  • Multi-year funding secured by MassKids from the Ms. Foundation for Women to support the Enough Abuse Campaign after federal CDC grant ended (2008)
  • Established Campaign sites in South Worcester County, Greater Lowell and Cape Cod
  • Co-produced “It’s Not Just Jenna” video and companion “Discussion & Learning Guide” for training parents and youth (2008)
  • Evaluated all of the above activities in order to identify effective programs and strategies for future replication. Outcomes described in “Participatory Evaluation of the Enough Abuse Campaign” by CDC evaluators
  • Selected by US Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Child Abuse and Neglect (OCAN) as one of 12 strategic projects in the country working to end child maltreatment (2011)
  • Provided technical assistance and training to establish the Enough Abuse Campaign in New Jersey and Maryland. (2011)
  • Co-authored an article “The Enough Abuse Campaign: Building the Movement to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse in Massachusetts, published in the Journal of Child Sexual Abuse (2012)

2013-2016

  • Co-Convened the first “Funders Briefing on Child Sexual Abuse Prevention” with Associated Grant Makers, Brandeis University, and the Ms. Foundation for Women (2013)
  • Developed the “GateKeepers for Kids” initiative to assist schools and youth-serving organizations prevent child sexual abuse (2013)
  • Produced “A Practical Guide to Make Your Organization Safer” – a 12-page primer and 6 companion Fact Sheets for youth organizations that outline the basic requirements they should implement for child safety and protection (2013) 
  • Provided technical assistance and training to expand the Enough Abuse Campaign to New York and 11 counties in California (2013)
  • Established Campaign sites in Lynn and Middlesex County communities
  • Convened two Prevention Summits, which brought together over 400 education and youth organization leaders and advocates to learn about latest knowledge and strategies in the field to prevent sexual abuse (2013, 2015)
  • Launched the GateKeepers for Kids online learning community for school and youth-serving leaders to provide access to teaching videos, a resource bank of policies and tools, a Forum for peer exchange/ networking/ information about prevention training and consultation services available through the Campaign
  • Led the Coalition to Reform Sex Abuse Laws (CORSAL) whose advocacy successfully reformed Massachusetts’ civil Statute of Limitations legislation (2014)
  • Produced “Straight Talk About Child Sexual Abuse: A Prevention Guide for Parents” (2014)
  • Secured a $100,000 Cummings Foundation grant to support the Enough Abuse Campaign’s work in Middlesex County (2014)
  • Welcomed Nevada as the sixth state to join the Enough Abuse Campaign (2015)
  • Produced “Sexual Abuse Safe-Child Standards in Massachusetts” policy guide (2015)
  • Co-convened the  Associated Grant Makers Briefing for funders on the “Sexual Abuse Safe-Child Standards” (2015)
  • Produced the national report, “Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Legislation: A Status Report” (2015)
  • Supported legislation to establish a Task Force to Protect Massachusetts Children Against Child Sexual Abuse to be co-chaired by the Office of the Child Advocate and the Children’s Trust (2015)
  • Welcomed North Dakota as the seventh state to join the Enough Abuse Campaign (2016) 

2017-2020

  • Launched the comprehensive e-learning course, “Enough! Preventing Child Sexual Abuse in My School“ (2017)
  • Welcomed York County, Maine as the eighth state to join the Enough Abuse Campaign (2017) 
  • With researchers from Simmons University School of Social Work, conducted a randomized-controlled study of teachers in three states to assess the efficacy of the Enough! training course (2017)
  • Convened the third Prevention Summit, “Creating a Culture of Safety: Building Skills to Prevent and Respond to Sexual Misconduct in Schools and Youth Organizations” (2018)
  • Published findings of the Enough! course research study, “Advancing Child Sexual Abuse Prevention in Schools: An Exploration of the Effectiveness of the Enough! Online Training Program for K-12 Teachers” in the Journal of Child Sexual Abuse (2018)
  • Launched the “Pledge to Prevent™” online action campaign to educate and empower citizens to take specific, achievable actions to prevent child sexual abuse in their homes and communities (2019)
  • Launched our second e-learning course, “Enough! Preventing Child Sexual Abuse in My Youth Organization” (2019)
  • Produced “Straight Talk About Child Sexual Abuse: A Prevention Guide for Parents of Children with Disabilities” (2019)
  • Updated “It’s Not Just Jenna” video with a new segment; made it available in an online format in English and Spanish (2019)
  • Welcomed South Dakota as the ninth state to join the Enough Abuse Campaign (2019)
  • Launched its statewide on-the-road Prevention Tour to provide free trainings for school and youth organization leaders and communities (2019)
  • Co-convened with MA Inter-local Insurance Association (MIIA), a day-long training “Preventing Child Sexual Abuse in Schools and Youth Organizations: Strengthening Policies to Reduce Legal and Financial Liabilities” that brought together at Salem State University over 60 school, YSO and law enforcement leaders from 22 communities (2019)
  • Co-convened with Pathways for Children, YMCA of the North Shore and Salem State, a day-long child sexual abuse prevention training for 52 school and YSO leaders from 13 Essex County communities (2019)
  • Conducted three trainings on child sexual abuse prevention for over 200 Massachusetts School Nurse Managers in the Central, Metrowest/Boston and Northeast Regions (2020)
  • Co-sponsored with Waltham Mayor Jeannette McCarthy and Rep. John Lawn, a 3-hour training that brought together 33 school and YSO leaders from 13 Middlesex County communities (2020)
  • Co-Convened with the Greater Lowell Health Alliance and the Center for Hope and Healing, a 3-part Webinar Series for area youth-serving organizations on “Protecting Our Youth from Sexual Abuse, Exploitation and Trafficking” (2020)
  • Secured funding from the Parker Foundation to provide the “Enough! Preventing Child Sexual Abuse in My School” online training course for 1,200 Lowell School employees (2020)

2021-2022

  • Led the Pass the Prevention Package campaign to promote passage of three crucial child sexual abuse prevention bills in the Legislature (2021/22)
  • Released “A Call to Action for Policymakers and Advocates: Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Legislation in the States“, a 116-page national report produced in collaboration with Prevent Child Abuse America (2021)
  • Held Take Action In Your State to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse, a series of 3 national webinars for policymakers and advocates to promote recommendations in the Call to Action report (2021)
  • Secured a $100,000 Cummings Foundation grant to support the Enough Abuse Campaign’s work in Lynn, Lowell and Medford (2021)
  • Presented “The Enough Abuse Campaign to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse: A Model for Social Change,” at the World Day for Child Sexual Abuse Prevention, Healing and Justice Conference  – part of the Inaugural International Symposium on Faith and Flourishing: Strategies for Preventing and Healing Child Sexual Abuse, convened virtually by Harvard University and Catholic University (2021)
  • Founded the States Policy Exchange, a bimonthly, virtual networking and peer support resource  for policymakers and advocates working to pass child sexual abuse prevention legislation in their states (2022)
  • Presented “Movement Building to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse in the U.S. and Globally,” at the Children’s Rights in the U.S. Conference convened virtually by Salem State University, Center for Childhood and Youth Studies (2022)
  • Presented a 90-minute virtual training “Child Sexual Abuse as a Public Health Emergency: Strategies Being Implemented to Prevent It,” for Boston Children’s Hospital staff, sponsored by Boston Children’s Hospital Child Protection Program (2022)
  • Launched the “Safety STARS” initiative to provide schools and YSOs with high-quality in-person and online trainings, cutting-edge assessment and prevention tools; and expert technical assistance on prevention policies (2022)
  • Currently collaborating with Brave Movement to engage survivors of childhood sexual abuse and their allies in actions to improve prevention programs and policies (2022)

2023

  • By mid-2023, implemented the “Enough! Preventing Child Sexual Abuse in My School” training in 165 schools in 9 states with over 15,000 school employees.
  • Currently serving as Co-Lead on a 2-year CDC research grant with Prevent Child Abuse America and the National Conference of State Legislators to study the effect of child sexual abuse prevention legislation in states on reported cases of child sexual abuse.
  • Convened a 90-minute Virtual Legislative Briefing to educate citizens, policymakers and advocates about a package of bills aimed at preventing child sexual abuse in Massachusetts schools and youth-serving organizations.  Senator Joan Lovely, Representative Natalie Blais, survivors of educator sexual abuse, and child advocates discussed why passage is so crucial. See the recorded event under “Videos”.
  • Helped organize and presented at the “Survivor’s Nest” Legislative Briefing at the State House to educate lawmakers and the public about a package of bills introduced this Session to prevent child sexual abuse in schools and youth organizations.