[ Music ]
>> Hi, I'm Eddie.
We've never met before, but I bet I'm a lot
like other kids you know.
I spend most of my time at school.
Right now, I'm trying to learn multiplication.
It's really hard!
But I get to school early, and I stay there
because my mom works long hours.
So I have lots of times
to practice my multiplication tables.
Kids tease me because I'm at school so much.
But I don't really mind being there.
You see, a couple of years ago, my mom was really sick.
And she wasn't even able to take me to school.
She wasn't even able to make food for me.
I actually had to go live with my aunt for a while.
Luckily, my mom got some help.
And I got to go home.
And now, things are getting better every day!
My mom's health is under control.
And a social worker connected her to a parenting class
that she really likes.
I can tell that my mom's a lot happier these days.
And we get along much better.
And my aunt stops by on the weekends
to help me with my homework.
I even won a math competition last week!
My story shows why this training is so important,
and it's why I'm glad you're here today.
Negative things sometimes happen to kids,
and if we don't have support,
these experiences can hurt our health, happiness,
and well-being throughout our lives.
[ Music ]
I'm talking about things like child abuse and neglect.
And other challenges in our homes and communities.
These are called adverse childhood experiences,
or ACEs for short.
You're taking this training because you have an interest
in protecting kids from ACEs and their negative outcomes.
Maybe you're a medical or mental health provider.
Maybe you work in public health or a different role working
with kids like me or families like mine.
Whatever role you play, caring adults like you have the power
to stop ACEs before they happen.
And to help people overcome ACEs they've experienced.
This training will help you learn all about ACEs
and about things you can do to prevent them and improve lives
for individuals, families, and communities.
Before you get started,
let's review what you'll learn in this training.
[ Music ]
In module one, you'll learn about the connection
between ACEs and medical, social,
and public health problems.
You'll also learn how these problems can affect people
throughout their lives and across generations.
In module two, you'll learn
about the public health approach to preventing ACEs.
After you've completed the first two modules, you can choose
to complete more modules that have specific information
for people in your profession.
Now let's cover a few basics.
[ Music ]
People often use different phrases
to describe adverse childhood experiences.
These include child abuse and neglect, child maltreatment,
childhood trauma, early adversity,
adverse childhood events, and even toxic stress.
But we will use the terms adverse childhood experiences
and ACEs throughout this training.
[ Music ]
Like I mentioned earlier, although ACEs occur
in childhood, they can affect a person's health
and wellbeing well into adulthood.
ACEs can lead to an increased risk for poor physical
and mental health, low academic achievement,
limited workforce productivity, and risky health behaviors.
They can even affect future generations,
since kids are more likely to experience ACEs
and other challenges if their parents also experience ACEs.
During the training, you'll learn that some kids are
at greater risk for ACEs.
But kids from all backgrounds can experience them.
And while none of us kids are immune, there are ways
to prevent ACEs and the harmful things they can cause.
In my case, my school counselor realized I'd been missing a lot
of school.
It took me a while to open up to Mr. Jeffries,
but once I knew I could trust him, he connected me and my mom
to the support and services we both really needed.
Like Mr. Jeffries and the other people who helped my family,
adults like you can play a big role in making sure
that all kids have the chance to reach our full potential.
On behalf of kids everywhere, I want to thank you
for taking the time to learn more
about this issue and how you can help.
You can now get started with lesson one.