A recent national survey of the incidence and prevalence of children’s exposure to violence and trauma revealed that 60% of American children have been exposed to violence, crime or abuse. Forty percent were direct victims of two or more violent acts. Prolonged exposure to violence and trauma can seriously undermine children’s ability to focus, behave appropriately, and learn in school. It often leads to school failure, truancy, suspension or expulsion, dropping out, or involvement in the juvenile justice system.

The Delaware Initiative, commonly referred to as “Take Care Delaware,” is tailored to reflect the needs and issues affecting children in Delaware. The Initiative was the result of a collaborative effort of key stakeholders and partners. Take Care Delaware, taken primarily from W. Virginia’s Defending Childhood Initiative, builds upon the success of proven programs throughout the country. The goal is to prevent children’s exposure to trauma and violence, mitigate negative affects experienced by children’s exposure to trauma, and to increase knowledge and awareness of this issue. At the end of the day, through Take Care Delaware, children will remain in their schools and classrooms, better able to function and learn.

The program is very simple: Law enforcement officers at the scene of crime, violence and/or abuse are identifying children at the scene who have been exposed to trauma. The child’s name, age and school is sent by Law Enforcement in a confidential notice to the school district. The Superintendent’s office will ensure that notification is provided to appropriate school personnel before the child starts school the next day. There is no information given except for the child’s name, age and these three words “Take Care Delaware.” Schools are learning how to be trauma sensitive and identifying interventions that will mitigate the negative effects of trauma on the children. So if the child acts out, the teacher has a heads-up and might send the child to the counselor instead of the principal, give the child extra time to do a project or postpone a test. When school interventions are not sufficient, therapists can provide services on-site at the school for children who need therapy.

In short, it came from West Virginia. In 2009, the Office of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention published a study on children’s exposure to violence and it was a wakeup call to see just how prevalent children’s exposure to violence is in their homes, schools and communities. Nationally, Attorney General Eric Holder launched the Defending Childhood Initiative on September 23, 2010, to address a national crisis: the exposure of America’s children to violence as victims and as witnesses. The WV Children’s Justice Task Force, in collaboration with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the South District of West Virginia, formed a subcommittee in 2011 to explore programing to look at the problem of children’s exposure to violence and to look for programming that could help mitigate the negative effects of trauma on children. Delaware’s initiative was started when a core team of community stakeholders agreed that what they were doing in W. Virginia would be a great fit for our 3 counties.

The TCD Implementation Team, comprised of law enforcement, educators and mental health providers, spent 2018-19 working together to create guidelines for implementation. On Friday, July 26, 2019, Governor John Carney signed Delaware House Bill 74 (Take Care Delaware program), enabling a partnership between law enforcement and schools to adopt a trauma-informed approach to children who have been identified at the scene of a traumatic event. With that, we had what we needed to address the needs of children traumatized by violence in their homes, schools and communities. Three words . . Take Care Delaware.