Adverse Childhood Experiences: “The more I know, the more I can help others”
As a licensed therapeutic foster parent in Anchorage, Ms. Stroud cares for children experiencing behavioral issues. Understanding these issues and how to provide trauma-informed care is crucial to helping these children develop the resiliency they need to grow into healthy adults. So when Stroud heard about a series of presentations on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) being offered by Shiloh Community Development, Inc. (SCDI) in fall 2021, she signed up.
“I decided to participate so that I could gain some additional knowledge that will help me to be a better foster parent to the children that I work with,” she says. “As a caregiver, it is important to gain an in-depth understanding of ACEs so that I can create an environment where children feel safe emotionally and physically. I also need to help children identify their feelings and find healthy ways to manage their emotions.”
SCDI is an Anchorage nonprofit organization that empowers youth, minorities, seniors and the disadvantaged to improve lives. Driven by this mission, SCDI applied with the Municipality of Anchorage to receive funding from the city’s new alcohol tax to raise public awareness of ACEs throughout the community. Anchorage voters passed the new sales tax in April 2020, with the revenue dedicated to increasing community safety; reducing and preventing child abuse, sexual assault and domestic violence; and prevention and treatment of substance misuse, mental health issues and homelessness.
“After learning more about Adverse Childhood Experiences and finding out that minorities have the highest numbers of ACEs, we felt we needed to share this information,” says Rev. Mildred Parker, the SCDI ACEs Program Coordinator.
“Our ACEs Awareness and Prevention Program is needed more than ever. We serve a community that is historically marginalized."
What Are ACEs?
ACEs are traumatic experiences that occur in childhood, impairing the development of children’s brains and bodies. Research has shown that ACEs lead to chronic disease and mental illness in adulthood, and are major contributors to issues such as homelessness, substance use, suicide and violence.
Examples of ACEs
Household member with mental illness
Incarcerated household member
Bullying and discrimination
Divorced or separated parents
Mother treated violently
Poverty and financial insecurity
Household member addicted to substances
Traumatic community events, such as suicide and historical trauma
Physical or emotional neglect
Physical abuse
Sexual abuse
Verbal or emotional abuse
“Our ACEs Awareness and Prevention Program is needed more than ever,” Rev. Parker says. “We serve a community that is historically marginalized. The higher the ACEs score, the more likely a person will experience chronic health and well-being issues.”
Knowledge is Power
When families and communities take steps to build resilience and supportive relationships, the lifelong consequences of ACEs can be prevented and healed. This is exactly what SCDI is working to do.
“We hope to raise public awareness of ACEs and the effects of ACEs throughout our community,” Rev. Parker says. “We’re delivering a public education campaign to raise awareness of ACEs and toxic stress, and to arm the public with science-based solutions for reducing the impact of ACEs on children and adults, paired with describing the policy strategies needed to support safe, stable and nurturing relationships and environments.”
Funding is Powerful
With the funding from Anchorage’s new alcohol sales tax, SCDI offered a total of five presentations from October through December 2021, drawing between 30 to 50 participants for each. After each presentation, participants received a follow-up email with an ACEs assessment and information on where they could access more information or assistance.
Post-presentation evaluations showed that the majority of participants had not heard about ACEs previously, but walked away with a greater understanding of the issue. “No matter what happened in the past, I have the power to shape my future. Having one caring adult can make a difference,” shares one participant.
SCDI also hosted a panel discussion with Alaska Superior Court Judge Herman Walker, Dr. Nicole Taylor from Dillingham School District and Arika Paquette, Community Services Director for Women in Safe Homes in Ketchikan. The panelists shared about how they found out about ACEs, why understanding ACEs is important to them, and how they use ACEs knowledge in their work.
The presentations concluded in December 2021, although SCDI hopes to receive additional funding to continue reaching more people with information about ACEs.
In addition to the presentations, SCDI used the alcohol tax funding to create a resource library where members of the community can access books and resources about emotional support, financial support, child development, resiliency and more.
“ACEs can have a lasting impact on a person’s life. This is an ongoing issue in our community and the more I know, the more I can help others,” Stroud says. “Knowledge is power, and once you know what your ACE score is, then you can help yourself and also help others.”