CHILD PROTECTION CONNECTION

A nonprofit organization
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$10,000 Goal

Every year, 45,000 children in Texas face the most traumatic chapter of their lives: they suffer abuse or neglect, are removed from their homes, and face an uncertain future in foster care. The Texas foster care system is severely broken. Although there are many wonderful foster parents, a federal judge concluded that "rape, abuse, psychotropic medication, and instability are the 'norm' for Texas foster children" and that they leave foster care "more damaged than when they entered." The Child Protection Connection protects children by focusing on the professionals who have the greatest power to take action for these children -- the judges and attorneys who act as their lifelines and ensure that these children remain safe and ARE NOT --

--further abused in foster care

--placed in institutions simply because CPS does not have a place for them

--misdiagnosed with a mental illness because untrained professionals do not understand the trauma they have suffered

--put on multiple psychotropic medications that cause dangerous side effects

--shuffled to multiple schools every year, where progress and needed services are lost

--kicked out of foster care once they become adults without any family or deep relationships - quickly facing teen pregnancy, sex trafficking, homelessness, and incarceration.

We prevent these harms by connecting, equipping, and mobilizing a network of over 3,400 judges and attorneys, who estimate that they serve over 100,000 abused and neglected Texas children each year.



Mission

The mission of The Child Protection Connection (through our Texas Lawyers for Children program - "TLC") is to improve case outcomes for abused and neglected children by enhancing the quality of legal services they receive, by raising public awareness, and by facilitating improvement in systems that serve children and families. The most important decisions about an abused and neglected child's future are made in court. TLC exists to help ensure that those decisions lead to healing, instead of harm, while children are in the Texas foster care system

Needs

The Child Protection Connection needs funding to:

Protect the legal rights of abused & neglected children by recruiting and training lawyers to be effective advocates for these children, and by providing critical resources through an innovative Online Center about the unique needs of abused & neglected children.

Help foster children beat the odds and graduate from high school by recruiting, training, and supervising Education Advocates, who are volunteer attorneys appointed to advocate on behalf of a child facing educational obstacles and ensure that decision makers in the child's life are addressing the child's needs.

Equip judges & attorneys with resources and training to use their position and power to enforce laws and policies aimed at protecting abused and neglected children from further harm.

Reform the foster care system by speaking out on behalf of foster children, increasing protective measures for foster children, and closing any gaps in law or policy that have caused children harm.

While donated funds may be used for any purpose that furthers our mission and work, below are some examples of how our vast network & innovative technology can maximize your contribution for the benefit of the children we serve:

1) $50 can help abused & neglected children by providing 1 hour of legal research that can be accessed by over 3,200 Texas judges and attorneys

2) $100 can help a foster child find success at school and beat the statistics that only 50% of foster children graduate high school by providing online training for an Education Advocate

3) $250 can help between 25-90 children each year because that is the equivalent of agency resources we invest to equip and connect 1 court-appointed attorney for a year (who estimate that they represent this number of children)

4) $500 can keep the children's attorneys up to date by video recording a training presentation and making it available online statewide

5) $1000 can change policy and practice in an entire county for the benefit of foster children by allowing our attorneys to prepare and present live training to judges & attorneys. (At the end of one training, a judge made plans to change his court system for the benefit of the children in the entire county.)

6) $2500 can positively impact 65,000+ confirmed child victims of abuse or neglect, allowing us to research and draft a legislative memorandum and to testify in front of the Texas Legislature regarding laws that are helpful or harmful to children

Equity Statement

No child deserves to undergo the trauma of abuse, neglect, or a childhood spent in the foster care system, and it is our privilege to stand up and fight for these children regardless of gender, race, income level, or sexual orientation. All children deserve a safe childhood.

Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

CHILD PROTECTION CONNECTION

Tax id (EIN)

75-2594338

Guidestar

Causes

Human Rights, Civil Rights & Advocacy, Youth & Children

Operating Budget

$500,000 - $999,999

Counties Served

Fannin, Wise, Tarrant, Somervell, Rockwall, Parker, Palo Pinto, Navarro, Montague, Kaufman, Johnson, Hunt, Hood, Grayson, Erath, Ellis, Denton, Dallas, Cooke, Collin

BIPOC Serving

Other, Native American, Hispanic or Latinx, Asian/Pacific Islander, Black or African American

BIPOC Leadership

Board Chair

Equity Statement

Equity Statement

Address

8330 LBJ Freeway, Suite 480
Dallas, TX 75243

Phone

214-219-5852

Email

info@childprotectionconnection.org

Website

http://www.ChildProtectionConnection.org

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