A New Kind of Child Neglect
“As child protection rules are rolled back, a new kind of child neglect threatens millions of at‑risk children. Read what these changes mean and how to respond.”
Family First & Child Neglect Studies and Reporting 2
Contrary to a common assumption, neglect is not less damaging than abuse. Research shows neglect victims have lifelong problems because they miss developmental milestones around language, self-control, and bonding with others.
A constant dilemma in neglect cases is whether to traumatize children by removing them from their families, or leave them in situations where their brains aren’t developing normally.
Quality Early Childhood Education (ECE) programs can make it possible to leave children at home while helping their parents improve parenting skills.
This study documents that neglect victims who got ECE moved quickly from having a language deficit to the normal range. Language development is critical to academic success and positive interpersonal relationships.
ECE can help many children avoid foster care and still obtain the baseline skills they need to thrive.
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Nation Out of Step: An Early Childhood Education Manifesto for 2026
Education is the engine of progress and prosperity. A nation that underinvests in its children’s earliest years limits its own future. Neuroscience and economics now converge on a simple truth: what happens from birth to age five shapes the brain, health, behavior, and earning power for life—and early childhood education is where that development can be steered toward success.
Short Powerful Videos on Child Abuse Issues (20-30 seconds) – 2
These short, powerful child abuse awareness videos (most 20–30 seconds) highlight the painful realities of foster care, trauma, and youth suicide. Share them widely so more adults understand their responsibility to protect vulnerable children.
Extended Foster Care: Problems and Solutions (podcast #2 in foster care series)
the harsh realities facing foster youth aging out of the system and the failures of Extended Foster Care (EFC) programs
Child Death and Public Non Disclosure (podcast)
Listen to KARA’s child welfare podcast on child death and public non-disclosure. Learn how secrecy laws and closed child protection records hide patterns of failure when children die—and what real transparency and accountability should look like.
Child Abuse Statistics (and the best resources)
Child abuse crosses every community in America. This page gathers the strongest national statistics on maltreatment, CPS investigations, fatalities, and lifetime impacts on children’s brains and futures — along with links to leading data sources and resources for prevention, advocacy, and reform.
Can Our Relationship Survive This Debate About Child Safety? – CPS reform and racism
Can a working relationship survive a fundamental disagreement about child safety? On our CASA board, a Black single mother and a white older man wrestle with whether CPS protects children or destroys families. This post explores that conflict and what it tells us about fixing a child protection system that is both racist and, at times, fatally timid.
Child Death and Public Non Disclosure (podcast)
Listen to KARA’s child welfare podcast on child death and public non-disclosure. Learn how secrecy laws and closed child protection records hide patterns of failure when children die—and what real transparency and accountability should look like.
Dissecting President Trump’s Child Protection Executive Order (share this widely)
Trump’s recent Presidential Order appears in its entirety below in the Read More section of this post. Added to the order today, is conflicted and confusing language that will have a terrible impact on the quality of life for millions of America’s abused and neglected children, families, and the communities they live in.
Child Well-Being in the U.S. vs Other Rich Countries: Poverty, Mortality, and Violence
The United States ranks near the bottom of wealthy countries for child well-being, with higher child poverty, infant mortality, and firearm deaths than its peers. Learn what the data shows and why it matters.
Happy New Year – 2026 Projections & Plans + Meet KARA People (short videos)
In 2025, the federal government declared a bonfire of deregulation in Child Protective Services (CPS) for 2026. This is part of a broader “parental rights” and religious liberty agenda. MAGA voices,
MN Children, Institutions, and Politics
Abused and neglected children don’t have a voice in the politics and policies that rule their lives. They are at the mercy of our politicians and institutions that serve them.
What Happens if “Child Neglect” In Child Protective Services Is Removed or Diminished
National and federal data show that child neglect is the primary allegation in a clear majority of CPS cases, so removing neglect from CPS as an entry criterion would likely eliminate investigation for roughly 60–75% of the children who are currently investigated or substantiated, with some variation by state. About 7.8 million children / year are reported abused and neglected to CPS. Because child abuse is invisible, it is likely that at least that many children remain unseen and unreported. The Trump child welfare executive order leans heavily into language about “unnecessary removals” and “overreach”
What Child Neglect Does (and how long it lasts)
Responding to the Presidential Order addressing Neglect: Keeping neglect as a primary gateway into CPS is essential because what looks like “just poverty” on the surface is often a pattern of chronic educational, emotional, and safety failures that permanently damages children and fuels intergenerational harm.
KARA’s Resource Page & Future Collaborations
KARA is expanding our resource page to answer questions and provide access to more resources. This will be an interactive, AI-driven public platform that providing timely and accurate information on child protection, child abuse, childhood trauma, and all things related to child welfare. It will highlight key details for public and civic awareness.
Minnesota Foster Resources
Help KARA Grow Awareness of Foster Advocates and Imprint News efforts to inform Minnesota Fosters Of Resources Available To Them (share this widely
The Importance of Foster Youth Rights (find your State here)
This article is derived from Hana Ikramuddin’s excellent Imprint News Article about Fosters not being notified of their rights – Read the Imprint article here.
Hana tells us the story of AIayna Ghost’s years in Foster Care from ages 7 to 18 and how she ran away almost every year looking for her family. From the article: In foster care, she did not learn she had an older sister until a social worker told her at age 13.
Struggles for Foster Care Children in Education (podcast #4 in Foster Series)
how foster youth are systematically failed within America’s education system. They expose how constant school changes, untreated trauma, and misdiagnoses isolate these children, often pushing them into special education, overmedication, or even the juvenile justice system
Vulnerabilities in the Foster Care System (podcast)
In this episode of Kids at Risk Action, hosts Ashley and Alex discuss a heartbreaking case in which a 7-week-old infant suffered 13 fractures while in foster care, allegedly inflicted by the foster mother. This case highlights the systemic issues within the foster care system, including inadequate resources, lack of oversight, and insufficient training and support for foster parents.
The Critical Need for Child Advocacy Centers (podcast)
Kids at Risk Action, the hosts discuss the critical issue of funding cuts to Child Advocacy Centers (CACs) in Minnesota, which are essential in providing support for abused and neglected children. CACs offer services like forensic interviews, victim advocacy, and medical exams, but with the loss of 80% of their federal funding, these centers could be forced to close, leaving thousands of children without protection.
Doing the Math in Child Protective Services (podcast)
Kids at Risk Action, Michael and John examine the staggering costs and human impact of child protective services (CPS) and the interconnected child welfare and juvenile justice systems. They highlight troubling statistics, such as the high number of children reported to CPS each year, the underreporting of abuse, and the alarming link between CPS involvement and later incarceration.
What Teachers Are Facing Today and Tomorrow
Teachers feel undervalued and overwhelmed.
Turnover his high and a number of states are using
unqualified people to fill positions.
AMERICA’S CHILDREN IN 100 CHARTS (read book draft)
This is a book about childhood trauma, its impact on children and the impact traumatized youth are having on our communities and society. It is a guide to seeing and dealing with the most critical issues and causes of abuse, and solutions.
KARA – CASA Ad Grant Initiative ($120,000 annually)
Google Fully Funded Initiative For
CASA’s & Service Providers
America’s CHILDHOOD TRAUMA and ACES Impact
California’s Surgeon General Nadine Burke Harris has declared Adverse Childhood Experiences a public health problem and public school crisis in her state.
Child Abuse Statistics (and the best resources)
Nationally over 7 million U.S. children come to the attention of Child Protective Services each year
37% of American children are reported to Child Protective Services by 18
Body Memories – Why Child Sex Abuse Never Ends (letters from survivors and non survivors)
Dear Doctor,
As a medical professional you have taken an oath to do no harm, but there are ways in which you can hurt your patients without even recognizing you are doing so. What seems to you as a simple exam may cause injury to those who have been victimized by someone’s touch. This is a subject that we, survivors of sexual violence, have been meaning to discuss with you for some time now, but your authority can be more intimidating than you may know. I am also unsure if you are aware just how much power you, as a physician, hold and to the extent that you affect the lives of all of your patients. Your interactions with us travel much deeper than the physical core.
The relationship between patient and doctor is also mental, built on trust, understanding, and the security of knowing that your doctor has your well-being at heart. We, as your patients, entrust in you the most intimate parts of our bodies and our lives. But this trust has to be earned, and it is much harder for us patients who have been so severely violated. The intent of this letter is not to in any way criticize your work as a