MC psychology students plant pinwheels, arrange bouquets in partnership with New Hope Children’s Advocacy Center
There’s an old adage in various recovery circles that pain shared is pain lessened, and Maryville College’s Dr. Ariane Schratter wants that to be a beacon of hope during National Child Abuse Prevention Month.
Observed every April, “National Child Abuse Prevention Month recognizes the importance of families and communities working together to strengthen families to prevent child abuse and neglect,” according to the observance’s national website, maintained by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Through this collaboration, prevention services and supports help protect children and produce thriving families.”
For Schratter, a professor of psychology at MC, that awareness and prevention can be tools incorporated into coursework.
“In Child Development (PSY211), half of the students are working with the Maryville City Schools’ Family Resource Center, which is a wonderful long-term partnership,” she said. “The other half of the class is working with New Hope Children’s Advocacy Center here in Blount County, which assists children who have been abused; they work with the children and their non-perpetrating family members, from disclosure through their legal journey and therapy.
“I’ve partnered with New Hope throughout the past 12 years, and what they’ve discovered when it comes to National Child Abuse Prevention Month is that the more people talk about it, the more the reporting goes up. When the community is exposed to awareness campaigns, more people are paying attention to the signs, and so the number of reported abuse cases goes up, which means more children who may be in potentially abusive situations are helped.”
On Friday, Schratter and students in her Child Trauma and Resilience Course (PSY232) planted a “Pinwheels of Prevention” garden at the Maryville College entrance along Court Street in Maryville. The project is a nationwide campaign, and 2022 marks the sixth year that New Hope has encouraged area organizations, businesses and institutions like Maryville College to signify support for child abuse awareness and prevention in April and throughout the rest of the year. According to the National Children’s Alliance, nearly 700,000 children are abused in the United States each year, and for that reason alone, Schratter believes, more effort is required.
To that end, Maryville College PSY211 students will create an awareness campaign built around New Hope’s theme for the month: “Growing a Better Tomorrow for All Children, Together.” Beginning the week of April 5, pop-up “bouquets” will be distributed around campus containing child abuse awareness facts, warning signs and how-to-help information.
In addition, Schratter said, each bouquet will include a QR code to a form that survivors or those who identify as strong advocates for children can use to share their stories and quotes, should they so choose.
“We learn from those who have been affected, from those who have been helped and from those who help others. We foster healthier communities when we come together in understanding that child abuse is preventable and that we are all part of the solution,” Schratter said. “This is why we’re encouraging anyone who has been affected to tell us their story, so we can grow a better tomorrow for all children, together.”
By distributing the bouquets around the Maryville College campus, psychology students can educate their peers on child abuse facts, signs and symptoms of abuse and ways to help, for children in their own lives or in their futures. And hopefully, Schratter added, they’ll foster conversations about a topic that often seems uncomfortable but necessitates discussion in order to achieve both awareness and prevention.
“As a partner in prevention, we want the community to know that we care about children, and that we share in New Hope’s vision for children,” Schratter said. “We want to have these conversations, and if they work and are successful, perhaps move these bouquets out into the community and sustain these conversations beyond April.”
For more information, email ariane.schratter@maryvillecollege.edu.