CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY CENTER (CAC)
Established in 1997 as a project of the Lucas County Child Abuse Task Force, the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) provides services to over 400 children each year. The CAC stresses coordination of investigation and intervention services by bringing together professionals and agencies as a multidisciplinary team to create a child-focused approach to child abuse cases. The goal is to ensure that children are not re-victimized by the very system designed to protect them. The CAC in Lucas County was one of the first CACs in the state and has the honor of being one of 26 programs in Ohio to have Full Member status in the National Children’s Alliance, the accrediting body for CACs nationwide. Additionally, there are no fees for all of the services offered to families through the CAC. We are funded through generous grants and donations to provide support to children and their families. 
GOALS
If you have any questions about our services, please feel free to contact us at 419.292.2927. |
MISSION
The mission of the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) is to provide the community with a coordinated, multidisciplinary, and sensitive approach to child abuse through a child-friendly center in which child abuse can be investigated. The CAC recognizes the need to reduce the trauma that children and families experience during the investigation and prosecution process. |
NALA IS THE CAC'S CERTIFIED THERAPY DOG
Nala is here to provide emotional support and therapeutic benefits to the children with whom she works.
Example: A child who has no boundaries with people and will hug anyone after just meeting them. Explaining that the child should ask permission to hug a person or dog before doing it.
Teaching children about coping skills. Example: Writing in my diary, playing a game or taking a bath.
Nala would like to THANK YOU for your support of The Children’s Advocacy Center. Nala is completely supported through donations and various fundraisers. Your help allows our agency to continue offering a therapy dog to the children and families that visit our agency. She also makes our staff and community members very HAPPY!
Nala is here to provide emotional support and therapeutic benefits to the children with whom she works.
Example: A child who has no boundaries with people and will hug anyone after just meeting them. Explaining that the child should ask permission to hug a person or dog before doing it.
Teaching children about coping skills. Example: Writing in my diary, playing a game or taking a bath.
Nala would like to THANK YOU for your support of The Children’s Advocacy Center. Nala is completely supported through donations and various fundraisers. Your help allows our agency to continue offering a therapy dog to the children and families that visit our agency. She also makes our staff and community members very HAPPY!
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BENEFITS OF A THERAPY DOG
*The information above comes from: Parish-Plass, N. (2008). Animal-assisted therapy with children suffering from insecure attachment due to abuse and neglect; A method to lower the risk of inter-generational transmission of abuse. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 13 (1), 7-30 |
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q Where does Nala live? A Nala was adopted from a local rescue group in 2009 and lives with our Trauma Therapist, Kelly Rupp. Q May I pet Nala? A Absolutely! Her favorite part to be scratched is her lower back. Please ask first, as she may be following a command from her handler. Q Does Nala work every day? A No. Nala works at the center 1-2 days a week. Q Does Nala do “normal” dog stuff? A Yes, of course. Nala has a fur sister, Molly who she loves to play and snuggle with :) She also enjoys long walks and LOTS of treats! |
We offer short-term therapy to children and adolescents (ages 3-18) who have experienced sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect, or emotional/verbal abuse. Our Trauma Therapy program is approximately 10-12 sessions with one of our trained therapists who use trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT). Sessions vary in length anywhere from 45-60 minutes depending on the age of the child. We have both female and male staff members available to work with children who have experienced these types of abuse. If children are in need of long-term services following their sessions at this agency, therapists here will provide referrals for additional services.
Animal-assisted therapy is utilized on a case by case basis. All kids are screened to work with the therapy dog (Nala) and the therapist makes decision on who would be appropriate for working with the dog.
In order to start services our staff would need to conduct an assessment with the caregiver(s) of the children coming in for services. We ask that this assessment includes only the caregiver(s) and that children are not present so that we can better explain our services and gather information. Individual sessions for the children to attend will be scheduled at the conclusion of the assessment.
For further questions about this program or to schedule an assessment, please contact us at 419.292.2927.
Animal-assisted therapy is utilized on a case by case basis. All kids are screened to work with the therapy dog (Nala) and the therapist makes decision on who would be appropriate for working with the dog.
In order to start services our staff would need to conduct an assessment with the caregiver(s) of the children coming in for services. We ask that this assessment includes only the caregiver(s) and that children are not present so that we can better explain our services and gather information. Individual sessions for the children to attend will be scheduled at the conclusion of the assessment.
For further questions about this program or to schedule an assessment, please contact us at 419.292.2927.
Our Safety Education program teaches young children about safe and unsafe touches and ways to seek help from trusted adults. This program consists of four (4) individual sessions.
In order to start services our staff would need to conduct an assessment with the caregiver(s) of the children coming in for services. We ask that this assessment includes only the caregiver(s) and that children are not present so that we can better explain our services and gather information. Individual sessions for the children to attend will be scheduled at the conclusion of the assessment.
For further questions about this program or to schedule an assessment, please contact us at 419.292.2927.
In order to start services our staff would need to conduct an assessment with the caregiver(s) of the children coming in for services. We ask that this assessment includes only the caregiver(s) and that children are not present so that we can better explain our services and gather information. Individual sessions for the children to attend will be scheduled at the conclusion of the assessment.
For further questions about this program or to schedule an assessment, please contact us at 419.292.2927.
The Non-Offending Caregiver Education Class is an educational program for non-offending caregivers of sexually abused children.
This program consists of a 60-minute assessment followed by four (4) individual sessions lasting 60 minutes each and assists Non-Offending Caregivers in areas such as understanding the scope of child sexual abuse, recognizing indicators, acknowledging the impact that sexual abuse has on children and their families, communication, coping skills, and more.
For further questions about this program or to schedule an assessment, please contact us at 419.292.2927.
This program consists of a 60-minute assessment followed by four (4) individual sessions lasting 60 minutes each and assists Non-Offending Caregivers in areas such as understanding the scope of child sexual abuse, recognizing indicators, acknowledging the impact that sexual abuse has on children and their families, communication, coping skills, and more.
For further questions about this program or to schedule an assessment, please contact us at 419.292.2927.
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CWWV Program Trauma Therapist
CAC Supervisor Sara Sweet, LPCC-S 419.292.2927 ext. 304 ssweet@fcapc.org Trauma Therapist CAC Supervisor Kelly Rupp, LISW-S 419.292.2927 ext. 302 krupp@fcapc.org |
The CAC offers a child-friendly site where professionals conduct joint investigative interviews of child victims of abuse or other acts of violence. These interviews are conducted by law enforcement or children's services workers. The CAC does not schedule forensic interviews on our own, as these decisions are made by law enforcement or children's services.
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The CAC has a complete medical examination room equipped with a colposcope. The medical examination is non-invasive and nothing is inserted into the child. A colposcope is a piece of equipment that magnifies and documents any visible injuries on the child, and no part of the colposcope touches the child during the examination. |
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