ACEs are traumatic experiences that can have a profound effect on a child’s developing brain and body with lasting impacts on a person’s mental health and chronic disease risk throughout the lifespan. The negative effects of ACEs on an individual’s well-being begin in childhood/adolescence and continue throughout the course of life resulting in increased risk for behavioral problems, poor school performance, depressive and anxiety disorders, substance abuse, and increased chronic disease such as obesity and cardiovascular disease.
There are ten recognized ACEs, which fall into three types—abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction.
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The Supporting Trauma Awareness and Nurturing Children’s Environment (STANCE) project is a multi-level, multi-generational, community-based intervention to decrease the cycle of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and promote protective factors for young children and their families. This project was designed with the San Luis Valley (SLV) of Colorado through a long-standing community-academic partnership with a community advisory board. The STANCE components include: 1) building infrastructure in early childhood education (ECE) settings to conduct universal screenings for early detection of ACEs, 2) implementing evidence-based programs to promote socioemotional development in young children, and 3) strengthening the community network of care to better support young children and families struggling with ACEs.
The STANCE project was implemented across 15 ECE programs, reaching over 300 teachers, 1,700 children, and 90 families. STANCE significantly improved children’s social-emotional skills, including empathy, engagement, and self-control. Additionally, there was a noticeable increase in teachers’ application of social-emotional teaching practices, and increased confidence and knowledge among parents regarding the promotion of their children’s social-emotional development. STANCE also elevated community awareness concerning ACEs and benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs) and improved collaboration within the network of care, particularly in terms of information and data sharing among participating organizations.
STANCE findings are currently being disseminated across our partner networks at local, state, regional, and national levels. Dissemination products to promote STANCE include a STANCE infographicpromoted on social media, a podcast highlighting the STANCE-related community work in early childhood within the SLV, and the STANCE toolkit. This comprehensive toolkit was developed as a translation resource for other communities addressing ACEs and BCEs. Through text, videos, and interactive elements, the STANCE toolkit includes information and tools on young children’s social-emotional development, the STANCE intervention, program evaluation, and sustainability. The STANCE team is currently providing technical assistance to other Colorado ECE organizations as they utilize the toolkit in their implementation and translation efforts of STANCE. In the upcoming year, we plan to further disseminate the STANCE toolkit across Colorado, Region 8, and beyond.
