Monday August 27, 2001
Adopted Kids Better Adjusted Than First Thought-study released over weekend
While past studies have suggested that adopted children are at higher risk for psychological challenges than non-adopted children, new studies show that there is less difference between the two groups than previously thought.
The findings were released Saturday at the American Psychological Association’s annual meeting in San Francisco.
The report also said, “White American families are adopting children from non-white backgrounds at an unprecedented rate. The National Adoption Information Clearinghouse reported a nearly three-fold increase in transracial adoptions over the past nine years.
One in 10 Girls Abused While on Dates
Here is another stunning report released this weekend.
–One in 10 girls and nearly one in 20 boys reported being raped or physically abused on dates, a broad survey of high school students found. Researchers analyzing a 1998 survey of Minnesota ninth- and 12th-graders also found that the victims of both genders were much more likely than non-abused young people to report emotional problems including suicidal thoughts and eating disorders, and to have lower emotional well-being and self-esteem. And with about 6 percent of the boys and girls reporting some type of date-related violence by ninth grade, the study shows the need to begin preventive efforts before high school, said the lead author, psychologist Diann Ackard.
Read report summary here
Read USAToday story here
Reprobates and Rebates
The Dallas Morning News reports: “The state attorney general’s office announced last week that it has intercepted about $3.3 million in tax-cut checks headed to parents who are past due in their child-support payments.
By the time all tax rebate checks are mailed by Oct. 11, an estimated $16.5 million will be seized and diverted to children owed support in Texas, officials say. “Parents failing to pay their child support should know that my office will use every legal means to see that they own up to their responsibilities,” Attorney General John Cornyn said.”
What is your state doing? How much has been seized? If the state is not grabbing the money, why not? It’s a story either way.
New Study Says Schools Have Crisis Plans, but…
A CDC sponsored study took a look at how schools are addressing violence. They found, “that every one of the schools [in the study] has a crisis management plan but almost none of the teachers know how to use it,” said Arthur Horne, lead researcher on the project. Psychologists at the University of Illinois in Chicago found that family-focused prevention is effective in decreasing anti-social behavior, including violence, among youth.
The researchers worked with parents and children in family counseling sessions that focused on building inter-family support networks, improving discipline techniques, managing emotions and increasing involvement in the child’s school.
One year after the interventions took place, the youths showed a marked improvement in social performance at school and at home. The results show that strategies to reduce school violence need to be holistic in their approach and should take into account familial, community and societal factors, said Tolan.
College Endowments Take a Hit
The bursting Internet bubble and Wall Street’s rocky performance have eroded the market value of many university endowments.
Philly.com says, “ Some colleges saw endowments drop by as much as 11 percent this year, even with gifts continuing to come in. The downturn, which colleges say should not affect their budgets in the short term, came after an extensive run of endowment growth spurred by the go-go 1990s on Wall Street. For instance, Lehigh University lost $46 million on the value of its endowment in the fiscal year that ended June 30, a decline of just under 6 percent, to $746 million. That came after six years of growth that averaged 16 percent a year.”
It might be a great story to see what your local schools are doing to make up the loss.
