Cope 24: This Organization Is Making Parenting Skills a Priority.

Through child development classes and a powerful curriculum, Rene Howitt is creating change.

image: A. Pesurala

A new year is upon us but some of yesterday’s issues still remain unsolved. In 2020 we are still facing a national crisis pertaining to the abuse and neglect of children. According to a Brooking Education research essay by Richard P. Barth and Ron Haskins “More than 3 million American children are investigated for child maltreatment each year, and 800,000 children — about one in every hundred — are identified by state agencies as having been abused or neglected. More than 1,500 children die as a result of this maltreatment. The damage to children is most often inflicted by their parents — many, if not most, of whom are overwhelmed by a sense of parental frustration and failure.” Obviously these numbers are only the ones actually reported so you can only imagine how many more children are suffering at the hands of mistreatment and poor parenting.

The article went on to state that, “Child maltreatment, the most extreme outcome of poor parenting, seriously impairs the mental health and disrupts the development of children. But research shows that parenting that is problematic without reaching the level of maltreatment can also lead to seriously negative educational and mental health outcomes for children.”

Child Advocate and Author Renee Howitt has been trying to change the trajectory of how children are parented by dealing with the foundation and core of the issue. Through her organization, COPE24 , Howitt has been pushing for the the need to make parenting and child development education secondary only to the core subjects in our high school system. Inspired by her own experience of taking in two foster children, Howitt’s journey completely changed her life and how she viewed parenting. “The breakdown of the family is a national national health crisis and we must seek a proactive response. Making the families of tomorrow stronger ensures the safety of childhood. To make families stronger, we must ask our school systems to re prioritize the educational needs of the students,” she shared.

Howitt founded the non-profit, COPE24 which is a 501(c)(3) almost nine years ago. Howitt has spoken in over 240 schools and universities across the country…