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Our weekly e-newsletter to providers combines grantee resources, stories of interest, exclusive educational opportunities, and grant information. In this issue:
 
 October is World Bullying Prevention Month. Did you know at least 1 out of every 5 kids in the United States is bullied? In Texas, at least 40% of those who are bullied have seriously considered suicide. The conversation to prevent bulling can start as early as a when a child learns the difference between kindness and unkindness.
Upcoming dates to remember:
- October 19th: Unity Day Wear orange on #UnityDay
We've put together this social media toolkit designed to help caregivers have conversations with their children about bullying that can be posted on your organization’s websites or social media channels.
Included in the toolkit:
- Messages to use in promoting bullying prevention;
- Bullying prevention resources; and
- Sample bullying prevention imagery to share and post.
The messages and links in the toolkit can be used as is, or they can be customized in any way that works best for the month or year round in your community by directing to your prevention program’s information.
 Prevent Cyberbullying
- Preventing cyberbullying starts with paying attention. You can help protect your child from negative online content and interactions by monitoring what he is doing online. For example:
- Talk about social media and the internet openly and regularly so your child feels comfortable talking to you about things that happen online.
- Set family rules about digital behavior and what is appropriate. Kids shouldn't give out passwords or personal information like their name, address, or phone number. Remind children not to say anything online that they wouldn't say in person.
- Monitor your child's app usage and browsing history on all devices.
- Review or reset the location and privacy settings on any devices your child uses.
- Stay up-to-date on the latest apps, social media platforms, and digital slang used by children and teens.
- Know your child's user names and passwords for email, gaming, texting, and social media accounts.
- For teens who may have social media accounts, monitor their social media usage. Follow or friend your child on social media platforms and be aware that many teens have more than one account for each platform.
- Consider using parental control settings on devices to set daily time limits on your child's use of devices and apps. There are also free software options and apps that can help parents restrict content, block domains, or view children's online activities.
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Even if the cyberbullying did not happen during school hours, most schools like to be aware of it, so be sure to notify your child's school. |
What Should You Do If Your Child Is Cyberbullied?
If you suspect your child might have been bullied online, try to gather as much information as possible. Knowing more about the bullying helps stop the unwanted contact.
- Talk to your child. Ask questions and try to find out what happened and who was involved. The most important first step a child can take if he experiences cyberbullying is to tell someone.
- If possible, ask your child to show you the threatening or hurtful texts or posts. Contact the police if the threat involves physical violence or a crime.
- Tell your child to not respond to cyberbullies. While ignoring a cyberbully is hard, this is an effective way to take away any power they have. Responding when upset will only make things worse.
- When possible, block the person bullying and always report the bullying to the social media platform, app, or school. Most platforms have a way to report offensive content or have it removed.
- Take screenshots of all interactions and keep copies in case further intervention is needed, such as legal action or action taken through the school.
- Talk to your child to determine what type of support he needs and what he feels is the best course of action to resolve the cyberbullying. Cyberbullying removes a sense of control from your child. By including him in the solution, you're helping him regain control.
- After you and your child come to a decision on what action needs to be taken it is important that you act immediately so he knows you can and will support him through this.
- Notify your child's school if a classmate is the cyberbully.
- Cyberbullying can escalate. If the steps you and your child decide on do not stop the cyberbullying, it is important to speak up for him until you find someone who can help, whether it's the school, the application platform, or law enforcement.
 Achieve OnDemand: Supervising Home Visitors (Self-Paced Course)
Supervision plays a vital role in keeping home visits centered on parent-child relationships and the content focused on the achievement of outcomes. Supervisors know, however, that home visitors routinely work with families whose complex needs go beyond what home visits alone can address. This course offers practical strategies new and experienced supervisors can use to make the most of their interactions and time with home visitors to meet these challenges. Explore best practices to ensure your team achieves success with families with your critical support as their supervisor.
PEIRS: Walk through of the PEIRS application for Home Visiting Programs and Non-Home Visiting Programs
This is a high level walk-through of the PEIRS application. The first section is specifically targeted for home visiting programs and is followed by a section for non-home visiting programs. The second section begins at the 1-hour mark. Topics include a walk-through of all PEIRS pages and tabs with a specific focus on changes to the PEIRS application.
To take these courses: Type or paste the course names above into the search bar on the PEI Learning Hub:
- Click on the course and select “request”
- On your transcript select “launch” to begin
- When the video is complete, go to "completed" courses in your transcript
- Select "evaluate" to provide feedback
For questions, contact PEITraining@dfps.state.tx.us.
 Access the Essentials of Home Visiting live webinars through the Essentials of Home Visiting Portal free of cost.
Use this link to register for any webinars from Start EarlyTM
Essentials of Home Visiting: Home Visiting Safety (Webinar)
Date: October 19th
Time: 10:00 A.M. - 11:00 A.M. CDT
Register By: October 18th, 10:00 A.M. CDT
What measures should you take to ensure your personal safety in your work with families? This webinar explores the importance of home visitor safety, how to identify safety risk factors, and appropriate actions to take based on various risk factors. This webinar complements the Basics of Home Visiting self-paced course.
Domestic Violence: Safety Planning (Webinar)
Date: October 27th
Time: 12:00 P.M. - 1:00 P.M. CDT
Register By: October 26th, 12:00 P.M. CDT
As a home visitor, how can you support families impacted by domestic violence to develop a safety plan? This webinar discusses developing a working knowledge of community resources and collaborating with formal and informal institutions to support families using a strength-based, family-centered approach. This webinar complements the Domestic Violence in Home Visiting self-paced course.
 PIP 2022 Recordings
Recordings of select sessions from the 2022 Partners in Prevention Conference are now available to watch online! Click below to view the sessions. Note: Watching session recordings does not qualify for CEUs.
FY22 Final Billing Office Hours
This setting is for grantees who had access to TANF PEAF (Pandemic Emergency Assistance Fund) dollars in FY22. PEI will provide guidance and information on how to finalize both your regular and final TANF billings for the FY22 period.
Click on the link below to register and watch the recording.
 Date: November 29th - December 1st
Time: 9:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M. CST
Register Now
The 6th Advancing Behavioral Health Collaboration (ABC) Annual Summit will be held virtually on November 29th, November 30th, and December 1st. Registration is free.
This year’s theme is Integrating School Mental Health to Support the Whole Child. Presentations will focus on ways to elevate and integrate school mental health and wellness to support the whole child by advancing school mental health practices and strengthening community partnerships.
Each of the three days will highlight different levels of tiered integrated students supports including universal, targeted, and intensive interventions. This summit will showcase best practices, shared insights and provide resources to advance school mental health.
Participation is encouraged for professionals working in education service centers, local education agencies, state agencies, and community organizations who desire to support schools, learn from colleagues, and strengthen student mental health in Texas.
Over 300,000 Activity Books have enriched the lives of Texas children this year - order yours now! GetParentingTips Activity Books feature artwork, puzzles, and language learning activities, and each box comes with crayons for children. They're free to order and ship throughout Texas.
Thoughts, comments or suggestions to make PEI Grantee News work better for you? Send them to PEInews@dfps.texas.gov!
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