Building a Legacy of Safety: Smart Strategies for Sexual Abuse Prevention

Monday, February 3 | 3:05 PM - 4:20 PM

Session Description:

A child's safety is an adult's job and protecting children from sexual abuse is one of the most important jobs for every professional working with children. This workshop will help educators, camp counselors, coaches, and other professionals working with children build a legacy of safety for children by teaching smart strategies for providing the children in their care with the life skills needed to begin a foundation of safety that will last their lifetime.  Attendees will learn the dos and don'ts of mandatory reporting, how to identify “red flag behaviors,” how to respond to parents' concerns about safety, how to keep staff safe as well as the children in their care, how to easily integrate safety into their curriculum, and what is normal behavior and when to be concerned.  Attendees will also learn why “stranger danger” does not work and could even be dangerous for children.  Finally, this workshop will address several media myths, some age-specific safety tips, ten safety rules every child should know by the time they enter kindergarten, and the importance of helping children develop healthy boundaries.  Attendees will leave this educational and interactive workshop feeling empowered with simple, actionable, and research-based tools they can add to their toolbox!

About the Speaker:

Christy Keating
Savvy & Safe

Christy Keating is the Owner, CEO, and Principal Presenter at Savvy & Safe.  As a licensed attorney, Christy spent nearly twenty years as a felony prosecutor in the King County prosecutor’s Office in Seattle, where she spent the latter part of her career specializing in the prosecution of sexually violent predators.  Immersed in the world of sexual assault and child sexual abuse, Christy developed a deep understanding and expertise in predatory tactics and abuse prevention strategies.  She now uses that knowledge to educate parents, caregivers, educators, and other professionals so as to help stop these problems before they happen, rather than addressing them after the fact. Christy is also credentialed through the Parent Coach Institute and Seattle Pacific University as a Certified Parent Coach® and has spent more than a decade working with parents.  Christy is a Certified Positive Discipline Educator and a Certified Gottman Educator enjoys educating and coaching parents through her sister company, The Heartful Parent.  Christy lives in the greater Seattle area with her husband and two daughters. 

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