[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1484 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1484

 Recognizing the importance of evidence-based parenting and caregiving 
             education in elementary and secondary schools.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 20, 2024

 Mrs. Ramirez (for herself, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Tlaib, Mr. Carson, Ms. 
 Garcia of Texas, and Mr. Doggett) submitted the following resolution; 
   which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Recognizing the importance of evidence-based parenting and caregiving 
             education in elementary and secondary schools.

Whereas evidence-based parenting and caregiving education in schools provides 
        students critical information and tools that can empower them to be 
        agents of change that can result in positive social, emotional, and 
        economic outcomes;
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledges that 
        parenting takes many different forms and that there are positive 
        parenting practices that work well across diverse families and in 
        diverse settings, including responding to children in a predictable way, 
        showing warmth and sensitivity, having routines and household rules, 
        supporting health and safety, and using appropriate discipline without 
        harshness;
Whereas studies have shown that parenting and caregiving programs created to 
        promote healthy cognitive, emotional, and social development can improve 
        the prospects and quality of life for children;
Whereas parenting and caregiving programs can provide critical information on 
        child development and safety, promote positive parenting and caregiving 
        behaviors, teach effective discipline strategies, and reduce levels of 
        child abuse and neglect;
Whereas adaptive behaviors are defined by the American Psychological Association 
        as the level of everyday performance of tasks that is required for a 
        person to fulfill typical roles in society, including maintaining 
        independence and meeting cultural expectations regarding personal and 
        social responsibility;
Whereas positive parenting and caregiving practices are directly linked to 
        adaptive behaviors in children and can help avert adverse outcomes, 
        especially among at-risk children;
Whereas the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that many factors 
        can increase or decrease the likelihood of someone experiencing and 
        perpetrating violence and defines risk factors as characteristics that 
        may increase the likelihood of experiencing or perpetrating child abuse 
        and neglect;
Whereas positive parenting and caregiving education can inform and make families 
        aware of strategies and tools to prevent child mistreatment, which can 
        interrupt healthy development in children and lead to maladaptive 
        functioning;
Whereas research has shown that the damaging consequences of abuse and neglect 
        can reshape a child's brain, resulting in consequences that last 
        throughout their life, influence the child's amygdala, which regulates 
        emotions, particularly fear and anxiety, and change the functioning of 
        the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for thinking, planning, 
        reasoning, and decision making, which can all lead to behavioral and 
        academic problems;
Whereas, according to the World Health Organization, child maltreatment can 
        cause severe short- and long-term physical, sexual, and mental health 
        consequences, including head injuries and severe disability, post-
        traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, and sexually transmitted 
        infections, which can contribute to social problems including substance 
        abuse, perpetrating or being a victim of violence, smoking, obesity, and 
        unintended pregnancy;
Whereas research has shown that the adverse effects of abuse and neglect on a 
        child's brain and behavioral development are not static and can be 
        reversed with intervention and positive changes in a child's environment 
        that take place when the abuse ends and after the child is given the 
        support they require;
Whereas, according to a recent study through the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, the total national economic burden associated with child 
        abuse and neglect from Federal fiscal year 2018 is approximately 
        $563,000,000,000;
Whereas there are several Federal agencies supporting and providing parenting 
        and caregiving education programs, including--

    (1) the Healthy Marriage and Responsible Fatherhood programs operated 
by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Family Assistance, 
which provide funding for grants, contracts, research and evaluation, and 
other activities to strengthen families, promote responsible parenting, and 
improve family economic stability;

    (2) the Head Start and Early Head Start programs operated by the 
Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and 
Families, which offer comprehensive early childhood education and 
development services to low-income children and their families, among other 
things, and, in accordance with the statutes authorizing such programs, 
``provide services to parents to support their role as parents (including 
parenting skills training and training in basic child development)'';

    (3) the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting program 
operated jointly by the Health Resources and Services Administration and 
the Administration for Children and Families of the Department of Health 
and Human Services, which--

    G    (A) seeks to improve health, well-being, and educational outcomes 
for vulnerable families with young children; and

    G    (B) provides services to the families who voluntarily participate, 
including periodic visits from nurses, social workers, or other 
professionals, home visits to provide tailored services such as parenting 
education, caregiver well-being and child development screenings, and 
referrals to community support;

    (4) Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resiliency in Education) 
operated by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 
which aims to promote the healthy social and emotional development of 
school-aged youth and prevent youth violence in school settings; and

    (5) the Child and Family Development Program operated by the National 
Institute of Food and Agriculture, which strengthens and enhances the well-
being of children, adults, and families by supporting research, education, 
and extension in the areas of prenatal care, early childhood health, 
nutrition, and care, maternal health, parenting education, adult and family 
relationships, adult development and aging, kinship care, intergenerational 
programming, rural health disparities, rural health and safety, and 
professional development in early childhood and adult care;

Whereas Illinois, West Virginia, and California have supported parenting and 
        caregiving education in their schools; and
Whereas Nobel Prize-winning economist James J. Heckman has found that investing 
        in early childhood education and developmental opportunities for at-risk 
        children is an effective strategy to reduce social costs to taxpayers: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the importance of evidence-based parenting 
        and caregiving education; and
            (2) encourages schools to promote evidence-based parenting 
        and caregiving education.
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