[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 59 (Monday, May 15, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H3002-H3005]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING IN-SCHOOL PERSONAL SAFETY PROGRAMS

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 309) expressing the sense of the 
Congress with regard to in-school personal safety education programs 
for children.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 309

       Whereas there were more than 84,000 confirmed cases of 
     sexual abuse in the United States in 1997 and 90 percent of 
     the victims under 12 years old knew their offender;
       Whereas 867,129 individuals were reported missing in 1999 
     and 85 to 90 percent of these missing persons were children;
       Whereas according to Department of Justice research, there 
     are approximately 114,000 nonfamily abductions in any one-
     year period;
       Whereas a central element of the National Center for 
     Missing and Exploited Children's (NCMEC) congressionally 
     mandated mission is to prevent the victimization of children;
       Whereas NCMEC examined the state of child safety education 
     in the United States, focusing on what works and what does 
     not;

[[Page H3003]]

       Whereas nearly every primary and secondary school in the 
     Nation conducts some sort of child safety education program, 
     but NCMEC concluded that most such child safety programs were 
     inadequate to promote personal safety for children;
       Whereas guidelines, such as those developed by NCMEC, will 
     help ensure that educators and child-serving organizations 
     have the best possible tools and information to make 
     decisions regarding child safety curriculum selection and 
     development; and
       Whereas child safety guidelines should be developed in 
     collaboration with leading educational, public policy, and 
     child-serving organizations and the NCMEC's guidelines have 
     been endorsed and are supported by many such organizations: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That--
       (1) it is the sense of the Congress that States should 
     encourage their primary and secondary schools to implement 
     quality child safety curricula so that each child receives 
     instruction that is positive, comprehensive, and effective; 
     and
       (2) the Congress recognizes the National Center for Missing 
     and Exploited Children's ``Guidelines for Programs to Reduce 
     Child Victimization'' as one of the tools to guide the 
     selection of quality child safety programs when local schools 
     develop such programs.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Delaware (Mr. Castle) and the gentlewoman from Hawaii (Mrs. Mink) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle).


                             General Leave

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on 
this resolution, H. Con. Res. 309.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Delaware?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 309, expressing 
the sense of Congress with regard to in-school personal safety 
education programs for children.
  I introduced this resolution along with the founder and chairman of 
the House missing and exploited children's caucus, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Lampson), to help focus our attention on the important issue 
of child safety. I am sure we have all seen the posters, the fliers and 
the special news reports on children who have been abducted from their 
families or who have been otherwise harmed by the adults in their 
lives.
  In fact, in 1997, there were more than 84,000 confirmed cases of 
sexual abuse in the United States, and 90 percent of the children who 
were under 12 years knew their offender. And, according to the 
Department of Justice, there were nearly 114,000 nonfamily abductions 
just last year. I believe that these statistics point to the desperate 
need for comprehensive, age-appropriate safety programs to reduce the 
rate of victimization among our children. And because children can 
learn a great deal in the classroom about basics of personal safety, 
schools have increasingly become the center of our prevention efforts. 
Yet according to a recent survey, while nearly every primary and 
secondary school in the Nation conducts some sort of child safety 
education program, most programs are inadequate to actually prevent 
victimization and promote personal safety.
  For this reason, H. Con. Res. 309 does two things. First, it 
expresses the sense of Congress that States should encourage their 
primary and secondary schools to implement child safety curricula so 
that each child receives instruction that is positive, comprehensive 
and effective.
  Second, the resolution recognizes the National Center for Missing and 
Exploited Children's guidelines for programs to reduce child 
victimization as one of the tools to guide the selection of quality 
child safety programs. I hold up a copy of this. This is as good and as 
substantive a document as I have read. I would encourage every office 
to get hold of a copy of that.

                              {time}  1645

  As the Nation's preeminent resource for programs and materials to 
prevent child victimization, the National Center for Missing and 
Exploited Children is often asked to endorse specific programs and 
provide guidance to schools, community groups and individuals who are 
trying to choose among different child safety programs. Although the 
National Center does not endorse specific products or programs, they 
recently completed a comprehensive assessment of available education 
materials, and they have developed guidelines, as I have already shown, 
to help parents and educators identify and implement quality child 
safety programs. Their criteria was developed in collaboration with 
experts from the fields of education and law enforcement, and they are 
now supported by a number of organizations, including the American 
Academy of Pediatrics, the National Association of Elementary School 
Principals, the National Association of Attorneys General, the Boys and 
Girls Clubs of America, and many others.
  I believe their products, the guidelines to reduce child 
victimization, is one way to help ensure that the child safety programs 
are locally designed, but that they are also effective in increasing 
our children's ability to recognize and avoid potentially dangerous 
situations.
  In closing, I hope all Members will join with me to support the 
National Center throughout the month of May and help us picture our 
lost children home. For these children, school-based safety programs 
may be too late, but we can take a few moments to view the pictures of 
missing children on the National Center's web site and return these 
children to their families' loving embrace. In the meantime, we can 
pass this resolution and encourage our schools and our educators to 
obtain the necessary tools to help our children avoid a similar fate.
  I would like to thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) again 
for his efforts and involvement with child safety issues, and I would 
encourage the adoption of this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mrs. MINK of Hawaii asked and was given permission to revise and 
extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 
309, bipartisan legislation introduced by the gentleman from Delaware 
(Mr. Castle) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) in support of 
guidelines issued by the National Center on Missing and Exploited 
Children on child safety and abuse programs.
  One of the most important concerns for parents today is the safety of 
their children. Whether they are walking to school, riding bicycles 
around town, or even going to the mall, children need to be aware of 
their surroundings and cautious about contact with adults they do not 
know. Since 357,000 child abductions happen every year, these issues 
are critical to our families and our communities.
  The resolution that the House is considering today recognizes the 
National Center's guidelines as one of several tools that should guide 
the selection of child safety programs, particularly in our schools. 
Specifically, the guidelines provide background information as a 
general framework to assist schools, communities and individuals in 
choosing, implementing and evaluating programs to prevent and reduce 
child abuse and to generally promote child safety. It does not endorse 
or recommend specific programs or methods, but does describe practices 
and techniques which appear to be most effective in attaining the goals 
of these programs.
  Clearly, this guide can be an essential tool for school districts 
seeking to improve child safety programs and to reduce child abuse. We 
need to establish programs that provide useful information to children, 
encourage self-confidence and teach assertiveness skills so that they 
can recognize danger and avoid abduction.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to congratulate again both the 
gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. 
Lampson) for their conscientious efforts and for collaborating together 
on a bipartisan basis and bringing this resolution for consideration by 
the House today.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Goodling), Chairman of the Committee 
on Education and the Workforce.

[[Page H3004]]

  Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Speaker, I also rise today in support of H. Con. 
Res. 309, expressing the sense of Congress with regard to in-school 
personal safety education programs for children. You have heard the 
horrible statistics as the subcommittee chair recited them. I would add 
one more to those. As I drive behind school buses and notice every time 
they stop and see children jump off and run across in front of that bus 
without looking either way, assuming that the cars are going to stop as 
they are supposed to, but each year we read about the number of cars 
that do not stop, unfortunately.
  H. Con. Res. 309 will help draw attention to these devastating 
statistics that are so drastically impacting our Nation's young people 
and make information available regarding personal safety education 
programs to schools across the country.
  The resolution is simple and straightforward. First, it states the 
sense of Congress that States should encourage their primary and 
secondary schools to implement quality child safety curricula so that 
each child receives instruction that is positive, comprehensive and 
effective. Let me be clear about this point: H. Con. Res. 309 does not 
promote a specific child safety curriculum. It simply says that States 
should encourage their schools to implement locally appropriate child 
safety education programs.
  Second, this resolution recognizes the National Center for Missing 
and Exploited Children and their guidelines for programs to reduce 
child victimization as one of the tools to guide the selection of 
quality child safety programs when local schools develop such programs.
  The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is a nonprofit 
organization that serves as a focal point in providing assistance to 
parents, children, law enforcement, schools and the community in 
recovering missing children and raising public awareness about ways to 
help prevent child abduction, molestation and sexual exploitation. 
Their mission is twofold: The Center works to find missing children, 
and they try to prevent future victimization of children. To prevent 
the victimization of children, the Center argues that every child 
should receive instructions on personal safety that are positive, 
comprehensive and effective.
  The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children examined the 
state of child safety education in the United States. On a positive 
note, they found that nearly every primary and secondary school in the 
Nation conducts some sort of child safety education program. 
Unfortunately, the Center concluded that most of these child safety 
programs were inadequate to promote successful personal safety for 
children.
  The Center does not endorse specific products or programs. However, 
because of their examination of child safety programs, they have 
developed guidelines for educational programs in the hope that 
educators and parents will use these criteria to review proposed 
programs. These guidelines are not legal standards and they are not 
community-specific. They are simply intended to provide a framework for 
communities when selecting safety programs and making curriculum 
decisions.
  The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children guidelines 
came about as a result of exhaustive research and significant 
experience in the field of child safety. These guidelines argue that 
training and educational materials proposed for use by schools and 
organizations that serve children should, first, be based on accepted 
educational theories, be appropriate for the age and educational and 
developmental levels of the child, offer concepts that will help 
children build self-confidence in order to better handle and protect 
themselves in all types of situations, have multiple program components 
that are repeated several years in a row, and utilize qualified 
presenters who use role-playing behavioral rehearsal feedback and 
active participation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reiterate that H. Con. Res. 309 does not endorse a 
child safety curriculum from Washington. Rather, it urges schools to 
consider child safety guidelines when selecting or creating a localized 
curriculum. We are not trying to assert local control of education; we 
are merely trying to help ensure that educators and child-serving 
organizations have access to and consider available information in 
making decisions regarding the development of child safety education 
programs.
  I want to thank the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle), the 
Chairman of the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Youth and Families, 
for introducing this legislation, and I also want to commend the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) for his yeoman work in helping to 
ensure a safer world for our Nation's youth. I urge my colleagues to 
support H. Con. Res. 309.
  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 4 minutes to 
the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson), who has demonstrated tremendous 
leadership on this whole issue of missing and unaccounted for children. 
The gentleman has been on the floor and has done so much to awaken the 
consciousness of the Members of this Chamber, and, through us, the rest 
of the country.
  Mr. LAMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Hawaii for 
yielding me time, and for both you and the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. 
Castle) for all the hard work that you and many others have done on 
this particular issue.
  It was about April of 1997 that I became involved with what became 
the Congressional Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children, and that 
happened after a 12-year-old constituent of mine was abducted and 
murdered within my district. To date, this bipartisan caucus is one of 
the largest in the House of Representatives, with about 145 Members. 
That is significant.
  The goals of the caucus are threefold: First, to build awareness 
around the issue of missing and exploited children for the purpose of 
finding children who are currently missing and to prevent future 
abductions; second, to create a voice within Congress on the issue of 
missing and exploited children and to introduce legislation that would 
strengthen law enforcement, community organizing and school-based 
efforts to address child abduction; third, to identify ways to work 
effectively in our districts to address child abduction. By developing 
cooperative efforts that involve police departments, educators and 
community groups, we can heighten the level of awareness of this issue 
and pool resources for the purpose of solving outstanding cases and 
preventing future abductions.
  Today's vote of the National Center for Missing and Exploited 
Children's Taskforce guidelines meet the objectives that I just stated. 
I am so pleased to be the lead Democrat on this resolution, with my 
friend, the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle). The gentleman from 
Delaware (Mr. Castle) has been involved with this issue for many years, 
sponsoring legislation to authorize funding for the National Center for 
Missing and Exploited Children, which in turn enables the Center to 
establish task forces such as its Education Standards Task Force in 
1999 to assess leading research and create meaningful guidelines and 
criteria.
  This resolution urges nationwide implementation of standards-based, 
high-quality child safety curricula. Hopefully schools across the 
Nation will follow these guidelines and develop programs implementing 
these guidelines, while addressing local needs and concerns.
  Personal safety is something many young people do not think about. 
But in this rapidly changing and unpredictable world, we, as parents, 
teachers, neighbors and coaches, must teach our children that they 
cannot take anything for granted. I would like to emphasize that it 
takes each and every one of us, the entire community, to keep our kids 
safe, happy and healthy. We cannot bury our heads in the sand and 
ignore these risks. We must act and we must educate to save another 
family from the heart-breaking tragedy of a child abduction or 
exploitation.
  Mr. Speaker, I can honestly say this issue means more to me than any 
other. Keeping our children safe has become my mission while serving as 
your Congressman.
  Let me conclude by stating that the caucus would not be nearly as 
effective in producing innovative legislation and helpful district 
safety workshops without the advice and programs offered by the 
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The Center's 
outreach programs range from helping

[[Page H3005]]

chiefs of police and sheriffs to develop fast response plans to reports 
of missing children, to educational public service campaigns designed 
to help children escape potentially dangerous situations, to developing 
guidelines like those we are talking about today. These guidelines need 
to be in every school across America. With the passage of H. Con. Res. 
309, they will be.
  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for 
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would just like to say in final closing, I cannot 
thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Lampson) enough for his continuing 
work on this issue, not just this legislation, but he truly has been 
the stalwart in the task force dealing with an issue which, as he said, 
is as important to him as anything we are doing in Congress, and I 
think it is to everybody.
  Again, I would point out that this is a wonderful pamphlet, it is not 
a pamphlet, it is a little more than that, for anybody who has read it. 
It does not advertise any particular program, but it is a guideline for 
programs to reduce child victimization, a resource for communities when 
choosing a program to teach personal safety to children. I would 
encourage everybody to get a copy of this. You can contact any of the 
offices, I am sure, to get a copy of it. I think it is tremendously 
helpful to give to your schools back home.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I support H. Con. Res. 
309 that expresses the sense of the Congress with regard to in school 
personal safety education programs for children.
  I applaud Congressman Castle and Congressman Lampson's leadership on 
bringing this issue to the forefront.
  As this resolution states, we as parents and leaders in our 
communities must encourage primary and secondary schools to implement 
quality child guidelines on how to protect themselves from abuse.
  Unfortunately, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children 
has concluded that most child safety programs are inadequate to promote 
personal safety for children.
  It is estimated that instances of child abuse and neglect are over 
three times greater than what is reported to authorities. Already more 
than 3 million American children annually are reported as suspected 
victims of child abuse and neglect and children every day are abused. 
This amounts to a child abused every 10 seconds in this country.
  In 1999, there were 867,129 confirmed missing individuals with around 
90 percent of these being children.
  Further, it is reported that in 1997 there were 84,000 confirmed 
cases of sexual abuse in the United States whereas 90 percent of these 
victims, who were under 12, knew of their offender.
  In my district alone, there were 6,064 cases of child abuse or 
neglect in the Harris County area. That amounts to almost 30 percent of 
the children in my district being abused or neglected. In the State of 
Texas we have 44,532 children who have been abused or neglected.
  In a Children's Task Force meeting I attended sponsored by my 
colleague Mr. Lampson, Mr. Ernie Allen, president of the National 
Center further explained that the current school programs are 
dysfunctional because most abductions and abuse of children are the 
result of a known relative or family friend. Thus, the ``Don't Talk to 
Stranger'' campaign supported by most programs, fails to educate 
children about potential dangers in the home as well.
  That is why I already support national organizations like Childhelp 
USA, and local organizations like Initiatives for Children in Houston 
which are helped educate both parents and children about child abuse 
and are instrumental in preventing future social problems related to 
child abuse.
  I support this Resolution recognizing the National Center for Missing 
and Exploited Children. Since, The National Center for Missing and 
Exploited Children has already recently released research-based 
guidelines to assist schools as they select curricula aimed at reducing 
crimes against youth and I urge this Congress to pass this resolution 
in support of these guidelines.
  Mr. ETHERIDGE. Mr. Speaker, I am in strong support of House 
Concurrent Resolution 309, the sense of Congress with regard to in-
school personal safety education programs for children. I want to thank 
my colleagues from Texas, Congressman Nick Lampson and my colleague 
from Delaware, Congressman Mike Castle for their leadership on this 
important issue. The safety of our children should be a bipartisan 
effort, and I am pleased my colleagues have worked in cooperation to 
advance this important cause.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart to share with my 
colleagues the mourning that is taking place in and around Wake Forest, 
NC in my Congressional District. Four months ago, 9-year-old C.J. 
Wilkerson was reported missing from his home community. Month after 
month, friends, family members and even perfect strangers have prayed 
for the safe return of this little boy with the infectious smile who 
captured the heart of Wake County. Tragically, C.J.'s body was found 
last week in a wooded area in Raleigh.
  As C.J.'s family lays to rest a young boy taken from this world far 
too soon, our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, friends and 
the broader community. As the former superintendent of North Carolina's 
schools, I want to call attention to the special needs of C.J.'s fellow 
students at Rolesville Elementary School. These children need 
individual attention from caring adults in order to come to grips with 
the trauma of a classmate plucked from within their midst. I know that 
the counselors, teachers and leaders of Rolesville Elementary have come 
together in mutual support to help our children through this tragedy. 
Schools can play a unique role to help children deal with acts of hate 
that make no sense. And schools can and do provide children with 
instruction and resources to keep them safe. Mr. Speaker, I know all of 
my colleagues join me in wishing our most sincere condolences for the 
family of C.J. Wilkerson. I want to thank my colleagues on the Missing 
and Exploited Children Caucus for their leadership on this issue to 
protect other communities from knowing the grief being experienced by 
those who today mourn C.J. Wilkerson.
  Mrs. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Pease). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Delaware (Mr. Castle) that the House 
suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 
309.
  The question was taken.
  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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