Coastal Children’s Advocacy Center (CCAC) will host its second annual all-day child abuse awareness conference entitled “Stand Up.Speak Out.” on April 19 at the Armstrong Center in Savannah, Georgia. 

“We are thrilled to announce the return of Stand Up. Speak Out. for its second year,” said Executive Director Rose Grant-Wiseman, CCAC. “As we build upon the success of last year’s event andexpand this conference, we aim to foster a heightened understanding of child abuse and how it impacts both children and families throughout their entire lives.”

The conference will feature keynote speakers Adam Dodge and Cory Jewell Jensen, breakout sessions, networking and discussion opportunities. Dodge, founder of EndTAB and The Tech Savvy Parent, is a frequent speaker and lecturer at universities and national conferences addressing existing and future threats posed by technology to youth and victims of gender-based violence. He sits on the World Economic Forum’s Digital Justice Advisory Committee and has worked with technology companies such as Bumble, Headspace and Ring to improve safety and wellbeing. Jensen is co-director of the Center for Behavioral Intervention, where she’s spent the past three decades interviewing sex offenders to learn why they target children and how they manipulate them into a cycle of abuse.

One breakout session will feature Naeshia McDowell, Director of the Commercial Sexual Exploitation (CSEC) Response Team, a program of the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Georgia. McDowell is an active member of the Georgia Statewide Human Trafficking Taskforce, editor of Georgia’s Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Technical Assistance Resource Guide and chair of the Keeping At-Risk Youth Safe workgroup. 

Stand Up. Speak Out. will be held from 8 a.m.– 4 p.m. on Friday, April 19 at the Armstrong Center, located at 13040 Abercorn Street, Savannah, GA 31419. A light breakfast and a catered lunch will be served. Attendees are kindly asked to register at: https://standupspeakoutccac.squarespace.com/register-now. Registration will close on Monday, April 1. CEUs (continuing education credits) are available for purchase in advance for $45 each. If you have any questions regarding your registration or need additional information, please contact Alexis Mack or Brooke Bunting at [email protected].