Stronger Families Start Here

Annually, KCSL along with 20+ co-sponsoring organizations presents the most comprehensive conference in Kansas about the prevention of child maltreatment. KCSL is committed to featuring the best speakers the field has to offer and to addressing current topics and issues throughout the conference.
The conference ensures professionals working with children have proper training in the field of child abuse and neglect. Governor’s Conference typically is an in-person, 3-day event, but has switched to a virtual event for the last 2 years.

About the Governor’s Conference for the Prevention for Child Abuse and Neglect
Over 40 years ago, child abuse prevention leaders in Kansas established Prevent Child Abuse Kansas (PCAK) as it is known today and held the first state conference on child abuse prevention. In the early 1970s, the Family Life Achievement Center in Chicago decided to focus on the prevention of child abuse and formed a fifty-state, nonprofit organization known as Prevent Child Abuse America today. Kansas was chosen as the first chapter location in 1976 and the first-ever Governor’s Conference was held in the fall later that year. KCSL became the Prevent Child Abuse of Kansas chapter in 1993, thus overseeing the Governor’s Conference since.

2022 Conference Details:
The 46th Annual Governor’s Conference for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect will be virtual again this year! Enhance your professional skills and reconnect with social service leaders like you all from the comfort of your home or office. The Institute sessions will be Oct. 11-12. Plan to attend both blocks of the Institute session. And the full conference will follow on Oct. 18-20 with workshops, awards and keynote speakers. Online registration for the conference opens Aug. 9.

Kansas Children’s Service League (KCSL), in collaboration with other sponsoring agencies, hosts the annual Parent Leadership Conference, a free event designed to help and strengthen the voice of Kansas parents. The conference brings national speakers as well as statewide experts to collaborate with parents on issues that are important to families. This provides a unique opportunity for parents to network as well as educate professionals.
The Parent Leadership Conference strives to provide an atmosphere of personal growth, networking, and skills building. The committee believes strongly in parent/practitioner partnerships and encourages parents to participate as presenters and co-presenters in all workshops.
Conference Objectives
1. Provide tools for families to make beneficial decisions for themselves, their children, and their communities.
2. Provide opportunities for the parent’s voice to be raised in a conference setting with peers.
3. Empower families to understand the importance of family engagement and its link to educational success for all children.

2022 Conference Details:
Mark your calendars! We’re back in person Nov. 4-5 at Hotel Topeka at City Center in Topeka. More information about the 2022 Parent Leadership Conference will be available this fall.

Funds for this project are provided through the Department of Health and Human Services (HSS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five 90TP0078-01-01 ($8,943,000.00) was awarded to the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund (KCCTF). The Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE), the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF), and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) are leading this work with KCCTF. This information or content and conclusions should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HHS, ACF, or the U.S. Government.

Red Stocking Breakfast is KCSL’s signature fundraising event. Multiple breakfasts will be held in December throughout the state to raise money for KCSL’s child abuse prevention programs and services. The events include local celebrities and volunteers serving food, a variety of fun activities like pictures with Santa Claus, and opportunities to enter raffles or bid on silent auction items from area retailers.

KCSL’s Holiday Tradition
The Red Stocking Breakfast is a continuance of a tradition of holiday giving to KCSL that started nearly 100 years ago. In the 1920s, the community was invited to take holiday gifts to children living at KCSL’s receiving home, a temporary residence for children awaiting a foster or adoptive home. These children would hang their “Little Red Stockings” in anticipation of the generosity of the community. KCSL will hold Red Stocking Breakfast events in four areas again this year: Emporia, Overland Park, Topeka and Wichita.

Check back this fall for tickets!