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PAVE Library

The PAVE Project established a library of books, videos, and other resources on the topics of domestic violence; violence in the media; policy and advocacy; peaceful ways of living; peaceful ways of teaching, guidance, discipline, and developing empathy; curriculum activities and strategies; literature for children; the effects of violence on children; child abuse; and parenting. Materials from the PAVE library, in addition to other resources, are available for loan at the Debra S. Fish Early Childhood Resource Library, a service of Resources for Child Caring, 10 Yorkton Court, St. Paul, MN, 55117-1065. The library is open from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. The librarian can be reached at 651-641-3544 or library@resourcesforchildcare.org.

About This Project

The PAVE Project, originally funded through a federal grant, developed a unique training process for early childhood educators, the principles and strategies of which are being used by CEED staff and community providers. As a result of the PAVE Project, faculty from St. Paul Technical College, Minneapolis Technical College, and the University of Minnesota collaborated with local professionals to refine existing Early Childhood Education Curricula to include a focus on violence prevention and intervention (see Courses and Trainings).

A 1995 PAVE FALL INSTITUTE was held for professionals working in child care centers. This unique, interactive training provided an opportunity for 70 teachers to reflect on the qualities that make their classrooms safe, nurturing places for the young children they serve. The action plans they developed are still being implemented. Networking with other early childhood professionals was an important part of the FALL INSTITUTE.

Additional activities conducted during the 1995-96 academic year helped achieve the PAVE goal of providing violence prevention and intervention information to urban professionals working with young children in high crime, low income neighborhoods. PAVE:

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Mission

Create a safer environment for early childhood educators and the children and families they serve in the Minneapolis and St. Paul neighborhoods with the highest rates of poverty and violence.

Goals

• Provide early childhood educators with the opportunity for reflection and self-discovery regarding violence and its affect on their working environment, the children and families they serve, their communities, and the broader society
• Provide information on important issues related to violence prevention and intervention including the effects of violence on children, the resilience of children, families and communities, and ways to build nurturing, safe learning places
• Enhance skills needed by early childhood educators to foster a nurturing environment, including the use of their own creativity, values and guidance, cultural competence, and building upon the strengths of children, their families and the community
• Develop networking opportunities for participants so they can connect with other professionals who have similar goals
• Develop individual and team action plans to promote safer, more peaceful classrooms
• Support early childhood educators in their role as leaders within their communities, especially in the area of violence prevention.

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Training Process

"This program cannot be put in words
but will be forever in my heart.
I would love to have PAVE reach
every child care provider nation-wide."

The PAVE Institute is a unique interactive training process designed to meet the needs of early childhood professionals as they confront the reality of violence in the lives of children and families. Developed by consultants Margie Carter and Charlie Murphy and the PAVE staff -- with input from early childhood educators in the Minneapolis/St. Paul community -- the Institute has challenged educators from 30 child care centers in St. Paul and Minneapolis with two guiding principles for violence prevention and intervention:

• the imagination and creativity of early childhood educators, not formulas or systems, are the most effective tools for countering the violence in children's lives
• early childhood educators play key leadership roles, both at their centers and within their communities at large, in violence intervention

A group of ten educators from the two cities was convened to act as facilitators for the training: to provide input in the planning stages and to assist with implementing the Institute. These field representatives have in turn honed their own leadership skills in the process. During the Institute, the 60 Institute participants (attending in pairs form their centers) developed both individual and team action plans for violence prevention and intervention. In many cases these plans have brought about major changes in their child care centers.

"This model brought out the power in individuals...
voices that will be heard."

In September and again in November 1995 the teams of educators were brought together for two days of training. The training processes were in both cases structured as personal journeys toward the key concepts above: imagination and leadership. An underlying assumption was that the participants bring a vast array of knowledge and skills to the issue of violence: that their work with children and families has afforded them numerous strategies that already are -- or can be -- translated to confronting violence.

The September Institute flowed through the following series of activities:

The November Institute continued with:

A variety of representatives from the community, including youth, presented at the Institute. Some provided their own stories of resilience; others offered opportunities for PAVE participants to contribute to community-wide activities.

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Foundation Beliefs

The training process of the Institute was built upon the following core ideas:

"The great things I see changing from this Institute lie more within myself than anything children and families have done so far.
But with a renewed dedication to myself as a leader in my community,
I feel anything is possible."

Another Web site:
Child Abuse Prevention Studies (CAPS)
http://www.mincava.umn.edu
Located at the Web site of MINCAVA: Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse Electronic Clearinghouse, College of Human Ecology, School of Social Work, University of Minnesota, this project is designed to build the interdisciplinary nature of CAPS and bring together a team of faculty experts in child abuse prevention.

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Some CEED Publications on Violence

• Nonviolence (Early Report , Winter 1996)
• Children Learn Violent Relationships—Victims Becoming Perpetrators (May 1996 Minnesota Round Table Summary)
• Violence and its Impact on Young Children (Early Report, Spring 1995)
• Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect (Early Report, Spring 1990)
• Child Abuse Prevention (Fact Find, 1990)
• Child Abuse Prevention Programs (Fact Find, 1990)
• Child Abuse Treatment (Fact Find, 1990)
• Child Sexual Abuse Prevention (Fact Find, 1989)