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Cossatot Community College |
Internet Safety Workshop Set for July 20
09 July 2004
DE QUEEN – The Continuing Education and Workforce Development Department at Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas will offer a workshop on internet safety, titled "Keys to Safety: A Tool for Preventing Runaway Behavior," an innovative new child safety program that the Attorney General’s Office has distributed to schools statewide. The workshop will be conducted by Carol Robinson, Prevention and Education Instructor Community Relations Division of the Office of the Arkansas Attorney General. It will be held July 20 in the Fire Training Center at CCCUA-De Queen, from 7PM to 8PM. The workshop is free and open to the public. For more information, call Continuing Education and Workforce Development at 800-844-4471.
Robinson will provide information on services and resources offered through their agency, which serves as the state clearinghouse for information on missing and exploited children. She will give an overview of the issue of missing children, provide statistics and discuss current trends in child safety education. Information will also be provided on resources available through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
According to recent statistics, children use computers more than any other age group. More than seventy-five percent of teens between fourteen and seventeen use the Internet regularly. The positive educational experiences of this online world offers young people increased opportunities to boost their school performance and future job potential, but unfortunately it provides new challenges for adults in protecting children. Children can be exposed to inaccurate, misleading or inappropriate materials.
The anonymity offered by the Internet also brings dangers and risks to children from online exploiters. Did you know that pedophiles spend time in the chat rooms that young people frequent? There is even a new lingo used which parents may not be aware of, for instance, do you know what POS means? The answer is, “Parents Over Shoulder”. In this session we will discuss the dangers and risks for children in online activities and help parents learn how to better protect them. In addition, an overview of the issue of missing children will be given, including current trends in child safety education and how to prevent abductions.
In addition to Robinson’s presentation, Colleen Nick will share how she has worked to increase awareness throughout our state during her continued search for her six-year-old daughter, Morgan, who was abducted from an Alma ballfield in June of 1995. Ms. Nick has become a strong advocate for more stringent legislation designed to protect communities from offenders who prey on our smallest citizens. Ms. Nick will also share information on the services offered by the Morgan Nick Foundation, a non-profit organization she founded to assist in the search for Morgan and to provide support for searching families.
Cossatot Community College offers both technical certification
and Associate’s degrees in a wide range of fields on its campus at De
Queen, at extension sites at Nashville and Ashdown, and at cccua.edu. It has
an enrollment of more than 1,100 students, and is accredited by the Higher
Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.
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