The Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center announced a $5 million campaign this month with $3 million already pledged.
“Not since the founding of the Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center 26 years ago has the Lowcountry seen such an opportunity to transform the treatment of child abuse in our community,” said Dr. Carole C. Swiecicki, Dee Norton’s executive director and CEO. “Children can, and do, heal from the effects of abuse as long as they receive the proper care. Yet, there are children right here in our community that are being underserved. We must change that.”
"Above and Beyond: The Campaign to Help Children Soar" will facilitate advancements in the center's capacity and operations, including opening a second, full-service center. Located on Longpoint Road in Mount Pleasant, the new facility will serve an area of urgent need and have the capacity to treat 1,500 children each year.
The center will also redesign its King Street location by the end of 2018. Using lean methodology in the design of both centers, it's projected that twice as many children in Charleston and Berkeley counties will be able to receive critical treatment from highly trained professionals, and visit times will be cut in half, reducing the emotional stress for children and their families.
The Rice family made the campaign’s lead gift with a $1 million contribution. Anita Zucker, CEO of The InterTech Group, was an early investor in the campaign, with a gift of $500,000. The Medical Society’s Roper St. Francis Physicians Endowment has offered a $500,000 challenge, dollar for dollar match, and an additional $500,000 when that goal is met.
Plans for the Center’s expansion come after extensive strategic analysis by the organization’s leadership. Research indicates that in areas east of the Cooper River, the center serves only an estimated 36 percent of children suffering from abuse. On Daniel Island and in Cainhoy, only 21 percent are served. An East Cooper facility will improve accessibility for these populations.
It is also projected that increased capacity will keep pace with Lowcountry growth. Today, nearly 6,000 children in Charleston and Berkeley Counties are abused each year, a number that is expected to double over the next 20 years as the population grows. The center’s capacity for forensic interviews — the starting point for healing — is currently only 1,560 children annually.
The Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center has treated more than 26,000 children since opening in 1991. When the expansion is completed, the center will be positioned to meet the projected need of and help up to 72,000 children over the next 20 years. More than 90 percent of children show no clinically significant trauma symptoms after treatment at the Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center, the center says.
Without intervention, researchers say the lifetime cost of untreated abuse to the community is $210,012 per child in healthcare costs, social programs and lost productivity. Research shows that children who do not receive treatment are more likely to commit crimes, live in poverty and commit suicide.
The center coordinates a multi-disciplinary team of law enforcement, prosecutors, school officials, social workers and therapists. The team meets weekly to assess each child’s progress towards healing.
The Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center is a resource to help prevent child abuse, to protect abused and traumatized children, and to put children and their families on the path to healing. Primary services include forensic interviews, medical examinations and mental health assessments as well as immediate support and coordination. The center also provides evidence-based therapy to child victims and their families.