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AHTL - Alphabet Soup

504 - A plan, which falls under civil-rights law, in an attempt to remove barriers and allow students with disabilities to participate freely in educational activities.  Students who don’t qualify for services under an IEP may qualify for assistance with a 504

ACE’s – Adverse Childhood Events or Experiences – Childhood experiences, both positive and negative, have a tremendous impact on future behavior. Much of the foundational research in this area has been referred to as Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and is based on a huge study completed in California but is now being continually researched by the CDC in every state.  The study proves how toxic stress impacts not only the brain, but also the body and examines the effect childhood experiences have on future behaviors like, violence, victimization and perpetration, and lifelong health and opportunity. As such, early experiences are an important public health issue. For more information about the study and the data on how childhood experiences impact later life, visit www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/acestudy/ace_brfss.html

ADA – Assistant District Attorney or Americans with Disabilities Act – federal law providing rights to people with disabilities

ADD / ADHD – attention deficit disorder / attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Adversary Counsel – an attorney that represents a child aged 12 or older in CHIPS proceedings

AHA – Affordable Housing Act / Section 8 – housing assistance program

AHTL – Advocates for Healthy Transitional Living, see About us page on website for more information (http://advocateswi.com/about-us)

AODA – alcohol and other drug abuse

ASD – Autism Spectrum Disorder

ASFA – Adoption and Safe Families Act – federal law that requires permanency

ASQ – Ages & Stages Questionnaire (multiple versions ASQ-2SE, ASQ-3) Parental question list to assess development of their child from birth to 6 years of age

Birth to 3 / ECI – early intervention program (Early Childhood Intervention) for children born or diagnosed with medical conditions or other issues that helps prepare them to be ready for school

BRFSS – Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System – a population questionnaire used in all 50 states to collect behavioral data that is shared with the CDC

CAC – Child Advocacy Center, multidisciplinary (police, SW, medical, legal) facility that provides one stop care for child victims – interview, medical examination, counseling, advocacy and more

CAPTA –Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act – federal law that includes CASA

CASA – Court Appointed Special Advocates, an organization that connects a child who has experienced abuse or neglect with a volunteer, Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) or guardian ad litem (GAL), to stand up for their best interest through CHIPS proceedings

CBT – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – a type of psychological treatment that has proven to be effective for anxiety and trauma

CCS – Comprehensive Community Services – one system for counties to provide assistance to people diagnosed with either mental health issues, AODA issues or both.

CDC – Centers for Disease Control – federal agency working to prevent the spread of disease, decrease incidents of injury and promote health and safety.

CHAPTER 48, also called the Wisconsin Children’s code – the section of the state statutes that covers (among other things) child abuse and neglect

CHIPS – legal designation determined by judge or jury that a CHild is In need of Protection and Services

CPS – Child Protective Services – county system that employs caseworkers, social workers, and case managers to assign resources and do whatever they can to protect children, always keeping the child’s best interest paramount

CSS – Career Services Specialist – someone trained to assist people in getting jobs / employment

CST – Coordinated Service Team – a group of individuals who come together to assist a person / family who is struggling

CYSHCN – Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs – regional resource center for children with medical issues

DA – District Attorney, lawyer who represents the interests of a county and people who reside in the county

DCYF – Department of Children, Youth, and Families – another name for human services department responsible for child welfare

DD – developmental disability or developmental delay sometimes combined with mental retardation (MR)

DEC – Drug Endangered Children, children who are at risk because parents/caregivers use and /or make drugs and expose the children directly or indirectly to either drugs or the chemicals used to make drugs.

DHHS – Department of Health and Human Services / example: Outagamie County = OCDHHS

DV – domestic violence

ECI / Birth to 3 - Early Childhood Intervention, educational and support services provided for children from birth to age 3 who meet the necessary criteria

ED – emotional disability

ELL / ESL – English language learner or English as a second language

EM-1 – statement of emergency detention completed by a law enforcement official. The EM-1 becomes the petition to begin the commitment process of a person who presents a danger to themselves or others. Individuals who are committed are placed in a mental health treatment facility until a psychiatrist determines they are no longer a threat to themselves or others.  A person cannot be held in a mental health treatment facility longer than 72 hours without a hearing.

FAS/FASD – Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/ Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, a spectrum disorder that can occur in newborns when a mother consumes alcohol during her pregnancy

FTT – Failure to Thrive – a medical condition resulting from below average height, weight, and development

GAL – guardian ad litem, attorney that is court appointed (see CASA) to represent children under the age of 12 in CHIPS proceedings

HIPAA – Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act – a law that holds organizations and individuals accountable for protecting confidential health information of consumers and clients; requires permission for accessing protected health information (PHI)

HUD – housing and urban development

ICPC – Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children; the legislation is uniform across all 50 states, and mandates that placement must be approved and monitored (by ICPC) when a child in state custody is placed with a resource in another state, or a when a parent is placing a child in a non-relative setting

ICWA – Indian Child Welfare Act, federal law giving special rights to children of Native heritage

IDEA – Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, federal law mandating IEPs for children ages 3-21 who need specialized education services because of a disabling condition or health impairment.

IEP – Individualized Education Plan – Legal document between school and child & family identifying the accommodations the school will provide to assist a child with learning issues to reach their maximum potential  

IFSP - Individualized Family Service Plan (an IEP for pre-school aged children) used in Birth-3, Head Start or Early Head Start programs and identifies goals & services that will be provided for the child and family

ILS – independent living services / skills, a child who reaches age14 and has been in foster care for at least 6 months qualifies to receive these services designed to help them achieve successful independence at 18

JAS (pronounced Jazz) – Journey to Adult Success – a non-profit organization that offers live-in program for young adults over the age of 18, working to successfully transition to independence

JIPS – Juveniles in needs of Protection and Services. Unlike a CHIPS designation, JIPS classifies a child as a delinquent and has committed some sort of offense

JJ – another term for JIPS or juvenile justice

Kaleidacare – confidential, computer data system used to track clients at AHTL

LD – Learning disability

LGBTQI – Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning and Intersex (sometimes shortened to LGB or LGBT)

MR – outdated terminology mental retardation for developmental disability or delay

MSP – Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy – this terminology has been replaced by Factitious Disorder by proxy in the most recent DSM-5, both refer to an adult that induces illness or symptoms in a child

NAEYC – National Association for the Education of Young Children – Offers accreditation to child care providing organizations if they meet criteria

NAS – Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome – babies who experience withdrawal symptoms after birth because their mother used drugs while she was pregnant

N.E.A.R – Neuroscience, Epigenetics, ACE’s and Resilience – a host of data on toxic stress and how to combat the negative effects

OCD – Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

ODD – Oppositional Defiant Disorder

OHI – Other health Impairment – categorization that allows qualification for IEP

PHI – Protected Health Information, as defined by HIPAA Privacy Rule, provides federal protections for personal health information held by covered entities and gives patients an array of rights with respect to that information

PTSD – Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

RAD – Reactive Attachment Disorder

SA – Sexual Assault or Substance Abuse

SACC – Sexual Assault Crisis Center – ‘one-stop shop’ for collecting victim statement that can be recorded, collecting medical and physical evidence, and also providing advocacy for victims

SAD – Separation Anxiety Disorder or Seasonal Affective Disorder

SBS – Shaken baby syndrome

Section 8 – Program that provides financial support for housing to those who qualify

SHARE – AHTL’s core values – Safety, Hope, Awareness, Respect, Empowerment – AHTL works to have all clients and employees to strive for these 5 things in all of their interactions

SIDS – Sudden infant death syndrome

SpEd – Specialized Education services for children with learning or behavioral challenges

SNAP – Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (EBT [electronic benefits transfer] card that allows people to purchase groceries) formerly referred to as food stamps

SSI / SSDI - Supplemental Security Insurance / Social Security Disability Insurance – government provided financial support for people who qualify

TANF – Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, federal money provided to states and tribes allowing them to provide funding, education, and/or supportive programs to families in need

TBI – traumatic brain injury

TCM – a computer system used by certain counties for tracking client’s information and treatment progress, some CCS staff will write their notes using this system

TF-CBT – trauma focused cognitive behavioral therapy an evidence-based therapy to address trauma

TIC – Trauma Informed Care

TLP – Transitional Living Program

TPC – Temporary protective custody hearing that must be held within 72 hours of a child’s removal from their home granting the CPS legal authority to keep a child out of their parents’ home

TPR – Termination of Parental Rights, court process that severs legal bond between a child and their biologic parents

TSS – Trauma sensitive schools, educationally based TIC

W-2, Welfare to Work program – provides money, training and education to assist people who are unemployed to pay their bills and find work supported by TANF funds

WFD – Work Force Development – a program for developing job skills

WIC – Women Infants and Children, federal program that for families that qualify provides supplemental nutrition (food, juice, formula), education and support for women and their children until the child reaches 5 years of age.

WIOA – Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act

Wisconsin Children’s code, also called CHAPTER 48 – the section of the state statutes that covers (among other things) child abuse and neglect