photo by: Courtesy of Lawrence Police Department

In the six months since it launched, a Lawrence Police Department program to help kids exposed to trauma has helped dozens of children in the community, LPD announced Friday.

The collaborative program, called “Handle With Care,” which got underway in September 2022, has helped 61 vulnerable kids “who may have otherwise gone unnoticed.” The program provides a child’s school with notification if officers have encountered the child at the scene of a traumatic event, such as a motor vehicle accident or a violent crime. Professionals at the school can then be on hand to offer whatever support might benefit the child.

“We have successfully trained all our patrol officers, the district’s mental health teams, administrators, and teachers,” said Laura McCabe, a spokeswoman for LPD, in a news release Friday.

Identifying such children, without invading their privacy by divulging details, allows teachers to decide if the child needs extra time to complete work, a trusted adult to talk with or possibly more structured expert care. The teacher may choose to implement trauma-sensitive interventions and refer the student to the counselor.

At the time of the program’s launch, Lawrence Superintendent Anthony Lewis touted it as a “huge opportunity.”

“When the notice is received at the school, it is on a need-to-know basis,” he said. “It goes to the teachers working with that child, the counselors, and the school nurse. It does not stay in a child’s permanent record. Ideally, we hope to mitigate the negative impact of trauma.”