Owensboro Innovation Middle School 8th-graders recently asked city officials light the Owensboro Bridge blue in observance of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Citing policy, the City denied the request, though officials did issue a proclamation Tuesday evening. Undeterred, the students are finding other ways to spread awareness about an issue about which they are passionate.
OIMS Family Resource and Youth Services Center Coordinator Amanda Hirtz said that as part of the 8th-grade curriculum, students have to write persuasive letters on a topic of their choosing. The entire grade opted to write about child abuse and tried to persuade officials to light the Owensboro Bridge blue to raise awareness of the issue in the community.
Hirtz said more than 100 letters were written. She and 8th-grade English teacher Ashley Nash chose five letters to submit to city officials, and Hirtz said she was taken aback at the passion the students had for the cause.
“They’re only in 8th grade and they have so much passion and they’re very articulate,” Hirtz said.
Shortly before sending the letters, Hirtz and Nash had gotten in contact with City Manager Nate Pagan. He informed them the City has a policy where they only light the bridge for city events and for federal holidays.
Pagan told Owensboro Times, “We’ve had that policy in place since we’ve had the bridge lights. We’ve never accepted or accommodated any type of request or any kind of fundraiser event or recognition week, whether it’s Alzheimer’s or child abuse awareness. Even though those are all great programs, we just have chosen not to accommodate those with the lights.”
OT asked about the City lighting the bridge with the colors of the Ukrainian flag in a message from the City that “Owensboro stands with Ukraine” last March, when the bridge was lit in blue and yellow for 30 minutes each night.
Pagan said, “It was because an act of war would be one of those things that were a little different than a request from a school or a similar group or other nonprofit. … It was big enough national interest.”
Even finding out about the policy and informing the students about it, Hirtz and Nash sent the students’ letters.
“Even though our initial project assignment was a bit delayed when we learned about the city policy, our students learned to persevere and continue with their research on the topic to see if they could still persuade the City to change their mind on this important topic,” Hirtz said.
While the City still declined to light the bridge, Pagan and Watson both noted they City wanted to help with awareness so they issued a proclamation at Tuesday’s City Commission meeting declaring April as Child Abuse Awareness Month throughout Owensboro.
“Child abuse and neglect is a serious problem affecting every segment of our community and finding solutions requires input and action from everyone, and … our children are our most valuable resources, and will shape the future of Owensboro,” Watson read from portions of the proclamation.
Still, Hirtz said the students don’t feel as though a proclamation is adequate enough.
“I think it’s hard for (the students) to understand why the City cannot light the bridge blue. They say, ‘We have this important issue, it’s affecting us, it’s affecting our peers,’” Hirtz said. “They see us lighting the bridge blue as something as simple as lighting up the Christmas tree, and I think they were kind of taken aback when it was denied.”
Hirtz said the students want the community to understand child abuse is a problem even locally, not just at the national level, and want everyone to know some of the major statistics.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 7 children experienced child abuse and neglect in the last year. The CDC says that is likely an underestimate, as many cases go unreported. Additionally, 1,750 children died of abuse and neglect in the country in 2020.
The U.S. Department of Health of Human Services Children’s Bureau reported that in 2021, Kentucky’s rate of child abuse victims was 14.7 per 1,000 children.
“Our students, even at a young age here in middle school, are able to say ‘Hey, no, this is not right’ or ‘I recognize my classmate is being hurt and I want to help them’ or .. they’re in a classroom and they think, ‘Wow, that can be three or four of us (in those statistics),’” Hirtz said.
Hirtz said the students are continuing to look into ways to spread awareness. She noted that on April 11 at 9:00 a.m., Daviess County Fiscal Court along with Family Court Judges Jennifer Hendricks and Angela Thompson will make a similar proclamation on Kentucky Wesleyan College’s front lawn. GRADD will then plant blue pinwheels on the lawn of KWC. The students are attending the event, which is also open to the public.
Hirtz said she also hopes to see her students at the Stand Against Child Abuse event on April 14, also at KWC. That’s another public event offering the community a chance to learn about child abuse and how to help fight against it.
