ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 24, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® and Honeywell
(NYSE: HON) are calling on parents and educators to emphasize
children's personal safety as they head back to school this
fall.
Their recommendations are supported by a new analysis, released
by NCMEC this week, of 10 years of data on attempted abductions of
children and related crimes or suspicious incidents involving
individuals that were unknown to the children. NCMEC found that 70
percent of these incidents occurred on school days and that
school-age children were most likely to be on their way to or from
school when the incidents occurred.
"We know these are often crimes of opportunity," said
John F. Clark, NCMEC president and
CEO. "These offenders take advantage of the moments when they have
easiest access to children. That's why helping kids make safer and
smarter decisions when faced with potential danger is so important.
While we don't want parents or children to live in fear, we want
them to take action to educate and prepare themselves."
The KidSmartz® program, developed by NCMEC in partnership with
Honeywell, uses videos, music and classroom activities to teach
personal safety children in grades K-5. The program aligns
perfectly with the lessons learned in NCMEC's new
analysis.
"Our analysis showed us that offenders were more likely to
attempt verbal lures or manipulation with elementary age children,
such as offering a ride, promising candy or demanding they get in
the car," said Clark. "That's why the focus on empowerment and
helping kids understand that being safe is more important than
being polite."
KidSmartz focuses on keeping the lines of communication open
between parents and children, helping children identify trusted
adults and avoiding potentially dangerous situations while they
learn about staying safer. The program, focuses on four basic
safety rules:
- Check First
- Take a Friend
- Tell People "NO"
- Tell a Trusted Adult
"The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is
uniquely positioned to provide insight on child safety, and
Honeywell is proud of our long-term partnership to make children
safer," said Mike Bennett,
president, Honeywell Hometown Solutions, the company's corporate
citizenship initiative. "The KidSmartz program is based on a real
understanding of when, where and how children may be at risk, and
we want all children nationwide to have access to this potentially
life-saving information as they head back to school."
For more information about the findings from NCMEC's analysis
including insight into the ages and genders of the victims, times
and locations of the incidents and the methods used by offenders,
visit NCMEC's virtual newsroom at
www.missingkids.org/vnr.
The KidSmartz materials are available for free download at
www.KidSmartz.org. For more information, visit KidSmartz on
Facebook and Twitter.
About the National Center for Missing & Exploited
Children
Since 1984, the National Center for Missing & Exploited
Children® has served as the leading private, nonprofit organization
helping to find missing children, reduce child sexual exploitation
and prevent future victimization. As part of its work as the
clearinghouse and resource center on issues relating to missing and
exploited children, NCMEC operates a hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST®
(1-800-843-5678), and has assisted in the recovery of more than
227,000 missing children. NCMEC also operates the CyberTipline®, a
mechanism for reporting suspected child sexual exploitation, which
has received more than 13.6 million reports since it was created in
1998. To learn more about NCMEC, visit www.missingkids.org or see
NCMEC on Twitter and Facebook.
About Honeywell Hometown Solutions
KidSmartz™,
the "next generation" of Got2BSafe!, is part of Honeywell Hometown
Solutions, the company's corporate citizenship initiative, which
focuses on five areas of vital importance: Science & Math
Education, Family Safety & Security, Housing & Shelter,
Habitat & Conservation, and Humanitarian Relief. Together with
leading public and non-profit institutions, Honeywell has developed
powerful programs to address these needs in the communities it
serves. For more information, please visit
http://citizenship.honeywell.com/.
About Honeywell
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a
Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader,
serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services;
control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry;
turbochargers; and performance materials. For more news and
information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com.
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SOURCE The National Center for Missing & Exploited
Children