As New Jersey begins another school year, parents are thinking about the familiar back-to-school checklist: backpacks, school supplies, schedules, sports, homework and getting back into a routine. But there is another important item that deserves a place on that list — our children’s online safety. This issue is receiving increased attention across New Jersey.
On her first day in office, Gov. Mikie Sherrill established the Office of Youth Online Mental Health Safety and Awareness within the New Jersey Department of Health to coordinate efforts across state government focused on protecting children online. Recently, Sherrill signed a three-bill Kids’ Online Safety Package that strengthens privacy and safety protections for minors, establishes age-appropriate design requirements for online services, and creates a Social Media Research Center to study the impact of social media and addictive online behaviors on young people. The legislation represents an important shift toward placing greater responsibility on technology platforms while giving parents, educators and communities more information and tools to help keep children safe online.
These efforts are especially relevant to the work being done every day through New Jersey’s Children’s System of Care and its Care Management Organizations. CMOs provide comprehensive care coordination and individualized planning for children and families experiencing complex behavioral health, substance use, intellectual or developmental needs. Their work is centered on keeping children connected to their families, schools and communities while helping families build sustainable supports.
An important resource within each CMO is the Specialized Care Coordinator. SCCs provide specialized consultation, support and connection to appropriate services for youth and families dealing with concerns that may arise in the digital environment — including problematic or harmful online sexual behaviors. For parents, this is an important reminder that these situations do not have to be handled alone. When concerns arise, the CMO can help families understand what they are seeing, identify appropriate treatment and therapeutic resources, and connect youth to providers with the specialized knowledge necessary to address these behaviors safely and appropriately.
Early intervention can be critical in helping young people understand boundaries, consent, healthy relationships, online responsibility and the potential consequences of digital behavior.
For many children and adolescents, the online world is inseparable from the school environment. Social media can influence friendships, self-esteem, sleep, school relationships and emotional well-being. Cyberbullying, inappropriate content, online conflict and constant social comparison can follow a child home long after the school day ends.
That is why back-to-school preparation should include an intentional conversation about digital wellness. Parents do not need to know every new app or understand every online trend. They can start with simple questions: Who is your child communicating with? What accounts do they have? What information are they sharing? Does your child know how to block, report and seek help when something feels unsafe?
As the new school year begins, let’s add one more item to the traditional back-to-school checklist. By being mindful of our children’s online presence — and our own — and knowing where to turn when concerns arise, parents can help create safer digital spaces for every child. For more information and resources on online safety and NJ’s programming, see Keeping Children Safe Online | NJCCIC. If your child is struggling with behaviors and/or mental health and you want to know whether a CMO can help, call Performcare to get connected at 877/652-7624 or check www.njcmo.org.
James Parauda is the president of NJCMO, a collection of all 15 Care Management Organizations in the state. NJCMOs provide services for mental health, substance abuse, developmental disabilities, court involvement and trouble in school. Reach him here. [email protected]
