The Kempe Foundation

Kempe is a world leading non-profit focused on the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect.

How does Kempe prevent child abuse?

1. Advocacy. The Kempe Foundations policy team works to pass child-focused policies to improve the lives of children in Colorado and beyond. Recent bills and appropriations that have been supported by Kempe and passed in the Colorado state legislature cover subjects such as harms children experience on social media and other online platforms, mental health of students, training healthcare providers on how to recognize and treat child abuse and neglect in rural and underserved communities, maintaining families during child welfare involvement, and supporting foster youth as they age out of the welfare system.

2. Community building. Kempe strives to work alongside other organizations who have the shared missions to improve child well-being, address mental health challenges children face, and to prevent the occurrence of childhood trauma and abuse. Some organizations we work with include: CU School of Medicine, Children's Hospital of Colorado, Anschutz Mental Health Collaborative, Healthier Colorado, and others. We work together, collaborating on initiatives and connecting resources. 

3. Programs. Working with the professionals at the Kempe Center, which is within the Department of Pediatrics, who run many evidence-based programs that help children involved with child welfare, and other vulnerable communities. Programs range from clinical to research, education, and training workforce providers. Kempe Center programs have reach in all 64 Colorado counties and include mental health in public schools, healthcare for foster children, mentorships for foster children, and many others.

Who does Kempe help?

Kempe is involved with and helps children impacted by trauma and abuse. Kempe also reaches other affected individuals such as family members, foster parents, experts and professionals, and more. Hear from these real people Kempe has served below.

“It was good 'cause I got to be with people that were also in foster care and you don’t get that a lot…so, it’s easier to cope with people when they have the same feelings as you.” -Child participant

“I think it’s one of the things that got him through it. He had somewhere to go to be able to talk about it and #1, didn’t have to be embarrassed or ashamed, and #2, felt understood and accepted by his peers.” -Caregiver  

How did Kempe start?

In 1962, Dr. Henry C. Kempe exposed and defined child abuse for the very first time with his colleagues in their research publication “The Battered Child Syndrome”. This defining paper was praised and had finally given a standard for doctors to identify and understand child abuse.

From then, Dr. Kempe founded the Kempe Center to create a network of professionals working to improve the care and well-being of children and families we know today.