1. Caring for the least
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these
brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:40

2. Commercial Sexual Exploitation (CSE) or
Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking (DMST)
Is the Buying, Selling or Trading of any sexual service, including but not
limited to:
▪ Prostitution of a minor by a pimp
▪ Prostitution of a minor by a family member
▪ Street, escort or internet aided prostitution
▪ Pornography
Any form of Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children is considered
human trafficking under U.S. Law.

3. DMST in the United States
▪ The Polaris Project estimates that there are between 100,000 and
300,000 children currently being prostituted in the US.
▪ An additional 200,000 American children are at risk of being lured
into sex trafficking each year.
▪ The average age of entry into prostitution is 12-14 years of age.
• 1 out of every 3 children who run away is lured into sex trafficking
within 48 hours of leaving home.

4. Texas is a HUB for International & Domestic
Human Trafficking
▪ 3 of the top 10 largest cities in the US are in Texas
▪ I-10 Corridor
▪ Major International Airports
▪ Major sporting events
▪ Texas accounts for 14% of all calls received by the National Human
Trafficking Resource Center.
Dallas Women’s Foundation 2010 Study: Over 30 day period 740 girls
were marketed for commercial sex through escort or online ads. The study
further estimates that on any given weekend in Texas there are close to
200 girls being sexually exploited through these ads.

5. Who are these children?
All races, nationalities, gender, and socioeconomic classes of society.
▪ Young
▪ Female
▪ Broken Families
▪ Runaways
▪ #1 decisive factor indicating the likelihood of becoming a human
trafficking victim is Child Sexual Abuse

6. Incest is boot camp for prostitution.
For girls who have experience incest, sexual abuse, or rape, the
boundaries between love, sex, and pain become blurred.
70- 90% of women in sex industry state they were sexually abuse prior
to recruitment.
Sexual abuse lays the groundwork. The pimp, the trafficker, doesn’t need
to do much training. It’s already been done – by her father, her uncle, her
mother’s boyfriend, her teacher. She is well prepared for what’s to come.
Rachel Lloyd, Girls Like Us

9. Sex Trafficking victims need protective shelter where their
physical, medical, emotional, and educational needs can be met; however, few
exist.
As the awareness grows so does the number of those individuals, non-
profits, churches, and donors who want to help. The “will to do good” is
not enough.
National Colloquium: Shelter and Services Evaluation for Action
(Shared Hope International, John’s Hopkins University, and ECPAT USA)
George Sheldon for the Administration for Children and Families under HHS
1. Identifying Sustainable Resources for Shelter and Restorative Care for Victims
and Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking.
2. Licensing and Maintaining Residential Facilities
3. Therapeutic and Programmatic Responses

10. #2: Licensing & Maintaining Residential
Facilities
Panel discussion focused on the challenges experienced in obtaining and operating under
particular licensing, difficulties establishing and sustaining independent initiatives, and
benefits of integration into existing infrastructure and the formal child welfare system.
Chapter 42 of the Texas Human Resources Code requires the Texas
Department of Family & Protective Services (DFPS) to regulate child care and
child-placing activities in Texas, to investigate alleged abuse/neglect in child-
care facilities, and to create and enforce minimum standards.
This entity is referred to as Residential Child Care Licensing (RCCL)
http://www.dfps.state.tx.us/child_care/
* Exception: Boarding School For more information “Hope House NC”

11. Types of Licensure
▪ General Residential Operation: Provides residential care for 13 or more
children (Shelter, Child Care Only, Residential Treatment Facility) ;
Minimum Standards Chapter 748
▪ Child Placing Agency: A CPA verifies its foster homes and/or approves
adoptive homes. The agency is responsible for regulating its homes for
compliance with minimum standards. Licensing inspects the CPA to ensure
the CPA is meeting minimum standards. Minimum Standards: Chapter 749
▪ Foster Home (DFPS/ Private Agency): No more than 6 children
▪ Foster Group Home (DFPS/Private Agency: 7-12 Children
▪ Independent Foster Home: Minimum Standards: Chapter 750
▪ Independent Foster Home – A single independent home that is the primary
residence of the foster parents and provides care for six or fewer children or young
adults.
▪ Independent Foster Group Home: The Primary residence of the foster parent(s) and
provides care for seven to 12 children or young adults;

12. Comparison:
▪ General Residential Operation: 13 or more children; Board, Full Time Child Care
Administrator, Treatment Director if providing treatment services, Policies
, Procedures, Budget, Cash Reserves of 3 months of operation.
▪ Child Placing Agency: A CPA recruits and verifies foster homes and places children in foster
homes; Board, Full Time Child Placement Administrator, Treatment Director if providing
treatment services; Policies , Procedures, Budget, Cash Reserves of 3 months of operation.
▪ Foster Home (DFPS/ Private Agency): No more than 6 children (no board/ no administrator/ no
policies/procedures); does not place children only receives children.
▪ Foster Group Home (DFPS/Private Agency: 7-12 (no board/ no administrator/no polices/procedures) does not
place children only receives children.
▪ Independent Foster Home: Board, Executive Director, Treatment Director if providing treatment
services; Policies , Procedures, Budget, Cash Reserves of 3 months of operation. A single
independent home that is the primary residence of the foster parents and provides care for six or
fewer children or young adults.
▪ Independent Foster Group Home: Board, Executive Director, Treatment Director if providing
treatment services; Policies , Procedures, Budget, Cash Reserves of 3 months of operation. The
Primary residence of the foster parent(s) and provides care for seven to 12 children or young
adults;

13. Similarities
Incorporation
Governing Body
Policies & Procedures
Budget
Cash Reserves
Model of Care
Admission Criteria (& Capacity)
Staff
Licensed by RCCL
Fire Inspection
Health Department Inspection
Well Inspection
Medical Care
Psychological Care
Education

14. Being licensed does not guarantee that you will
get children.
RCCL = Licensure
CPS = Placement (but must have DFPS contract)
Juvenile Probation= Contract if charging rate
Attorney General, Law Enforcement, FBI
(but parent or guardian must consent to
placement)

15. #3 Therapeutic and Programmatic Responses
The panel explored/debated promising practices and how/if they are
being measured? What does successful completion of a program mean
and how are exit strategies developed.
In other words what are the CORE COMPONENTS of safe houses that
work with DMST Victims.
Licensed, Victims centered and Strength based, Trauma
informed, Non punitive, Vocational & Life Skills Training
Still being debated: location, survivor led vs. survivor
informed, residential vs. foster home

16. Experts Agree:
This population is different than any other Child Welfare or Juvenile
Probation Groups.
Much research is still needed.
Success needs to be redefined: How many positive relationships the
child has, has the length of time since last running episode increase,
while on run away did the child call to say where he/she was, did they
come back on their own.
“Our most successful kids that we have now are the ones that have ran
an average of 7 or 8 times”. Dennis Morrow, Janus Youth Programs,
Oregon

17. Resources
▪ Girls Like Us, Rachel Lloyd
▪ Renting Lacy, Linda Smith
▪ The White Umbrella, Mary Frances Bowley
▪ Shared Hope International
▪ Children at Risk
▪ Free the Captives
Kellie Armstrong, MSW, LCCA, Independent Consultant
Kellie.R.Armstong@Gmail.com