2018 UCAP Conference

Parenting in the digital age has never been more challenging. And with new information, apps, and dangers appearing everyday, it can be difficult to know what the real dangers are and where we should be spending our time to help our kids survive and thrive.

It’s time to move away from parenting in a defensive position with only discussing dangers and what to avoid. We can be empowered and can approach technology in an offensive, deliberate, positive position—by teaching our families to utilize digital tools to make the world a better place.

We will discuss simple ways to talk with our kids about hyper-sexualized media and pornography, and how to create safety in our social media circles. Just as critical, we will also discuss easy, everyday opportunities to teach our kids how to use technology for good. Together, we can improve the lives of our families, our communities, and the whole world! Online Safety, Digital Literacy, and Being a Kind Digital Citizen are key to success in this new digital age.

Dina Alexander is the founder and president of Educate and Empower Kids (educateempowerkids.org), an organization determined to strengthen families by teaching digital citizenship, media literacy, and healthy sexuality education—including education about the dangers of online porn. In the last year, she wrote the children’s books Petra’s Power to See: A Media Literacy Adventure and Noah’s New Phone: A Story About Using Technology for Good, and co-wrote Messages About Me: A Journey to Healthy Body Image.

For adults, she and her team created How to Talk to Your Kids About Pornography and the 30 Days of Sex Talks and 30 Days to a Stronger Child programs. She received her master’s degree in recreation therapy from the University of Utah and her bachelors from Brigham Young University. Dina has taught in various capacities for the past 20 years, including marriage enhancement, art for small children and group fitness. She has also worked with teenage girls in a residential treatment setting, adults with drug addictions and special needs children. She is a dedicated, whole hearted mom of three children and loves spending time with them and her amazing husband. Together, they live in Texas.