The prevalence of mental health and emotional well-being difficulties in children is increasing, and schools play a key role in addressing this. Whole-school approaches have been suggested as an effective way of supporting children's mental health and well-being; however, there appears to be no consistent approach to their evaluation, and…

This study characterized the use of research community partnerships (RCPs) to tailor evidence-based intervention, training, and implementation models for delivery across different childhood problems and service contexts using a survey completed by project principal investigators and community partners. To build on previous RCP research and to…

Afterschool programs have been operating for decades in communities across the country, and federal investment in afterschool has increased dramatically since the mid-1990s. However, even more investment in the field of afterschool, which includes before-school, afterschool and summer learning programs, is needed to keep up with the growing…

Objective: To review the literature, identifying proposed recommendations for school-based nutrition interventions, and evaluate kindergarten through 12th grade school-based nutrition interventions conducted from 2000-2008. Design: Proposed recommendations from school-based intervention reviews were developed and used in conducting a content…

Reports on an evaluation of the first counseling service in Britain for children of divorce. Focuses on the qualitative outcomes of the counseling evaluation: namely, the children's and mother's satisfaction with the counseling, and the counselor's opinion of its success. Conclusions of study and implications for practice are discussed.…

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was designed in 1997 to support working families by providing affordable, quality health coverage for their children in an efficient, effective, and coordinated way. This report examines the progress made in implementing CHIP nationwide. Information sources included the following: (1) federal…

There is growing acknowledgement that optimal early childhood development is crucial not only for health, well-being, and competence but also for society at large. This second paper in a series focuses on the period from birth to age 6 and draws on research from Canada and other countries to address several questions of children's development,…

Reviewed 32 studies that evaluated the impact of community-based injury prevention efforts on childhood injuries, safety behaviors, and adoption of safety devices. Interventions targeted schools, municipalities, and cities. This approach effectively increased some safety practices (e.g, bicycle helmet and car seat use) but not others. Common…

Reviews important factors relevant to measuring the costs and outcomes of home visiting programs and examines six cost-benefit studies of such programs. Concludes that these studies demonstrate the feasibility of economic evaluation of home visiting and the importance of the insights it can produce. (MDM)

The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) was created to ensure that children in low-income areas could have access to nutritious meals during the summer months when school is not in session. During the school year about 15 million low-income children depend on the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and/or School Breakfast Program (SBP) for…

Reviewed 22 studies that examined the impact of interventions delivered in clinical settings (physician's offices, clinics, or hospitals) on child safety practices and unintentional injuries. Counseling and other interventions in clinical settings effectively increased the adoption of some safety practices, but not others. Clinical interventions…

Reviews the experimental literature concerning the effectiveness of prenatal and newborn home visiting programs in improving the lives of children and families, focusing on studies employing randomized trials. Results suggest that home visiting programs have had mixed success, improving some outcomes but not others. (MDM)

Background: Schools are in a unique position not only to identify mental health problems among children and adolescents but also to provide links to appropriate services. This article describes the characteristics of school mental health and social services in the United States, including state- and district-level policies and school practices.…

Based on the view that programs with a strong academic component may reduce the substantial educational disparities for American students from disadvantaged backgrounds or in chronically underperforming schools and school districts, this synthesis of research on academic achievement programs describes how such programs may help children and…