The SEL Innovations series aims to help the field imagine new, more expansive and equitable approaches to SEL and wellness to ensure that all children, adolescents, and adults feel safe, supported, and seen so that they can thrive. This report focuses on the conditions and guiding actions to foster authentic school-family partnerships. Research…

This study, guided by Woman of Color feminist epistemologies, implements culture circles to highlight the agency of displaced Puerto Rican mothers. Participants expanded their social/kin networks and shared resources from which they drew to meet their family's needs. Our space provided support for each participants' reality based on their…

ParentChild+ is a national home visiting program dedicated to bridging the opportunity gap for families in marginalized communities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the program worked more closely than ever with families and family care providers with young children to ensure they had the necessary tools and resources to support their children to…

The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) conducted the first ever multi-state study of the effects of the current immigration climate on young children under age 8. In 2017, CLASP interviewed early care and education providers, community-based social service providers, and immigrant parents in six states. The findings, detailed in "Our…

"Opening Doors, Changing Futures" tells the story of the collective impact the Appalachian Higher Education (AHE) Network had on postsecondary education attainment in 10 of the 13 states in Appalachia during school years 2011-2016. It depicts the current economic and education contexts in the region and highlights why increased post-high…

This implementation research report describes the local programs, home visiting staff, and families who participated in the Mother and Infant Home Visiting Program Evaluation (MIHOPE), a national evaluation of the federal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program launched in 2011. This national evaluation is…

Non-parental arrangements for young children serve a dual function as supports for parental activities and educational inputs for children. However, arrangements that are suited to meet families' specific needs and preferences are sometimes in tension with experts' definitions of "quality." Researchers and policymakers increasingly…

Children from low-income families are more likely than those from higher income families to have poor social, emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and health outcomes. One approach that has helped parents and their young children is home visiting, which provides information, resources, and support to expectant parents and families with young…

Researchers surveyed licensed social workers from 5 Mid-Atlantic states to explore their perspectives on the current state of mental health and service delivery for military service workers, families, and contractors. Social workers identified needs in the following areas: mental health, physical health and wellness, social and environmental,…

The purpose of this report is to listen to families about "what" mattered most to them and "how" family support has impacted their lives. The findings of this report represent a synthesis of families' voices from 8 focus groups and 35 individual interviews, conducted at centers, office meetings, and homes--with over 100 family…

Noting that a state's tax policies have direct impact on a family's ability to feed, clothe, house, educate, and care for its children, this report presents an overview of taxes in the state of Pennsylvania. The report is presented in five sections. Section 1 presents the argument that it is necessary to understand the rule driving the revenue…

Funded in part by a two-year grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission, the Greene County Family Center in southwest Pennsylvania allows clients to meet with representatives from county human services agencies and offers many services including Head Start, crisis intervention, tutoring programs, adult education programs, and other services to…