Born out of a 1981 murder, Buffalo (New York) Public Schools' EPIC (Effective Parenting Information for Children) program successfully combines parenting, effective teaching, and community programs to help family and school life support each other. Under EPIC, teachers are advised to help students acquire 23 skills involving self-esteem, rules,…

Tested the effectiveness of intensive, in-home family reunification services in reunifying families separated by the placement of a child in out-of-home care. After 90 days, 93% of the families assigned to receive the intensive treatment were reunited, compared to 28% of families in a control group who received routine out-of-home care services.…

Describes several innovative types of shared family-care arrangements that demonstrate promise in the protection of children and the promotion of family well-being. Emphasizes the shared-family foster-care model, whereby children and parents are placed with host families rather than separating them. Notes key elements of the model: funding and…

A recent ethnographic study that interviewed 11 elementary principals provides examples of how principals with limited resources can build relationships with low-income parents. Effective principals set goals, expand services to children and families, provide parenting education, negotiate and celebrate cultural differences, build strong…

Describes the Family-Centered Program Rating Scale (FamPRS), a 59-item instrument with parallel forms for family members and service providers to rate satisfaction with and importance of various early-intervention program characteristics. An example of using the instrument to improve family-centered practice is detailed. (DB)

This article describes the successful Ohio Early Start program, which is designed to prevent later developmental problems in infants and toddlers. The program was coordinated with the existing early intervention program and other efforts to ensure a comprehensive, community-based and family friendly network of child development health and…

The evaluation of Minnesota's Early Childhood Family Education program is described, and a dialog between one of the evaluators and an editor of this journal provides further insight into the evaluation process. Noteworthy in this evaluation, called exemplary by the American Evaluation Association, was highly motivated collaboration of evaluation…

The Philadelphia-Camden Informal Science Education Collaborative Family Learning Project (PISEC) is comprised of three phases aimed at increasing understanding of family learning in science museums. Describes the results of a formative evaluation conducted during phase two. Successful family-learning exhibits include characteristics such as:…

Educators at two elementary schools in Arlington, Virginia, have designed evening programs to help immigrant parents acclimate to U.S. schooling practices. One school has a program that orients parents and explains teachers' expectations while children learn socialization skills. The other school combines a similar program with parent volunteer…

Describes design and implementation of the outreach and dissemination approach used by the National Center on Education in the Inner Cities, with emphases on building on existing structures for information dissemination, training, and technical support for research utilization. Application of the Model of Outreach and Utilization was guided by two…

Outlines England's child-care system, focusing on services to protect at-risk children or support families of children in need; explores the changing Department of Health interest in research on outcomes of different aspects of the system, including the role of social services in child protection, the Children Act, the residential child-care…

Reviews common barriers to family participation in prevention services and highlights advances in strategies for recruiting families. Presents practical, detailed procedures for enlisting hard-to-reach families into prevention services and into prevention research evaluation interviews. Reports on recruitment success rates from a family counseling…

Describes the community program support for high-risk families in Hampton, Virginia. Highlights the preventive aspects of the program, targeted primarily for at-risk mothers and children. (HTH)

Refutes Gilliam et al.'s critique regarding the Comprehensive Child Development Program (CCDP) evaluation, including issues related to randomization, dropout rates, timing of evaluation, and services for control families. Discusses the broader issues regarding the appropriate interpretation of results of large-scale randomized trials of complex…

Ntu is a pluralistic approach to psychotherapy. Framed in an Afrocentric understanding of the world, Ntu is a multifaceted, continually evolving way of conceptualizing human behavior that treats families using ancient Eastern principles of healing, New Age conceptualizations of the mind-body relationship, an Afrocentric world view, and…