Describes a family-based program in Philadelphia, the Supportive Child Adult Network (SCAN), which offers a wide range of treatment approaches to strengthen high risk families. (Author/BB)

Yields information from an American Bar Associaton study of child welfare agencies and courts, concerning practices that are effective in implementing the "reasonable efforts" requirement of the Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-272). (Author/BB)

Describes Family-Centered Community Care for the Elderly, a research and demonstration project intended to strengthen and structure the relationship between informal and formal support systems. Explains how family members are trained in case management techniques by their elderly relative's social worker and then share case management with the…

Describes OCTOPUS (Open Communication Regarding Teenagers or Parents Understanding of Sexuality), which was established as a forum for family discussion within a church setting. The program was designed to enhance communication skills, convey information, and help teenagers acquire appropriate morals and values. Feedback from four churches…

This annual report of the child advocacy organization "Voices for Illinois Children" presents activity and financial information for 2001. The report opens with a letter from the President and Board chair, highlighting the organization's activities, which include: educating the public about early learning and brain development, changing…

A key tool that is available to child welfare agencies is the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), which has been used for several years in mental health settings. This book provides many examples of how the CBCL may be used in practice and research, including chapters that highlight different statistical techniques for analyzing data and presenting…

This book provides a detailed review of a National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded, long-term clinical trial of the Family Empowerment Intervention (FEI). FEI is a systems-oriented, low-cost intervention delivered in the home by trained nontherapists for high-risk youths who have been arrested and their families. The subjects were a group of over…

How early childhood funds are channeled to communities significantly affects what supports and services are available, how they are provided, how well they are linked to other resources in the community, and who benefits from them. As pressure mounts for states and communities to strengthen their commitment to families with young children and meet…

This booklet focuses on direct service work with parents and children, and explores how leaders and staff can use the reflective approaches of the Look, Listen, and Learn model to establish high-quality relationships with families. The booklet addresses the complex decisions that service staff face daily by presenting strategies for use in setting…

Parent Services Project (PSP), the first comprehensive program of resources and mental health activities for parents offered at child care centers in the San Francisco Bay Area (California), has expanded to centers in six states, serving over 19,000 families. This report describes the program's history, aims, and achievements, along with specific…

The intervention described in this paper used Brief Strategic/Structural Family Therapy (BSFT) to reduce the likelihood that African American and Hispanic youth would initiate drug use by decreasing existing behavior problems at the individual level and improving maladaptive family functioning at the family level. The program targeted African…

A nonprofit outdoor adventure organization and a nonprofit advocacy organization for persons with disabilities and their families collaborated to develop a comprehensive, inclusive, outdoor recreation program for families. Ten Minnesota families having one or more children with a disability participated in Project FIT (Families Integrating…

The Families Matter series of papers from the Harvard Family Research Project advances the concept of family-centered child care, advocating an approach to early childhood education that addresses the development of the child and family together. Grounded in family support principles, which build on family strengths and work from a community's…

This study explored the potential of meta-analysis for assessing the efficacy of interventions designed for parents of young, environmentally at-risk children. Included in the sample were 232 evaluations of 282 parent-focused interventions implemented between 1965 and 1999; evaluations met 10 criteria, including the inclusion of a treatment and…

This book is intended to help educators weave some of the best ideas for creating and maintaining family and community engagement into a comprehensive family-school-community involvement program tailored to their own communities. The goal of such an initiative must be to help all children succeed academically so that they can live productive lives…