More than 10 million children from birth through age six in the US live in low-income families. Although large investments in early childhood intervention programs are evident, is the field fully exploiting its potential to address the diverse needs of children and families? One means of addressing this question is to focus on the efficacy of…

This new Iowa Kids Count data book, "Iowa Kids Count 2008: Trends in the Well-Being of Iowa Children," is the latest annually produced book containing data on 18 different indicators of child and family well-being for the United States, Iowa and its 99 counties. The 18 indicators provide a wealth of health, education, welfare and…

The School-Based Mental Health Program's goals are to identify at-risk children, reduce ineffective functioning of at-risk children, provide social service interventions, increase effective parenting skills, help families access community resources, and support mental health education. The program was designed to develop a comprehensive,…

"Data Trends" reports present summaries of research on mental health services for children and adolescents and their families. The article summarized in this "Data Trends" examines research on the "contribution of informal support linkages in the achievement of treatment outcomes" in three models of family-based practice: Intensive Family…

This article describes standardized instruments designed to measure physical and emotional health outcomes among children for a statewide implementation of community- and school-based family resource centers. It includes descriptive and psychometric information, strengths and weaknesses of two measures of physical well-being, and four measures of…

Utilizing 2000 data on 1,618 counties and seemingly unrelated regression, I assess whether family structure effects on homicide vary across family structure measures and gender. There is evidence of robust, multidimensional family structure effects across constructs reflecting the presence of two-parent families: mother/father absence, shortages…

There is an ongoing need for family and consumer sciences professionals to generate new knowledge through research and then share findings with diverse groups. Specific Action Steps describe methods to incorporate research into university curricula to promote this role. The ultimate goal is to inspire new professionals to remain true to the…

The two parts of this document summarize (1) legislation affecting children, youth, and families that was enacted into law during the 102nd Congress, and (2) legislation concerning the same issues that was passed by the House and/or Senate during the same period. The legislation covers: (1) early intervention; (2) children, youth, and families in…

Local Interagency Coordinating Councils (LICCs) have been established in most states to coordinate services to infants and toddlers with special needs and their families. This descriptive study examined the 40 Kansas LICCs, in order to understand the councils' developmental progress and current needs and to gain insight into broader issues of…

This literature review is intended for use by organizations and agencies who are working to develop coordinated and integrated services for children and families in their communities. The information is organized in a framework that reflects primary areas of importance in evaluating implementation and effects of collaboration. The reviewed…

The articles in this journal, which is dedicated to the family support field, include such topics as: (1) creating links between family support and early childhood education programs; (2) the challenges facing grandparent caregivers; (3) the problems endemic in social services for infants, toddlers, and their families; (4) the use of the internet…

This guide is the second monograph in the "Guidelines for Effective Practice" series commissioned by the Best Practices Project of the Family Resource which meets the need for better definition and articulation of what constitutes best practice in family support programs. This guide describes the definition, key characteristics, and…

The family-based practicum experience of the University Affiliated Program of Vermont provides early intervention interns with an in-depth experience with the family of a child with special health care and/or education needs. Through this experience, interns acquire an understanding of the elements of a family-centered approach, incorporate the…

A project was undertaken to identify the training and resources family support workers need to strengthen the programs they provide for young adolescents and their families. Results were designed to help shape the development of training and resource materials for family support workers nationwide. Potential survey respondents were on the Family…

A rationale is presented for the use of many cases in policy analysis. Case study families were selected from nomination by early intervention professionals in three states with differing early intervention policies and procedures. Using rating scales, demographic data, and interview transcripts with 72 families of children receiving services, 7…