AUCD’s Community Inclusion Team supports the University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) Network in partnership with the Administration for Community Living.
AUCD’s Maternal and Child Health Engagement supports the Autism CARES Programs, including LEND and DBP Programs.
AUCD’s Public Health Team works to create health promotion and public health efforts that include people with disabilities.
AUCD Emerging Leaders are a part of a community that includes trainees, early career professionals, self-advocates, and family members from AUCD member Centers and Programs.
Act Early Network News is a quarterly newsletter that keeps you up-to-date with the Act Early Network of Ambassadors, state system projects, and state teams. Act Early Network News supports you and the work in your state to improve early identification of developmental delays or concerns in young children, utilizing CDC’s Learn the Signs. Act Early. Program.
Spring is a season marked by new growth and this Spring was no different for the Ocean County WIC Program in New Jersey. With seed funding and technical assistance from the Association of State Public Health Nutritionists, and with the support of the CDC's Act Early Ambassador to NJ, WIC staff in 3 clinics introduced the CDC's Developmental Milestone Checklists as an easy and reliable tool for parents to monitor their child's development, as part of standard WIC provisions for families certifying onsite. This integration was an obvious choice as WIC is a familiar and valued resource, offering critical services to improve health outcomes for low-income families. Incorporating developmental monitoring into nutrition education, and providing referrals and participant-centered goals allow parents to engage in their child's development in a positive and confidential space.
The first month of the pilot resulted in over 430 checklists provided to families with infants and children, age ranging from 2 months up to their graduation from the WIC Program. Of the referrals provided, Early Intervention (EI) and POAC Autism Services were the most provided based on the needs identified. As the Ocean County WIC Program continues to bolster their services they provide to families, alternative ways to support and sustain family-engaged developmental monitoring are being explored.
View past issues of Act Early Network News to learn more about AUCD's work with the CDC's Act Early Network.
