Act Early Network News, Fall 2021 Issue

October 14, 2021

Fall 2021 Issue NEWS FROM ACT EARLY NETWORK PARTNERS
State and Territorial Act Early/COVID-19 Response Teams Receive a Second Year of Funding to Support Early Childhood Systems State and Territorial Act Early/COVID-19 Response Teams have been awarded a second year of funding for the grant opportunity for Support for Early Childhood State Systems through the Act Early Network. This second year, beginning 9/1/2021, has been made possible by an infusion of funding to support an Act Early Network-wide response to COVID-19 through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD). 42 Act Early Ambassador-led/co-led Response Teams will receive $94,000 each to provide support to families with young children across the country by bolstering collaboration among early childhood programs and systems to improve the four "steps" of early identification of developmental delays and disabilities (parent-engaged developmental monitoring using LTSAE, developmental screening, referral for early intervention services, and receipt of early intervention services), including autism, and working to improve resiliency skills and behaviors among families. Response Teams will also use this additional year of funding to continue to develop, implement, and evaluate strategies to improve the four "steps" of early identification of developmental delays and disabilities (using "Learn the Signs. Act Early." (LTSAE)/early identification messaging, materials, resources, and tools) within early childhood programs and systems, support families in transitioning from step to step to reduce loss to follow up and support family, child, provider, and/or community resiliency especially within communities disproportionally affected by COVID-19 and/or COVID-19 mitigation efforts. Learn about Act Early Response to COVID-19 and each of the state teams. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Request for Applications: Pilot Study Using Administrative Data to Evaluate "Child Find" Early Identification Systems Application Deadline: October 15, 2021 The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) collaborates with The National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to implement efforts supported by the "Learn the Signs. Act Early." program. CDC's "Learn the Signs. Act Early." program aims to improve early identification of children with autism and other developmental disabilities so children and families can get the services and support they need. "Learn the Signs. Act Early." research and evaluation projects funded through a partnership with AUCD advance understanding of how to improve early identification of children with autism and other developmental disabilities, especially among population groups with health disparities. This project will support the evaluation of Child Find activities in 1-2 states using existing administrative data from the state early intervention (Part C) program and at least one other early childhood programs such as preschool special education (Part B of IDEA), Medicaid, and developmental screening registries or a data system that already includes linked data from the Part C program and other early childhood programs. Learn more about this opportunity and apply today using AUCD's Application Portal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NEWS FROM THE ACT EARLY NETWORK
Healthy Transitions from Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to Home: A Pilot Study of the Safety, Matching, Looking and Expecting (SMILE) Program In the NICU, parents relinquish the care of their infant to highly skilled health care providers and transfer of caregiving responsibilities from medical staff to parents after discharge from the hospital is challenging. Kris Barnekow, Act Early Ambassador to Wisconsin, is studying the effectiveness of the SMILE curriculum in addressing the challenges mothers experience immediately following the transition of their preterm infant(s) from NICU to home. The SMILE curriculum incorporates an early childhood mental health approach to promote maternal self-efficacy and role performance. The curriculum is delivered via teletherapy and includes five modules correlating with each letter in the acronym: S represents safety (safe play aspects and caregiving). M denotes "matching" of engagement levels to activities. In this module, mothers receive a link to the CDC's milestone tracker app and learn more about chronological and adjusted ages. I addresses interaction and facilitates healthy interactions by asking mothers to identify an activity that they will practice. For the L and E modules, mothers are encouraged to (i) reflect upon and problem solve about the activity they practiced, and (ii) expect and embrace successes and challenges, respectively. If you are interested in learning more about how you can support this study, please contact Kris at [email protected]. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Help Me Grow New Jersey Partners at the 12th Annual Help Me Grow (HMG) National Forum HMG New Jersey Partners participated enthusiastically in the 12th Annual HMG Forum in September. Due to the virtual format of this year's Forum, 57 HMG NJ Partners consisting of Early Childhood Specialists, Central Intake Specialists, Parent Leaders, Home Visiting Staff, DCF and DOH Staff, HMG Physician Champion and John Hopkins University Evaluator were able to participate. HMG NJ Partners participated in several ways: Forum Planning Committee - Supported the HMG National team on all conference planning activities. Topic-based Networking Sessions - Led 2 sessions, one on Family Engagement and another on Infant Mental Health. Content session - Shared NJ's journey to Implement Universal Access to Developmental Screening. Poster Sessions -Presented 2 sessions to share The Role of the Early Childhood Specialists in supporting Infant Mental Health and the efforts around the Implementation of the online ASQ-3 Family Access Portal in Cumberland County. The "Learn the Signs. Act Early." (LTSAE) materials have been an integral part of NJ's Early Childhood Systems work. The LTSAE trainings/materials have been helpful for HMG NJ Partners including Parent Champions to reach families to share the importance of parent-engaged developmental monitoring and screening. Learn more about the the 12th Annual HMG National Virtual Forum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sharing "Learn the Signs. Act Early." at the 37th Annual Division for Early Childhood's International Conference Act Early Ambassadors were busy at the virtual Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Conference in September! Ambassadors presented a pre-conference session and two 60-minute sessions to share their work to integrate "Learn the Signs. Act Early." (LTSAE) resources in early childhood systems, LTSAE COVID Response efforts, and using LTSAE in Child Find efforts. The virtual format provided an opportunity for families, providers, administrators, and higher education faculty from across the country to learn more about the LTSAE resources and how they can be used in early childhood systems. The 3-hour pre-conference session included an overview of LTSAE, examples of collaborative partnerships shared by Ambassadors (from Connecticut, Idaho, Minnesota, New Jersey, Utah, and Virginia), LTSAE toolkit, scavenger hunt, and action planning. Session participants engaged in a Jamboard activity to share how they may use some of the LTSAE resources in their states and localities. In addition. five Act Early Ambassadors conducted a concurrent session to share lessons learned about early identification during COVID-19 and two Act Early Ambassadors participated in a concurrent session with OSEP and CDC staff to share strategies for improving Child Find systems. Learn more about the DEC and check out the recordings if you registered for the event! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Family Barriers: Step 4 Receipt of Early Intervention The Act Early Utah Team (AEUT) investigated how referrals under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) to Part C, early intervention (EI) progressed or failed to progress to Step 4, Receipt of Early Intervention Services. The Utah Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS) refers families to EI programs per the State MOU. Initial contact to families by EI resulted in minimal interest by parents. During the pandemic, CAPTA referrals became even more challenging, 80% of families referred indicating that they were not interested or could not be contacted. The AEUT team and DCFS administration examined the procedures used to inform families about EI and the importance of child development. It became apparent that obtaining a parent perspective was essential to understanding the lack of interest in EI services. A survey was developed to assess the flow, shared information, parent rationale for accepting or declining developmental evaluation, and how families are currently gaining information about their child's development. Four EI programs participated by sending out 128 letters asking parents to participate in the survey. The AEUT and DCFS also worked to embed LTSAE materials into current DCFS connections with families, training of staff on parent engaged developmental monitoring and encouraging families to download the milestone app. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
RESOURCES YOU CAN USE
New Resources From The Assistant Secretary For Planning and Evaluation (ASPE)'s "KEEP Fathers Engaged" Project Engaging fathers in human services programming can help improve economic opportunity and well-being for fathers, children, and families. ASPE has contracted with Mathematica to identify strategies used to engage fathers across human service programming. ASPE is excited to share an issue brief and a list materials developed through this project as resources for human services program staff and practitioners to strengthen father engagement. This issue brief and accompanying infographics highlight various aspects of father engagement across human services programs to enhance outcomes for fathers, children, and families. Issue Brief "Father Engagement in Human Services" Infographic "What is Father Engagement?" Infographic "A Framework for Father Engagement" Additionally, ASPE has published two podcasts: (1) How Fatherhood Programs Supported Dads During the Pandemic, which features discussions with a program provider and father about lessons learned during the pandemic, and (2) Learning from an Early Childhood Nonprofit that Serves Fathers, which features a conversation with a local Head Start program about father engagement. Learn more and see all of the resources from the KEEP Father's Engaged Project. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Evaluation of the Feasibility and Perceived Value of Integrating "Learn the Signs. Act Early." Developmental Monitoring Resources in Early Head Start A new study presents findings from the evaluation of the use of CDC's Learn the Signs. Act Early. (LTSAE) resources in Early Head Start (EHS) programs in four states. The data indicate that EHS management, staff, and parents found the use of LTSAE resources valuable, feasible, and helpful in providing a shared language to effectively discuss child development. These findings inform EHS and other early education programs that wish to enhance developmental monitoring, screening, and referral. CDC's Learn the Signs. Act Early. (LTSAE) program provides free developmental monitoring resources to increase the early identification of children with developmental delays and disabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .