Part C Child Find Demonstration Projects In light of the powerful recent research that substantiates that the greatest window of opportunity to influence child development is during the first years of life, early identification of young children with disabilities or who may be at risk for developmental delay becomes more important than ever. Nationwide, the number of infants and toddlers served by Part C of IDEA has increased by 25 percent from 1994 to 1999 (U.S. Department of Education, 1996 & 2001), showing steady improvement on the ability of States to identify and serve eligible young children.
However, infants (birth–12 months) represented only 17 percent of the total number of young children receiving Part C services in the 1999 Part C IDEA child count (U.S. Department of Education, 2001). Further, according to the National Early Intervention Longitudinal Study (2001), the average age of identification for developmental delay is 15.5 months. Thus, much work remains to be done to assure that State child find and public awareness systems are effectively identifying all eligible young children and their families.
Demonstration projects concerning Part C child find activities were awarded by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) to University Centers of Excellence in six States throughout the country: Connecticut, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, New Hampshire, and Vermont. This website offers information and resources related to the earliest possible identification of young children and their families who may benefit from early intervention or education services and provides numerous resources for other related child find activities. http://www.childfindidea.org/
Interagency Collaboration for Colorado Part C Child Find: Facilitating the Handshake between Child Welfare & Early Intervention Services JFK Partners of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Department of Pediatrics was awarded a four-year federal research and training grant through the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) beginning September 1999. The purpose of the grant is to increase the rate of identification and referral of infants and toddlers from county child welfare departments to local Part C early intervention services. The statewide goals for the project are 1) to assist county departments of child welfare and individual caseworkers in identifying and referring children under age three to local Part C services and 2) to assist Part C service providers in developing and strengthening linkages with child welfare.
This project works with counties throughout the State to develop and strengthen linkages between county child welfare services and Part C. Strategic planning meetings are held locally with key service providers for the birth to three population. The project team facilitates the development of an Interagency Collaboration Agreement that outlines the process for identifying, screening, and determining Part C eligible children within that community. http://www.childfindidea.org/descriptions/colorado.htm
Montana—Dynamic Community Connections Project The Dynamic Community Connections Project (DCCP) was developed to enhance public awareness about early intervention services and the referral process for the services for young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families in rural areas of Montana. The awareness of the need to enhance public awareness and child find efforts became apparent as the Infant and Toddler Program agencies in Montana prepared for federal monitoring of Montana's Part C early Intervention (EI) services. The Rural Institute collaborated with Montana's Part C lead agency, the Developmental Disabilities Program of the Department of Public Health and Human Services, Teaching Research of Western Oregon University, and regional early intervention agencies in Montana and Oregon to develop this grant proposal.
DCCP is based on the premise that how people access information may be unique in rural areas and that statewide public awareness campaigns may not reach certain rural populations. Thus, public awareness and child find campaigns need to be specifically developed for rural areas. Other key foundations for successful and comprehensive campaigns in rural areas are:
- Local early intervention agencies need to partner with other health, human, and education service providers and agencies.
- Parents of children with disabilities need to be full partners in designing local campaigns.
- Public awareness and child find campaigns should help children and families access any service they may need, not just Part C early intervention services.
- Individuals organizing local efforts need skills in coordinating multiple agency community efforts, conducting planning oriented meetings, and marketing programs.
http://www.childfindidea.org/descriptions/dyanmic_community.htm
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