Project Launch
Fund for Public Health in New York
Funded Years : 2010
Project Director :
Jessica Auerbach
347-396-7187
jauerbac@health.nyc.gov
Address :
New York,NY
Project Status : Active
Project Summary : New York City's Project LAUNCH will redesign the early childhood system for children from birth through age 8 and their families in two of New York City's most distressed communities—East Harlem and Hunts Point—by expanding evidence-based practices and creating partnerships among community stakeholders. The New York City (NYC) Department of Health and Mental Hygiene will develop policy, implement the grant, and oversee the Council on Young Child Wellness. Building on the New York State Children's Plan as the policy framework for transforming early childhood services, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Council on Young Child Wellness will develop a vision for a holistic system to support children and their families by managing the services of key partners, for example:
• New York Center for Child Development (NYCCD): Developmental assessments and screenings; integration of behavioral health into primary care; mental health consultation for day care centers, schools, and home visiting programs; and training/workforce development
• Mental Health Association of New York City: Family support and education
• National Center for Children in Poverty: Program evaluation
NYC Project LAUNCH will identify strategies, resources, and policy changes needed to create a linguistically and culturally competent child- and family-centered system by using evidence-based practices in many natural settings in neighborhoods, health care agencies, and early educational settings within the target communities.
The residents of Hunts Point in the South Bronx and East Harlem in Manhattan are predominantly Latino and black, with considerable ethnic and cultural diversity. These are high-need communities that face significant challenges in meeting the needs of the children and families who live there. A specific risk factor for children is early aggressive behavior that results in exclusion from child care and early childhood education settings. Family risk factors include substance abuse, mental health conditions, and domestic violence, which contribute to children's behavioral problems and a decrease in parents' ability to support their children's development.
In spite of these threats, these communities have many protective factors, including a rich variety of cultural, faith-based, and other grassroots organizations reflective of the strong spiritual attachments and resources that mobilize parents and families to improve conditions for their children and community. These strength-based community organizations, and the families themselves, will play an essential role in developing partnerships for NYC Project LAUNCH.
Project LAUNCH Goals
• Develop consensus around community implementation and sustainability of evidence-based practices through the Council on Young Child Wellness
• Improve parents' competence in parenting practices in order to improve the quality of their relationships with their children
• Increase attendance rates and reduce behavioral incidents in child care and education settings
• Improve staff members' understanding of child development and their ability to provide key supports in early childhood service settings
• Enhance the capability of all early child-serving sectors to deliver evidence-based services that address risks and promote optimal functioning
• Improve parent participation in all aspects of planning and community development
• Improve community coalition-building around substance abuse prevention
Strategies
NYC Project LAUNCH will work in partnership with NYCCD to reach these goals, using several evidence-based and promising practices:
• Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Social-Emotional
• Nurse Family Partnership home visiting program
• The Incredible Years (Teachers)
• Strengthening Multi-Ethnic Families and Communities
NYCCD will employ the following strategies:
• Implement developmental assessments at community clinics, a local hospital, and a public school site, using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Social-Emotional
• Expand the services offered through the Nurse Family Partnership home visiting program by providing consultation and training to the nursing staff
• Coordinate teacher training for workforce development, using The Incredible Years
To integrate behavioral health into primary care, a bilingual mental health professional and primary care assistant will be co-located at a primary care clinic in each community, and mental health consultations at the child and programmatic levels will occur at one local public elementary school in Hunts Point, a neighborhood particularly affected by crime, poverty, and environmental stressors.
The Mental Health Association of NYC will build on existing programming at Family Resource Centers in Harlem and the South Bronx by providing parent skills training, using the Strengthening Multi-Ethnic Families and Communities model in settings within the communities.
In addition, NYC Project LAUNCH will encourage strong family engagement and participation in all of our work through the Council on Young Child Wellness, the Mental Health Association of NYC, and NYCCD.
Expected Outcomes
We expect to improve the social and emotional health of children and families so that each child can best live, learn, play, and grow.
The project aims to serve 458 children and families in the first year, and more than 1,400 in each subsequent year. The project evaluation will generate data to ensure that evidence-based practices were implemented with fidelity, to document and improve the infrastructure of child and family wellness outcomes, and to support sustainability and replication within other NYC communities and nationwide.
Evidence-Based Programs :
Nurse-Family Partnership (Prenatal/Early Childhood Nurse Home Visitation Program)
Strengthening Multi-Ethnic Families and Communities Program
Incredible Years
Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
Ages & Stages Questionnaire: Social Emotional (ASQ:SE)
