This article describes an infant and early childhood mental health-informed therapeutic visitation program that offers clinical support, systems-level advocacy, and developmentally appropriate guidance to families navigating the child welfare and family court systems. The program offers treatment, permanency, and placement planning for infants,…

Background: Due to the rising demands for a Canadian workforce with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)-related education, there is a need to increase youth engagement in STEM education and programming. Research, however, has shown that youth residing in low-income communities are disproportionately affected by psychosocial barriers,…

This postscript presents the implementation and evaluation of family and community based intervention programs for children and young people implemented in Norway. The Norwegian experiences and results illustrate how evidence-based programs developed in the U.S. have been transported across geographical and language borders, implemented…

Research highlights the vulnerability of Black mothers and their infants, who experience higher rates of stress, preterm birth, low birth weight, and infant mortality than other racial groups. This article describes the development and implementation of the Relationships and Parenting Support (RAPS) Program, a community-based, family-focused…

Universal screening and referral are crucial for maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs to improve maternal, infant, and early childhood outcomes. The purpose of this article is to describe a county-wide, centralized intake and referral system. The authors report results and lessons learned for reducing service duplication…

The Prevention Initiative Demonstration Project, funded by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), is a community-specific strategy delivered through eight regional networks designed to address the full spectrum of community-based prevention. This article summarizes a strong and meaningful pattern of improvements…

The Fostering Hope Initiative is a neighborhood-based Collective Impact initiative that promotes optimum child and youth development by supporting vulnerable families, encouraging connections between neighbors, strengthening systems to ensure collective impact, and advocating for family-friendly public policy. This article describes the…

Despite recent declines in teen pregnancy, U.S. teen birth and sexually transmitted infection (STI) rates remain among the highest in the western world. Given the need to focus limited prevention resources on effective programs, Advocates for Youth undertook exhaustive reviews of existing research to compile a list of the programs proven effective…

Objective: Hazardous drinking is a serious societal concern in military populations. Efforts to reduce hazardous drinking among military personnel have been limited in effectiveness. There is a need for a deeper understanding of how community-based prevention models apply to hazardous drinking in the military. Community-wide prevention efforts may…

Making Connections was the Annie E. Casey Foundation's signature place-based, community-change initiative of the 2000s. It sought to build on previous work and launch an effort focused firmly on the framework of family strengthening. The Foundation started Making Connections in 22 places, focusing eventually on first 10, then seven sites. It…

Few youth suicide prevention programs are theory based and systematically evaluated. This study evaluated the pilot implementation of a community-based youth suicide prevention project guided by an ecological perspective. One hundred fifty-seven adults representing various constituencies from educators to health care providers and 131 ninth-grade…

In 2006, more than 6 million individuals were victimized by violent crimes. Although violence is below levels of the early 1990s, it remains high. The extent of violence and its impact highlight a critical need to develop and implement effective programs to reduce violence and victimization. Communities have initiated a wide range of such…

Presents an assessment of the Neutral Zone, a community-based gang prevention and intervention program developed in Washington State. The Neutral Zone offers at-risk or gang-affiliated youths a viable alternative for productively spending their time. Evaluation based on direct observation, focus group interviews, and official crime statistics…

The Cooperative Extension Service's Children, Youth, and Families at Risk initiative is being assessed by the Evaluation Collaboration's three projects: state-strengthening evaluation project (resources to help states evaluate community programs); NetCon (evaluation of electronic and other networks); and National Youth at Risk Sustainability Study…

Evaluated an early intervention, risk-reduction strategy in comparison with a standard intervention approach in the treatment of inner-city youth at risk of adopting a deviant life style. Regression analysis of outcome measures for 428 inner-city youth revealed significant differential results for delinquent activity, favoring the experimental…