Over the past 30 years, welfare and other public policies for families living in poverty have developed a primary objective of increasing parents' self-sufficiency by requiring and supporting employment, culminating in the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). This legislation gave states considerable…

Emphasizes the need for radical improvement in agencies' response to domestic violence, based on a general raising of sensitivity and awareness at both worker and agency level. Suggests an emphasis on safety planning with women's services as well as child care and child protection agencies, and the promotion of positive and healing work with…

Highlights a failure on the part of social services to respond to the current needs of the child welfare system. Strongly advocates a commitment to concurrent planning, defined here as the process of working toward family reunification while at the same time establishing an alternative plan, usually in the form of permanency with a relative or…

Describes the Community College of Aurora's (Colorado) Community Involvement Program, a three-part effort to bridge the gap between workforce training and citizenship. Reviews program components, including a family center providing social services, a workforce development center providing workforce training, and citizenship and leadership training…

This special issue pulls together several strands of research about home-school relationships' influences on school effectiveness. The first article presents a comprehensive model linking various research and policy initiatives with the effective schools framework. The remaining articles discuss family influence on schools through choice and…

This keynote address at the 1995 International Division for Early Childhood Conference on Children with Special Needs focuses on the need for early childhood education and society in general to: embrace principles of diversity, put into practice what has been learned from research, foster family-focused programs, encourage inclusiveness in…

Discusses current welfare reform focus on state-level funding for child care, offering implications for early childhood professionals. Notes that with temporary assistance, low-income mothers must move into the work force, resulting in increased reliance on center-based child care. Urges professionals to work with local and state policymakers to…

Describes a private, early (birth to four) therapeutic intervention center in Italy that provides short-term intensive treatment to children with severe visual impairments and possible additional disabilities. The residential program emphasizes maximum use of residual vision, vision stimulation and training, psychological counseling for parents,…

Examines the Coram Community Campus, an innovative model of service provision for young children and families in a multi- ethnic areas of inner London, providing care, education, family support, and other services. Uses case study and interview data to describe "one-stop" service provision and how the program makes services more…

Interviews conducted with 17 families of children, youth, and adults with problem behavior investigated inclusive lifestyle issues that are important to families. Issues surrounding family life, friendship, school, community inclusion, and supported living/supported employment are discussed. Results indicate the families want more collaborative…

Discusses how groups that include early childhood educators can create dynamic support services to combat homelessness. Covers causes of homelessness and the needs of homeless families and their young children, and presents several strategies to develop effective services for them. Emphasizes parental involvement, school and community…

Notes that teaching social and emotional skills can have a long-term positive effect on academic achievement. The University of Washington's Raising Healthy Children Project tries to reduce children's risk of developing problems in adolescence by providing interventions that bond students to family and school. The program features staff…

The need for good child care in the South will increase dramatically when the 1988 Family Support Act (FSA) takes effect. The FSA requires mothers receiving Aid to Families with Dependent Children or welfare payments to enroll in the Jobs Opportunities and Basic Skills program and calls for states to pay for child care for mothers in the program.…

Infants of depressed mothers who were visited at home outperformed infants of depressed mothers who received no intervention services by an average of 10 points on the Bayley Mental Scale and were twice as likely to be classified as securely attached. Unserved, high-risk infants showed a high rate of insecure-disorganized attachments. (RH)

Services for people with mental retardation in the Netherlands are examined, with emphasis on normalization, placement options including group homes and institutionalization, guidance for families through the Social Pedological Service, and the care of mental illness in mentally retarded persons through special diagnostic and treatment centers.…