This project is designed to strengthen and evaluate Lutheran Social Services’ School-Centered Mental Health (SCMH) model, which combines traditional school-based counseling with in-home support provided by a family coach. Through screening, referral, and service coordination, family coaches address social determinants of health and enhance family...
Child & Family Well-Being
Hello Baby
Hello Baby is a free, voluntary program that provides families with in-home support from a public health nurse soon after the birth of a child. The Racine County Public Health Division and Walworth County Department of Health and Human Services partnered with ICFW to develop this evidence-informed program, which aims to enhance maternal and child...
Hope and Healing for Children Who Experience Family Violence
The purpose of this project is to enhance therapeutic services at the Sojourner Family Peace Center (FPC) that aim to promote healing among children and youth who have witnessed domestic violence. FPC will increase its capacity to deliver evidence-informed services while working with partner agencies to link children and families to community-based...
Rapid Cycle Analysis: Child Welfare and Home Visiting Data Project
June 2021 – December 2021
The Wisconsin Public Child Welfare and Home Visiting Data Project was a rapid cycle analysis conducted to help inform Wisconsin’s IV-E service planning process. Using eight years of administrative records, we examined the risk profiles of families who received a screened-in CPS report during their time...
Mobility Mentoring® in Family Support and Preservation Programs
Children thrive when they have regular interactions with responsive, caring adults. Families experiencing significant stressors related to financial insecurity, housing instability, or the impact of systemic and interpersonal trauma can be overwhelmed with stress, interrupting those interactions. To better support families overloaded by stress, Children’s...
Strong and Stable Families
Strong and Stable Families is a mixed-methods study that aims to (1) identify protective factors that reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect in Wisconsin households; (2) examine the impact of Wisconsin’s Family Resource Centers.
Youth aging out of foster care do not fare as well as their same-aged peers. Frequent exposure to trauma and adversity stresses executive functioning skills most needed to perform essential life skills that set the foundation for self-sufficiency and independence. According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, youth who are aging out of... November 2020- April 2022 The Wisconsin Birth to 3 Program is a federally-mandated Early Intervention program to support families of children with developmental delays or disabilities under the age of three. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) awarded innovation grants to 15 Birth to 3 programs across the state to pilot new and... Executive function skills are like an air traffic control system in the brain that helps us manage information, make decisions, and plan ahead. Stress and the lingering impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) can negatively impact executive functioning, making it difficult to effectively navigate challenging and uncertain circumstances. Home... The School-Based Mental Health project strives to increase accessibility to mental health care for children in Wisconsin. By placing psychotherapists in schools, we reduce barriers to access to care and build on the undeniable connection between a well child and their ability to succeed in school. In this way not only are healthcare disparities reduced,... Funded by a HRSA Innovation Grant, Assessing for Trauma in Home Visiting aims to improve trauma-responsive practices among three Wisconsin home visiting programs. Home visiting staff receives a full-day training in trauma screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment or T-SBIRT, which was... Children entering the child welfare system are more vulnerable due to the exposure to one, often multiple, adverse events prior to their placement in foster care. These adverse events can lead to decreased activity in areas of the brain affecting learning, memory, stress regulation and can result in life-long problems in learning, behavior, and physical... October 2018- October 2021 The Higher Expectations’ Two Generation Initiative was a StriveTogether-funded project that aimed to support unemployed or underemployed mothers with young children, by offering intentional and aligned access to workforce... October 2018 – December 2022 Racine Elevates All Children’s Health (REACH) is an impact study of Family Connects, a postpartum nurse visiting program that is being implemented by the Central Racine County Health Department in partnership with Ascension All Saints Hospital.... October 2017 – September 2022 The Trauma and Recovery Project (TARP) was a 5-year SAMHSA-funded initiative that aimed to increase the availability and accessibility of trauma-responsive treatments for children and families in southeastern Wisconsin by: (a) fortifying and coordinating systems of care, (b) increasing the pool of clinicians... The Families and Children Thriving (FACT) Study is a HRSA-funded, ongoing panel investigation of risk and resilience among nearly 2,000 low-income families that have received home visiting services through Wisconsin’s Family Foundations Home Visiting... October 2013 – September 2022 The Healthy Families Study is a randomized trial of two home visiting programs at the Milwaukee Health Department that serve low-income, pregnant women. One program implements Healthy Families America, an evidence-based curriculum, and the other is... October 2017- September 2022 This 5-year project focused on Milwaukee County’s Family Drug Treatment Court (FDTC), which is a voluntary program that provides substance abuse treatment and family support services to parents or guardians whose substance use disorder is a safety concern that results in the removal of the children from their... October 2016-September 2018 Funded through the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families, Alternative Response (AR) or Differential Response is being implemented by 22 Wisconsin county child welfare agencies with the aim of serving families with low-to-moderate safety concerns without launching an official investigation of maltreatment.... The health and well-being of children, families, and communities are critical foundations for a prosperous future. Responsive relationships are a key component to the health, well-being, and resilience of children. Parent-Child relationships can inoculate children from the harmful effects of toxic levels of stress that negatively impact brain development.... Wisconsin’s Family Foundations Home Visiting (FFHV) program is a statewide network of agencies that provide evidence-based home visiting services to pregnant women and families with children under age 5. Program services include screening and assessment, parent education, and referral... October 2013 – September 2017 This project evaluates Wisconsin’s Family Foundations Home Visiting (FFHV) Program, which coordinates home visiting programs across 15 counties and 4 tribal regions. The study examines whether Wisconsin’s evidence-based home visiting services are associated with expected client and program outcomes in... Youth with good mental health develop skills and capacities that become the basis for strong communities. Toxic levels of stress and trauma negatively impact the architecture of a youth’s developing brain, which has lasting effects into adulthood. Youth in foster care face these challenges and many others, which contribute with significantly... Seeking Solutions for Youth Aging Out of Foster Care
Birth to 3 Social-Emotional Innovation Grants
Executive Functioning Across Generations
School-Based Mental Health
Assessing for Trauma in Home Visiting
Clinical Services Integration (CSI)
Higher Expectations’ Two Generation Initiative
Racine Elevates All Children’s Health (REACH) Study
Trauma and Recovery Project (TARP)
Families and Children Thriving (FACT) Study
Healthy Families Study
Family Drug Treatment Court (FDTC)
Alternative Response (AR) in Wisconsin
Foundations for Adolescent Well-Being (FAWB)
Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT)
Family Foundations Home Visiting Program
Smart Scale Up: Expanding Home Visiting with Fidelity
Brighter Futures: Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy