A Visual Tool For State Early Childhood System Building Developed Jointly By National Organizations

Sep 18, 2007

To improve the lives of all children vulnerable to the effects of poverty and other risk factors, state early childhood systems can't just focus on any one aspect of development, but need to address the full range of child development needs. But to do this, states need help identifying the pieces that should be put into place.  An ad-hoc group of national organizations and individuals who provide technical assistance to state leaders, including CLASP, has worked together to develop a tool that can help state leaders in this work. 

The tool defines the four major systems that need to be coordinated: health; mental health, and nutrition; early intervention; family support; and early learning.

It also describes the structures these systems need to have in place to be effective: governance, standards, research and development, finance, communications, monitoring, and provider and practitioner support.

For each area, numerous technical assistance materials for state and local policymakers are being developed by the partner organizations.