Together For Kids Project

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Together For Kids Project
Reducing Preschool Expulsion Through Mental
Health Consultation Services
Lynn Hennigan, MSW, M.Ed.,
LICSW Director of Services for the
Young Child Together For Kids Project
Director Community Healthlink Youth and
Family Service LHennigan_at_communityhealth
link.org 508-421-4453
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Together for Kids Problem Model
Staffing Problems

• Preschool teacher/programs
• Low pay
• High turnover
• Lack of early childhood
• behavioral health training
• Lack of resources to access
• for children/families

• Family
• Lack of resources
• Stress
• Trauma
• Poor parenting skills

Impacts on other children
Disruptive Classrooms Poor Quality Child Care

• Child behavior problems
• Attention deficits
• Acting out
• Poor social skills
• Poor problem solving/coping
• strategies
• Poor academic skills

• Child
• Temperament
• Stress/trauma
• Developmental issues

Children labeled and stigmatized-require special
education
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Intervention Model

• Provide resource links
• (basic needs, counseling)
• Enhance parenting skills
• (one on one and parenting
• training groups)
• Enhance communication
• w/child care center

Family

• General strategies for
• classroom management
• General background on
• early childhood mental
• health

Child
Teachers

• One on one intervention
• Intervention in classroom
• setting

Classroom

• Staff training
• Parent training and
• activities
• Family support
• resources

Center as a whole

• Assistance working with
• target children

• Outcomes
• Improved parenting skills, improved family
  circumstances
• Greater connection/more satisfaction between
  parents and child care center
• Improved target child behavior and skills
• Improved teacher skills, more job satisfaction,
  lower turnover
• Better organized and more pleasant and
  productive classrooms for all children
• Child care center increased capacity to
  positively impact greater range of
• children and families

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Description of TFK Intervention Model

• Mental Health Clinicians (aka Child Development
  Advisors) 16 hours per week at a site.
• Provide general classroom observation, teacher
  training, parent workshops.
• Average of 23 hours (most receive between 12 and
  30 hours) per targeted child/family.
• Direct services include a combination of short
  term individual work with the child, child and
  family assessment, parent consultation, classroom
  observation and teacher consultation.
• Currently implemented in 5 agencies, 18
  classrooms (300 children), 40 teachers.

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TFK Expectations

• Decrease challenging behavior, increase positive
  functioning in children.
• Increase age appropriate developmental skills.
• Increase parenting skills, particularly in
  dealing with challenging behavior.
• Decrease parenting stress.
• Connect parents with additional resources as
  needed.
• Increase teacher skills in dealing with
  challenging behavior.
• Increase teacher and parent collaboration.
• Improve overall classroom environment.

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Rates of Significant Behavior Problems

• Year 1 23.3 of preschool children screened in 3
  sites met criteria for being at risk for
  behavior problems.
• Year 2 34.7 of children screened in 5 sites met
  criteria for being at risk for behavior
  problems (more children per classroom were
  screened).
• Expulsions for behavior decreased from 9 to 1 and
  4 to 1 in the year after the TFK model was
  implemented in each agency expulsions reduced to
  near zero in succeeding years.

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TFK Research Results in General

• Childrens behavior and developmental skills
  improved.
• Preschool suspensions and expulsions reduced to
  near zero.
• Families better connected to children and
  centers.
• Teachers benefited from training and support.

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Creating a Mental Health Consultation ModelThe
Importance of Micro and Macro Systemic Issues

• Stakeholder buy-in is critical.
• Relationships are key.
• Communication and collaboration is essential.
• Goodness of fit between clinician and teachers
  influences the clinical work.
• Culturally competent, family-centered,
  strengths-based approach must inform the process.
• Outcome measures are required.
• Flexibility and humor are mandatory.
• Ability to recognize and appreciate incremental
  gains is a helpful trait.
• Public policy/advocacy agenda must be developed
  to create systemic change.

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TFK Public Policy/Advocacy Agenda

• Incorporate early childhood mental health
  consultation into all early education and care
  programs.
• Recommending line item and supplemental
  budget amendments, educating legislators about
  the importance of the issue on a 11 basis
  joining with other agencies/groups with similar
  agendas e.g., MECCS.
• Incorporate social-emotional development content
  into early childhood teacher preparation programs
  and professional development training
  requirements.
• Recommending changes to existing state
  regulations team teaching (mental health and
  early childhood professional) of a Behavior in
  the Young Child college course.

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TFK Public Policy/Advocacy Agenda

• Improve salaries for early education and care
  professionals.
• Testifying at public hearings educating
  individual legislators.
• Advocate for program standards, school readiness
  assessments and outcome measures that are
  informed by best practices and applied across all
  child care settings.
• Testifying at public hearings, aligning with
  groups who share similar concerns.

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TFK Public Policy/Advocacy Agenda

• Promote societal recognition of the importance of
  a holistic view of children and families.
• Multi-media campaign, e.g., Born Learning.
• Develop graduate school clinical internships and
  certificate specialties in early childhood mental
  health consultation.
• Social Work and Psychology Internships at
  Community Healthlink Youth Family Services
  Graduate Level Seminar (16 weeks beginning on
  9/21/05).

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TFK Public Policy/Advocacy Agenda

• Advocate for sustainability of early childhood
  mental health consultation through public/private
  partnerships.
• Federal/state government, insurance companies,
  private foundations.
• Pursue funding to support research.
• TFK is presently conducting an economic
  modeling study of mental health consultation and
  has applied for federal funding for two new
  studies (family involvement curriculum
  development).

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Together For Kids Coalition

• Together For Kids Project
• Primary Funding Source
• The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts
• The United Way of Central Massachusetts
• Additional Funding Support
• Fred Harris Daniels Foundation
• MA Office of Child Care Services
• Rotary Club