Why are programs for vulnerable infants and toddlers important?
The earliest days and months of a child's life are vital for human development. For example, research shows that the rapid brain development that occurs in infancy is central to a child's cognitive and emotional growth. And the very early attachments babies and toddlers form with caregivers have powerful effects on later relationships. Healthy development for some children, however, is put at risk because of poverty, unsteady home lives, or significant disabilities. The good news is that intervening with effective services for young disadvantaged children has been shown to have significant returns to society.
What are some of the key programs serving vulnerable infants and toddlers? How many children do they serve?
- Early Head Start, a child development program within the Department of Health and Human Services, served nearly 82,000 children under age 3 in 2005.
- WIC—the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children—is a Department of Agriculture program that provides nutritional supplementation, education, counseling, and health care referrals to pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, infants and their mothers, and children under age 5. More than 8 million people were enrolled in WIC in 2004, all of whom had to meet state-set definitions of financial need.
- The child welfare system(administered by the Department of Health and Human Services) consists of a network of child protective services agencies that respond to allegations of child maltreatment and work to ensure children's safety. In 2005, about 300,000 children under 3 years old were confirmed victims of child maltreatment.
- Through the Early Intervention Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities (also called Part C), the Department of Education funds state programs serving children under age 3 with developmental delays or disabilities. State efforts vary, but they include screening and assessment services, family resource coordination, physical therapy, and health, nutrition, speech, and psychological services. More than 200,000 infants and toddlers received Part C services in 2000.
- Medicaid, Food Stamps, Supplemental Security Income, State Children's Health Insurance, and housing programs also serve substantial numbers of very young children.
How could service delivery improve for infants and toddlers in need?
These separate services have several common goals—promoting the healthy development of young children and encouraging nurturing family relationships—but are directed by multiple federal departments, supported by different funding streams, and subject to different administrative oversight. Better coordination might permit them to act on common lessons learned across the programs and to identify unmet needs for the populations they serve.
Streamlining separate services or strengthening relationships among services would be particularly valuable for client families. Trying to access multiple services to ensure a child's basic needs are met while also working can put an inordinate amount of strain on a hard-pressed family.
What characteristics describe the infants and toddlers served in these systems?
Family structure: The very young children served by Early Head Start, WIC, and the child welfare system tend to be less likely than most children to live with two parents. The shares of two-parent families in these programs range from 25 to 49 percent. A much greater percentage of the infants and toddlers in the Part C disability-services program live with two parents (68 percent). Nationally, 72 percent of children up to age 3 live in two-parent households.
Receipt of other benefits: About 30 percent of all poor children are in families that receive cash welfare benefits (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families), but the families engaged with Early Head Start, WIC, the child welfare system, or the Part C disability program are slightly less likely to receive TANF payments.
Parental employment: Analyses vary when it comes to parents' rates of employment. In Early Head Start and WIC, between 66 and 75 percent of enrolled families include at least one wage earner. Fifty-three percent of caregivers of children in the child welfare system are employed at least part time. Forty-four percent of women with children in Part C are employed. In general, 57 percent of women with children under age 3 are working parents.
Related research:
