2026 International Early Childhood Inclusion Institute

We know that infants and toddlers thrive when surrounded by responsive and caring adults. We also know that families with young children often experience high levels of stress, particularly when they are involved with Child Welfare Systems.  This session will provide an overview of an innovative collaboration designed to support families navigating this experience in Arkansas. HealthySteps and Safe Babies Programs are working together to support pathways to improve access to quality medical homes for children and families who are experiencing heightened adversities and/or involvement with the Child Welfare System with the goal of increasing relationships beyond the pediatric community and continuity for children in foster care with established medical homes. HealthySteps is a program that adds the expertise of a child development and behavioral health promotion and prevention expert, a HealthySteps Specialist, to the pediatric primary care team. Safe Babies is an approach driven by a vision of prevention and mobilized through collaborative partnerships within communities and states to meet the urgent developmental needs of babies and toddlers. Safe Babies applies the science of early childhood to the practices of Child Welfare with an innovative team-based approach to improve outcomes for children and families impacted by greater adversities and family separation.
Participants will learn more about both programs, successes, challenges, and lessons learned from the collaboration in Arkansas, and opportunities for future innovations.