The Early Experiences Matter Policy Guide includes an issue brief on child welfare. To access the complete toolkit, click here.
Baby Matters: A Gateway to State Policies and Initiatives is a searchable database that contains information on state policies and initiatives that impact infants, toddlers and their families. To search Baby Matters for information on child welfare, click here.
Court Teams for Maltreated Infants and Toddlers
Visit ZERO TO THREE's Court Teams webpage by clicking here. Federally funded pilot program that combines judicial muscle with child development and mental health community partners so that babies and toddlers in the child welfare system are given the attention and life-changing help they need.
Hearing on Preventing Child Abuse and Improving Responses to Families in Crisis
Statement of Matthew Melmed, Executive Director, ZERO TO THREE
Submitted to the House Committee on Education and Labor, Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities
November 5, 2009
Hearing on Fostering Permanence: Progress Achieved and Challenges Ahead for America's Child Welfare System
Statement of Matthew Melmed, Executive Director, ZERO TO THREE
Submitted to the Senate Committee on Finance
May 10, 2006
Hearing on Proposals to Improve Child Protective Services
Statement of the Honorable Constance Cohen, Associate Juvenile Judge, Fifth Judicial District of Iowa, Polk County Courthouse
Submitted to the Subcommittee on Human Resources, Committee on Ways and Means
U.S. House of Representatives
May 23, 2006
Restructuring the Federal Child Welfare System: Assuring the Safety, Permanence and Well-Being of Infants and Toddlers
Outlines the effects of maltreatment on early childhood development and provides detailed policy recommendations for prevention and treatment services within the child welfare system.
Court Teams for Maltreated Infants and Toddlers
In the time it takes to watch an episode of Law and Order SVU, five infants are being removed from their homes for abuse or neglect or both. During the time you?re getting ready to go to work, another five babies move into foster care. Babies and toddlers are the most vulnerable to the effects of maltreatment, and its impact on all aspects of their development can have life-long implications if not properly addressed. The science of infant-toddler development and mental health is instructive to both professionals and policymakers working toward improving outcomes for infants and toddlers in the child welfare system. Read this article to learn about an effective model for how science informed practice and led to policy change.
