Several dimensions of early identification of disabling conditions are discussed, including the relationship between early identification and prevention. Preventative components are described for child find, screening, assessment, and program planning. Assumptions behind screening and assessment guidelines are discussed, emphasizing the assumption…

Reports on the Children at Risk (CAR) program, a program aimed at diverting inner-city youth from involvement in drugs, gangs, and crime through an intensive program of activities. The article describes the CAR program in general and its specific application in Austin (Texas). (GLR)

Summarizes research suggesting that refugees, being an at-risk population, are especially suited to primary mental health prevention. Describes research on stress and acculturation and its importance to prevention in refugee mental health. Examples of primary prevention programs at the local, national, and international levels are given. (CJS)

Describes innovative school programs for students at risk for alcohol and other drug problems. Describes model programs in Puget Sound school districts as involving school, families, community agencies, and youth in efforts to create school environments free of substance abuse and violence. (Author/NB)

Examines the development and implementation of the Pawtucket Heart Health Program (PHHP), a community research and demonstration project in Pawtucket (Rhode Island) focusing on PHHP's school intervention project, designed to help decrease the prevalence of cardiovascular disease risk factors among the students and staff of Pawtucket schools. (MDM)

Discusses the issue of school safety and school-based crime, explores the parameters and causes of the safety problem, and reviews some responses for resolving safety issues. Journal articles addressing national and local school safety policies and practices are highlighted, as well as research on program implementation and implications. (GR)

Examines reasons why some young people are more at risk than others for sexual health problems, highlighting structural and environmental factors that contribute to sexuality-related risks and vulnerabilities and proposing ways that policymakers might help reduce these risks by improving access to quality information and creating health-enabling…

Two elementary school counselors discuss their work inspired by the Circle of Courage Model. They have used the concept as an assessment and goal-setting tool to address students' problems and needs. They discuss their development of the tool and how they apply it in working with children and other populations, through the four quadrants on the…

Bullying is an ongoing method of mistreating, dominating, hurting, frightening, and/or browbeating another person by an individual or group. Bullies use physical, verbal, and psychological methods to humiliate, embarrass, and overpower others. Bullying by boys and girls can happen at any age, but it peaks in the middle school/junior high school…

Newborn screening for fragile X syndrome (FXS) is technically possible, and in the relatively near future accurate and inexpensive screening technologies are likely to be available. When that happens, will America's public health system adopt newborn screening for fragile X syndrome? This article addresses this issue by first placing screening for…

Although dental caries in the pediatric and adolescent population has consistently declined in the United States, it is still the most common childhood disease. Dental problems are the number one reason for missing school next to the common cold. Dental caries are an infectious, communicable disease resulting in destruction of tooth structure by…

In April 2002, the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health was created by executive order to study the mental health care delivery system in our nation and to make recommendations for improvements so that individuals with serious mental disorders can live, work, learn, and fully participate in their homes and communities. In its…

The authors, directors of the Chicago-based Pritzker Early Childhood Foundation, advocate "replication," the adaptation of a successful model program or practice to new locations or to new populations. Studies have shown that successful replications of early childhood programs that help at-risk children and their families can have long-term,…

Twenty-nine years ago Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (MLSPC) was launched at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. It was one of the first prospective longitudinal studies of how parent-infant attachment develops, how it changes over time, and how the quality of attachment in infancy influences…

The International Child Development Initiatives (ICDI) promotes the wellbeing of children growing up in difficult circumstances. ICDI works to improve policies and practices affecting these children by doing research and training. ICDI believes in the power of children and young people, supporting their rights and addressing the underlying causes…