Foundations of Well-being: Policy Strategies for Integrating Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health into Child Welfare
From birth to age 3, the brain undergoes its most dramatic period of growth, as babies learn to think, speak, walk, reason, and interact with others. This brief highlights the importance of IECMH for families in child welfare. It covers key components of the IECMH continuum of care and the importance of integrating ZERO TO THREE’s IECMH Guiding Principles and Best Practices for family support and reunification. Additionally, it suggests policy strategies for states to enhance collaboration between IECMH, child welfare, and other early childhood systems.
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Systems in Sync: What Seven States Learned About Supporting Families Experiencing Homelessness
Blog September 24, 2026
Teams from seven states spent six months exploring how systems can work together to support infants, toddlers, and parents experiencing homelessness.
Home Is Missing From the Maternal and Infant Health Conversation
Blog September 22, 2026
Picture a mother, eight months pregnant, who has missed her last two prenatal appointments — she's been sleeping in her car and has no fixed address to give the clinic. Or a parent three weeks postpartum, trying to establish a nursing routine in a shared shelter bathroom, timing every feeding around when the room is free.
Head Start Under Threat: What the Field is Saying
Research September 22, 2026
Over the past few months, HHS has advanced two related sets of proposed changes to Head Start. National, state, and local partners across the early childhood field have raised serious concerns about both. This document is a summary of what our partners are saying, followed by concrete actions and resources for you and your organization. The content reflects our partners' own statements and comments — we agree with what they've said and are sharing it here with full source attribution. Updated September 22, 2026.