For 17 years, it has been the mission of Invest in Kids to improve the health and well-being of vulnerable children and families throughout Colorado. Working in partnership with local communities, they identify, introduce, implement and ensure the success of evidence-based programs. Currently, Invest in Kids supports the implementation of Nurse-Family Partnership® and The Incredible Years® both of which are proven prevention solutions in the effort to help struggling families in Colorado to thrive. Combined, these two programs are serving more than 12,000 children and families across all 64 counties in Colorado.
Invest in Kids, gets the most vulnerable children off to the best possible start. They are putting research to work to help ensure that every day, more and more low-income, at-risk Colorado children and their families are given the opportunities and support they deserve. Invest in Kids brings research-based, proven programs into communities across the state and collaborate with local stakeholders to ensure their ongoing success.
First, they identify programs with proven track records or methodologies for success. Second, they introduce these programs to Colorado communities and constituencies to see where and how they can net the greatest impact. Third, they implement the programs through agency partners, in collaboration with community leaders and other key constituents. Fourth, they ensure each program’s ongoing success through strict adherence to guidelines and measurement of results. Finally, they work with key partners and supporters to ensure long-term program sustainability.
Invest in Kids’ current programs, Nurse-Family Partnership® and The Incredible Years, are evidence-based prevention programs with proven outcomes for young children and their families. By focusing their efforts on at-risk families, Invest in Kids helps give every child a chance to succeed. In their role as intermediary between research and direct service, Invest in Kids functions as advocate, collaborator, initiator, facilitator, and sustainer, strengthening Colorado families through the individual lives of each child. Each program has been recognized by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence for its high level of effectiveness, recognition that is provided to only 11 of over 600 programs reviewed nationwide. Only those that can demonstrate the highest level of standards and greatest promise for impact become part of their mission.
For a vulnerable young woman who is not prepared to care for a child, a new baby can mean the continuation of the cycle of poverty, conflict, and despair. The Nurse-Family Partnership® solution is to provide low-income, first-time expectant mothers with a trained nurse who makes regular home visits during the pregnancy and until the second birthday of the Child. Nurse-Family Partnership® is the only home visitation program in the country with over 30 years of clinical trials. These trials prove that Nurse-Family Partnership® produces long-term changes in the lives of both mother and child. Invest in Kids worked closely with the program founder, Dr. David Olds, and led the effort to secure initial funding to begin operating the program across Colorado. They now lead the ongoing effort to support the program’s growth and development, acting as advocate for funding and expansion and consultant for continuing education and collaboration with program nurses.
The Parenting Education is delivered through a series of 14 weekly parent group meetings. Trained co-leaders guide the group of 10-14 parents as they learn strategies for playing with and praising their children. Effective limit setting and how to partner with teachers in their children’s education are among other strategies and skills utilized.
Dinosaur School includes 60 different lessons which are delivered two to three times per week in pre-school or kindergarten classrooms. Trained teachers co-lead the lessons using life-size puppets, engaging activities, games, and video vignettes. The lessons focus on how to solve problems, control one’s anger, self-monitor one’s emotions, succeed in school, and make friends.
In the Teacher Education portion of the program, teachers learn positive teaching strategies (focusing on what children are doing well), how to connect to children with challenging behaviors, and how to help those children control their behaviors, among many other skills and strategies.
Invest in Kids bridges the gap between research and practice, allowing communities to provide services with proven effectiveness. In order to successfully bridge that gap, it must be shown that locally implemented programs achieve results similar to those produced in the research. To that end, IIK rigorously evaluates all programs and their role in implementing those programs. Each of their programs is independently evaluated to ensure objective results. IIK also evaluates its own role in the implementation process and the degree to which they assure program fidelity and sustainability. Success is defined in terms of IIK’s ability to help implementing agencies reach the program outcomes that have been demonstrated through research, and through the level of community involvement and support of the program.
In addition to their programs' effectiveness, their unique approach has been validated by two independent studies conducted by researchers at the University of Denver. In these studies, researchers confirmed the importance of IIK's intermediary role in program implementation, specifically our community-building process, training, and ongoing coaching. The communities with the greatest community buy-in and early collaboration have the best program outcomes. Additional research shows that IIK's presence increases community collaboration and the quality of community decision-making. In September 2011, IIK was awarded the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Science and Service Award for its replication of IY. Invest in Kids was one of only 11 organizations in the country to receive this distinction and the only organization in the category of Mental Health Promotion.
Since 1999 Invest in Kids' (IIK) mission has been to improve the health and well-being of vulnerable young children and families throughout Colorado. Working in partnership with local communities, we identify, introduce, implement and ensure the success of research-based, proven programs. IIK currently implements Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) and The Incredible Years (IY) across the state.
Program materials, evaluations, trainings, special events, advocacy, software/licenses, fees depreciation, other.
Program materials, evaluations, trainings, special events, advocacy, software/licenses, fees/depreciation.