NCJ Number
217841
Date Published
2006
Length
56 pages
Annotation
This report presents Montgomery County, Maryland’s 5-year community strategic plan for improving child well-being and strengthening families.
Abstract
The strategic planning process resulted in the identification of 22 priority needs of children in Montgomery County, which were divided into 3 focus areas: (1) early childhood; (2) youth development; and (3) children with intensive needs. Based on these priority needs, different strategies to meet these needs were developed and plans were created to facilitate the success of the strategies. For example, in order to meet the seven priority needs of Montgomery County’s youngest members, five main strategies were identified. These include the strategies of increasing the availability of home-visiting services; increasing early childhood emotional and behavioral health resources; and increasing opportunities for parents to receive education and support in childhood development and effective parenting. For each strategy, the roles of the Collaboration Council are outlined, along with milestones and appropriate partners. In terms of youth development, six strategies were identified to meet the nine priority needs of school-aged children in Montgomery County. These include the strategies of increasing the availability of after-school and out-of-school activities and increasing the availability of behavioral health prevention, education, and treatment services. Another six strategies were identified to meet the six priority needs for children with intensive needs. These strategies seek to increase timely family connection to the array of local services; increase the use and funding of the wraparound model to provide effective service delivery in the home and community; and increase access to high quality behavioral health treatment services. The process of developing the 5-year strategic plan involved identifying the needs of children, youth, and families and then prioritizing them with corresponding strategies for action. In order to identify these needs, extensive community outreach was conducted and over 425 surveys were completed by a large swath of community members, including parents, youth, and service providers. Figures, appendix