Pushing Toward Breakthroughs: Using Innovative Practice to Address Toxic Stress

Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child profiles Acelero Learning in New York City, Westside Infant-Family Network in Los Angeles, and Catholic Community Services of the Mid-Willamette Valley and Central Coast in Oregon. All three have implemented a supportive brain-science based approach to providing services.

Acelero Learning, which is based in New York City, operates delegate agencies that provide Head Start preschool and services to more than 4,000 low-income children and families from Nevada to New Jersey. Before Acelero took over, the programs were among the worst-performing in the country. Now, according to Levine, participating children’s two-year gains in word recognition and in math readiness outperformed Head Start national averages by at least 2 to 1.

“The focus for way too long in social services has been on treating disease, disability, and dysfunction,” [Jim] Seymour [executive director of Catholic Community Services] says. By contrast, he adds, “this process is really about supporting people to reach their dreams. It assumes that you’ve got a lot of assets, and we’ve just got to get the stress levels down so you can meet the critical life challenges.”

http://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/stories_from_the_field/tackling_toxic_stress/pushing_toward_breakthroughs