ECBG and the Prevention of Foster Care Removals

Kansas Early Childhood Prevention Research

Purpose

The Kansas Early Childhood Data Trust is conducting a pilot study that will link Early Childhood Block Grant (ECBG) program data with data from the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to identify the most effective systems approach in preventing child maltreatment as well as studying the long-term impact of prevention-focused services and their ability to secure equitable outcomes for children and families in Kansas. With the leveraging of early prevention and intervention services between DCF and community partners across the state, the study will also serve as an opportunity to pilot interagency data sharing to maximize child welfare research and programming in the early childhood system.

The community-based prevention efforts funded by the ECBG prioritized family well-being across several domains of early care and education services to prevent child maltreatment and family separation. As one of the first states to sign the Family First Prevention Services Act into law, Kansas invested in early childhood services with evidenced-based early prevention and intervention services and practices—strengthening the coordination between state agencies and community organizations to see when and where services were needed and which service, or a combination of, would meet a family’s needs and support their well-being.