Author: Levi Moore

Hektoen Institute’s Growing Together: Bridging the Gap from Early Intervention to Kindergarten. Connecting families with the resources, relationships, and support children need to thrive. 

A Vision We Are Building Together!

Growing Together represents an opportunity to explore how stronger relationships, more coordinated support, and meaningful community partnerships could help families navigate the transition from Early Intervention to kindergarten with greater confidence and support. As this concept develops, family perspectives, community needs, and potential partnerships will help inform its direction and shape the path forward.

Growing Together aims to support parents and caregivers of children aging out of Early Intervention services and may experience gaps in healthcare, therapeutic, developmental, and family supports as their children prepare for kindergarten.

Why Growing Together Matters 

Bridges a Critical Service Gap
Exploring opportunities to address gaps in support for parents and caregivers of children ages 3–5 who have transitioned out of Early Intervention but may continue to need developmental, health, financial, and family resources.

Centers Family and Community Voices
Envisioning a culturally responsive, relationship-based engagement that values families’ lived experiences, priorities, and perspectives in shaping community-based meaningful solutions.

Supporting School Readiness and Well-Being
Identify opportunities to help families access the healthcare, therapeutic, nutritional, social-emotional, and developmental resources that can support children’s well-being and kindergarten readiness; and other essential resources.

Building Towards Sustainable Community Impact
Exploring opportunities to strengthen connections among families, schools,  healthcare providers and community partners to reduce barriers, improve access to resources, and help families build long-term pathways toward health, stability, and success.

REGISTER/CLICK HERE TO ATTEND  “GROWING TOGETHER – BRUNCH & LEARN”

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The Hektoen Institute for Medical Research and Child and Family Connections #9 has been part of the Illinois Early Intervention Program for over 20 years, consistently providing public awareness, child find efforts, provider recruitment and collaboration for children (ages 0-3) with disabilities and their families to enter the Illinois Early Intervention system. As an independent agency, CFC #9 provides all activities related to service coordination, parent liaison and transition activities for early intervention at no cost. CFC #9 serves the central-west region of Chicago, a population that is comprised largely of families falling within Federal poverty standards and the majorities served are minorities and medically underserved.

Appreciating the complexity of needs that stress the families in our service area, together, we have instituted a comprehensive model in our approach when we initially designed the structure of our program to integrate the experience of pediatrics, psychology, and social work to comprehensively address the medical, developmental, and social-emotional/interpersonal health of the children and families referred to our program.