Clayton Educare provides an inclusive model for promoting early childhood development. Individualized supports ensure that all children have access to activities, materials, and other learning opportunities, providing the foundation for a good early childhood environment. Supportive and quality spatial arrangements, materials, and interpersonal interactions are all elements of this environment, and impact development and mental health in young children.

Consultant programs and services include:

• Working with Parents and Families through parent workshops on topics such as positive discipline, sibling rivalry, and the importance of play.  We also provide family support on topics such as limit setting, parent-child interaction, and advocacy and family therapy, specialized support groups for mothers, grandparents, and alternative caregivers, and linkages with community resources.
• Collaboration with Early Childhood Staff through consultations on individual children, classroom management/structure, building an emotion-centered curriculum addressing empathy skills, making friends and problem solving, and planning for child needs through staffing and consultation.
• Early Childhood Staff Development through education in child development, safe touching, communication workshop, team building activities, and stress management.
• Assessment and Treatment of Children through classroom observation/assessment, social/emotional and behavioral screenings, socialization and anti-violence groups, and individual or group therapy.
• Administration including consulting with staff to identify ways to improve the experiences of children, care providers and parents, and tracking progress.
• Community Outreach including assistance in the special education process and recommending and linking with mental health and medical resources.

Clayton Educare was awarded a grant by The Colorado Trust to address bias, prejudice, and stereotyping in mental health care through its five year Equality in Health Initiative. The goal of our initiative, the Family Liaison Program, is to eliminate disparities in the utilization of mental health services by racial and ethnic minority children and families enrolled in Clayton Educare. The Equality in Health Initiative (EIH) funds, the Family Liaison Specialist, who delivers culturally relevant mental health services (screening, assessment, diagnosis, treatment) to children and families. Outcomes of the program include:

• Improved resiliency skills for parents or decreased stress 
• Improved protective factors, improved resiliency and decreased behavioral concerns for children 
• Increased access for families to mental health services

Mental health services for children are provided by a private consultant. Early intervention and prevention services are delivered on-site and in collaboration with teachers.