Our Public Service
CFDC's public service component houses three programs designed
to meet the needs of Chicago 's urban families — early
intervention, early education, and coordinated therapeutic services.
CFDC is a licensed provider of early intervention
services in Illinois' Part C system. Our early intervention
program provides individual therapy (OT, PT, speech, feeding/swallowing,
developmental therapies) and transition support services to
eligible infants/toddlers in home, community, and childcare
settings. We also provide individualized counseling (social
work)support services to the child's caregivers. These services
reflect recommended practices in the field of early intervention
and are provided by licensed/credentialed staff from CFDC.
CFDC's Bright Beginnings early education
program meets a local need for an inclusive playgroup in Chicago
's south-and west-side neighborhoods. Playgroup sessions are
open to all families with children between 15 and 36 months
of age,and operate on a fee-for-service basis several mornings
per week.
CFDC's licensed clinical staff also provide additional individual
therapy to children 0-5 with speech, motor, feeding,and socio-emotional
needs whose insurance plans cover such services. Our staff will
coordinate care with other medical, educational, and social
service providers serving the child or family. To schedule evaluations
or services call 312-413-1567.
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The Chicago Early Intervention
Project (CEIP)
The Chicago Early Intervention Project (CEIP) is a federally
funded model demonstration project that provides early intervention
services to families of infants and toddlers with developmental
delays. A primary goal of this project is to gather information
on the effectiveness of a routines-based, triadic approach to
intervention in natural environments. The project is adapting
and evaluating the effectiveness of the Family Guided Routines-Based
approach developed at Florida State University (Woods & Goldstein,
2003; Woods, Kashinath, & Goldstein, 2004).
Who is served?
CEIP serves children under the age of three who have been identified
as eligible for early intervention services in Chicago, Illinois
and their families.
What are Natural Environments?
Natural environments are the day-to-day activities and settings
of family and community life. Routines such as eating, hand
washing, getting the mail, or going to the store occur in the
lives of most families just as snacks, playtime, and hygiene
routines are the core of activities in childcare for infants
and toddlers. Although caregivers participate in many routines
and activities throughout the day they often do not recognize
how many "teachable moments" exist in everyday life. These routines
provide many meaningful opportunities for children to learn
important life skills.
Why is teaching in natural environments important?
- Young children learn best when they are taught the skills
like eating, playing, moving, and communicating during the
times and in the places where they need to eat, walk, or talk
to people they know and love.
- Daily routines are meaningful contexts for young children
to learn new skills because they are predictable, functional,
and occur numerous times throughout the day. Families and
caregivers involved in these routines can support their child's
learning and development.
- Often one location (such as playing in the backyard) may
be the source of many different activities (playing on the
swing, slide, sandbox etc.) and each activity offers multiple
learning opportunities for the child (climbing up the slide,
filling and dumping with a bucket in the sand, balance control
on the slide).
- Parents and caregivers are experts on their lives and on
their goals for their child, but may lack the tools to support
their child's development. Sharing resources, information,
and specific strategies with caregivers can enhance their
ability to address goals for their child within their daily
routines.
Goals of CEIP
The goals of the project are to:
- Evaluate the effectiveness of a routines based intervention
model in natural environments with young children with developmental
delays and their caregivers.
- Develop evidence-based early intervention procedures for
working with family members and caregivers to promote developmental
outcomes for young children with identified disabilities in
their home and community settings.
- Disseminate information gathered from the project to service
providers, state level policy makers, and researchers to share
data on the efficacy of this model and to build capacity of
individuals and programs to provide family-guided services
in natural environments.
Project Director
Christine Salisbury, Ph.D.
Project Coordinator
Jeffri Brookfield, Ed.D.
Project Consultant
Juliann Woods, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
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Bright Beginnings at UIC – Offering a Unique Learning and
Play Experience for Toddlers and Preschool Age Children
Bright Beginnings provides a stimulating learning environment
where children play to learn! Within 90 minute routine, children,
along with their caregivers, share in music, movement, story,
and snack activities designed to challenge and be fun. Led by
a Master's level Early Childhood Educator, the program is now
open to interested parents and their children. Bright Beginnings
embraces children with differing abilities, racial, cultural,
and linguistic backgrounds. Come play to learn!
For information about enrolling your child call: 312-413-1567
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Therapy services
Therapy services (OT, PT, speech, mental health, cognitive/developmental, feeding) are provided to individual children and their families based upon referrals to our program by a physician. We accept all major insurance plans or parents may pay privately for these services. If you are interested in having your child seen by one of our therapists, please contact our insurance billing office at (312) 413-1398 and be prepared to provide the following:
- Current insurance card
- Name of the insurance carrier
- The social security number of the insured
- The insured’s date of birth
- The name of the company who employs the insured
- Address and phone number of the insured’s employer
- Your child’s name and date of birth
You will also be asked to do the following:
- Sign a consent for release of information
- Obtain a prescription for services from your child’s physician with diagnostic code if available
- Provide us with a description of your insurance plan’s therapy coverage if using insurance to pay for services
- Sign the CFDC payment policy
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