The Carroll County Maryland Health Department has awarded the SSW's Institute for Innovation and Implementation funding for its project E-SMART: Early Screening, Decision-Making, Assessment, Referral and Treatment for Children and Families. The Institute's Margo Candelaria serves as the Principal Investigator for this grant.
The purpose of E-SMART is to expand evidence-based and promising practices in early childhood to address social-emotional health and early behavioral challenges in Carroll County.
E-SMART will expand upon an existing network of providers in Carroll County to offer needed services in the county including comprehensive assessments for young children with developmental and behavioral concerns, an expanded array of child and family services, and the development of a developmentally appropriate wrap-around model for families with young children who have challenging behaviors and other family stressors. In addition, E-SMART will focus on co-locating services with adult substance use services and embed services within the Birth to Five Program and the schools in grades K-2.
The expected outcomes are to increase the workforce capacity, have an increased service array for young children, have families supported during the early developmental years, and to reduce the incidence of later severe emotional and behavioral concerns.