Prior to 1967, Arizona had one of the highest infant mortality rates in the country. That year, in an effort to reduce the high infant mortality and morbidity rates, Arizona applied for and received a federal demonstration grant. The grant was designed to reduce infant death by transporting critically ill newborns born in rural hospitals into intensive care centers. As a result, there was a dramatic decrease in neonatal mortality. Part of that grant was to provide home based Community Nursing Services to the infants and their families. Community Health Nurses provided follow-up home visits for the NICP infants and their families up to one year of age.

The Project conducted a State‐level environmental scan to develop a more comprehensive picture of the early childhood‐serving environment in Arizona. An effort was made to identify current funds utilized across multiple State agencies that support programs to address the physical, emotional, social, cognitive, and behavioral health of children from birth to eight years of age. This report describes the landscape of systems, programs and other resources currently available in Arizona that are working to address challenges facing young children, birth to age eight, and their families.

Health Start is a neighborhood outreach program that helps high-risk pregnant women obtain early and consistent prenatal care and, for their children, timely immunizations. Its mission is to educate, support, and advocate for families at risk by promoting optimal use of community based family health and education services through the use of community health workers, who live in, and reflect the ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic characteristics of the community they serve.

In order to continue to provide crucial sexual violence prevention and education services to its statewide community, the Arizona Department of Health Services, Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Program began comprehensive planning in November 2006, the second year of a five-year funding cycle. The plan was developed as a means of achieving the vision of a culture that supports healthy, respectful relationships through primary prevention efforts and zero tolerance of sexual violence in Arizona communities.

Vision screening of children, unlike hearing screening, is not currently mandated by Arizona state law. The purpose of this document is to provide information, guidance and recommendations for implementing a vision screening program for children ages 3 and older in school and community settings. This document provides guidance and practical information on the screening process, appropriate screening tools, referral criteria and follow-up procedures.

The Arizona Head Start--Public School Transition Project is 1 of 31 demonstration projects designed to test whether advances by Head Start children could be maintained by continuing Head Start-type services into kindergarten through the third grade, and to identify, develop, and implement transition practices to bridge the gap between Head Start and public schools. This study evaluated the Arizona project in its fourth year of implementation. Participating were two cohorts of students at three transition and three comparison schools in Phoenix. The program components evaluated were: (1) developmentally appropriate practices, curriculum, and materials; (2) physical health, mental health, and dental services; (3) family services; and (4) parent involvement. Findings indicated that all components had been implemented by the time of the 1995-96 evaluation. Both cohorts had similar public assistance participation, and all groups showed dramatic decreases in public assistance since program entry. The vast majority of parents from all groups reported positive interactions with schools; qualitative data confirmed continuing positive impact on teachers, schools, and the Head Start agency. Transition services, especially those of family advocates, were seen as crucial to smooth transitions. There were observable differences between transition and comparison classrooms; however, quantitative data showed few significant differences in gains made by children between transition and comparison classrooms. Confounding variables of high attrition, variations in student English proficiency, and the existence in comparison schools of transition-like services may have influenced the results. Promising practices and further challenges were identified and recommendations were made for improving the collaboration between the Head Start program and the public schools, and improving the evaluation process. (Three appendices include a summary of data collection instruments. Contains 20 references.)

This report presents the second comprehensive look at the conditions of children and families in Arizona. Building upon information presented in the 1992 Factbook, this document presents and analyzes 48 indicators of child well-being. Following the executive summary and tables, chapter 1 provides an overview of the data for the state as a whole, including a summary of key findings and tables depicting raw numbers, rates adjusted for population growth, and rate changes over time. Racial and ethnic breakdowns are presented when such data are available.

Chapters 2-16 offer individual county profiles, following the general format established in the state chapter. These chapters offer insights into regional variations and identify varying conditions for children across the state. The report charts data within the state and county chapters for each of the following six categories: (1) poverty; (2) child health and safety; (3) child abuse, neglect, and out-of-home care; (4) early care and education; (5) children in school; and (6) teens at-risk. Overall, findings reveal significant improvements for a few indicators since 1990, most notably within birth-related items, such as an increase in the percent of women receiving timely prenatal care and a decrease in low birth-weight births. Findings also suggest there has been a worsening for many indicators, including poverty, firearm-related deaths and hospitalizations, alleged child abuse incidents, and births to teens.

This study was conducted as a progress evaluation of charter schools in Arizona. The study was funded by the Arizona Department of Education and conducted during calendar year 1998 by the Morrison Institute for Public Policy.

A total of 303 parents of charter school students, 171 students, 123 teachers and 54 directors completed surveys about charter schools. Fourteen focus groups were held around the state with parents, students, teachers and directors. Individual interviews were conducted with 23 persons, most of whom either hold policy-making positions related to charter schools or are employed by professional organizations that interact frequently with the schools.

With so much new school reform activity within the United States centering on charter schools, a fresh appraisal of the situation is in order. This briefing summarizes the history of charter school laws and updates their current status across the country. Although this is not intended to be a comprehensive review, several charter school research projects are described: some that have revealed lessons learned in the implementation of charter school laws, and others, more national in scope, that were designed to systematically describe existing charter schools and document their impacts.