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Risk and Reach Report

Measuring factors that affect child development.

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Risk Factors Undermine Optimal Child Development

The Illinois Risk and Reach Report presents county-by-county data on risk factors that undermine optimal child development as well as the reach of publicly funded programs and services that support early childhood well-being.

The Report Organizes Data by Three Domains

  • Family Stability
  • Health
  • Early Care and Education

Structuring the data in this way reminds us that children experience risk within the context of relationships with their parents, caregivers and families as well as their environment.

Erikson Institute with its partners, Illinois Early Childhood Asset Map and Voices for Illinois Children, curate the risk and reach data as well as state fiscal data.

Illinois Risk and Reach Report Overview (1:51)

Watch or Listen to the Illinois Risk and Reach Report Overview

This report provides county-by-county data on the well-being of children. The report maps risk factors that affect family stability, health, and early child care and education. It also shows publicly funded services programs that reach children and families that address risk factors.

This information can then be used by community leaders to make changes such as:

  • Better Resource Allocation
  • Dismantle Structural Barriers
  • Create Solutions to Gaps in Services and Programs
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Comprehensive Analysis of Early Childhood Data

The Risk and Reach Project highlights data in the areas of family stability, health and early care and education that affect the wellbeing of young children and how Illinois is allocating resources to mitigate “risk” factors undermining child development.

Illinois

Early Childhood Data Tool for Conversations, Meetings, Townhalls

The report and website present state, county, and legislative district data on “risk” factors experienced by children and the availability of publicly funded “reach” programs and services for children during their early years.

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A Guide to Inform Change to Child and Family Policies

This report can inform policy and program funding decisions made by governmental and nongovernmental stakeholders to facilitate greater equity for Illinois children and more precisely address needs.

Veronica Vidal
Director of Content Strategy, Policy and Leadership Department
“ The Risk and Reach Report has served as a critical source for early childhood professionals because it can reveal areas in the state that are doing well in supporting children’s development and areas in the state where more investments are needed to boost programs and services for children and families. ”

How Community Leaders and Officials Can Use the Illinois Risk & Reach Report to Influence Changes that Benefit Child Development, Health, and Safety

Grassroots Leaders

Data from the report draw attention to the need for alignment of early childhood resources as it relates to geographic concentrations of risk factors. The report is a tool practitioners and stakeholders can use to inform the development and distribution of early childhood programs and services.

Advocates, Elected Officials and Policymakers

By pairing young child data with information on state investments in early childhood programs and services, the report can inform conversations on resource allocation, illuminate structural barriers, and facilitate common points of reference when addressing “risk” and “reach.”

Project Partners

The Illinois Risk and Reach Report is a collaborative effort of three organizations committed to ensuring young children have access to high-quality early childhood programs and services, and equitable opportunities to thrive.

Partner logos university of Illinois, IECA, and Voices

Illinois Risk and Reach Fiscal Scan Webinar (49:21)

Illinois Risk and Reach Fiscal Scan Webinar

The Risk and Reach Fiscal Scan provides additional details on expenditures and appropriations to augment the analysis of the Illinois Risk and Reach Report released in April 2019, which presented county-by-county data on factors that undermine optimal child development and compares them to the reach of publicly funded early childhood programs and services. Fiscal investments are assessed at the state level, and fiscal charts visualize the allocation of these public investments.

Presenters: Cristina Pacione-Zayas of Erikson Institute, Mitch Lifson of Voices for Illinois Children, and Theresa Hawley, the Illinois first assistant deputy governor of education.

Illinois Risk and Reach Deep Dive: Health Disparities, COVID-19 (1:03:13)

Illinois Risk and Reach Deep Dive: Health Disparities, COVID-19

A strong body of research indicates that supporting health and wellness during the first five years of life can positively affect development and set the stage for optimal growth in childhood, adolescence and adulthood. High exposure for essential-working parents, tight living quarters and underlying health conditions that can stem from poor nutrition, trauma and toxic environments are factors that affect a child’s well-being.

This webinar will provide insight on the conditions that contribute to ongoing health disparities and high rates of COVID-19 virus infection experienced by communities of color as well as the State of Illinois investments in early childhood health programs and services.

Presenters: Cristina Pacione-Zayas of Erikson Institute, Mitch Lifson of Voices for Illinois Children Powered by the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago.

The Risk and Reach Project is generously funded by an Anonymous Donor and by

funders

This project was also made possible by grant number 90TP0057. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official view of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.