Evaluation of a statewide initiative to reduce expulsion of young children

Abstract

This program evaluation study describes 3 years of implementation of Arkansas's BehaviorHelp (BH) system, a statewide expulsion prevention support system for early care and education (ECE). BH coordinates three tiers of supports to ECE professionals, including phone support, on‐site technical assistance (TA), and infant and early childhood mental health consultation (IECMHC). We examine differences in characteristics of those served across BH service tiers, describe short‐term case outcomes, and explore factors associated with expulsions. BH accepted referrals for 1,195 children in 488 ECE programs. The majority of referrals involved male children over the age of three, and most cases were assigned to the TA tier (68.5%). Cases assigned to receive IECMHC (28.4%) were more likely to involve children in foster care, receiving developmental therapies, and with higher rates of exposure to potentially traumatic events. The expulsion rate among referred children was 2.9%, and reported teacher engagement with the support process was high. Teachers receiving IECMHC services reported significant improvements in children's symptoms of emotional and behavioral problems. Exploratory analyses revealed that risk factors for expulsion included being a male, in foster care, in a lower quality ECE environment, and having a teacher with less training in social–emotional development.

Fostering Informed and Responsive Systems for Trauma in Early Care and Education (FIRST:ECE): A Preliminary Evaluation

“…There is evidence that this process begins early in children's educational experiences. For example, in a recent evaluation of one state's early care and education (ECE) expulsion prevention system, more than 50% of the referrals for support were related to child that had experienced a traumatic event (Conners Edge et al, 2020). Similarly, Zeng and colleagues (Zeng et al, 2019) reported on data from 6,100 parents of preschool age children using data the 2016 National Survey of Children's Health and found that for each additional Adverse Childhood Experience reported, there was an incremental increase in odds of suspension or expulsion.…”

Updating the evidence: A systematic review of a decade of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation (IECMHC) research

“…Of the 16 peer‐reviewed articles, half ( n = 8) present varying degrees of compelling evidence for the positive role of IECMHC on children's behavioral and social outcomes, with several studies also linking IECMHC to declines in expulsion risk. A total of eight studies demonstrate at least some reduction in children's internalizing and externalizing behaviors or an increase in children's social skills (Bender et al., 2017 ; Conners‐Burrow et al., 2013 , 2012 ; Conners‐Edge et al., 2020 ; Crusto et al., 2013 ; Gilliam et al., 2016 ; Upshur et al., 2009 ; Vuyk et al., 2016 ). Further, Davis and colleagues ( 2020 ) identified a relationship between consultative alliance and children's attachment behaviors.…”

“…It should be noted that Conners‐Edge et al. ( 2020 ) included a measure of parental engagement in the IECMHC process, but does not report on its association with outcomes.…”

Suspension and expulsion in Colorado early care and education settings: Child, program, and community‐level predictors

“…However, across setting types, program quality appears to predict S/E use. For example, boys enrolled in lower quality center‐based (Watamura et al., 2011) and family child care home‐based programs are more likely to exhibit externalizing behavior (Gunnar et al., 2010) and such programs are more likely to expel children (Conners Edge et al., 2021), especially without efforts to support transitioning these children to more appropriate care settings (Nicklay, 2014).…”