Abstract:
Families in Michigan and across the nation are struggling, and perhaps none more than those with very young children. Across Michigan at least 1 in 4 children live in poverty, and many families face high levels of adversity and stress, the impact of which can be carried across generations. We understand now more than ever the science of “toxic stress,” and how adversity experienced during pregnancy and infancy truly gets under the skin. Research shows that a young child’s biology, so rapidly developing in the first thousand days of life (from conception to age 2), is profoundly shaped by environmental experiences. This biological vulnerability can affect the direction of subsequent developmental trajectories, placing children at greater risk for problematic developmental outcomes that may cascade forward, interfering with a young person's ability to reach their fullest potential. Strong parent-child and family relationships can provide a critical protective buffer, promoting more positive outcomes in the face of adversity.

At the University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry we have developed, disseminated, and evaluated programs designed to address the needs of families from pregnancy through infancy and early childhood. We have worked closely with community partners, policy makers, consumers, and key stakeholders to develop, implement, and disseminate sustainable programs that can make a meaningful difference in the lives of children and families. In this presentation I will provide an overview of our Zero to Thrive initiative, with particular attention to a multifamily group intervention we have developed for families with young children. This program, based on our "Tree Curriculum," is now implemented across state and nationally, and has been tailored to serve a variety of populations including teen parents, mothers with histories of trauma, military families, and more recently, teachers in Early Head Start programs. I will share the results of our initial evaluation studies, with outcomes ranging from qualitative analyses of participants' experiences, indices of parenting and parent mental health, to fMRI studies that suggest that participation in these programs may have a impact on the parental brain. I will conclude with a brief description of the Zero to Thrive initiative and our current efforts to build and strengthen community-university-state partnerships to significantly impact the health and wellbeing of infants, toddlers, young children and their families.

Bio:
Kate Rosenblum is a graduate of the University of Michigan’s doctoral program in clinical and developmental psychology. She is now an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Michigan’s Department of Psychiatry, where she directs the Women & Infants Mental Health Program and co-directs the Infant and Early Childhood Clinic. Dr. Rosenblum serves as the psychologist consultant to the UM School of Law’s Child Advocacy Clinic, is a member of the Academy of Fellows with the national organization Zero to Three, holds endorsement as both a Research and Clinical Faculty Mentor with the Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health, and is a member of the newly convened Board of Directors of the national Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health. Her research and clinical work focus on parenting and infant and early childhood mental health. Many of the families she works with have experienced significant disruptions, including families involved in the child welfare system and military families with young children who have experienced deployment. In these contexts her work focuses on strengthening protective factors to enhance family resilience.