Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Homevisiting Grant Program - Arkansas’s Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program I. Project Abstract Address: Arkansas Department of Health, 4815 W Markham St, Slot 16, Little Rock, AR 72205 Project Director: Michael Conyers, 501-661-2086, michael.conyers@arkansas.gov Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) Website: www.healthy.arkansas.gov Grant Program Funds Requested: $9,455,628.00 Purpose: The purpose of the Arkansas MIECHV Program is to improve outcomes for at-risk children and families. Research shows that home visiting (HV) programs are effective in addressing the health and well-being needs of at-risk families, particularly in rural areas. Home visiting services are supported by ongoing training, reflective supervision, data collection and review, coordinated intake, program evaluation, Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), and subrecipient monitoring. Goals and Objectives: Goal: Maintain funding for existing local implementing agencies and home visiting models. By September 2027, the program will: • Increase the quarterly active enrollment for each model to 85% of maximum service capacity, • strengthen Arkansas's network of HV programs and their integration into early childhood programs by 20% and, • maintain existing collaborative partnerships with stakeholders and build one new collaborative partnership. Goal: Prepare the HV workforce by developing and delivering training to HV staff. By September 2027, the program will: • Develop two new online trainings and update one existing online training based on needs assessments, core competencies, and evaluation data, • develop two new instructor-led trainings and update two existing trainings based on needs assessments, core competencies, and evaluation data and, • deliver at least 24 instructor-led trainings to home visitors, supervisors, and coordinators. Goal: Contribute to the HV knowledge base through coordinated intake, CQI initiatives, and evaluation activities. By September 2027, the program will: • Use benchmarks and other data to support CQI projects at the state and local levels, • disseminate findings in peer-reviewed publications and conferences as feasible, • participate in an advisory capacity in national HV associations and councils and, • conduct rigorous research of the state's promising approach, Following Baby Back Home. Approach: Home visiting services are provided by 29 local implementing agencies (LIAs) through four evidence-based models and one promising approach: Healthy Families America (HFA), Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY), Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP), Parents as Teachers (PAT), and Promising Approach-Following Baby Back Home (FBBH). Arkansas MIECHV serves the following counties: Arkansas, Ashley, Baxter, Benton, Boone, Bradley, Calhoun, Carroll, Clark, Cleburne, Cleveland, Columbia, Conway, Craighead, Crittenden, Cross, Dallas, Faulkner, Fulton, Garland, Grant, Hempstead, Hot Spring, Howard, Independence, Izard, Jackson, Jefferson, Lawrence, Lee, Lincoln, Lonoke, Madison, Marion, Miller, Mississippi, Monroe, Montgomery, Nevada, Newton, Ouachita, Phillips, Pike, Poinsett, Polk, Prairie, Pulaski, Randolph, Saint Francis, Saline, Scott, Searcy, Sebastian, Sharp, Stone, Union, Van Buren, Washington, and White. Proposed Caseload of Family Slots: October 2025 - September 2026: 1,395 October 2026 - September 2027: 1,403 Non-Federal matching funds for Arkansas' MIECHV Project will be used to support service delivery though the HIPPY, PAT and HFA evidence-based home visiting models by funding 22.75 existing home visiting FTE's that would otherwise be cut from the formula budget and to supplement travel, quality monitoring, and data collections costs. Match funds are state general funds legislatively appropriated to support home visiting service delivery under a state grant awarded to Arkansas Children's Hospital by the Arkansas Department of Education ABC Professional Services Grant.
