The Evolution of a Personnel Preparation Program

Abstract

The family-centered approach represents a dramatic departure from traditional child-centered early intervention efforts and requires service providers to adjust services to respond to family-identified priorities, rather than asking families to adjust to system policies and practices (Raver & Kilgo, 1991). To meet the need for early interventionists prepared to work in partnership with families, the Early Childhood Special Education graduate program at the University of Vermont established a partnership with Parent to Parent of Vermont. This partnership set a context for the preparation of family-centered practitioners by modeling the qualities of a collaborative relationship between families and professionals and developing a family-centered model for personnel preparation.