Support Kentucky Youth

Early Intervention Is Key

U.S. researchers headed to Romania to answer an important question: do orphanages hinder the cognitive development of young children? Their answer was a resounding “yes.”

The study, featured in an Associated Press story, concluded that toddlers placed in quality foster homes scored much higher on IQ tests years later than those left in institutions. Children removed from the orphanages before age 2 benefited the most.

For example, children in foster care at age 4 1/2 scored almost 10 points higher than children who stayed in orphanages. If the children left the orphanages before age 2, there was an almost 15-point increase in IQ scores. Children raised with their biological parents still did best, with average IQ scores 10-20 points higher than the children in foster care.

“The interesting part about this is the one-on-one caring of a young child impacts … cognitive and intellectual development,” a UNICEF child protection specialist remarked. For some of the children, the difference came down to having borderline retardation or average intelligence.

The study had a profound impact on Romania, which had no foster care system in 2000 when the research began. Now, it is illegal to instutionalize children under age 2 unless they have serious disabilities.

For us, this research reinforces our belief that early intervention is key. The sooner an abused or neglected child gets into a good foster home, the better off they’ll be in the long run. We must not be too hasty in removing children from their homes. But in the case of clear and serious abuse, change needs to happen early and quickly – not only for the child’s safety but for his or her future development. What are your thoughts?

A Surefire New Year’s Resolution

You and your family members have probably made New Year’s resolutions. Maybe you’re keeping them a secret so no one knows when you fall short. Or maybe you’ve told at least one person so you can be held accountable.

Have you given up on setting lofty goals and expecting big changes from yourself? Are you tired of getting to the end of every year, looking back and wondering if you made much of a positive impact on others?

The employees at Zappos.com Shoe Outlet in Shepherdsville, located about 12 miles from our headquarters in Mount Washington, don’t have to wonder about that. They arrived in a Penske truck on Dec. 21 and unloaded more than 60 boxes of donated clothing, bedding, toys, books and toiletries. They also threw in a stack of gift cards. Workers started the charity drive a month earlier because they told me “Christmas is about kids.” We feel very blessed by the donations, which will go to children and teens in our residential centers and foster homes across the state.

One of the employees helping with the delivery shared that she had watched as our Ministry Support Center administrative building and Spring Meadows Center for adolescent boys were being constructed. Sometimes, she said, she would drive up the hill to check out what was going on in her community. Then when the time to give came, she took the initiative to call us and see if we could use what she and her co-workers had collected.

She didn’t hear about Sunrise’s needs by reading our newsletter or visiting our Web site. She simply paid attention and asked. It’s grass-roots efforts like these that transform communities. And all it takes is one person pausing not to think about her own life but about whether someone else needs something, then caring enough to take action.

When you’re driving through your community this year, look around and try to notice the needs. You can’t help everyone, but you could help just one – maybe a church, maybe an after-school program, maybe a food bank, maybe a homeless shelter or maybe a Sunrise location near you.
If you don’t know where to find Sunrise, give us a call at (800) 456-1386, e-mail info@sunrise.org or visit our Web site. I’m sure one of our locations isn’t far from you at all.