Mission:
We are a coalition of professionals in Boone County who value and recognize the importance of supporting the well-being of children in early childhood with an emphasis on social emotional development. Through our efforts we will support, empower, and educate parents and other caregivers to raise and nurture healthy children who are ready for kindergarten.
Vision:
Parents and caregivers will increase their confidence and competence regarding their children’s social emotional health by the BCECC’s work. The BCECC will support parents and caregivers to increase their confidence and competence for supporting children’s overall and social emotional development.
Objectives:
Developing a network of support to foster and build awareness around positive parenting strategies
Increase knowledge, awareness, and implementation of early childhood screening best practices and referral services
Equip community partners with the tools to help families nurture and support the children of Boone County
Support kindergarten readiness
Our Programs
Triple P:
A positive parenting program that gives parents the practical skills they need to build strong family relationships, manage misbehavior and prevent problems from happening in the first place.
SWYC Screening Hub:
This program uses a first level screener, the Survey of Wellbeing of Young Children (SWYC), through an easily accessible online hub to increase social emotional screening efforts throughout Boone County.
Coalition Members
Current coalition membership* includes representatives from the following organizations. Scroll below to see our members.
Click on logos to access member's website directly!
*Membership is defined as regular attendance (2 or more) at our quarterly meetings.
Meet the Team
Laine Young-Walker, MD
Dr. Young-Walker graduated from the University of Missouri, Columbia with a medical degree in 1997 and completed her psychiatric residency and fellowship in 2002. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in General Psychiatry as well as Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She currently serves as Associate Dean for Student Programs at the School of Medicine, the Division Chief of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry, at University of Missouri Health Care. She also serves as Medical Director of Children’s Services for the Missouri Department of Mental Health and as a consulting psychiatrist for the Missouri Department of Social Services. She is the PI for the Garret Lee Smith Suicide Grant and the Missouri Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children’s Health) Grant.
She has worked locally to create programs which help children in the community. These include Bridge: School-Based Psychiatry, Early Childhood-Positive Behavior Supports program (EC-PBS), the System Offering Actions for Resilience (SOAR) in Early childhood and the Boone County: Early Child Coalition. Bridge provides early access in the schools for children in need of psychiatric assessment and treatment. EC-PBS/SOAR/ECC all focus on early childhood efforts including screening for social and emotional issues, working with childcare providers to increase their knowledge and skills in social and emotional development, providing an evidence based therapy for young children exposed to trauma and providing Triple P Interventions to young children and their families.
Melissa Stormont, PhD
Dr. Stormont is a Professor in Special Education at MU. Dr. Stormont’s research areas focus on the prevention of social emotional problems in young children and using systems approaches for supporting kindergarten readiness. Dr. Stormont has published extensive research (over 90 peer-reviewed articles and 14 books and book chapters) on the educational and social needs of children at risk for failure in school. She has been a Co-PI on two efficacy trials to evaluate a interventions funded by IES. Dr. Stormont has also been a Co-PI on two personnel preparation grants to support graduate students in key need areas. She is also the mother of two children with ADHD and giftedness. Prior to her work in higher education, Melissa taught preschool.
Catherine Miller, M.Ed.
Catherine has her Master's degree in educational counseling psychology. Her undergraduate degree is in psychology with a minor in sociology. She worked in the medical arena for 15 plus years with an emphasis in family medicine. While working in the medical field, she found her niche in the substance abuse field where she became a counselor and worked with those suffering from addictions. While working in the substance abuse field, she became proficient in the skill of motivational interviewing and began teaching and training others in the field. She is currently working on completing her LPC license. Catherine’s most recent work focused to develop and coordinate an online developmental screening system for screenings from parents and partner programs. Catherine is currently the program coordinator for the Triple P program. Triple P-Positive Parenting Program, is a multilevel system of family intervention designed to reduce behavioral and emotional problems. This model is done in an at large community setting or with a one-on-one with parents.