First3Years Welcomes New Training Manager In July, First3Years announced the addition of its newest staff member, Natalie Baerwaldt. As Training Manager, Natalie will oversee the professional development opportunities offered through First3Years for those working with infants,… Read More
The Future of Texas: Invest in Our Early Childhood Workforce Today There is a crisis in early childhood education. As a field, the workforce is widely underpaid, undervalued, and overlooked as an important role in communities… Read More
July 25, 2016 JOB POSTING Job Title: Just Beginning Coordinator Part Time (20 hours)/Week Reports to: Director of Programs First3Years is a state-wide non-profit organization whose mission is to educate, advocate, and collaborate for the Healthy… Read More
Stakeholder Input on Legislative Appropriations Request of the Texas Workforce Commission Please send comments by Tuesday, July 12 5pm to: TWCPolicyComments@twc.state.tx.us cc Gwendolyn Jones at: Gwendolyn Jones (ACF) gwendolyn.jones@acf.hhs.gov Below is a sample letter that may… Read More
First3Years Staff Interviewed on Better Living Radio Show Recently, First3Years Executive Director Sadie Funk and Director of Programs Talia Brinkman were invited onto CBS Radio’s Better Living, a public affairs show hosted by Nick Carissimi. Better… Read More
The Power of Reflective Supervision and Self-Care First3Years recently wrapped up a ToolBox grant from North Texas Community Foundation that allowed us to not only offer scholarships for endorsement, but to measure the impact of reflective… Read More
Funder Highlight: The Meadows Foundation With a mission to assist the people and institutions of Texas improve the quality and circumstances of life for themselves and future generations, The Meadows Foundation has been working with nonprofits for… Read More
First3Years Home Visiting Trainings Continue with Summer Workshops First3Years continues their support of professionals in the Texas Home Visiting (THV) program by conducting a second round of training sessions around the state this summer. Texas Home… Read More
First3Years Presents Circle of Security Training On Friday, May 20, First3Years along with the Center for Children and Families at UT-Dallas, Texas Home Visiting, and Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, presented a training session… Read More
Funder Highlight: North Texas Community Foundation The North Texas Community Foundation has been an important partner to First3Years through their support of the Endorsement and Reflective Supervision programs and as part of the Early Learning… Read More
2016 Advocacy Awards and Conference Recap The 2016 First3Years Advocacy Awards and Conference was held May 6, 2016, at the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs in Austin. With a goal of presenting… Read More
Endorsement Webinars Now Available First3Years is excited to announce a new series of webinars to help applicants with questions about the Endorsement process. Endorsement is an internationally recognized credential that supports and recognizes the development and… Read More
First3Years Grows With Addition of Two New Staff Members First3Years is excited to announce the addition of Talia Brinkman, Director of Programs, and Ariel Cooksey, Safe Babies Tarrant County Coordinator, to its full-time staff. Both… Read More
First3Years Releases 2015 Annual Report First3Years recently published our 2015 Annual Report. We’re proud of all we accomplished last year – our reach, our impact, our mission forward – and we thank you for your role… Read More
Program Update: Just Beginning In 2015, First3Years launched the Just Beginning program to address the parenting support needs of fathers within the juvenile justice system in Dallas County. Just Beginning has been previously implemented among… Read More
WORTH Endowment Fund at the North Texas Community Foundation Supports Coparenting in Foster Care Pilot Program First3Years was recently selected to receive funding from the WORTH Endowment Fund at the North Texas Community Foundation. In particular,… Read More
A Message from Executive Director Sadie Funk, IMH-E® The following is a message from First3Years Executive Director Sadie Funk, which ran in the February 2016 Quarterly Newsletter. No man is an island. I think… Read More
Partner Feature: Dr. Angela Moemeka & Children’s Health If a value for community and collaboration brought together First3Years and Dr. Angela Moemeka, Vice President and Medical Director for Children’s Health, it’s our shared belief in… Read More
Volunteer Spotlight: Ashley Borthick, IMH-E® (II) In the world of non-profits, there are many ways an organization receives support in achieving its mission. Without the help of dedicated and tireless volunteers who give their time… Read More
Update from the San Antonio Chapter By Julie Yocham, MS, LPC-S, LMFT San Antonio Chapter President One of the things I love about living in San Antonio is our rich sense of community. It… Read More
Endorsee Spotlight: Dr. Cindy Frosch, IMH-E® (IV) Infant Mental Health Endorsement (IMH-E®) is an internationally recognized credential for infant and family professionals, and it is the cornerstone of the First3Years professional development programs. With… Read More
First3Years Training: Professional Development Central If you work with infants and toddlers, First3Years’ comprehensive training offerings can help you serve and support children even better by educating you on the latest research and trends. In… Read More
First3Years Receives Grant from George and Fay Young Foundation The George and Fay Young Foundation grants First3Years $50,000 to help the organization advance its mission of educating, advocating, and collaborating to ensure the social and… Read More
First3Years Leads Collaborative Initiative to Keep Babies and Toddlers Safe in Tarrant County $100,000 Meadows Foundation Grant funds program aimed at improving child welfare of those in legal system Click Here to Read Full Press… Read More
Young fathers may be at increased risk of depression symptoms after their baby arrives, all the way through to the child’s kindergarten, a new study suggests. Researchers found that for men who become fathers in their… Read More
Somewhere between bliss and exhaustion. That’s how the first few months of parenting often feel, as sleepless nights blur into semicomatose days. Most of us chalk up a baby’s nighttime crying to one simple fact: He’s… Read More
Judge John Specia, Commissioner Texas Department of Family and Protective Services April 2014 – National Child Abuse Prevention Month It’s Also Child Neglect Prevention Month On April 1, a three-year-old boy drowned in Denton County in his family’s backyard… Read More
Social Venture Partners Dallas announced today that it has made an initial investment of $30,000 in the Texas Association of Infant Mental Health along with what could become hundreds of hours of skills-based volunteer time to… Read More
The Administration for Children and Families reported Monday that 51,299 fewer children will begin Head Start preschool programs and 5,966 fewer toddlers will enter Early Head Start programs due to the $85 billion in federal budget… Read More
As 2015 quickly approaches, the global health community has been made increasingly aware of our progress toward Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Some remarkable progress has indeed been made. For example, the proportion of underweight children under… Read More