Program Overview Publications Staff Profiles Keyword Search:   Comer Site Med center Site Yale Site     Comer School Development Program 55 College Street New Haven CT, 06510 (203) 737-1020 Tel. (203) 737-1023 Fax			About Comer SDP Program Overview     • Strategic Alliances The Comer/Zigler Initiative What is the Comer/Zigler Initiative (CoZi)? CoZi offers year round child care and family support services in a school governed by a decision-making process that includes representatives of all the adult stakeholders in the school community. The model is a combination of the School Development Program (SDP) developed by Dr. James P. Comer at the Yale Child Study Center, and Dr. Edward Zigler's School of the 21st Century (21C) at the Yale Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy. Each community develops an array of components at the school, based on a needs assessment. These can include the basic core of services described and may also include others such as adult education, social, and health services. The School Development Program and 21C have the same theoretical base and are complementary. Decision making and planning for both programs are based on a working knowledge of child development theory. The prime importance of parents as active partners in the school, our eighth national goal, is recognized and encouraged by both. The combination of the Comer and Zigler models has a synergistic effect. The SDP goals of creating a strong school community and actively involving parents are made more achievable by starting early with young children and their parents. The components of 21C can be more effectively integrated into the overall vision of the school when incorporated into the activities of the School Planning and Management Team. There are many models around the nation that aim to integrate services at the school site to better meet the needs of children and families. Often these services are co-located rather than coordinated. CoZi is unique because it includes the organizational plan of the School Development Program. This provides a ready mechanism to bring all the adults in the community -- teachers, parents, child care, and service providers -- to the same table, where they can plan together and share information in a comprehensive way. The guiding principles of the SDP and 21C encourage the forging of a common mission, which keeps the child's development at the heart of all planning and decision making. What is the School of the 21st Century? In response to the national shortage of high-quality, accessible, and affordable child care, Edward Zigler, Sterling Professor of Psychology at Yale University, conceptualized the School of the 21st Century. The model is predicated on the belief that public schools can help alleviate the stress associated with poverty and the lack of quality, affordable, child care, and can contribute to improving school readiness and academic success. This concept encompasses more than assisting families in preparing their children for school. It also assists the school in getting ready for children -- not as we wish they were, but as they actually are. The School of the 21st Century was first demonstrated in Independence, Missouri, a mid-sized school district that implemented the program systemwide. The Yale Bush Center has completed a three-year outcome evaluation of the program. Results indicate that the program enjoys significant support from both parents and school personnel. Parents report an increase in the amount of time they spend with their preschoolers and a decease in the number of child care arrangements they use. Also, children who have participated in the School of the 21st Century child care programs in Independence achieved higher academic outcomes than children in a matched comparison group. Currently, more than three hundred schools in fourteen states are implementing 21C. Briefly, the 21C components include: Year round, all-day child care for children ages 3-5 in a developmentally appropriate, high-quality program Before- and after-school and vacation care for school age children Outreach and guidance for parents of children ages 0-3. Parents receive information and guidance through home visits from a parent educator. This outreach component can also include support group get-togethers for parents, health and developmental screenings, and, if needed, referrals for other special services. Support and training for family day care providers in the school neighborhood Where are the CoZi schools? CoZi is in various stages of implementation at four school sites. Each of these sites represents opportunities for the Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy to learn more about implementation of this model under varying conditions. The sites include Norfolk, Virginia; Bridgeport, Connecticut; St. Louis, Missouri; and New Haven, Connecticut. Plans for national dissemination are in progress. Funding Funding for exploring the feasibility of combining the Comer and Zigler models, providing technical assistance for implementation, and evaluating CoZi is provided by the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Kraft Foods. More Information For further information please contact: Yale Bush Center 310 Prospect Street New Haven, CT 06511 Phone: 203.432.9943
			Copyright © 2001 School Development Program, Yale Child Study Center. All rights reserved. Comments or suggestions to the site editor. Photos from the book "Child by Child: The Comer Process for Change in Education," are by Michael Jacobson-Hardy and Laura Brooks. Used by permission of Teachers College Press. Home URL: http://www.schooldevelopmentprogram.org/ Last modified: July 2004 (GM)