HIPPY USA Selects Florida HIPPY Technical Assistance and Training Center as National Evaluator
The Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) was established in the United States in 1984 and now serves more than 15,000 families in many urban, suburban, or rural areas across the country. HIPPY goals include increasing the chances of positive early school experiences among children who may be educationally at risk, empower parents to view themselves as primary educators of their children, and create an educational environment in the home that encourages literacy.
Twice a month, paraprofessionals, who are parents themselves, and reside in the targeted community, visit HIPPY parents in their home. Learning and playing are part of HIPPY’s structured curriculum as parents encourage their children to recognize shapes and colors, tell stories, follow directions, solve logical problems, and acquire other school readiness skills. Every other week, parents attend group meetings with other parents, HIPPY staff, consultants, and volunteers.
The Florida HIPPY Training and Technical Assistance Center, housed within CFS, was opened in 1996 and serves as the state office, working in collaboration with the national office in New York to provide training, technical support, and guidance to all of the HIPPY programs in the state of Florida.
HIPPY USA has recently asked Florida HIPPY to take the lead in a one-year evaluation to determine what characteristics of home visitors keep families engaged in the program. Under the direction of CFS PIs Diane Powell and Mary Lindsey, staff will look at ten programs across the nation, selecting five with high attrition, and five with low attrition. Factors to be analyzed include those relating to both the paraprofessional home visitors and the work environment. The outcomes will help inform HIPPY USA how home visitors can be more effectively selected, trained, and supervised. For additional information, contact Mary Lindsey at (813) 974-6144.
The Department of Child and Family Studies (CFS) is a department of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida. The faculty and staff of CFS are committed to enhancing the development, mental health and well-being of children and families through leadership in integrating research, theory & practice.