The Successful Parenting DC project closed in May of 2019 when the grant used to fund the project ended. TASP is currently working with responsible parties to see if new funding can be found.
The SPDC project provided peer-navigation services to families in which parents have intellectual and other learning difficulties in the DC area. Bernadette Irwin coordinated the project and may be reached through the TASP email on this website.
Susan Yuan, Ph.D., developed the concept of Peer Navigation through a 5-year Family Support 360 Project funded by the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Because of the unparalleled success of that project in enabling parents to retain custody of their children, Successful Parenting DC integrated the Navigator role with that of parent educator.
Training for parents by peer navigators was provided using two evidence-based curricula.
(1) Step by Step Child Care: A Manual for Parents and Child-Care Provider by Maurice A. Feldman, Ph.D., of Brock University, Ontario, Canada, and
(2) Health and Wellness Program: A Parenting Curriculum for Families at Risk by Alexander Tymchuck.
Additional teaching materials were individualize to meet the unique cultural and learning needs of each family.
If you have questions about or would like technical assistance in replicating the model, please contact Bernadette Irwin or Susan Yuan through the TASP email on this website.