The report highlights the toll that the pandemic has taken on ECE professionals and the children in their care and data for each state. At the same time, COVID-19 has also created opportunities for improving well-being. In general there is increased understanding of the importance of mental health, and greater awareness of the plight of ECE professionals. Pandemic relief funding has also led to the piloting of some systemic and programmatic changes that can improve ECE professional and child well-being.

What follows are recommendations for policymakers and funders at the national/ federal and state levels, which offer both economic and mental health-focused remedies. The complexity of the causes of this crisis necessitates solutions that occur at multiple levels and through coordinated and collaborative efforts. It is also important that all these efforts should be equally accessible, to the extent possible, to center-based programs, home-based programs, and informal childcare.

In order to best meet the needs of our community of professionals, WI-AIMH will be offering in-person conferences during even-numbered years, alternating with virtual conferences during odd-numbered years.

Conference fees will reflect the type of conference based on the actual cost of the events.

You'll find that a virtual conference to be much less expensive than an in-person conference because there are no costs associated with meals, travel, venue rental, A-V, and all the other expenses associated with an in-person event.

But because we know how important it is for people in our field to have the opportunity to reflect, rejuvenate and reconnect, we are pleased to be able to continue to provide an in-person option in a beautiful Wisconsin setting every other year.

You can expect the highest quality presenters at both in-person and virtual events. We look forward to seeing you at this year's virtual conference and the 2024 in-person conference!

Dr. Tina Payne Bryson is the author of the Bottom Line for Baby and co-author (with Dan Siegel) of two New York Times Best Sellers—The Whole-Brain Child and No-Drama Discipline—each of which has been translated into over fifty languages, as well as The Yes Brain and The Power of Showing Up. She is the Founder and Executive Director of The Center for Connection, a multidisciplinary clinical practice in Southern California.

WI-AIMH Welcomes Dr. Sagashus Levingston

WI-AIMH is delighted to announce the addition of Dr. Sagashus Levingston to our Board of Directors. Many of you will recall the unforgettable keynote address that she gave at our 2022 in-person conference.

Sagashus brings her wisdom, knowledge, experience, and insight to this leadership position. We are delighted to have her voice helping shape our work.

You can learn more about the work and story of Sagashus at her website: Infamous Mothers.

Lana Shklyar Nenide, WI-AIMH Executive Director, was an invited guest of Governor and Mrs. Evers at the Children's Mental Health celebration on May 31st at the Wisconsin executive residence. Lana ensured that the voices of babies, toddlers, young children and their families were represented. The Power of Connection video was running on loop to beautifully provide a glimpse into the magical world of infants and toddlers. Thank you Governor Evers for shining a light on the importance of the social and emotional needs of our youngest children.

Congratulations to Newly Endorsed^® Professionals

Congratulations to the following professionals who earned Infant Mental Health (IMH) Endorsement^® for Culturally Sensitive, Relationship-Focused Practice Promoting Infant Mental Health in 2022! Welcome to the growing network of dedicated IMH professionals. Thank you for your commitment to Wisconsin's infants, toddlers and their families.

Endorsement for Culturally-Sensitive, Relationship-Focused Practice Promoting Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health (Endorsement^®) is an internationally recognized credential that supports and recognizes professionals who have acquired the specialized knowledge and skills for working with or on behalf of infants, toddlers, and their families within their chosen discipline. Earning Endorsement^® is Good for Babies as it affirms a professional has acquired the competencies that equip them with the culturally-responsive and reflective skills to promote early relational health and social and emotional wellbeing leading to best outcomes for babies and their families. It’s the largest and most recognized IMH credentialing system in the United States and it’s available to you here in Wisconsin!

We are also excited that WI-AIMH officially began the process to expand Endorsement to include the Early Childhood Mental Health Endorsement^® which supports and recognizes professionals who have acquired the specialized knowledge and skills for working with or on behalf of young children 3 to 6 year-olds and their families within their chosen discipline. Once the initial leadership cohort has completed the process, WI-AIMH will be poised to begin offering this additional set of professional credentials to Early Childhood professionals statewide, likely as we move into 2024.  

Get a jump-start on annual renewal! 

If so, keep in mind that anytime you attend an IMH training or other professional development offering, you can log into your Endorsement^® application and enter the training within the training tab. You don’t have to wait until the end of the year to do this—you can enter training throughout the year! This is also a great way to track your training and determine where you might want to focus your professional development over the next six months!

The easy-breezy months of summer are a great time to review your contact information within your Endorsement^® application. Is your email current? Your address? Log into EASy and go to the status tab to change your contact information. Go to the work tab to update your employment information.

June 15^th is the next IMH-E^® application submittal date! 

There is still time to complete your application and submit by the June 15^th deadline. Don’t have the time right now? No worries. The next submittal date is September 15^th.

We are excited to announce the opening of our new satellite office in the Milwaukee area.

This site will be the new WI-AIMH office home to our Milwaukee area staff, including Ashley Bowers, Annie Hysaw, Marlow Fowlkes-Ware, Lisa Garlie, and Christina Davis. Staff will be busy in the coming weeks getting the space ready.

You'll find them at: 48

States across the country are leveraging American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to meet the needs of infants and toddlers, and their families. They are making strategic investments across programs and systems upon which families rely, with the aim of providing immediate relief to real-time needs brought about by the pandemic. States are also taking this opportunity to invest in the development of stronger systems for the long term.

ECE professionals, as a whole, were economically and emotionally vulnerable before the pandemic and have suffered increased rates of stress and depression since the pandemic started. Coupled with the fact that young children have also experienced increases in anxiety, trauma, and grief (including hundreds of thousands of children who lost primary caregivers as a result of COVID-19), it is clear that strategically targeted supports are needed both to promote the mental health of children and to support the well-being of the adults who care for them.

The report specifically names infant and early childhood mental health consultation as one of the key recommendations. Click on the link below to access Wisconsin's state profile, with a review of state-wide approaches and lessons learned.

Join Team WI-AIMH as the Office Coordinator/Referral Specialist in our new Milwaukee area office or as the Professional Development Manager based anywhere in Wisconsin!

Click on the links for details!

Applications are now being accepted for the 2021-2022 UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN Infant, Early Childhood and Family Mental Health Capstone Certificate Program!

Participation is by application and enrollment is limited. Apply by July 1, 2023 to ensure consideration for admission and scholarships. Applications will continue to be accepted as space allows. Information about the Capstone Certificate Program and application guidance, including the application form, is available at this site: https://ifmh.psychiatry.wisc.edu/.

The Capstone Certificate Program is an interdisciplinary, graduate credit one-year academic program for practicing professionals who provide relationship-based services to families in the perinatal period and/or families of children ages birth through five years, supervisors and consultants. This program is designed for licensed mental health clinicians and health care practitioners in nursing, pediatrics, family medicine and psychiatry and professionals from Home Visiting, Birth to 3, Early Childhood Special Education, Early Head Start, Head Start, Childcare and Child Protective Services/Child Welfare.

Those who complete this Capstone Certificate Program will have gained knowledge and competencies to assist them in pursuing endorsement as an Infant Family Specialist, Infant Mental Health Specialist or Infant Mental Health Mentor through the Wisconsin Infant Mental Health Endorsement, Wisconsin Alliance for Infant Mental Health (WI-AIMH).

Roseanne Clark, PhD, IMH-E^®

Sarah Strong, MSSW, LCSW, IMH-E^® Capstone Certificate Program Co-Director

Sarah Strong, LCSW, IMH-E^®

 Department of Psychiatry, UW School of Medicine and Public Health