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Northern Illinois University

NIU Office of Public Affairs


News Release

Contact: Mark McGowan, NIU Office of Public Affairs
(815) 753-9472

July 28, 2004

Local child development leaders create
posters to promote evaluations, intervention services

DeKalb — A group of childhood development specialists from around DeKalb County have created and are distributing posters aimed to inform parents of the local availability of early evaluations and coordinated intervention services.

The 100 posters, which remind parents that “It Never Hurts to Ask,” were funded by grants through the DeKalb County Community Foundation and the Local Inter-Agency Networking Council (LINC).

Each poster displays a convenient tablet of pull-off sheets containing important developmental milestones and contact information for Child and Family Connections, the early intervention system in Illinois.

“Early intervention for children who have developmental disabilities is integral to the academic and social success of our youngsters,” said Karen Munoz, an audiologist with the Northern Illinois University Department of Communicative Disorders and assistant clinic director for the NIU Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic.

“We are interested in helping connect parents, teachers and physicians with the appropriate agency when they have concerns about a child’s development,” Munoz added. “We feel posting the DeKalb County Child and Family Connections phone number, along with a brief list of developmental milestones, is a good first step in the identification of children who may be in need of services.”

Members of the DeKalb County Early Childhood Working Group represent NIU (both the Department of Communicative Disorders in the College of Health and Human Sciences and the Department of Teaching and Learning in the College of Education), the DeKalb County Health Department, the DeKalb County Special Education Association, the Genoa-Kingston School District, the Sycamore Public School District and Two Rivers Head Start.

The posters will be distributed throughout DeKalb County to area service providers, pediatricians and family practice physicians, daycare centers, and libraries.

For more information, call Karen Munoz at (815) 753-1481. To reach Child and Family Connections, call (888) 297-1041.

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