Nevada Parents Encouraging Parents (PEP) has received a five‐year, $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Developmental Disabilities, under its new Family Support 360 Initiative. PEP is one of 18 organizations funded this year, 2009, to provide assistance to families in accessing services and supports for persons with developmental disabilities.

PEP’s project will focus on developing a program to support the families of children with co‐occurring developmental disabilities and behavioral health issues. PEP will implement the program in conjunction with key partners, including the Nevada Center for Excellence in Disabilities; Nevada Division of Mental Health and Developmental Services and Division of Child and Family Services; Nevada Office of Disability, the Disabilities Advocacy Law Center and the Developmental Disabilities Council; and Clark County School District and Juvenile Justice Services. Through this partnership with public agencies as well as providers and parents, PEP will develop a system that enhances interagency collaboration, empowers families to participate in service planning and delivery, and ensures access to community based, individualized and culturally appropriate health, mental health, recreation, and educational services and supports.

Using a Systems of Care approach, a single location dedicated to supporting local families will serve as a focal point for the project to increase awareness of the needs of children in the target population, conduct outreach to their families, and provide families with strengths‐based, individualized family navigation services and supports.

A family navigator will team with each child’s case manager, serving as a mentor, guide and advocate to assist families in identifying their needs, developing a plan of action, and obtaining services for their child. The project will support 20 families in the first year and 40 families in each succeeding year of the project.

The role of the family navigator will be adapted from the family‐to‐family support model currently being used by Nevada PEP with families of children who have serious emotional disturbance. The project will assist case managers and key partners in using a wraparound model of service planning and implementation. The family navigator will support successful implementation of this approach in their work with families.

The project will provide flexible funding and linkages to specialized services such as PBS Nevada to increase the effectiveness of the child and family team in developing an appropriate plan for each child. The goal of the project is to improve outcomes for the child, increase family empowerment and satisfaction, and enhance community partnerships.