Welcome to the
Child and Family Center
The Child and Family Center is an innovative research institute within the University of Oregon that focuses on developing and disseminating science-based mental health services to children and families in many
communities and settings. CFC has received national and international recognition for the
success of its family-centered services, and it is poised to move these services into the future by studying implementation and dissemination in settings such as public schools, WIC, and community mental health programs worldwide.
The overall research and service mission of CFC involves conducting basic and applied research about children and families, focusing on how to effectively serve culturally
a
nd ethnically diverse families, training tomorrow’s researchers and clinicians, and supporting the mental health of our communities by designing improved prevention and treatment strategies that have a positive public health impact on children and families.
Director's Statement
Mission Statement
The Child and Family Center is dedicated to understanding and promoting mental health and resilience in families in all cultural communities. CFC emphasizes research on social–emotional development from infancy through adolescence and strives toward innovation in assessment, prevention, and intervention services for children and families. CFC seeks to collaborate with local, tribal, state, national, and international organizations and researchers engaged in similar efforts to understand and promote mental health in children and families.
CFC carries out its mission by:
- Engaging in basic research on social and emotional processes in relationships that contribute to vulnerability as well as to resilience from birth through adolescence;
- Designing and evaluating mental health services that are socially relevant to children and families and culturally sensitive to a wide variety of families;
- Developing assessment tools and practices that are culturally specific and include measurement of individual characteristics of children and adults, family relationships and interactions, family-context factors, and intervention processes and their impact on treatment outcome;
- Providing professional and research training for graduate and undergraduate students and giving the students opportunities to use research and services to promote the mental health of children and families;
- Offering continuing education services to mental health professionals and school staff in Oregon, with an emphasis on skill in cultural diversity and sensitivity and on science-based practices;
- Partnering with organizations, schools, and individuals in Oregon, across the United States, and around the world to promote the dissemination of child and family research, including innovations in assessment and prevention interventions.
