The Unit for Early Years Research and Development, formerly the Unit for Child Care Research and Professional Development (UCCR), focuses on the importance of leadership and local engagement in support of diversity and social equity in the early years.

The unit was founded in 1992 (as the UCCR) and has undertaken over 60 research and development projects worth over 12 million dollars. At present, the unit focuses on promoting early years system changes from practice to policy levels through projects that extend from British Columbia, Canada to international locations, including a major and longstanding commitment to Africa.

The LIGIA Project is a qualitative research project conducted by UVic’s Dr. Marie Hoskins and her research team (Jo-Anne Stoltz, Nicole Little, and Lindsay Mathieson). The project is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

Dr. Hoskins will explore adolescent girls’ narratives of identity when experiencing anorexia nervosa. She is researching the intersections between media, contemporary culture, identity formation, and eating disorders.

The purpose of the Needs Assessment for Youth project, funded by the National Crime Prevention Centre, was to develop a gender-sensitive needs assessment tool for supporting at-risk girls and young women.

The tool was expected to meet the following criteria:

• be designed in a way that is simple and easy to use
• include questions that are not presently being asked
• improve workers' understanding of at-risk girls' needs
• result in better planning to meet the needs of at-risk girls

We are pleased to announce a report by Dr. Jessica Ball: "Early Childhood Care and Development Programs as Hook and Hub: Promising Practices in First Nations Communities."

In 2002, several First Nations in British Columbia expressed interest in a follow-up study of how their investments in childcare training and programs were impacting the quality of life in their communities.

These First Nations had all partnered with the School of Child and Youth Care for the co-delivery of our community-based diploma program in child and youth care (CYC), and the cohort of First Nations students had completed the two-year program in 1999 (see the First Nations Partnership Programs site for a description of this diploma program).

Social Development Partnerships Canada (formerly HRDC) and the BC Ministry of Children and Family Development funded a study of what First Nations graduates of a community-based diploma program in early childhood care and development are doing now, and the services that have been created in their communities for children and families.

The research focused on three forward-thinking groups of First Nations communities: Lil’wat Nation, Tl’azt’en Nation, and five First Nations represented by Treaty 8 Tribal Association in British Columbia.

First Nations graduates formed part of the team that completed the study this year as a community-university partnership project. The exciting achievements in these communities, the challenges they have faced, and recommendations for supporting community driven service capacity are highlighted in the report.

The research pointed to some key factors that have enabled:

• Unprecedented high rates of post-secondary completion
• Successful transitions from education to relevant work
• Creation of new programs for children and families
• Incorporation of Indigenous knowledge in the design and delivery of programs

Findings about the evolution of services in these communities suggest that children’s programs can serve as a "hook" to attract and bring families together, and a "hub" around which many other supports for family health and well-being can be provided locally, in a family-centred atmosphere of caring and cultural safety.

The findings also highlighted community diversity. Administrators and program staff were adept at developing services that are community-fitting. The timing of developing service capacity was also emphasized. Services for children and families need to be both community-based and community-paced.

To receive a copy of the report or suggest an individual or organization who would benefit from receiving a copy, please contact Jessica Ball at 250-472-4128, or jball@uvic.ca.