Since 2000, the Louisiana Department of Social Services, Office of Community Services (OCS) has worked diligently toward a deliberate and systematic approach to parent education programs.

This study—conducted in partnership with Casey Family Programs and OCS—evaluates the effectiveness of the Nurturing Parenting Program as it was implemented on a statewide basis during 2006 and 2007.

The Nurturing Parenting Program is a 16-week group and home-based program that targets parents and other caregivers of infants, toddlers and pre-school children involved in the child welfare system.

The study addresses these questions:

• What effect does the program have on participants’ parental attitudes?
• What are the characteristics of the parents who participate more fully and experience positive results from the program?
• What effect does the training have on the incidence of child maltreatment?