Councils

Local Interagency Coordinating Councils (LICCs) are community-based advisory groups. Each county should have a LICC. Local service providers and parents work together to make sure that all families know about early intervention services.

What we do  

The role of the LICCs is to:  

• develop and distribute county specific public awareness and child find materials;
• support interagency partnerships and information sharing;
• promote parent and family involvement in all community events;
• support community efforts that involve children with special needs and their families.

To find your LICC, contact NC ICC Coordinator at 919-707-5523.

LICC Highlights                  

MEMBER-AT-LARGE FROM THE DURHAM COUNTY LICC

In many ways, Durham County is rich in resources for young children and their families who may need or want extra support. As is true in many places, though, the landscape of available services-- and the requirements and procedures for accessing those services-- is constantly shifting. The challenge of keeping up with referral options and processes, even for seasoned providers and experienced families, has been discussed at the Durham LICC and many other collaborative tables for years. So, when the pandemic began and virtual platforms became the norm for service provision, a coalition of local early childhood groups began working on a digital resource guide to address this need. 

Initiated by the Durham Early Childhood Mental Health Task Force, supported by Durham’s READY Project, and informed by local families, Nurturing Durham, a Resource Guide for Durham’s Young Children, Parents & Families, launched in August 2021. Recognizing that Nurturing Durham could resolve the challenge of having an up-to-date, easy-to-use referral guide and thereby advance Child Find goals, Durham’s LICC offered to put its support behind the project. Specifically, the LICC has funded professional translation for all of the text on the site to ensure Nurturing Durham is equally accessible to Durham’s large population of Spanish-speaking families. Durham LICC members have also been key champions for the site, promoting the site in their networks and using it in their own work to help connect families to available resources.

PARENT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE MCDOWELL LICC

Nothing is wasted, not one experience or coffee-stained t-shirt. From 2013-2015, I lost four pregnancies. We relocated to WNC in unfamiliar territory and felt utterly alone. In 2016, we sat in the PICU with our newborn son, fighting for his life after open-heart surgery. My sister snuggled his identical twin an hour away. My husband worked and delivered breastmilk to the baby. One month later, we came home as strangers embarking on our parenting journey.

Sixteen voicemails to return, new service providers, additional physicians, and several new medications were waiting. By 15 months old Baby B endured another surgery and was making significant gains. At 20 months Baby A was diagnosed with a lifelong disability. I was crushed. I never saw open heart surgery, feeding tubes, or therapy as a part of motherhood.

I found FSN [Family Support Network], they taught me several skills and encouraged learning more. They believed in me and later invited me to sit as a Parent Representative for our local ICC and to join the FSN board. I learned to advocate across many settings for our son. He lives and loves big!! Foundations of Advocacy were embedded into the services my son received in CDSA, and I am grateful. I was surrounded by service providers and Family Support workers who saw more in me than I could see in myself. Now I get to grow in family leadership, make a difference in our community for other families, and improve systems. The educated others in my life were not only passionate about my children but were passionate about me and my family. Not only did they engage me, but they also walked beside me in partnership. My boys are fully integrated into their community; though it has not always been easy, it is worth it. Believe in yourself; you belong here!

North Carolina Infant-Toddler Program Commitment and Statement to Equity

The North Carolina Early Intervention Section (NCEI) is a part of the N.C. Division of Child and Family Well-Being. It is the lead agency for the N.C. Infant-Toddler Program (NC-ITP). The Infant-Toddler Program provides supports and services for families and their children, birth to three, who have special needs. Research shows that this time period is critical. It offers a window of opportunity to make a positive difference in how a child develops and learns. Sixteen Children's Developmental Services Agencies (CDSAs) across North Carolina work with local service providers to help families help their children succeed. 

Our vision for families and caregivers of children enrolled in the N.C. Infant-Toddler Program is that they will be able to help their children reach their maximum potential. 

Our mission is to provide supports and services to families and children to help them be successful in their homes and communities, by using every-day learning opportunities. We will respect the diversity of families and use evidence-based practices to guide our work. 

The NC-ITP is committed to building a foundation of opportunity and success for every child and family during their time in the program. To make this vision a reality, we seek to identify and remove systemic barriers and replace them with pathways to opportunity so that children and families can continue to be successful after they transition out of the program at age 3. When every child and family is supported to reach their potential, all of us benefit. 

Our Beliefs

Families know and understand the needs of their children better than anyone else. The NC-ITP values and considers the role of the family as a key to the success of early intervention. For this reason, the family needs to be a true partner with members of the early intervention team. Children are best supported within the family, and the family is best supported within the community. Intervention activities that fit into their daily routine are more likely to give them the results they want for their child and family. 

• A child should be viewed as a child first, rather than a "special needs" child. 
• Just as children and families grow and develop, supports and services should also change to meet their needs and choices. 
• Early intervention is most beneficial when families are supported in meeting their children's needs within the context of typical family activities and routines. 
• Children with special needs are best served in settings that are used by all children. 
• Family beliefs, values and lived experiences are important and are to be honored as is the cultural (religious, ethnic, and racial) background of the family. 
• Teamwork among families and service providers is important for planning early intervention supports and services. 

Our Equity Position Statement

The NC-ITP values inclusion recognizes and honors diversity in race, ethnicity, culture, class, age, abilities, gender and sexual identity, political affiliation, and places where people live. We seek to reflect this diversity in all aspects of our work, including the composition of our leadership, staff, committees, workgroups, and volunteers. 

The NC ITP's position on equity focuses explicitly, but not exclusively, on racial equity. We hold up racial equity as a core value, acknowledging that confronting racism is an essential part of realizing our vision. 

The NC-ITP explicitly acknowledges the impact of inequitable systems on children, families, and communities. The NC-ITP seeks to prioritize strategies, policies, and practices designed to both disrupt biases and alleviate its effects on the program's young children and families. The NC-ITP is committed to ensuring that equity is applied in every aspect of our work and that it is woven throughout our organizational framework. 

• We commit to collaboration among staff and leadership to keep equity at the center of our work to promote understanding, spearhead collaboration, and advance policies. 
• We are dedicated to shaping and sustaining an inclusive and equitable work culture. 
• We value the voices and lived experiences of divers and marginalized groups to make our work better and more responsive to the state we serve. 
• We provide our staff and leadership with opportunities for open, honest dialogue about the effects of inequitable systems as well as opportunities for ongoing education in equity best practices, such as cultural competency and awareness of privilege and bias. 
• We work to build meaningful relationships with groups representing divers populations to support leadership and staff recruitment efforts and to create powerful partnerships to impact outcomes for young children and their families. 

NC ITP Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Newsletters

Newsletter # 1  August 2023

Newsletter # 2  October 2023