Promising Practices
The Promising Practices database informs professionals and community members about documented approaches to improving community health and quality of life.
The ultimate goal is to support the systematic adoption, implementation, and evaluation of successful programs, practices, and policy changes. The database provides carefully reviewed, documented, and ranked practices that range from good ideas to evidence-based practices.
Learn more about the ranking methodology.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Families
Goal: The goal of this program is to change the child protection field by demonstrating a new approach to safeguarding children and supporting families. Based on the premise that many people, agencies, and organizations in a community can contribute to children's safety, the initiative addresses child abuse and neglect by raising neighborhood awareness of child safety issues, empowering neighborhood residents to become more involved with families at risk of abusing or neglecting their children, strengthening locally based organizations and helping them form networks concerned with child safety, and fostering policy, practice, and organizational changes within public sector child protective services agencies. This approach is known as community child protection.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Education / Student Performance K-12, Children, Teens
Goal: The goal of this initiative is to promote the development of young people through after-school programs.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Health / Alcohol & Drug Use, Families, Urban
Goal: The goal of this program is to prevent parents who are addicted to drugs from relapsing, and to prevent substance abuse among their children.
Impact: Although studies evaluating the effectiveness of this program on the behaviors of drug-using parents and their children showed some positive findings, the overall evidence suggested no effects.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Economy / Employment, Adults
Goal: The initiative's goal was to help young noncustodial fathers increase their employment and earnings, become more involved in their children's lives, and increase their financial support of their children.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Families
Goal: The goal of this program is to provide comprehensive statewide strategies for Florida to promote violence-free, substance-abuse-free, respectful, nurturing families based on the foundation of a healthy marriage relationship between parents.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Community / Social Environment, Children, Teens, Adults, Urban
Goal: The goal of Gilman Rec-Connect is to revitalize existing recreational activities and create new programming for youth and their families.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Health / Health Care Access & Quality
Goal: The goal of the project was to publish an up-to-date Essential Reporting Guidelines which would be distributed to approximately 90% of healthcare providers in Santa Cruz county. As mentioned above, they wanted to increase reporting and surveillance activities with the primary physicians and also educate them on bioterrorism agents.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Environmental Health / Built Environment, Urban
Goal: Open Road was created to develop programs and environments with and for young people that promote community, independence and self respect. They develop these programs in partnership with neighborhood groups in need of new natural, educational, and recreational environments. These new environments create new bonds between people of all ages, who unite to establish a living community resource.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Good Idea, Education / Childcare & Early Childhood Education, Children
Goal: The goal of this program is to promote the academic success of school-age children while also addressing the needs of working parents who need quality child care services.
Note: This practice has been Archived.
Filed under Effective Practice, Community / Social Environment, Families, Urban
Goal: The primary goals of the program are to reduce family risk and enhance family protective factors that predispose children and youth to substance abuse and related social and emotional difficulties.