The Services to Children with Developmental Disabilities section of the Division of Mental Health Services to Children and Families provides policy, program guidance, and services innovation and technical assistance for services to children with developmental disabilities delivered through the community mental health system. This includes development of guidelines, procedures and evaluation mechanisms to implement policy and management directives for services to children with developmental disabilities. New program initiatives and strategies for services improvement are also developed in this unit. Training and technical assistance is provided to community mental health services program (CMHSP) staff as it relates to serving children with developmental disabilities and their families. Customer Services functions are performed for children and families encountering systems barriers in accessing services.

The program has enabled children with developmental disabilities to live in permanent families through family preservation, institutional and foster care placement prevention, family reunification and coordination of adoption services.

Contact: Lori C. Irish (517) 241-5761, Irishl@michigan.gov