Clinical Research Directory

Transform + Family Academy Randomized Controlled Trial in the Philippines

This study evaluates the integration of two complementary poverty alleviation programs: Compassion International's (CI) child-focused Survival and Early Childhood Program with International Care Ministries' (ICM) household-level Transform + Family Academy intervention. CI's program provides holistic child development through health support, educational programming, social development, and spiritual formation via local church partners for children aged 3-5 years. ICM's Transform + Family Academy combines a 15-week household intervention targeting health education, livelihood training, and values formation with an 8-week early childhood education component delivered through home visits. The primary aim of this research is to assess whether integrating household-level interventions with child-focused programming enhances early numeracy and literacy outcomes among children aged 3-5 living in extreme poverty in Western and Southern Mindanao, Philippines. The study also examines the intervention's impact on children's nutritional status and household financial resilience, including savings behaviors and access to social safety nets. The investigators hypothesize that addressing household-level constraints including caregiver capacity, health, and economic challenges will enhance children's academic and nutritional outcomes alongside household financial resilience compared to child-focused programming alone.

Evaluating a Strengths-based Community-grounded Intervention

Structural inequities and historical underinvestment in marginalized communities create developmental contexts that constrain access to high-quality education, healthcare, stable housing, and other critical resources. This study evaluates effects of a strengths-based, community-led intervention on young children and their families, which aims to buffer structural inequities while recognizing families' strengths. Between ages 18-36 months, English- and Spanish-speaking families consented and were randomly assigned to the intervention group (ParentChild+) or the active control group (FamilyNutrition+). Each group received 92 contacts from a specialist matched with their demographics. For the intervention group, contact focused on supporting parents and children's early learning, and families received a book or toy each week; for the control group, contact focused on supporting child nutrition, and families received a small food voucher each week. The current study evaluates whether the intervention altered parents' mental health, children's early environments, and/or children's test performance and brain development.