At the Child Health and Development Institute of Connecticut (CHDI), our ultimate goal is to ensure that all children in Connecticut have access to and benefit from a comprehensive, effective, community-based health and mental health care system.

To achieve this vision, we focus our efforts on long-term systemic change by identifying and evaluating effective practices, and then building the capacity to implement them statewide.

CHDI is an independent, non-profit subsidiary of the Children’s Fund of Connecticut, which was established in 1992. Working in partnership with state and regional agencies, hospitals, universities, and other organizations, we combine direct funding with research, policy analysis, advocacy, and technical assistance.

The mission of the Institute is to improve the quality of care for all children, emphasizing family-centered, comprehensive care that encompasses both physical and behavioral health. Collaborating with the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, the University of Connecticut, and Yale University, we strive to advance sustainable improvements in primary and preventive health and mental health care practices and policy for all the state's children, with a particular focus on disadvantaged or underserved children and families.

CHDI is also home to the Connecticut Center for Effective Practice (CCEP), a unique partnership of state agencies and academic institutions working to improve the effectiveness of treatment provided to all children with serious and complex emotional, behavioral, and addictive disorders. The overall mission of CCEP is to develop, train, disseminate, evaluate, and expand effective models of practice in pediatric mental health and juvenile justice.

CHDI is governed by a board of directors that includes pediatricians, lawyers, business and community leaders, and representatives of academia and state government. Our work covers several critical service areas, including health, behavioral health, early care and education, juvenile justice, and data and research capacity building.