Highland Park - Family Focus

Family Focus Highland Park, formerly Family Network, was founded in 1983 by early childhood professionals seeking to connect young children and families with one another to help reduce isolation, build friendships, and establish a supportive community network. We are grateful to the vision of our founders and all the families, staff, volunteers, and alumni who have contributed to Family Network since its inception.

In 2002, Family Network became part of Family Focus, a pioneering family support organization based in Chicago that was founded in 1976. Family Network officially took on the Family Focus Highland Park name in 2017. Family Focus offers innovative, community-based programs that help parents, grandparents, and foster and adoptive parents gain confidence and competence as the primary educators of their children. Family Focus has 11 centers in Chicago and Northeast Illinois.

Family Focus Highland Park serves all of Lake County.

Available Programs

Early Childhood Dual Language

Early Childhood Dual Language was originally established as the Parent/Child Drop-In Center in 1983 by early childhood professionals who recognized the importance of providing a place where families could connect with one another and find support in the challenging job of raising young children. Since then, the program has grown with an emphasis on using English and Spanish dual-language education in the classroom. The Early Childhood Dual Language program continues to offer programs where parents can meet the challenges of parenting through coming together for friendship and shared information while their young children are provided with safe, nurturing, and dual-language early experiences under the care of experienced professional staff.

Home Visiting

The Right From The Start Program (RFTS) is a home visiting program specific to Family Focus Highland Park that primarily serves the growing immigrant population in Lake County. Parents receive visits from their home visitor to ensure their child is meeting development milestones through parent-child activities and education. Activities guide parents and children in sharing and learning activities that improve gross motor, language, fine motor, social, and emotional skills. Parent curriculum includes good maternal or paternal and child health, home safety, food security, positive parenting, and school readiness. Home visitors meet with families facing the challenges of parenting children from birth to 3 years of age. Prenatal classes and one-on-one meetings with home visitors are also available to pregnant mothers.