ABSTRACT
This chapter presents important initiatives that have been undertaken by the university system in Florida to bring the talents and resources of the faculty to bear on the substantive problems impacting the well-being of children and families in the state. The chapter offers an overview of the Florida Inter-University Center for Child, Family and Community Studies (IUC), a unique applied social sciences entity recently established within the state's university system. It highlights a subset of recent center activities that are demonstrative of its unique capacity to mobilize the expertise of a multidisciplinary team of faculty from across the state to respond, in an efficient and effective manner, to the call for assistance by state legislative leaders. The chapter explains what are viewed as the essential building blocks for bringing to fruition an inter-university center within any given state, one that is dedicated to outreach activities on behalf of children and families.
