Individual states have the responsibility to decide whether or not to provide services to children at risk for developmental problems under Part C of IDEA. Although some states have elected to include selected groups of children at risk in their early intervention system, the lack of universal commitment to these children and families is highly troubling. This is especially true given that the conditions defining child risk, such as prematurity and low birth weight, illicit maternal drug use during pregnancy, and chronic poverty, are, if anything, increasing. Three articles in this issue of Infants & Young Children (IYC) address the importance and effectiveness of preventive interventions for children at risk. In one article, a number of creative programs are described that can minimize those neurodevelopmental problems of children due to intrauterine illicit drug exposure. Despite the challenges that interventionists face in providing services to these families, it is clear that much can be accomplished through comprehensive and persistent efforts. The second article on this topic reviews the status of Head Start programs for children at risk due to poverty. Analyses of the short- and long-term benefits of this important program provide the basis for future service provision and for a research agenda. In the third article, a model program is described to support the infant-parent relationship that is in jeopardy because of extensive hospitalizations of children as a result of diverse chronic illnesses. Taken together, it is evident that creative and comprehensive preventive intervention programs should be high on the agenda of Part C and for other state service programs as well for vulnerable young children.

Other articles in this issue of IYC address an array of equally important matters facing our field. In one article, the central question of how genetic and environmental factors interact to produce what we refer to as a behavioral phenotype is examined with special reference to language development. Joint attention appears to be an important mechanism through which genetic factors can have an important indirect influence on children's language development. In another article, the way typically developing children think about their classmates with disabilities is discussed. Clearly, children's ideas about the nature and meaning of a disability form early, and there is much we can do to influence those conceptualizations. Finally, a training program that increases the likelihood that health professionals, such as nurses, will be able to provide the leadership necessary to address the considerable special healthcare needs of children is described. The program's components and its evaluation are presented.