Stephanie Jimenez holds her daughter Lea, who has developmental delays. The Mundelein mom is pushing for more money in the state budget for Early Intervention services to address developmental delays in youth from birth through age 3. (Provided photos)

First in a series looking at Early Intervention advocates’ continued push for more state funding

Stephanie Jimenez was concerned every time she walked to the school bus stop to pick up her older daughters.

Her youngest daughter, Lea, who has developmental delays, would take off running

“She would just run. She didn’t have safety awareness,” Jimenez said. “I was very concerned about that. Just walking to the bus stop was really challenging.”

Because of Lea’s sensory issues, the Mundelein mom could not hold her daughter’s hand or jacket when they were outside.

She told Lea’s occupational therapist that the only time her daughter would stay on the sidewalk and go straight was when walking the family dog.

“‘That means she needs something to do as she’s walking. Let’s figure it out,’” Jimenez remembers the therapist saying.

Now, when they head to the bus stop, Lea hold one of her doll’s hands and Jimenez holds the other or Lea pushes a little stroller.

“Those are things that really make a difference because I’m going to the bus stop every day to pick up her sisters,” the mother of three said.

Jimenez’ three daughters hold cards calling for more EI funding in the state budget.

Jimenez and other Early Intervention advocates are concerned that unless more money is put into the state budget for EI therapeutic services, thousands of families may miss out on finding similar solutions for their child’s issues.

Early Intervention services are for youth from birth to age 3 who show signs of developmental delays.

Without more money to pay therapists for the required state Early Intervention services, more professionals will leave the field and the wait list for EI therapy services will grow longer, according to Zareen Kamal, a policy specialist with Start Early, a Chicago-based nonprofit that champions early learning and care

“The shortage is dire, and many eligible children continue to not be referred statewide, regardless of region,” Kamal said. “While there are some regional disparities in access based on several factors, every part of the state is in a situation of crisis and there has been no improvement in the overall percentage of babies waiting for services.

“The number of active EI providers has declined by 6.6 percent since 2018, while active cases have increased by 5.6 percent. Service delays have almost doubled since 2018, with an average of over 9 percent of children and families experiencing service delays in (state fiscal year 2024).”

Kamal noted that the Illinois Department of Human Services did a cost model finding which shows that the EI workforce is severely under-compensated and that, overall, the true cost of delivering all EI services is $368 million, which is $168 million more than current state spending.

There are 3,000 children on the state waiting list, not receiving the Early Intervention services they are entitled to by law. Early Intervention supporters are pushing for $60 million in additional EI funding in the next state budget to whittle down the wait lists and keep individuals working in EI positions.

Karen Berman, senior director of Start Early, said it was “stunning” that Gov. J.B. Pritzker did not put additional money in his proposed budget to address the EI wait list and staffing crisis.

Stephanie Jimenez said she feels guilt as her youngest daughter struggles with developmental delays.

“Did I do enough as a parent early on to get my daughter the help she needs?” Jimenez questions.

Jimenez works with Lea on a building activity.

The Mundelein mom said after a year of EI services her daughter aged out and is now receiving therapy services through her school district, but it doesn’t take away the thoughts of “Could have I done more?” and “Should I have noticed things sooner?”

It was when Lea was 18 months old that Jimenez began questioning her daughter’s developmental progress. She compared where Lea was in her speech to her older daughters when they were that age.

“My mom and grandma started saying, ‘Hey, she’s not speaking,’ so outside people started noticing it as well,” Jimenez said. “So, I started pushing for answers from her pediatrician.”

The doctor gave Jimenez the phone number for Early Intervention services, but didn’t go into detail about what is was and how it worked.

“It was kind of like, ‘Let’s see how she is when she’s 2,’ so I kind of just saved the number,” Jimenez said.

As Lea turned 2, Jimenez said, there was not a lot of change in her speech so she called the number and got connected with EI services.

“The evaluation showed she qualified for services under a speech delay, but through the process, I found out there was also sensory stuff and that she needed other support with occupational therapy,” Jimenez said.

She said she gained so much knowledge from working with the therapists caring for her daughter.

“I really learned the development part of a kid and how everything is connected,” Jimenez said. “It was all thanks to our speech and occupational therapists. They really helped me understand that to better support my little one.”

kbeese@chronicleillinois.com