Colorado Home Inclusion Program (CHIP)
The Colorado Home Inclusion Program (CHIP) supports families of children ages birth to 3 who are Deaf, hard of hearing, or Deafblind throughout Colorado.
CHIP is a no-cost, parent-driven program that works alongside families to support early language acquisition, communication, and each child’s development. Families receive individualized support from CHIP facilitators and CHIP coordinators who meet them in their homes, childcare settings, grandparents’ homes, or other natural environments.
Every child and family is different. CHIP helps families understand their options, make informed decisions, connect with resources, and build the confidence to advocate for their child as they grow.
Is CHIP Right for My Family?
CHIP serves children from birth to age three with permanent hearing differences throughout Colorado.
Children may be Deaf, hard of hearing, unilateral hearing, Deafblind, or have additional disabilities. Eligibility is not limited by degree or type of hearing difference. CHIP serves families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and support family preference for different communication options.
Families may decide the level of support that works best for them — from consultation and resource navigation to regular sessions with a CHIP facilitator.
Cost to families: $0
What Does CHIP Do?
Having a young child with a newly identified hearing difference can introduce families to many unfamiliar systems at once. CHIP Coordinators and CHIP Facilitators provide a consistent connection who can help families understand their choices and navigate those systems during the first three years of their child’s life.
CHIP coordinators and CHIP facilitators collaborate with families to support language acquisition, communication, developmental goals, family routines, advocacy, and transitions.
Services are individualized and may include routines-based coaching, family education, language and communication support, connections to local resources, and collaboration with early intervention providers and other professionals.
CHIP respects each family’s home language, cultural preferences, goals, and decisions.
CHIP is more than a home visiting program! Opportunities can include:
- Attending fun and educational events across the state
- Receiving email announcements of learning opportunities
- Learning sign language from a Deaf instructor
- Monitoring your child’s development over time
- Measuring and enhancing the communication environment of your home
What does a CHIP Visit look like? Fun! Playbased! Empowering! Supportive!
- Collaborative
- In-home and virtual session options
- Coaching model empowering parent
- Play based
- Full of strategies related to language acquisition.
- Individualized sessions for your family
- Supporting the whole child and whole family
Who will I meet through CHIP?
CHIP Coordinator
Your first contact and a consistent resource for your family. Your coordinator will support getting you connected to early intervention and a CHIP Facilitator if appropriate, to local and statewide programs, will meet with you throughout your family’s time in CHIP and support transition into preschool at the age of 3. Additional support around funding, meeting Deaf adults, additional learning opportunities, local and statewide programs, audiology teams and EI Colorado.
CHIP Facilitator
If your child qualifies for Early Intervention, a CHIP Facilitator is a specialized provider who will support your family and child learning strategies, through routines and play, that will support your goals. This may include visual and spoken language strategies, auditory skill development, technology use, and collaboration with other professionals working with the family.
What Can CHIP Look Like for Our Family?
CHIP starts with your family — your child, routines, priorities, questions, culture, and goals.
A CHIP facilitator might join your family during playtime, mealtime, getting ready for the day, reading together, or another everyday routine. Rather than simply working with the child, CHIP emphasizes coaching and partnering with parents and caregivers.
Parents and caregivers are central to their child’s learning. CHIP gives families strategies they can naturally use throughout everyday life.
Services are primarily provided in the home but may also take place in childcare programs, relatives’ homes, community settings, or other environments where the child spends time.
One Family. One Connection. Many Resources.
Families should not have to figure out Colorado’s many early childhood systems alone.
CHIP can serve as a consistent point of connection, helping families understand and access resources available through CSDB, their local community, Early Intervention, healthcare providers, and statewide partners.
Depending on the child and family, collaboration may include Early Intervention ASL services, Listening and Spoken Language supports, physical therapy, occupational therapy, feeding supports, behavioral services, Colorado Shared Reading Project opportunities, and other family resources.
CHIP professionals live and work in communities across Colorado, connecting statewide expertise with resources available close to home.
Why Early Access Matters
The first three years of life are an important period for language, communication, learning, relationships, and development.
CHIP helps families make timely connections following identification of a hearing difference and supports Colorado’s Early Hearing Detection and Intervention pathway.
Early support gives families opportunities to explore communication choices, build language-rich environments, understand their child’s strengths, and make informed decisions as their child develops.
CHIP’s goal is not to prescribe one pathway. Families receive information, support, and flexibility as their child’s needs and communication preferences evolve.
Building Confident Children — and Confident Families
CHIP’s work extends beyond early intervention sessions.
The goal is for children to develop strong language and communication foundations, a positive sense of self, confidence, and readiness for their next stage of learning.
At the same time, families build knowledge and confidence. Parents learn how to ask questions, navigate services, understand their child’s needs, celebrate their child’s abilities, and advocate for them throughout their educational journey.
Connected Across Colorado
CHIP is part of CSDB Outreach and works collaboratively with organizations, agencies, professionals, and family networks throughout Colorado.
A dedicated partnership area could connect families directly with organizations such as Colorado Hands & Voices, Colorado EHDI, CDPHE, Ascent, local Early Intervention programs, and other statewide resources.
The goal is simple: families should be able to start with CHIP and easily find the people and resources they need without having to navigate every system on their own.
Refer a Child to CHIP
Families do not need to become experts in early intervention before reaching out.
Parents, healthcare professionals, audiologists, Early Intervention providers, educators, and other professionals may connect a family with CHIP.
Ready to connect?
Contact: ChipReferrals@csdb.org