FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO): A new Fort Wayne program is set to make a difference in the lives of children.

Allen Superior Court Judge Dan Heath has announced the new program targeting at-risk children. It's called BrightStars, and the Journal Gazette reports it might be the nations first early childhood development program sponsored by a court. They say that these types of programs are more likely to become good, happier productive citizens in the long run.

They say that the start of the program begins in Heath’s courtroom, which is where a child’s paternity is established prior to setting up child support payments, which is where a child may fall through the cracks for early childhood intervention.