H79SM084166

Texas System of Care Expansion and Sustainability Grant: Advancing a Texas System of Care

Advancing a Texas System of Care is a statewide initiative led by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to strengthen coordination of behavioral health services and supports among child- and youth-serving agencies at both the state and local levels. The goal is to improve outcomes for children, youth, and families at home, at school, in the community, and throughout life. HHSC will collaborate with the Texas Institute for Excellence in Mental Health at the University of Texas at Austin and other behavioral health stakeholders to implement the initiative.

HHSC will partner with local mental health authorities Integral Care in Travis County, Emergence Health Network in El Paso County, and Pecan Valley, which serves a six-county region in North Central Texas. The aim is to develop and implement local systems of care for children and youth aged 3 to 21 years old with a serious emotional disturbance and their families. This includes the development of local governance boards. The proposed services and infrastructure approach will address identified gaps and increase system capacity to support an array of effective and coordinated services and supports focused on school-based mental health.

Through this collaborative partnership, each community will enhance existing services with a team that includes a local project director, school-based interventionist, school-based therapist, youth peer support specialist, and certified family partner. These team members will be embedded within one or more school districts to provide consistent school-based services and supports. They will also coordinate with community-based care to meet the goals identified by youth and their families.

The team will create a local community-based outreach and engagement plan with strategies and action steps to raise public awareness, reduce stigma, educate community partners on the program and screening procedures, and provide outreach and engagement to children, youth, and families. The initiative expects to enroll 75 children and youth in services in year 1, followed by 100 in year 2, 100 in year 3, and 100 in year 4. A total of 375 youth and families will be served through the four-year cooperative agreement.

The goals and objectives of the Advancing Texas System of Care initiative are to facilitate access to behavioral health services and supports for all eligible children and youth, strengthen state and local system of care leadership, implement policies to improve behavioral health systems, implement strategies to support sustainable infrastructure, and promote youth and family members as leaders in system planning efforts to expand and sustain the system of care approach.

The proposed initiative will utilize a quality improvement process to plan and implement activities, evaluate the progress of implementation, and make necessary adjustments. The Children and Youth Behavioral Health Subcommittee (CYBHS) serves as the oversight body for the Texas System of Care (TXSOC), and the TXSOC strategic plan will be reviewed during quarterly CYBHS meetings. Input toward project implementation will be provided during these meetings.

Texas Health And Human Services Commission

TO PROVIDE COMMUNITY-BASED SYSTEMS OF CARE FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH A SERIOUS EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE AND THEIR FAMILIES. THE PROGRAM WILL ENSURE THAT SERVICES ARE PROVIDED COLLABORATIVELY ACROSS CHILD-SERVING SYSTEMS, THAT EACH CHILD OR ADOLESCENT SERVED THROUGH THE PROGRAM RECEIVES AN INDIVIDUALIZED SERVICE PLAN DEVELOPED WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF THE FAMILY (AND, WHERE APPROPRIATE, THE CHILD), THAT EACH INDIVIDUALIZED PLAN DESIGNATES A CASE MANAGER TO ASSIST THE CHILD AND FAMILY, AND THAT FUNDING IS PROVIDED FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES REQUIRED TO MEET THE NEEDS OF YOUNGSTERS IN THESE SYSTEMS.

93.104 - Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children with Serious Emotional Disturbances (SED)

Division of Grants Management [HHS - SAMHSA]

Austin, Texas 78712 United States

Single Zip Code

Grants for Expansion and Sustainability of the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children with Serious Emotional Disturbances (SM-21-004)

Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 08/30/25 to 02/28/26 and the total obligations have increased 221% from $3,000,000 to $9,625,000.