Texas Children's Mental Health Forum

To learn about joining the forum, please contact our Mental Health Policy Associate Josette Saxton at (512) 473-2274.

Mental health, for too many years, has been overlooked in Texas. This holds especially true for services for children.

The Texas Children's Mental Health Forum came into being to fill this void. Convened by Texans Care for Children and hosted most months at the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, the Forum brings together families, public agencies, and organizations with a stake in improving children's mental health to identify gaps in services so that all Texas children and youth have access to effective, culturally informed systems that promote their positive development and help them succeed in their homes, schools, and communities.

Featuring presentations by mental health experts and key stakeholders and opportunities for dialogue and group discussion among Forum participants, the Forum seeks to:

Identify issues impacting the mental health of all children and youth in Texas;
Facilitate cross-sharing of knowledge and perspectives from diverse groups;
Collaboratively develop statewide policy recommendations; and
Cultivate a broad range of voices to help advance a mental health agenda for all children and youth in Texas.

Meetings are typically held from 9:30 a.m. until 11:30 on the third Tuesday of each month at the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health in Austin (map).

To view past presentations from Forum meetings and news of upcoming meetings,visit our meetings page. To learn about joining the forum, please contact our Mental Health Policy Associate Josette Saxton at (512) 473-2274.

Name	Introduction
Meetings	See content shared at past forum meetings and learn how you can attend.
Quick Facts	Learn why children's mental health matters for Texas families and communities.
Best Practices	What works when it comes to mental health services for children
Access to Service	Numerous programs offer mental health services to children, but not all kids who need support can get it.
Youth and Family Voice	Involving children and families in treatment and recovery decisions is vital to children's mental health.
Education	Schools and other educational settings represent a key source for children's mental health supports.
Child Welfare	Children who have been put in the foster care system frequently have special mental health needs.
Cultural and Linguistic Competence	It's important that mental health services take children's cultural and linguistic needs into account.
82nd Legislature	Key documents pertaining to the 2011 Texas Legislature.