HISTORY

HISTORY

Texas Parents as Teachers began in 1986 when the Children's Committee of the Mental Health Association in Texas became interested in the program. The Parents as Teachers program addressed many areas that increase the well-being of children and their opportunities for success in school and life. The Mental Health Association in Texas sponsored the implementation of the program in Texas through promoting awareness of Parents as Teachers and encouraging the establishment of three pilot sites. In 1987, the three sites began serving families in Allen, Garland, and Fort Worth Independent School Districts.

Since that time the Parents as Teachers program in Texas has grown to serve over 100 communities with more than 400 certified parent educators serving an estimated 10,000 children annually. The Mental Health Association of Texas, later known as Mental Health America of Texas, functioned as the State System Leader for Texas Parents as Teachers, hosting TXPAT as one of it's programs and housing it's three Austin based staff. In September of 2019, Texas Parents as Teachers moved to Parents as Teachers National Center housing a team of five staff based throughout the state.

Mental Health America of Texas helped Texans address mental health concerns from 1935 until 2017 through outreach, education, advocacy, and policy work. The mission of Mental Health America of Texas was to promote mental health, prevent mental disorders, and improve the care and treatment of people with mental illnesses through education and advocacy. Mental Health America ran three programs in addition to Parents as Teachers including, Advocacy & Public Policy, Suicide Prevention, and the Texas NIMH Outreach Project.

After decades of work in Texas, Mental Health America of Texas closed their doors. In September 2019, Texas Parents as Teachers joined the Parents as Teachers National Center.

To learn more about Parents as Teachers visit www.parentsasteachers.org.