Early Lessons Learned from Building Local Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems in Texas

In 2010, the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV), provided states with the opportunity to apply for funding to build and expand evidence-based home visiting programs in their states and to incorporate community collaboration components, referred to as early childhood comprehensive systems (ECCS). For Texas, this was the first opportunity to build a statewide program of home visiting services that would be incorporated within local comprehensive early childhood systems to support the early development of Texas children and their families. This paper highlights the lessons learned from the first year of implementing a comprehensive system of early childhood services in the Texas Home Visiting Program (THVP). Findings from this first year can inform any effort to build comprehensive and accountable communities for children. By the end of the first year, each of the seven Texas communities taking part in THVP had made significant progress building their ECCS. Prior experience building coalitions in the community facilitated early, but not necessarily long-term, success. Communities required flexibility to build an ECCS that fit their unique contexts, but they also required strong support and technical assistance to sustain their coalitions. Additionally, the availability of local-level data to inform the development of coalition goals and action plans was critical to recruiting and sustaining membership. Moving forward, communities will begin to assess and promote the sustainability of their ECCS. Sustainability will be critical to reaching the ultimate goal of providing a seamless delivery of health and human services to ensure that all children are ready for school