Make Your Voice Heard

Texas Mental Health Survey


We are helping Texas improve mental health services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. We know people need better mental health care. You can help!

To start, we need Self-Advocates, family members, friends, and professionals to tell us about mental health needs.

If you are not a self-advocate, please take the survey as if you are.

Encuesta de salud mental de Texas


Estamos ayudando a Texas a mejorar los servicios de salud mental para personas con discapacidades intelectuales y del desarrollo. Sabemos que las personas necesitan una mejor atención de salud mental. ¡Puedes ayudar!

Para empezar, necesitamos auto defensores, familiares, amigos y profesionales que nos informen sobre las necesidades de salud mental.

Si usted no es un auto defensor, responda la encuesta como si lo fuera.

Important Notes

This survey was created with lots of help by Texas Self-Advocates.
This project is funded by the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities.

Notas Importantes

Esta encuesta fue creada con mucha ayuda de los auto defensores de Texas.
Este proyecto está financiado por el Consejo de Texas para Discapacidades del Desarrollo.

First Peer Support Specialists Trained!

Our first group of peer support specialists was trained last month. Self-advocates from ARC Beaumont had four days of training over Zoom, including courses on:

– Talking and listening

– Being a strong self-advocate

– Helping others through peer support

These amazing self-advocates learned valuable skills like active listening, keeping conversations going, problem solving, and handling conflict. Courses were presented on Zoom using content we created in Moodle, an online learning tool.

Peer support specialists will now start providing services to clients. They will meet with clients matched to them several times a month. They will help clients:

– Explore their needs, wants, hopes and dreams.

– Set goals and make plans to reach them.

– Make decisions and solve problems as they work toward their goals.

– Find needed services to help reach their goals.

Participants were surveyed to see how they felt about the training. All parts of the training received high marks. Peer Support specialists especially liked learning how to believe in yourself and learning how to do the job of a peer support specialist. Contact us for more information about our program.

Free Tech Videos!

The team at self-advocate central has posted free videos on using Google apps and Zoom. The videos are short, simple, and easy to follow. They include lessons on:

  • How to set up a Google account;
  • How to use Gmail;
  • How to use Google Calendar;
  • How to use Zoom; and
  • How to use Google Forms.

The videos can be viewed for free on YouTube or Vimeo.

The videos were created for the Peer Supports Specialist project, but can be used by anyone who wants to learn to use technology. Feel free to share the links above!

Texas Advocates Conference 2020

What a thrill to speak at the Texas Advocates Annual Conference! We missed seeing our friends and colleagues in person. But we were pleased to share information about keeping your mental health in good shape. We are also excited to connect with self-advocates as we move forward with our project.

For those who missed it, here’s a snippet from our presentation. This short video shows how different people are working on mental health during the pandemic.

Many thanks to Brooke, Deborah, Annessa, and the self-advocates, sponsors, and other who made this a great conference!

Project Welcome: Complex Mental Health Needs

Did you know that people with IDD are more likely to also have mental health challenges? And that often, these challenges are never diagnosed?

Strategic Education Solutions (SES) and University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) are working on a new project about mental health. We will research what’s happening now in mental health care for people with IDD. We’ll also do a survey, asking self-advocates about their experiences. Then, we’ll start building tools and training to help self-advocates and their families and friends get better mental health care. We’ll also teach service providers, mental health specialists, and others to serve people with IDD better. Stay tuned for updates!

Our Team

Project Welcome: Sexual Assault Prevention & Response

Did you know that people with IDD are much more likely than others to be victims of sexual abuse and assault? By learning and talking about it, we can all help change that!

Strategic Education Solutions (SES) and University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) are working on a new project about sexual assault. We will research what’s happening now. We’ll also hold focus groups to ask self-advocates, families/friends/allies, service providers, and first-responders about their experiences.

Then, we’ll start building tools and training to help self-advocates and others prevent sexual assault and improve response when it happens. Stay tuned for updates!

Our Team

ARC Beaumont Selected as First Pilot Site

The UMMS/SES team will train Peer Support Specialists at its first pilot site—The ARC of Greater Beaumont—this Fall. Beaumont was chosen for its strong group of self-advocates, the experience of its staff, and Jefferson County’s demographics.

“We wanted a location that reflected the demographics of the state as a whole. Working in Beaumont will give us a great idea of the challenges and successes we can expect as we expand statewide. Partnering with an organization that has an established and vibrant community self-advocates is a bonus,” says Cynthia Burrow, Project Director and owner of Strategic Education Solutions.

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Jefferson County who receive or are on the interest list for Medicaid waivers can apply for free peer support through the program. People of diverse ethnicities, language needs, and socioeconomic status, and those for whom transportation and geographical isolation may be challenging, are encouraged to apply.

Fill out the application online. Service decisions will be made in October-November of 2020.

Project Welcome: Peer Support Specialists

About the project

Our project will teach self-advocates to help others with IDD live the lives they choose. In our first year, we’ll write the training curriculum. Starting in year 2, we’ll teach a growing group of coaches and peer support specialists. Use the form on the right to join our mailing list and get project updates.

Join us at the Texas Advocates Conference

Project staff will be at the Texas Advocates annual conference in San Antonio, August 2-4. We will give a workshop presentation about this exciting new project. We will also have an exhibit table. Come by and meet our staff. Enter our raffle to win a restaurant gift card!

Make your voice heard

We want our project to meet your needs.  To make sure that happens, please:

  1. Take our online survey. Tell us what kind of help you want and need. Service providers–Please share this link with your clients!
  2. Volunteer for our curriculum review panel. You will review our program and tell us what you think. You must have access to a computer or other device and have Web access.  You must be able to use email and to do surveys online. If you are interested, email us.
Meet our team!