Texas was one of the first states to receive a collaboration grant.
The 2007 Head Start Act, Section 642B contains provisions for the award of a collaboration grant to each State and to each national administrative office serving American Indian Head Start programs and Migrant and Seasonal Head Start programs to facilitate collaboration among Head Start and Early Head Start agencies and entities that carry out activities designed to benefit low-income children from birth to school entry and their families. Texas was one of the first states to receive this grant.
TXHSCO History:
- 1990 – The TXHSCO grant was awarded to the Office of Governor William Clements from the Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families Head Start Bureau. The grant was created to improve collaboration among Texas schools, social service agencies, and other community programs related to or involved with early childhood education.
- 1991 – Governor Ann Richards appointed a Task Force to serve in an advisory capacity to the Office.
- 1993 through 1996 – The TXHSCO was transferred to the newly created Texas Department of Health and Human Services Commission.
- 1996 – Moved to the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at the Austin campus and operated under the Collaborative for School Improvement. TXHSCO Task Force was an active group comprised of representatives from higher education, Head Start, child care, Pre-K, parents, agency staff, private trainers, family life educators, etc.
- 1998 – Local early care and education training networks in Austin, Houston, Fort Worth, and San Antonio field-tested components of the Career Development System and began registering trainers in what is now the Texas Early Childhood Professional Development System (TECPDS)
- 2000 – Moved back to The Office of the Governor in Austin, TX
- 2001 through 2003 – Acquired by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) in Austin, TX, and remained on the shelves until 2003.
- 2003 – Present – Permanently housed at the Children’s Learning Institute office at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.