About

Mission, Vision, & Values

Who We Are

Every day, Texas serves tens of thousands of the most vulnerable children and families in the child welfare system. They experience trauma from physical abuse, neglect, poverty, domestic violence, substance abuse, and more. The Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services (TACFS) is a network of mission-driven organizations that have embraced the call to serve these children and families, and are working together to improve our care, services, and outcomes statewide.

At TACFS, our responsibility, above all, is to the children, youth, and families across Texas that we serve every day. Our vocation and our passion is to understand and work to undo the damage caused by trauma, create a system where vulnerable children and families experience safety and well being, and maximize the potential of each child and family.

Mission & Vision

Our mission is to strengthen and continuously improve the services, practices, and care for at-risk children, youth, and families. We achieve this mission through education and research, collaboration, and advocacy.

Through compassionate and quality care, continuous improvement and innovation, and strengthening networks of care, our vision is to build communities that provide each child and family the opportunity for a bright future.

Values

  • Education, Training and Research

    Committed to the principles of continuous quality improvement, we seek to support child welfare professionals with excellent education and training opportunities at a local, statewide and national level.

  • Collaboration

    At the heart of TACFS is collaboration -- we are at our best when we work together. Our goal is to develop a strong network of child, youth, and family serving organizations that support and surround at-risk Texans.

  • Advocacy

    Driven to affect systems change improvements, we seek to be a unified voice to strengthen services and care to achieve the best possible outcomes for vulnerable children and families across Texas. At a local, statewide, and national level, we advocate for policies that support high quality care, informed practices and increased capacity in the child welfare system.

TACFS Inclusion Statement

The Texas Alliance of Child and Family Services (TACFS) is committed to growing an organization that is rooted in equity and inclusivity, where we readily acknowledge, accept, embrace, and celebrate the collective sum of the differences that each of us bring to the environment.  We will continuously work to cultivate a culture that supports and celebrates individual expression of race, religion, age, national origin, gender identity or expression, lifestyle, sexual orientation, culture, ability, ethnicity, language, and all other personal experiences.   

We will tirelessly strive to elevate the voices of organizations operated by black, indigenous, people of color,  to ensure the equitable distribution of power among our members.  We believe that representation matters, and we will intentionally and continuously work to ensure that our staff, leadership team, and board reflects the communities that we serve.  

At the core of our organizational values is collaboration. We believe that it takes the active participation of us all to advance equity throughout the system we serve.  For some, that will require taking a stand and courageously speaking out about our experiences and giving our opinions.   For others, it will require empathy, patience, and the desire to hear beyond our own experiences. For all of us, it will mean being appreciative of the dialogue, respectful of the differences, and most importantly, open to the possibilities of meaningful change. 

As a commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, TACFS intends to: 

  • Encourage Courageous Engagement
    1. – Create opportunities to meaningfully work alongside others who have different aspects of diversity.
    2. – Strive to share power and create opportunities for everyone to exercise their power to impact change. 
  • Increase Diverse Representation
    1. – Incorporate the voices of leaders of color in our work through positions on our boards, committees, and work groups.
    2. – Actively recruit staff and member organizations who represent the diversity of our communities. 
  • Invest in our membership and community with intentionality
    1. – Commit to initiatives that aim to promote the growth and sustainability of organizations led by black, Indigenous and people of color.
    2. – Equitably support our member organizations in advocating for their needs, regardless of size or composition of leadership.
    3. – Create opportunities for meaningful exchange and impactful engagement with our member organizations and community partners.