Using $1.2 million in new state funding, Williamson County is launching a new youth multisystemic therapy program, which will offer personalized therapy for adolescents facing serious behavioral problems.

How it works

According to a county news release, multisystemic therapy is an intervention model designed to serve 12-to-17-year-olds who exhibit:

• Chronic truancy
• Aggression
• Substance use
• Involvement in the juvenile justice or child welfare system

Instead of removing youth from their homes, multisystemic therapy brings therapists to homes, schools or community settings and works with a child’s family, per the release. A Williamson County multisystemic therapy team will serve youth already involved in the juvenile justice system or identified as high-risk for the system.

“With multisystemic therapy, we can address behavioral and mental health challenges at their root working with the whole family, not just the individual youth,” Juvenile Services Executive Director Scott Matthew said in the release.

Diving in deeper

Each therapist has a small caseload and is available 24/7 to offer individualized care, per the release. Research shows multisystemic therapy can:

• Reduce youth arrest rates by 25%-70%
• Cut rates of out-of-home placement by up to 50%
• Improve school attendance and performance
• Increase family cohesion and functioning

Heather Robinson, juvenile services director of mental health, said there are few statewide options for the level of treatment needed to restore health and functioning. As a result, youth populations become high utilizers of emergency first responders, hospitals and juvenile detention facilities, she said in the release.

“This intensive, evidence-based treatment has shown significant positive outcomes for lowering such utilization and achieving positive outcomes for youth,” Robinson said in the release.

Funding the project

The Texas Legislature helped pave the way for the program—launched by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department—after approving a new state budget rider. Williamson County’s next two fiscal year budgets will see an additional $600,000 for the multisystemic therapy program, per the release.

“This investment represents a significant step toward improving outcomes for youth and families in Williamson County,” Matthew said in the release.

Looking ahead

The Texas Juvenile Justice Department will evaluate the multisystemic therapy program’s effectiveness and submit a report to the Legislative Budget Board by Nov. 30, 2026, per the release.