Technical Assistance Center

SAMHSA provides ongoing technical assistance (TA) to Project LAUNCH grantees through the National Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention at Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), and its partners the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and the Georgetown University Center for Child and Human Development. The Project LAUNCH TA Center provides telephone and on-site TA as well as training and cross-site learning through both in-person and an array of distance learning strategies.

The Project LAUNCH TA team comprises professionals with expertise in early childhood development, early childhood mental health, communications, technology, and management. The TA Team responds to the evolving needs of Project LAUNCH grantees by assigning a primary technical assistance specialist (TAS) as a point of contact for TA requests and day-to-day support. Communications TA is also available through our communications specialist.

The team’s philosophy of TA is based on research and experience over many years working with states, tribes, and local community programs. We believe that effective TA is responsive, solution-oriented, and based upon trusting relationships. The TA reflects our respect for the hard work grantees must do to accomplish the Project LAUNCH goals, including the strategic planning and cross-agency and systems work that require both content knowledge and process expertise. We also recognize grantees’ needs for the latest information on evidence-based and promising practices access to practical resources, and strategies and connections that build organizations’ capacity and sustain new partnerships and programs. Our work is tailored to support each grantee’s efforts to meet his or her goals.  TASs assist grantees in developing their environmental scan and strategic plan, communications activities, and other project components, ranging from implementing evidence-based practices through sustainability planning.

Grantees work with their TAS to develop a TA plan that specifies the goals, strategies, and outcomes for the support and assistance to be provided. The TA Team also strives to create a learning community for Project LAUNCH grantees to succeed by collaborating on issues and challenges.