What Does a Mental Health Vision Look Like?

A program-wide vision of mental health services provides a common understanding of the program’s:

• Definition of mental health
• General approach to mental health
• Roles of staff, consultants, and administrators in implementing mental health services
• Goals and desired outcomes of these services

A program-wide vision of mental health includes the following elements.

A Common Understanding of Mental Health 

A common understanding of the term “mental health” is an important aspect of having a shared vision of services. Because of the stigma associated with mental health, and differences in how people think about mental health, it is essential that Head Start administrators work closely with families, staff, and communities to develop a common understanding of child and adult mental health. Programs without a shared vision may use a variety of terms — behavioral health, social and emotional health, emotional well-being, or social competence, to name a few — without ever coming to consensus about what is meant by these terms. It is important that there is a shared definition, and that this definition reflects a prevention-oriented, multidisciplinary, wellness-focused approach. Further, this shared definition can emphasize that mental health develops in infancy and continues to affect well-being throughout the lifespan.

Zero to Three has developed a working definition of early childhood mental health that programs can use as a beginning point for developing a common understanding of the term “mental health.” According to Zero to Three, early childhood mental health refers to “a young child’s (birth to 5 years) ability to: experience, control, and express emotion; form close and secure personal relationships; and explore their environment” — all of which occurs within the context of family, community, and cultural expectations for young children.

Effective, Integrated MHC

A key component of a mental health vision is the vision for MHC. MHC is a prevention-based approach that pairs a mental health consultant with adults who work with infants and young children in the different settings where they learn and grow, such as child care, preschool, home visiting, early intervention, and their home. MHC is not about “fixing kids.” Nor is it therapy. MHC equips caregivers to facilitate children’s healthy social and emotional development. Mental health consultants partner with programs to support the overall mental health vision. However, it is important to remember that consultation is necessary but not sufficient for good mental health outcomes. How to integrate the consultant into the program as someone who partners with staff and families is an important part of the mental health vision.

A Multidisciplinary Approach to Mental Health

A multidisciplinary approach to mental health in Head Start programs incorporates a mental health perspective into all aspects of program services, including education, health, nutrition, disability, and social services, as well as staff wellness. Through this multidisciplinary approach, positive mental health for young children and their families does not occur in isolation from the child and family’s physical, emotional, social, cognitive, occupational, and spiritual well-being. In addition, staff wellness is an essential component for supporting the mental health of children and families. Again, it is important to see how the consultant supports this multidisciplinary approach and to avoid viewing the consultant as the only person working on mental health.

Clear Roles for Families, Staff, Administrators, and Consultants

In developing the vision for mental health services, the administrator can help the program articulate the roles and responsibilities of families, staff, administrators, and mental health consultants. An underlying message in the program’s vision should be that “mental health is everybody’s business.”

Goals and Outcomes of the Mental Health Approach

Defining program goals and outcomes is a key component of a program-wide shared vision of mental health. This provides a roadmap for families, staff, and administrators to understand how children, families, staff, and the program will benefit from the mental health services. The next section of this toolkit, Building a Mental Health Strategic Plan, provides guidance on developing goals and desired outcomes.

A Shared Vision

Administrators should keep in mind that their own perspective on mental health may be different from that of staff and families. Therefore, the vision for mental health services within a Head Start program should be a shared vision that families, staff, and administrators develop together. Because of staff and consultant turnover, ongoing training of staff and mental health consultants is key to maintaining a shared vision of mental health.

A few indicators that a program has a shared vision of mental health include:

• The program has a written vision statement for mental health services
• The program has a written explanation of the philosophy or theoretical approach to MHC
• Program staff and family members use phrases from the vision statement when talking about mental health
• Program staff and families can describe the program’s approach to mental health in similar ways

Defining a “Mental Health Perspective”

Programs with a mental health perspective integrate mental health principles throughout the education, health, disability, nutrition, and family services areas while creating an organizational environment that supports, values, and promotes staff wellness. Rather than placing the responsibility of mental health services and staff wellness solely on the mental health consultant or the mental health or disabilities manager, programs with a mental health perspective distribute the responsibility for implementing the program-wide vision for mental health services across staff, administrators, and mental health consultants.

Consequently, families, staff, and administrators work together with a common, shared vision of mental health services that supports the social and emotional development of children and their families and the well-being of program staff. A mental health perspective values:

• The promotion of positive mental health for all children, families, and staff
• Prevention services for children and families who are at risk of mental health challenges
• Intervention for children and families of children who are experiencing mental health challenges

Last Updated: August 20, 2025