University Helping Launch Initiative To Support Children With Traumatic Brain Injuries

An estimated 6,000 Texas children are hospitalized due to brain injuries each year

SAN ANTONIO — A&M-San Antonio has partnered with the University of Oregon’s Center on Brain Injury Research and Training (CBIRT) to develop a new roadmap for families, educators, and community partners that will initially be deployed in south Texas. With the support of a nearly $1.3 million grant from Toyota’s Way Forward Fund, the TBI System of Support for Kids (TBI SOS 4 Kids) will provide support for Texas families impacted by traumatic brain injury (TBI).

TBI is a major pediatric health condition that is often underrecognized.

An estimated 6,000 Texas children are hospitalized due to TBI each year, according to the Texas Education Agency. Despite the alarming number of TBIs, cases are often underreported and rarely reflected accurately in special education census reports. A&M-San Antonio’s partnership with the University of Oregon will help develop infrastructure to support the success of children with brain injuries.

“We want to provide the San Antonio community with TBI resources that are informed by our partnerships and responsive to the area’s specific needs,” said Dr. Berenice de la Cruz, an assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Health, and Kinesiology who is helping spearhead the project locally.

When children suffer from TBI, it can disrupt their development, limit their ability to participate in school and other activities, and impede their ability to learn and self-regulate, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Moreover, even if a child is treated for TBI at the hospital, school personnel and families often lack the knowledge to provide continued care.

TBI-SOS 4 Kids combines educator training, community awareness, family intervention and legislative advocacy, along with a digital platform to help coordinate support for children with traumatic brain injury.

University of Oregon in collaboration with A&M-San Antonio and UT Austin will incorporate these initiatives into a plan to establish family and school interventions so injuries don’t affect students’ education and future career paths. In representing A&M-San Antonio, de la Cruz will focus on staff recruitment, training, data collection, and outreach activities, creating community and school connections.

“This is meant to be a year-and-a-half project,” said de la Cruz. “But hopefully the research will continue to go well, and we’ll have the funding to continue this work that is so important to thousands of children and families in the San Antonio community." 

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About Texas A&M University-San Antonio

Established as a stand-alone university in 2009, Texas A&M University-San Antonio is a comprehensive four-year public university that reflects the culturally diverse, heritage-rich community it serves. Situated on nearly 700 acres in South San Antonio, the University offers 39 undergraduate degrees and 23 graduate degrees to about 7,620 students. A&M-San Antonio is home to the Henry G. Cisneros Institute for Emerging Leaders and the Cyber Engineering Technology/Cyber Security Research Center. The University holds the Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) designation and is one of 39 higher education institutions in the U.S. to have received the Seal of Excelencia certification from Excelencia in Education for its support of Latino student success. More than 77 percent of A&M-SA students identify as Hispanic, and approximately 72 percent are the first in their families to attend college. A&M-San Antonio is a military-embracing institution; the University was recently awarded the 2023 Gold Veteran Education Excellence Recognition Award (VEERA) from the Texas Veterans Commission. Visit tamusa.edu for more information. #onamission