HMG technical assistance turns vision into action for communities nationwide.
Maximizing potential starts with strong early childhood systems—education, health care, and family services—that support every child’s development.
The Help Me Grow National Center helps states build these systems by offering guidance to ensure developmental promotion, early detection, and timely connection to services. Our vision is that every state has a comprehensive HMG system in place. Implementing HMG is complex, but technical assistance accelerates progress and helps affiliates stay true to the model.
Why the National Center for Technical Assistance?
The National Hub for Help Me Grow
As the sole provider of technical assistance for the Help Me Grow (HMG) model, the HMG National Center partners closely with states nationwide—learning from and supporting their efforts to strengthen early childhood systems of care.
Leading the National Affiliate Network
In our role guiding the HMG Affiliate Network, the National Center maintains a unique vantage point: direct connection to every HMG system across the country and the inspiring leaders who drive them. This exclusive perspective allows us to understand, elevate, and amplify the collective impact of this vibrant community of change-makers.
Rooted in the Model’s Origins
Founded in 2010 by Dr. Paul Dworkin, creator of the HMG model, the National Center has been a guiding partner in every replication of HMG. From the earliest systems to today’s national network, we have ensured fidelity to the model while supporting adaptation to local needs.
What HMG Technical Assistance Provides
Better Outcomes Through Connection
Children thrive when health, education, and social services work together. That’s why the HMG National Center delivers technical assistance grounded in the Help Me Grow model—exclusive expertise designed to help states and communities build more efficient, effective, and equitable early childhood systems.
What Our Support Includes
The National Center partners with leaders across the country to:
- Strengthen consistent communication across sectors
- Promote a shared agenda for early childhood
- Align and reinforce efforts among diverse partners
- Build broad-based support for systemic solutions
Tailored Tools and Expertise
We offer a suite of projects, tools, and resources—backed by an expanding bench of experts—to help you explore, plan, and implement a Help Me Grow system that meets the unique needs of your state or community.
The National Center Approach
- Tailored to Every Community
No two communities are the same—and neither are their Help Me Grow systems. We customize technical assistance to each state or community’s unique needs, priorities, and starting points.
- Grounded in Research & Practice
System change is vital but complex. Our approach draws on theories of change and implementation science to guide sustainable progress.
- Focused on Strategic Connections
Using principles of network science, we help you invest your time wisely by building the relationships that matter most for impact.
- Powered by a National Network
With more than 140 HMG systems nationwide, we connect you with peers who share your challenges and successes—so you can accelerate your own system-building journey.
Tools and Services
We work together with states and communities to help identify the HMG technical assistance that will catalyze the change you seek.
HMG TA Packages 2023
Building Expertise in Model Implementation (BEMI)
Hosted by the HMG National Center, the Building Expertise in HMG Model Implementation (BEMI) Learning Community provides guided group technical assistance on operationalizing the HMG Model, including:
- Basics of the HMG Model
- Approaches to coalition-building
- Strategies to advance system change
- Evaluating impact
- Leveraging HMG activities for funding
BEMI provides a formal venue to learn about the Model itself and become familiar with an array of approaches to implementation, including best practices, potential challenges to anticipate, and pitfalls to avoid. In addition to its function as a learning space, BEMI offers the opportunity to network and build valuable connections with others across the HMG National Network.
In addition to group TA sessions, BEMI offers mentorship from established members of the National Affiliate Network, and the opportunity to build valuable connections with other HMG systems across the country.
BEMI is ideal for new HMG systems, new staff joining established systems, and affiliates that have had significant changes in management or structure and could benefit from a “refresher” on the basics of the HMG Model.
BEMI 2025 sessions will launch in March 2025 and will take place continuously over the year.
What People Are Saying About Our Technical Assistance
Help Me Grow is a powerful and inspirational system that has brought together so many of our local organizations and stakeholders in the past year.
Sidney Carter
HMG Oswego, NY
Help Me Grow (HMG) Long Island owes its successful move from exploration to installation of the HMG Model to the technical assistance we received from HMG National. Having experts in implementing the Model in different environments allowed us to troubleshoot and help guide our Leadership Team through a challenging process. In particular, the tools that National provided: The Roadmap to Replication, Readiness Assessments, and Early Childhood Network Mapping Tools, allowed us to obtain and analyze information from an objective perspective, which was instrumental in group decision making and consensus building.
Liz Isakson
HMG Long Island, NY
Working with HMG National was one of the best investments we made during our planning phase of becoming a HMG affiliate. Specifically, receiving technical assistance around implementing the HMG Readiness Assessment provided our partners with a deeper understanding of the HMG Core Components and the steps that we needed to take to implement HMG. Having HMG National customize the technical assistance to address our local questions and priorities helped to bring our partner stakeholders more fully into the planning of HMG. I highly recommend securing Technical Assistance support from the HMG National Center. Your community will benefit from the decades of wisdom that they have developed in supporting communities throughout the country.
Laurie Black
HMG Onondaga, NY
HMG National is committed to listening and providing support to meet the unique needs of our state, as well as facilitating connections and relationships with affiliates across the country. The National Center helped Kansas think through how to install HMG as we work to pilot HMG Kansas in three communities.
Danielle Brower
HMG Kansas
The HMG National Center was essential as Indiana worked to inform specific action steps to strengthen our network using the Early Childhood Network Mapping Report. HMG National staff provided us with additional data and consultation to help us contextualize the findings and identify the areas in which Indiana could grow.
Shannon Garrity
HMG Indiana
