Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative—Evaluation Consulting Services

Mathematica is conducting a rigorous, mixed-methods evaluation of the CYBHI to track its progress from design to implementation to outcomes. The findings will help California leaders understand what is working, what can be strengthened, and how to create lasting improvements in youth behavioral health.

The evaluation includes the following three studies:

1. An ecosystem study to assess behavioral health system change from the CYBHI across workstreams and counties.
2. An implementation study to understand how CYBHI implementation is progressing in select counties.
3. An outcomes study to assess trends in metrics aligned with the key outcome objectives of the CYBHI.

Throughout the evaluation, Mathematica and its partners engage communities served by the CYBHI through focus groups, interviews, and listening sessions to ensure the evaluation reflects the varied experiences of children, youth, families, and providers at the core of the initiative. The evaluation also convenes and receives input from the CYBHI Evaluation Advisory Group, which includes California youth, families, frontline workers, local systems leaders, and researchers.

Insights from this evaluation will help California’s leaders make strategic, evidence-based decisions about ongoing implementation and support for key CYBHI workstreams. Reflecting CYBHI’s vision for collaborative ecosystem transformation, Mathematica is sharing findings transparently through public reports, webinars, local presentations, and an interactive data dashboard.