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Back-to-School Events Connect Hundreds of Central Texas Families With Care and Resources 

As families across Central Texas prepared for the 2026-27 school year, CommUnityCare Health Centers brought together community partnerships, health center events and outreach efforts to help students and families start the school year healthy, prepared and connected to care. Held in honor of National Health Center Week, this year’s back-to-school effort provided school supplies and vaccinations while creating opportunities for families to connect with medical, dental and eligibility services. 

“We know families can face many barriers when trying to access health care, and sometimes the first step is simply making those connections easier,” said Karla Gonzales-Rivera, Community Development Manager at CommUnityCare Health Centers. “By meeting families in their communities and connecting them with resources and care, we can help remove some of those barriers.”

Helping Families Prepare for the School Year 

CommUnityCare Health Centers partnered with local school districts to bring resources and connections to care directly to families in the community. This year marked the second consecutive year partnering with Bastrop ISD and the first year partnering with Del Valle ISD. 

Across the two school district events, CommUnityCare Health Centers distributed 1,436 backpacks and school supplies, reaching 553 families. 

  • Bastrop ISD: 936 backpacks were distributed to 350 families. Families also connected with CommUnityCare Health Centers for additional resources, resulting in 27 medical, eight dental, 13 eligibility and 18 vaccine appointments scheduled. 
  • Del Valle ISD: 500 school supply items were distributed to 203 families, with 32 medical, 11 dental, 13 eligibility and 30 vaccine appointments scheduled. 

By bringing resources and outreach efforts directly into the community, these events helped address some of the barriers that can make it difficult for families to access care. 

“For families balancing the cost of school supplies with other household expenses, those financial pressures can make it harder to prioritize their health,” said Gonzales-Rivera. “Providing school supplies and connecting families with health care resources in the same setting helped ease some of that burden while creating opportunities for families to connect with medical and dental services, establish care and access resources that can support their health beyond the start of the school year.” 

Bringing Vaccines and Care Closer to Families 

CommUnityCare Health Centers also hosted back-to-school vaccine clinics at three of its health centers, giving families additional opportunities to get children up to date on recommended immunizations before the start of the school year. 

Across the three health center locations, 409 vaccines were provided to 227 patients, and 26 patients established care with CommUnityCare Health Centers. 

  • Bastrop Health Center: 149 vaccines were provided to 84 patients, with five patients establishing care. 
  • Del Valle Health & Wellness Center: 161 vaccines were provided to 71 patients, with 12 patients establishing care. 
  • Carousel Pediatrics North Lamar: A new weekday vaccine clinic was added this year to increase access to vaccinations and help reduce wait times by giving families an additional opportunity to receive care outside of the weekend clinics. The clinic served 72 patients, provided 99 vaccines and helped nine patients establish care. 117 backpacks were also distributed to families who attended the vaccine clinic. 

By hosting back-to-school vaccine events at its health centers, CommUnityCare Health Centers created additional opportunities for families to access care and connect with a health care provider. These connections can help patients establish an ongoing relationship with a provider, receive routine and preventive care, stay up to date on recommended services and address health needs before they become more serious. 

Community Support 

CommUnityCare Health Centers extends its thanks to H-E-B for its generous donation and support of this year’s back-to-school events, helping make these community efforts possible.