SJRC Texas | Belong
Tara Roussett
Tara Roussett is the CEO of SJRC Texas | Belong. She started with the nonprofit in 2008, serving in senior and executive leadership roles before being appointed CEO in 2016. For more than 40 years, SJRC Texas—a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization—has served as a safe haven for vulnerable youth. Since inception, they have supported over 72,000 children and youth in the foster care system.
Their services include Foster Care and Adoption, Residential Foster Care, Community-Based Care, and family enrichment programs offered through their SJRC Texas Family Resource Center and community-based initiatives.
SJRC Texas was started 42 years ago by the Hamilton family, who bought a hill country property in Bulverde, Texas so they could help children. Eventually, they began a partnership with St. Jude's Ranch for Children in Boulder City, Nevada. St. Jude's Ranch for Children in Nevada took over the Bulverde property and added another campus in New Braunfels.
"In 2016, we separated from them and became SJRC Texas," said CEO Tara Roussett. "Prior to this, we were thriving in Texas, but all of our business operations were still run out of Nevada." Following the division of the organization in 2016, Tara Roussett was named CEO. "We still have those core programs, but there has been significant growth over the last 9 years," Roussett said.
In April 2021, SJRC Texas was awarded a contract by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) for its division, Belong, to serve as the Community-Based Care (CBC) provider for the South Central and Hill Country Region (Region 8b). Through Belong, the nonprofit supports children removed from their homes by securing safe placements, case management, reunification services, and adoption support. Additionally, SJRC offers parenting classes and enrichment programs for all families in the region.
Prior to 2017, the Department of Family and Protective Services was responsible for the foster care system to include placement, case management, and ultimately reunification. In 2017, it was legislatively mandated that Community-Based Care be taken over by local nonprofits in each geographic region of the state. Under this emerging model of foster care, the state is still responsible for investigations and removals, but the nonprofit contractor is responsible for placement, case management and finding permanency for each child. "Previously, children removed from their home were assigned to a DFPS caseworker," Roussett said. "Now under us, we call them permanency specialists, because we are always tasked with and believe in finding permanency for children, so nobody lingers in the foster care system."
SJRC prioritizes family preservation and family reunification, working with families to create safe, nurturing environments. "If they cannot go back home to their biological family, then we look for kinship next; we want aunt, uncle, cousin, grandparents, anybody that can safely care for the child within that family unit," Roussett said. "If that is not possible, then we find permanency outside the related parties."
In April 2025, SJRC Texas was awarded an additional contract through DFPS to expand CBC services to Bexar County (Region 8a), making Belong the Single Source Continuum Contractor (SSCC) for the entire Region 8. Belong will launch Stage I (Intake and Placement) in Fall 2025, followed by Stage II (Case Management) in Spring 2026. This expansion furthers their mission by delivering a community-based care model that drives systemic improvements, accelerates permanency, and centers around the well-being of children and families.
For more information about SJRC Texas programs, visit
www.sjrctexas.org
