About Us

Our Mission

Increase the capacity of individuals, organizations, and communities, to improve population health and aging across the life-course.

Our Vision

Healthy and Thriving Communities for All

Our Approach

Through collaboration with communities, CCHA is dedicated to advancing healthy aging across the lifespan via research, education, and practice. CCHA focuses on prevention and works to build community capacity to meet the health needs of local residents.

With a focus on longevity, CCHA conducts applied research, develops and implements prevention programs, provides training, and engages in outreach to address the health challenges of older adults and adolescents. The Center employs community health development and community-based research strategies to drive sustainable health improvements and contribute to the national agenda for advancing population health.

Our History

The Center for Community Health Development (CCHD) was created to support Texas A&M’s efforts in improving health in rural and underserved communities through research, education, and service. Originating as the Community Health Development Program (CHDP) in 2001, it gained prominence through early grant successes, including funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and as a Center for Disease Control and Prevention designation as a Prevention Research Center. Officially recognized as a Texas A&M Board of Regents approved research center in 2004, CCHD secured more than $60 million for community-based health research between 2004-2022. Key achievements include launching the Telebehavioral Care program to expand rural mental health access and establishing the National Community Health Worker Training Center (NCHWTC), which has certified over 7,000 CHWs and contributed to regional and national health initiatives.

Formally established as a Texas A&M Board of Regents approved research center in 2016, the Center for Population Health and Aging (CPHA) was built upon over a decade of aging-related work under the predecessor Program on Healthy Aging (PHA) . Using a collaborative C4 approach—engaging campus, community, clinical, and corporate partners—CPHA developed scalable, evidence-based solutions to address the challenges of an aging population. With nearly $30 million in funding and over 70 projects since 2001, CPHA led statewide efforts in chronic disease management, fall prevention, and health promotion. The Center also launched Enlighten Together, an online training platform, and TRAIL, a centralized data repository, to support research, education, and policy development related to population health and aging.

In October of 2022, CCHD and CPHA merged to create a joint center - the Center for Community Health and Aging (CCHA) .