About Family Service & Guidance Center

Family Service & Guidance Center has been making a positive impact on the lives of children in Shawnee County and across northeast Kansas for 115 years. FSGC was established in 1904 to help victims of a devastating Topeka flood.  The agency distributed blankets, clothing, food and even made hot baths available.

As the needs in the Topeka community changed, so did Family Service & Guidance Center’s focus. In the 1950s, the organization’s attention turned from meeting basic welfare needs to community mental health care. In 1984, FSGC dedicated itself to meeting the unique mental health needs of children and families.

Today, Family Service & Guidance Center provides direct clinical services, prevention education and outreach to nearly 12,000 children, adolescents and families from 38 Kansas counties each year. FSGC is an innovator and a recognized leader in children's mental health services, employing more than 260 staff members on a centralized three-building campus and a Crisis Resolution Program building.

Today, Family Service & Guidance Center provides a broad range of programs and services tailored to meet each child’s unique needs, including:

  • Outpatient individual, family and group therapy
  • Psychiatry services provided by three Board-certified child and adolescent psychiatrists and four Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) trained in mental health
  • An anxiety treatment program (one of just two in Kansas)
  • Crisis services available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
  • A therapeutic preschool for children aged 2-6 with severe emotional and behavioral problems
  • After-school groups for children and teens ages 6-18 struggling with social and behavioral issues
  • Families Supporting Recovery for children and adolescents dealing with mental illness and substance use issues
  • Children’s Autism Program
  • Case management and respite care
  • Transitions to Adulthood Program for young adults living with mental health issues
  • The popular Happy Bear abuse prevention program