This guide assists in establishing a collaborative unit or a task group to deliver services to children and youth with serious emotional disabilities and their families. The guide is not intended to be an exhaustive manual, but does address the primary activities of professionals using interagency collaboration to establish comprehensive systems of care. The guide creates a system of care using a therapeutic case advocacy approach, considering three components (case advocacy, interpersonal interventions, and case management) at three levels (interagency organizational, and case levels). Activities and exercises are presented for four training goals: (1) understanding emotional disorders; (2) creating the individualized system of care; (3) resource identification and development; and (4) applying the components of the model. An appendix contains forms useful in evaluating whether the therapeutic case advocacy model produces changes over time in the expectations, instructions, supports, and rewards of designated behavior settings within the children's environment. The forms gather data based on environmental characteristics, children, unit participants, the service team, and parents. (Five references) (JDD)