HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 04042000 - C.88 91
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" CONTRA
TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
+dr, COSTA
COUNTYFROM: Family & Human Services Committee "
DATE: April 4, 2000
SUBJECT: Report on the History, Goals, Strategies and Achievements of the Contra
Costa County Service Integration Program
SPECIFIC REQUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATION(S) +& BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
RECOMMENDATiI N(S);
ACCEPT the report on the history, goals, strategies and achievements of the Contra Costa
County Service Integration Program as recommended by the Family and Human Services
Committee.
BACKGROUNDIREASON(S) FOR RECOMMENDATION(S):
On March 27, 2000, the Family and Human Services Committee heard a report on the history,
goals, strategies and achievements of the Contra Costa Service Integration Program from the
Program Manager Nina Goldman. In addition, staff from the Bay Point Service Integration Team
as well as the Forth Richmond Employment Collaborative Project Manager and Eligibility
Supervisor presented their perspectives on the Service Integration Program. Several themes
emerged from that discussion:
♦ Staff enjoy their jobs more at the Service Integration Teams than at the divisions
because they feel they Can be more effective in engaging families to improve their
circumstances.
CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: —YES SIGNATURE:
– RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR_„_RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE
APPROVE OTHER
SIGNATURE(ft OHN M. G101A
ACTION O D ON April 4, 2000 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDEDM OTHER
VOTE OF SUPERVISORS
1 HERESY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A
_XX_UNANIMOUS(ASSENT – – – – 1 TRUE AND CORRECT COPY OF AN
AYES: NOES: ACTION TAKEN AND ENTERED
ASSENT: ABSTAIN: ON MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF
SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN.
Contact:Sara Hoffman,335-1080
ATTESTED ........_April 4, 2000
PHIL BATCHELOR,CLERK OF
THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
A C NTY ADMINISTRATOR
cc: CACI
Nina Goldman
SIT Teams BY DEPUTY
BACKGROUNDIREASON(S) FOR RECOMMENDATIONS (cont'd):
♦ Personal relationships with the families and among staff are key in moving families towards
greater self sufficiency and family functioning in developing relationships among families
as well as showing concerns for individual circumstances;
+► Community resident participation on SITeams supports the credibility of the program within
the community.
r The success of any one community member is a signal to other community members that
they too can make it." A former CalWORKs participant (now working at the Career
Center) said that she was mentored and now she is mentoring others.
♦ Many of the families that the SITeam works with are very concrete in their thinking and
need concrete examples: knowing their deadline dates under CalWORKs would be very
helpful; translating their planning into more understandable terms is also helpful. For
example, one staff person explained how she uses "planning a trip to Disneyland" as a
analogy for planning for self sufficiency.
Supervisor Joe Canciamilla complimented the Service Integration Teams on their good work. He
stated that he has seen a real change in the Bay Point Community and the number of calls to his
office from Bay Point residents has declined since the institution of SIT. He also stated that the
challenges posed by many multi-problem families in Bay Point constitute a very real challenge, but
that now is the time to move forward, that if there is ever an opportunity for many families to make the
leap to self sufficiency, it is now. He thanked the Service Integration Team staff for their good work
and expressed his deep appreciation.
Supervisor John Gioia stated that he had also seen the results and heard the stories of achievement
by the families served in North Richmond by the Service Integration Teams. He acknowledged the
good work of Nina Goldman, Service Integration Program Manager, and staff. He also stated that
North Richmond, like Bay Point, is often one of the last communities to share in economic prosperity
and that, growing up in Richmond, he had seen many of the problems and challenges first hand. He
concurred with Supervisor Canciamilla in saying that now is the time of opportunity for many families
and that the Service Integration model is essential in helping them achieve self sufficiency. He
thanked the staff and members of the Service Integration Teams for their good work.
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TO: Family and Human Services Committee
Supervisor Joe Canciamilla, Chair
Supervisor John Gioia, Member
FROM: Nina Goldman, Program Manager, Service Integration Program
SUB7ECT: Report on Service Integration
DATE: March 27, 2000
RECOMMENDATION
ACCEPT the attached report on the history, goals, strategies and achievements of the
Contra Costa County Service Integration Program.
INTRODUCTION
Contra Costa County's Service Integration Program is a multi-disciplinary collaboration
of staff from the County Departments of Employment and Human Services, Health
Services and Probation, the Mount Diablo Unified School District, the County
Administrator's Office, community-based organizations and neighborhood residents.
Established in August of 1994, the Service Integration Program was designed to take an
Innovative approach to working with families that historically have posed some of the
greatest challenges to service providers: multi-problem families Involved in two or more
County programs who live in the County's lowest income, highest risk communities.
This report to the Family and Human Services Committee of the Contra Costa County
Board of Supervisors provides a status update on the Service Integration Program.
SERVICE INTEGRATION RECEIVES "'COMM U/VITYAPPROACH" AWARD
In March 2000 the Service Integration Program was one of four Initiatives In the State
of California to be formally recognized with a "CommunflyApproach"Award for its
Innovative approach to Improving child and family well-being through collaboration and
community partnerships. Winners of this award were selected by a national panel of
experts In community-based supports and services comprised of:
• Lisbeth.Scharr, Director of the Harvard University Project on Effective Interventions
and a leader in many national efforts on behalf of children and youth, Including the
National Center for Children In Poverty and the National Academy of Science's Board
on Children and Families;
• Dr. C7&Johnson, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences at
Savannah State University; and
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• Con Hogan, former Director of the Vermont Health and Human Services Agency and
currently with the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
The "Community Approach" Award was formally presented to the Service Integration
Program at the Pilots to Policy 2000 Conference: Schools, Communities and
Government Working Together for!Gids and families on March 23-24, 2000. The
conference and the $17,500 cash award were sponsored by the Foundation Consortium,
an alliance of 15 corporate, private, community and family foundations.
The efforts honored by the"Community Approach"Award reflect some of the.major
accomplishments that the Contra Costa County's Service Integration Program has
worked to achieve during its five and a half years of providing family-focused,
strengths-based, Integrated services to the communities of Bay Point, North Richmond
and "Old Town"San Pablo.
SERVICE INTEGRATION PROGRAM GOALS AND STRATEGIES
Currently, two Service Integration.Teams (SITeams) provide community-based, family-
focused services to approximately 700 families In Bay Point and North Richmond/"Old
Town"San Pablo. Housed in neighborhood-based Family Service Centers, the SlTeam. .
staff members include: Employment Specialists, MediCal and Food Stamps Specialists,
Children's Mental Health Counselors, Juvenile Probation Officers, Child Welfare Workers,
Public Health Nurses, an Adult Mental Health/Substance Abuse Counselor,
School/Family Resource Specialists and community residents, who staff the SITeams'
two neighborhood employment coilaboratives. The Bay Point SITeam has a staff of
approximately 27 and the North Richmond SITeam has a staff of approximately 18.
The Service Integration Program strives to achieve the following three goals:
Increase family economic self-sufficiency
® Improve family functioning
Expand community capacity to support children and families
Underlying the Service Integration model Is the belief that participant families will be
more likely to achieve their individual self-sufficiency and (amity functioning goals
through the following service delivery strategies:
• Locating services in the communities where the most distressed families live;
• Partnering with the wide range of County and community-based agencies that serve
these families;
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• Engaging neighborhood residents in service planning and provision;
• Building trusting and enduring relationships among service providers and between
service providers and participant families; and
• Building upon family and community strengths.
:moo"€'e.clm APPROACH TO WORKING VVILTH FAMILIES
The SITeams' approach is based on the premise that the challenges facing multi-
problem families are Inter-related. Consequently, the SrTeams take a holistic approach
in their work with these families. SrTeam members work with the participant families
using an integrated case management process, developed specifically for the SITeams.
Focusing on the whole family unit, rather than just the individual, SrTeam staff builds
upon family strengths to provide services.driven by and tailored to each family's unique
needs.
Staff and family members together develop a comprehensive plan for addressing issues
in a range of Interdependent life domains, such as child,care, child and adult health,
transportation, social supports, school and employment. The SITeams not only provide
families with more accessible, personalized services.in the communities where they.live,
but the multi-disciplinary and Inter-departmental collaboration among staff members
also allows the team of service providers involved to establish a comprehensive,
consistent strategy for each family, avoiding conflicting expectations and demands by
different programs.
PROGRAM HISTORY
The Service Integration Program was built on a strong foundation of countywide
collaboration, Intensive needs assessments and program and fiscal evaluation. Since Its
initial Implementation, the Service Integration Program has continuously sought to
evaluate both its service delivery methods and evolving community needs and Issues.
As a result, the program has embraced a number of changes and innovations that have
considerably strengthened the of iclency and effectiveness of the Integrated services
approach.
In 1992, the County established the Service Integration Management Team (STMT).
The SIMT, comprised of representatives from key County programs, schools and
employee organizations, oversaw the early planning and Implementation of the Service
Integration Program. The SIMT provided guidance and oversight on a wide range of
implementation Issues, Including.
• Intensive countywide data matching to determine these communities
most in need of services: In April 1992 and June 1993, geographical mapping
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software was used to identify the location of households, by census tract, of families
receiving welfare, child welfare, probation, mental health, hospital/clinic, substance
abuse and public health services. The data match identified both Bay Point and
North Richmond as census tracts with among the highest number of households
receiving four or more services and served by multiple County agencies.
• Community needs assessments to identify both the strengths and the
needs of the most distressed of these communities: The needs assessment
process in both Bay Point and North Richmond Included census and school data
analyses, household surveys, focus groups, sample client evaluations and service
adequacy assessments.
• Development of Service Integration Program vision, goals, outcomes and
Indicators: The SIM7 embarked on a collaborative process, working wlth'a wide
range of staff from County departments, schools and family-serving organizations,
to develop key.outcomes that would serve as quantlfiatile Indices of the success of
each SITeam. The Srream outcomes have undergone numerous revisions and
refinements over the years based on feedback and Increasing program experience.*
• Program strategy and staffing configurations: The STMT worked Intensively to
design the strengths-based, community-focused, Integrated services strategy which
would support the best results for children and families served by the SITeams.
In August of 1994, following this extensive planning process, the Bay Point and North
Richmond Family Service Centers opened their doors.
SERVICE INTEGRATION AS A LABORATORY FOR COUNTY INNOVATIONS
Over the past five and a half years, Contra Costa has used the Service Integration
Program as a laboratory for programmatic, fiscal and organizational Innovations. The
Service Integration Program has consistently broken new ground both at the frontline
level, by bringing together service providers from multiple County departments to work
collaboratively with high-risk families, and at higher levels In the County organization,
by bringing together department heads and administrators to resolve administrative and
organizational Issues. The planning model and structures used during the development
and early Implementation of Service Integration have served as a precedent and guide
for other cross-agency collaborations.
Examples of Innovations spearheaded by the Service Integration Program Include:
✓ Development of a holistic, Integrated-case management system, which is used by
SIT staff members across all disciplines;
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Implementation of a system for the ongoing tracking of outcomes, which serves as a
tool to judge program achievements based on measurable improvements in the lives
of families and children served;
Creation of an employment-focused strategy, which engages both County staff
across diverse disciplines and neighborhood residents in the process of moving a
community toward fuller employment;
Establishment of the SIT Executive Oversight Committee, which provides consistent
policy and program.direction to this multi-agency effort,
✓ Development of an informed consent agreement, which allows for Information-
sharing among multiple service providers working with the same families; and .
✓ Creation of a community substance abuse/adult mental health strategy which
emphasizes multi-disciplinary teamwork, pre-treatment services and Intensive
community outreach.
Many of the strategies and tools created by the Service Integration Program have been
or are currently being adopted by other County programs. For example, the SITeams'
early focus on employment outcomes resulted in the creation of a new data extract
system that allowed not only the Service Integration Program, but also the larger
Employment and Human Services Department system to measure their effectiveness
through regular data reports on the earned income of CaIWORKs recipients and the
number of exits from CalWORKs due to employment earnings.
In 1994, the California Health and Welfare Agency selected Contra Costa County's
Service Integration Program as one of the six Assembly Bill (AB) 1741 "Youth Pilot
Projects". AB 1741 encourages counties"to test innovative strategies for improving
outcomes for children and families"'while the State provides support to the counties'
"efforts to decategorize and Integrate their service delivery systems In order to Improve
the lives of California's children and families."
Through Its AB 1741 designation, the Service Integration Program was able to develop
the Reinvesting In Self-sufficiency and Employment (RISE) Initiative, which eliminates
significant amounts of paperwork requirements to allow staff to devote more time to
Intensive case management and face-to-face interactions with participants. Contra
Costa was granted a federal waiver to test the RISE Initiative. System programming Is
currently underway. RISE will be piloted at the two SIT sites within the next six months
and, if successful, will be expanded countywide.
In 1999, Contra Costa County was one of 13 counties nationwide selected by Vice
President Gore's National Partnership for Reinventing Government as a Boost4Kids
partner. Through this designation, the Service Integration Program hopes to have the
5
opportunity to work hand-in-hand with the federal government to explore and
implement further innovations to improve results for children and families living in the
STTeam communities.
The Service Integration Program has developed and sustained strong partnerships in
three key areas:
(1) Intra-County Partnerships, which weave together the services and resources
of programs and agencies within the County organization;
(2) Public-Private Partnerships, which bridge the efforts of local government and
foundations; and
(3) County-Community Partnerships, which engage government, community-
based service providers and neighborhood residents in the common task of
Improving the well-being of children, families and communities.
Intra-County Partnerships: The Service Integration Program is based on the
collaboration of multiple County agencies from the frontline to the policy oversight level.
The Srreams' unique organizational structure reflects the collaborativeness of this
program. The SITeam staff reside within four different County Departments
(Employment and Human Services, Health Services, Probation and the County
Administrator's Office), the schools and community-based organizations.
Policy oversight Is provided by the SITeams' Executive Oversight Committee, comprised
of the Directors of the key agencies that contribute staff and resources to the program.
The day-today operation of the Srreeams Is charged to the SlTeam Program Manager,
a cross-agency position that resides in the County Administrator's Office.
Other examples of Service Integration's Intra-county partnerships Include:
Working together, the County Departments of Employment and Human Services,
Health Services and Probation, County Counsel and the County Administrator's
Office developed the County's first Informed consent agreement for integrated
services In 19944 This agreement, which Is signed on annual basis by all SIT clients,
gives permission for staff from participating agencies to share Information to better
serve families. A second generation of the SIT Informed consent agreement is
currently under development and will be used as the model for the new mental
health "Spirit of Caring" Initiative, as well as for future integrated services programs.
✓ The Community Development Block Grant Program, the Employment and Human
Services Department and the Health Services Department have partnered with the
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Service Integration Program in the development of the SIT Adult Substance
Abuse/Mental Health strategy, which pulls together fragmented funding streams to
allow for community-based services for a wide range of families and individuals.
✓ The four Employee Organizations that represent the Service Integration Program
staff(CCC Employees Association Local #1, Professional and Technical Employees
AFSCME Local #512, Social Service Union Local #535 and United Clerical, Technical
and Spec. Employees Local #2700) worked with the four County departments that
collaborate on the SIT Program to develop a new position, the SITeam Coordinator,
to oversee cross-agency SIT staff and Initiatives. The SITeam Coordinator positions
In Bay Point and North Richmond are expected to be filled by summer 2000.
Public-Private Partnerships: Partnerships with the private and non-profit sector
have been critical to the Service Integration Program's successful Implementation.
Generous grants from the Zeilerbach Family Fund, the S.H. Cowell Foundation, the
James C. Penney Foundation and the East Bay Community Foundation have allowed the
Service Integration Program to test new approaches, relocate and Improve services to
better meet the needs of the communities and to hire and develop neighborhood staff.
Examples of Service Integration's public-private partnerships Include:
✓ Since September 1997, the Zellerbach Family Fund has been supporting the
SITeams'two neighborhood employment projects with grants of$300,000 each over
a period of three years to establish a neighborhood-based system of employment
services.
✓ In May of 1999, an Innovative partnership comprised of the Service Integration
Program, the North Richmond Center for Health, Eden Housing, Inc., and the
Community Housing [Development Corporation of North Richmond was awarded a
$300,000 grant from the S.H. Cowell Foundation. This grant, In addition to support
provided by the County Employment and Human Services and Health Services
Departments, allowed the North Richmond SITeam to relocate to a more accessible
location for community residents, provided furnishings and equipment for the Center
for Health and furthered redevelopment efforts In North Richmond.
County-Community Partnerships: Over the past three years, the Service
Integration Program has placed particular emphasis on expanding Its partnership base
to Include a number of other public and non-profit agencies and neighborhood
residents. For example, until Its recent move, the North Richmond STTeam co-
sponsored the North Richmond Community Garden on the grounds of the Family
Service Center In partnership with the Asian Pacific Environmental Network's Laotian
Organizing Project. This garden, which flourished for over gree years, provided over
25 families with an important source of food as well as an opportunity to continue long
held cultural traditions.
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Service Integration Program in the development of the SIT Adult Substance
Abuse/Mental Health strategy, which pulls together fragmented funding streams to
allow for community-based services for a wide range of families and individuals.
✓ The four Employee Organizations that represent the Service Integration Program
staff(CCC Employees Association Local #1, Professional and Technical Employees
AFSCME Local #512, Social Service Union Local #535 and United Clerical,Technical
and Spec. Employees Local #2700) worked with the four County departments that
collaborate on the SIT Program to develop a new position, the SITeam Coordinator,
to oversee cross-agency SIT staff and initiatives. The SITeam Coordinator positions
In Bay Point and North Richmond are expected to be filled by summer 2000.
Public-Private Partnerships: Partnerships with the private and non-profit sector
have been critical to the Service Integration Program's successful implementation.
Generous grants from the Zellerbach Family Fund, the S.H. Cowell Foundation, the
James C. Penney Foundation and the East Bay Community Foundation have allowed the
Service Integration Program to test new approaches, relocate and Improve services to
better meet the needs of the communities and to hire and develop neighborhood staff.
Examples of Service Integration's public-private partnerships include:
✓ Since September 1997, the Zelierbach Family Fund has been supporting the
SIl'eams"two neighborhood employment projects with grants of$300,000 each over
a period of three years to establish a neighborhood-based system of employment
services.
✓ In May of 1999, an Innovative partnership comprised of the Service Integration
Program, the North Richmond Center for Health, Eden Housing, Inc., and the
Community Housing Development Corporation of North Richmond was awarded a
$300,000 grant from the S.H. Cowell Foundation. This grant, In addition to support
provided by the County Employment and Human Services and Health Services
Departments, allowed the North Richmond SITeam to relocate to a more accessible
location for community residents, provided furnishings and equipment for the Center
for Health and furthered redevelopment efforts In North Richmond.
County-Community Partnerships: Over the past three years, the Service
Integration Program has placed particular emphasis on expanding Its partnership base
to Include a number of other public and non-profit agencies and neighborhood
residents. For example, until Its recent move, the North Richmond SlTeam co-
sponsored the North Richmond Community Garden on the grounds of the Family
Service Center in partnership with the Asian Pacific Environmental Network's Laotian
Organizing Project. This garden, which flourished for over three years, provided over
25 families with an Important source of food as well as an opportunity to continue long
held cultural traditions.
7
In early 1997, each SITeam Initiated a series of community-wide planning sessions,
resulting In the establishment of Bay Point Works (BPW) and the North Richmond
Employment Collaborative (NREC). Through these two neighborhood employment
projects, the Service Integration Program has been able to engage a wide range of
partners in activities that go beyond crisis Intervention and strategies limited by State
and Federal funding to include activities such as leadership development and
community capacity-building. Working in concert with their partner agencies and
following a community-driven process, the two collaboratives have established a
number of critical services in Bay Point and North Richmond, Including:
✓ Both neighborhood projects established Community Career Centers, designed and
staffed by neighborhood residents and centrally located in both communities. At the
Career Centers, unemployed and underemployed community residents have acres
to computers, the Internet, fax and copy machines, as well as job listings and other
employment-related resources, such as child care and transportation information
Starting in the spring of 1999, both S1Teams expanded their services to focus on youth
and children by partnering with community non-profits.
✓ In partnership with the St. Vincent de Paul Society, for example, Bay Point Works
now regularly offers summer programs for teens, such as summer youth workshops
which teach 11-14 year-olds how to set and achieve goals. Bay Point Works also
held the "Build Your Future Youth Job Fest 1999" in May 1999, which was attended
by over 110 neighborhood teens and more than 20 local employers.
* Last summer, the North Richmond Employment Collaborative joined forces with
Athletes United for Peace to establish a video production class, which targets at-risk
teens and provides them with an opportunity to produce a video about their
neighborhood while learning applicable skills, such as script-writing, Interviewing and
editing. The North Richmond Teen Video is currently in the final editing stages and
will be screened In several community locations.
In addition, the Service Integration Program has maintained successful partnerships
with a number of other community-based organizations including Community Housing
Development Corporation of North Richmond, Los Medanos College, New Connections,
Rubicon Programs, among others.
ACTIVITY HIGHLIGHTS AND OUTCOMES
A critical aspect of the Service Integration program Is Its emphasis on tracking
participant outcomes. Through outcomes, the SITeams are able to judge their success
based on measurable Improvements in the lives of children and families. The outcome
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data that follows is primarily for the 1995 calendar year. Some 1999 data is stili under
analysis.
QI Increase family economic self-sufficiency
The framework of the Service Integration Program's self-sufficiency services predates
both federal and state welfare reform legislation. In late 1995, the Service Integration
Program began focusing on specific strategies to Increase the employability and self-
sufficiency of families receiving welfare. Strategies Included staff members across all of
the Srream disciplines embracing a more employment-focused approach to working
with families, Involving clients and community residents In the planning and
Implementation of employment services and building neighborhood capacity to provide
a wide range of employment support services.
The workforce participation rates of CaIWORKs participants served by the
SITeams have risen significantly since the establishment of the Family
Service Centers In 1994, surpassing rates both at neighboring district
offices and countywide.
C Between 1996 and 1999, the workforce participation rates of Bay Point
SIT Ca1W0RKs participants Increased by 18 percentage points -- from
18.7% to 36.710 (see Figure 1). In contrast, the percentage of CalWORKs
participants working Increased from 17.3% to 24.8% (by 7.5 percentage points) at
the neighboring Antioch district Office. Countywide the share of CalWORKs
participants working increased from 17.6% to 25.8% (by 8.1 percentage points)
over this same four year period.
C The percentage of North Richmond SIT CaIWORKs participants increased
by 12.8 percentage points between 1996 and 1399 —from 14.5% to
27.3% (see Figure 2). In contrast, the share of CalWOM participants working
Increased from 12.8% to 20.9% (by 8.1 percentage points) at the neighboring
Richmond District Office.
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In January of 2000, the Bay Point and North Richmond SITeams led all
EHS District Offices with 41.7% and 35.0% of their CaiWORKs
participants reporting earnings (see Pigure 3). The Bay Point and North
Richmond SITeam figures for January 2000 were well above countywide reported
earnings that month of 25.6%.
C Designed and fully staffed by neighborhood residents, the Bay Point and
North Richmond Community Career Centers have become local hubs,
providing a wide range of resources to help all unemployed community
residents find work and to help working neighborhood residents to
advance their careers. Usage numbers in North Richmond and Bay Point indicate
the tremendous acceptance and success the Career Centers enjoy in both
communities. Since opening Its doors to the public in May 1998, the Bay Point
Community Career Center has received close to 2,500 visits per year, with a
membership base of over 1,000 neighborhood residents, who regularly access the
Center's resources. North Richmond's Career Center, which has been operating since
January 1999, reported over 4,000 visits from Its 514 members during its first year.
Both Career Centers serve all community members, whether or not they are welfare
recipients.
Employment rates after 30-, 60-, and 90-days collected through follow-up
surveys among Bay Point Career Center members indicate that up to 500l0
of the members contacted are working as a direct result of visiting the
Career Center.'
improve family functioning
The Service Integration approach emphasizes earlier Intervention and greater client
contact, allowing the SITeam staff to get involved with families before situations reach
crisis levels. In addition, SITeam staff members typically stay Involved with families
longer, providing "informal"services to ensure that families safely make the transition
to better functioning. Through intensive contact with other community service
providers, SlTeam staff Is able to keep a closer eye on participant families to make sure
that children are obtaining needed health care services, attending school and are living
safely in their own homes. The family functioning outcomes regularly recorded at both
SlTeams indicate that this approach has been successful.
' Employment follow-up data from the North Richmond community career canter Is not available.
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L1 Children served by the SIT child welfare workers have been successfully
maintained in their homes. In 1999, 92 percent of the 105 children served by
the North Richmond SITeam child welfare worker remained safely at home.Z In
1998, 97 percent of the 167 children served by the Bay Point SlTeam child welfare
worker and 87 percent of the 208 children served by the North Richmond SlTeam
child welfare workers were successfully maintained at home. In 1997, 76 families
with a total of 197 children received SIT Child Welfare services In North Richmond.
Only 5.6 percent of these children were removed from their homes.
C During the spring semester of 1999, a monthly average of 86% of the
youth on probation served by the Say Point SITeam were either enrolled
In or had completed school? During 1998 a monthly average of 81
percent of all youth on probation served by the North Richmond SITeam
and 87 percent of all youth served in Bay Point were either enrolled In or
had completed school. In 1997, a monthly average of 93 percent of all youth on
probation at the Bay Point SlTeam were either enrolled or had graduated from
school.
121 Between November 1998 and November 1399, 46 clients received
substance abuse or mental health services from the SIT counselor. Over
50 percent of the clients successfully entered longer-term treatment, In
spite of the fact that, typically, It is extremely difficult to convince
substance abusers who are In denial to seek treatment.
Expand community capacity to support children and
families
In addition to maintaining a community-driven approach to the development of Its
services, the Service Integration Program has provided substantial training
opportunities to community staff' hired through the employment coilaboratives to ensure
that local efforts to Improve the well-being of families and children are sustained over
the long-term.
Both employment collaboratives have mentored community staff Into
leadership positions. Since January 1999, the North Richmond Employment
Collaborative has been run by Annie KIng-Meredith, a lifelong community resident,
2 1999 North Richmond Srream data refers to only one of the two North Richmond child welfare workers.
1999 Bay Point SITeam child welfare data is not available.
3 Due to funding issues, Probation officers were not out-stationed at the SlTeams during the fall of 2000.
Therefore, enrollment data is not available for this time period. North Richmond probation data is not yet
available for spring 1999.
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who successfully completed an intensive mentorship program. After two years on
staff with Bay Point Works, Eva Garcia, a neighborhood resident succeeded the
original Project Manager to become the first community member to run Bay Point
Works.
To counteract the lack of local child-care resources, the North Richmond
Employment Collaborative assisted two community residents to obtain the
training and start-up funding needed to open child care businesses In
their homes. These two in-home facilities have been convenient and popular with
North Richmond residents and together serve a total of 15 children. Due to her
landlord's decision to sell the property she was renting, one of the providers has
moved out of North Richmond and is now running her business out of her new
home In neighboring San Pablo.
C In 3anuary 2000, the North Richmond SlTeam relocated Its offices Into
the heart of the community at the new North Richmond Commercial
Center. The Family Service Center's new location both increases the accessibility of
services for neighborhood residents and supports the redevelopment plans of the
community by providing a strong anchor tenant for the new facility.
l On April 1, 2000, the North Richmond Employment Collaborative will
transfer the North Richmond Community Career Resource Center to the
North Richmond Neighborhood House, a community non-profit. This
transition will allow the Career Center to flourish at the behest of the community
without County oversight.
C in November 1997, as a result of an Innovative partnership with A.C.
Transit, the North Richmond Employment Collaborative spearheaded
efforts to bring hourly night bus services to North Richmond. In the fall of
1999, A.C. Transit was awarded grant money enabling service to be
Increased to half-hour runs.
in collaboration with other local agencies, BPW was instrumental in
starting the Bay Point Community Residents`Association. Conducted in
English and Spanish and facilitated on a rotating basis by neighborhood residents,
the meetings of the group occur monthly and focus on such issues as Introducing
members to their local government bodies and learning about a number of ways to
affect community safety and well-being.
On March 15, 2000, Annie King-Meredith, Project Manager of the North
Richmond Employment Collaborative, was Inducted Into the Contra Costa
County Women's Hall of Fame under the category"Women Creating
Community". Ms. King-Meredith was nominated by her colleagues at the North
12
d
Richmond SITeam, in part due to the tremendous community-building efforts she
has undertaken as NREC Project Manager.
FUTURE DIRECTIONS AND CHALLENGES
The upcoming year promises to hold many challenges and provide many opportunities
to further Increase the ability of the Service Integration Program to serve Its participant
families as well as to affect our larger County systems.
Hiring and Training SITeam Coordinators: The Service Integration Program is
currently In the process of hiring two SITeam Coordinators —one for the Bay Point
SITeam and one for the North Richmond SITeam. This new position will be key in
moving the Service Integration Program Into the next phase of development, which will
include more Intensive, family-focused case management and working more closely
with the communities.
Implementing the RISE Initiative: The Reinvesting in Self-sufficiency and
Employment (RISE) Initiative eliminates significant amounts of paperwork requirements
to allow staff to devote more time to intensive case management and face-to-face
interactions with participants. The implementation of this Initiative requires
coordination of a number of County Departments, Including Information Technology,
the Auditor's Office, Employment and Human Services, General Services and the County
Administrator's Office, as well as significant re-tooling of existing processes and
equipment.
Identifying and developing New AB 1741 and Boost4Kids Projects: AB 1741
and Boost4lGds allow Contra Costa County an exciting opportunity to work with both
State and Federal agencies to identify opportunities to Improve the efficiency and
effectiveness of our operations in the areas of children and families' services. With the
Implementation of RISE (expected this summer), we can now focus on new projects.
The Service Integration Program has been working In partnership with Contra Costa
Futures and the Policy Forum on two issues: leveraging and blending inter-agency
finance resources and developing cross-agency protocols and authorizations for
participation In a Community Data Archive.
Moving to the Next Phase with the Neighborhood Employment Projects: The
first three year phase of the neighborhood employment projects concludes in October
2000, when the Zellerbach Family Fund grant expires. It is the Intent to transition
these projects into independent 501(c)(3) community-based organization over time.
The Service Integration Program Is in discussions regarding foundation support to
support the further organizational development of Bay Point Works and North Richmond
Employment Collaborative and to provide continued services to the community.
13
Strengthening SIT Outcomes Tracking: For the past four years, the Service
Integration Program has devoted substantial administrative and staff time into tracking
of program outcomes. While some employment-related outcomes can currently be
tracked through existing management information systems, most must be manually
collected and tabulated by SIT staff and administration. There also continue to be a
number of Important outcomes for which data is unavailable or of poor quality. In
particular, the Service Integration Program Is looking toward opportunities for tracking
the school attendance data and automating data collection systems for out-of-home
placements and youth on probation.
Developing New Service Strategies for Families Facing the End of Welfare
Time Limits: In late 2000, the first families currently on CalWORKs will face the end of
their eligibility time limits. While many SITeam families have successfully transitioned
from welfare to work, there is still a core group of families that face major obstacles to
self-sufficiency, Including chronic substance abuse and mental health problems. We will
need to develop new service strategies and partnerships to ensure that all families have
access to the supports and services that help them overcome their life challenges.
14
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