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Home My WebLink AboutMINUTES - 04052005 - C.116 ell 0 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contra FROM: John Sweeten •; -� T z:s • County Administrator :; ::� : ,� Costa DATE: April 5, 2005 `'°``r�, ic -. -` ouK County SUBJECT: Community Services Department Monthly Update Report SPECIFIC REQUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATION(S): ACCEPT update on the operations of the Community Services Department. FISCAL IMPACT: No impact from this update. BACKGROUND/REASON(S) FOR RECOMMENDATION(S): On March 1, 2005 the Board of Supervisors received a report from Human Resource Practitioners (HRP) on the Community Services Department management review. HRP made a number of recommendations for consideration by the Board to enhance the chances of preventing incidents from occurring at the County's Head Start childcare centers. To enhance oversight of the Community Services Department the County Administrator is conducting monthly meetings with the department to receive updates on program issues and to plan and/or authorize actions that may be needed. To ensure they remain updated regarding the status of the program, the Board of Supervisors directed the County Administrator, or his designee, to provide a monthly status report. Attached is the first such report and includes updates on fiscal, personnel, communications, morale, and program issues. Also included is an update on the Policy Council, implementation of recommendations on the HRP report, and other current highlights. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: YES SICATURE: RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARIPCOMMITTEE APPROVE OTHER SIGNATURES): ACTION OF BOARD ON APPROVE AS RECOMMENDED OTHER VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE AND CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN UNANIMOUS(ABSENT �� _.� AND ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ATTESTED c0trl rl/Ve CONTACT: JOHNSWEETEN,CLERK OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR cc: Scott Tandy Dorothy Sansoe BY DEPUTY 11► } To: John Sweeten From: Scott Tandy C O N T R A C O S T A C(D LI N T Y COMIMUNITY SERVICES DEPARTMENT Subj ect: Monthly Report Scott Tandy Date: March 18, 2005 Interim Executive Director Patricia Stroh,PhD Program Services Introduction: Director This is in response to your request during the February Federal Review closing to ensure ongoing communication on issues pertinent to the Head Start program by having a monthly meeting and report from the Community Services Department Director and Program Director. A. Fiscal Report a. With the Family Advocate (FA)restructure and Reduction in Force (RIF),the Department submitted a balanced budget for FY 05/06. b. In compliance with Federal Regulations,we are closing out the 2004 Head Start/Early Head Start budget March 31, 2005. B. Personnel Report a. With the Board of Supervisor's approval,we have entered into Meet and Confer with Local One to discuss the impact of the restructure and RIF of the Family Advocate classification. i. Policy Council (PC)has been informed at their monthly meeting on March 16, and encouraged to ask questions and provide input into the new restructured Family Services Unit. ii. Board of Supervisors will consider the layoff on April 12, and Policy Council will consider it on April 20. iii. The layoff effective date will be April 29. iv. In addition,the Board will be asked on April 12 to add additional Management, Assistant Management and Clerical staff for the restructured service delivery plan. b. Pat Stroh and I have scheduled additional meetings and forums :t. with FAs,parents and Site Supervisors to present and discuss ti the new structure. c. The Department has moved rapidly to create, advertise and hire p f 3 {n(Sh` the new Personnel Administrator position agreed t0 as part of the Quality Improvement Plan(QIP). We plan to appoint the 2425 Bisso lane Drive,suite 260 position the week of March 21, and the candidate will be Concord,California 94520 approved by the PC on April 20. Tel 925 646 5540 Fax 925 646 5904 d. I have met with an Executive Service to develop a plan to hire a www.c=sd.org permanent Department Director. John Sweeten Page Two March 18, 2003 A. Policy Council a. I attend monthly meetings of the Policy Council and the PC Executive Committee and have kept them abreast of changes in the Department. b. PC approved, at the March meeting,the certification of full compliance to Jan Len of the ACF Region IX Office,previously also approved by the Board of Supervisors on March 1,2005. c. In addition, I presented the findings of the Human Resources Practitioners (HRP)Management Report on March 16, and requested feedback. B. Pro ram Issues a. The federally required annual Head Start Self Assessment was conducted by staff and parents and approved by the Policy Council on March 16. All areas were in compliance. b. Enrollment remains at 98%. c. Planning has begun for the annual Policy Council/Board of Supervisors luncheon and training on shared governance. C. HRP Management Report on the Department a. The HRP Management Report has been widely distributed in the Department. Pat Stroh and I visited all West County sites and delivered the report, speaking with staff throughout the site and gathering their input. In addition,we are visiting all of the remaining sites with the report next week,with invitations for input directly to me. b. The Department is developing a response to the recommendations and plans to implement which will be presented to the Board of Supervisors on April 19 and the Policy Council on April 20. D. Department Communication and Morale a. Because of the recent issues with licensing, the special Federal Review, and HRP management report, it was apparent that the Department needed to pay particular attention to Communication and Morale. To that end, several things have been initiated: i. Site visits by top level management ii. Focus group meetings iii. Letters of information sent via e-mail, and mailed to staff at home to share news and changes. John Sweeten Page Three March 18, 2005 i. The Department newsletter has been reinitiated and will highlight individual achievement and commitment, innovative practices, Department news, and feature a site a month. ii. Continuing an existing practice of a monthly recognition of an employee or team who have exhibited special dedication and commitment and the recognition goes out in the pay check so all employees see it. B. Highlights a. The National Association for Education of Young Children Accreditation of THREE sites this month joins five previously accredited County sites. Accreditation is a year-long process for individual sites, and NAEYC Accreditation is nationally recognized as a quality indicator of programs. The three sites recognized were Lake, San Pablo, and Crescent Park. A celebration will be held later in the year for all eight accredited centers. b. WestEd, a prominent training organization in San Francisco, selected our program to pilot education and training for Early Head Start Home Based staff. c. We will collaborate and co-host a training conference on Early Childhood Education with Contra Costa College in April. d. We have three staff members selected to be on the state team to revise the state and federal assessment tool,DRDP+. e. Lake Center was awarded a$1,000 stipend by First Five for providing the best home activities for families. C. PendinR a. Federal Review report due mid-March, 2005. cc: Pat Stroh Policy Council Family&Human Services Committee