April 14, 2016
NEWS YOU CAN USE 
CAP AGENCIES IN THE NEWS 
PARTNERSHIP NEWS 
TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES 

  
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NEWS YOU CAN USE 
 unemployment$28-BILLION L.A. COUNTY BUDGET PROPOSAL
AIMS TO ADDRESS HOMELESSNESS
By Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times, April 11, 2016 

In presenting the budget, county Chief Executive Officer Sachi Hamai said leaders are committed to "lifting the quality of life for all of our residents," but are "challenged by the demand for county services that far exceeds the available financing sources." 

The proposed spending plan is an increase of $282 million from the year before and includes $99 million for the county's new homelessness initiative and $19 million for wage increases the Board of Supervisors passed last year for in-home care workers.    

veteranCYNDI LAUPER's TRUE COLORS FUND SEEKS TO END HOMELESSNESS AMONG LGBT YOUTH 
By Malina Saval, Variety, April 11, 2016

In 2008, Lauper co-founded (with Lisa Barbaris and Jonny Podell) the True Colors Fund, a philanthropic organization - named for Lauper's platinum-selling 1986 album - that works to end homelessness among LGBT youth by educating the public, advocating within government agencies and instituting systemic change.

In America, up to 1.6 million young people experience homelessness each year and LGBT youth make up 40% of this staggering figure, according to the fund.

"The work that we do really is about looking at what the systems are and what are the solutions that are needed to be put in place to actually start driving the (homelessness) numbers down," says Gregory Lewis, True Colors Fund executive director. "In America the response to homelessness has been a crisis response system. Our work is about creating the solutions that will start helping communities actually end the problem of youth homelessness."

childpovertyNEW YORK CITY COMBINING AGENCIES FOR HOMELESS AND WELFARE SERVICES
By Nikita Stewart, New York Times, April 11, 2016 
Citing duplication, inefficiency and the need for a "new vision" to combat homelessness, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Monday that the New York City agencies for homeless services and welfare will consolidate under a single commissioner.

The consolidation would save an estimated $38 million through streamlining and the elimination of redundancy among the two agencies that currently manage different stages of moving people out of shelters and into permanent housing.

Over two decades the number of homeless people has continued to increase, especially under the strain of rising rents out of reach to people who live on low and stagnant wages. About 58,000 people in the city are currently in shelters overseen by the Homeless Services Department, up from about 53,000 when De Blasio took office in January 2014. That does not include thousands of other homeless youth and domestic violence victims in specialized shelters.

He said the city's management of homelessness had not kept pace with the problem. "So, the fact is, the reality of homelessness in this city changed profoundly; it became much more an economic reality," The overhaul follows a 90-day review of homeless services operations. The review found problems with safety and conditions that have prompted the city to end contracts with two shelter providers and to warn two others. 
DenverDENVER SUPPORTIVE HOUSING SOCIAL IMPACT BOND INITIATIVE: EVALUATION AND RESEARCH DESIGN
By Mary K. Cunningham, Urban Institute, March 30, 2016

Social Impact Bonds (SIBs) are performance-based contracts where private or philanthropic investors loan funds to accomplish a specific objective and are repaid based on whether the program achieves its goals. Denver's SIB initiative will use funds from investors to provide housing and supportive case management services to at least 250 homeless individuals who frequently use the city's emergency services.

Repayment to investors is contingent upon the achievement of the program's outcome targets for housing stability and a reduction in jail bed days. This report details the independent evaluation designed by the Urban Institute to determine whether the program achieves the outcome targets.

TWEETTWEET OF THE WEEK: @IWPResearch  
"EQUAL PAY DAY"
CAP AGENCIES IN THE NEWS
REGIONALPROREGIONAL PROGRAM CONTINUES TO BETTER PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY 

The Community Action Partnership of Staunton, Augusta and Waynesboro (CAPSAW) presented its annual report Monday night to the Waynesboro City Council. Over the last year, CAPSAW provided more than $200,000 to 18 partner programs, while serving almost 3,000 families. The program hopes to increase those numbers this year while adding new partners.

CAPSAW is also sponsoring an income tax assistance group which files taxes for middle class residents each year, and students from Mary Baldwin have been volunteering. They're helping save money in the community.

"We have students there who volunteer at one of our sites and they have prepared almost 200 returns, just those students, have prepared over 200 returns this year. And we value that at $200 a return. So that's a tremendous saving for our community," said Anna Leavitt, the Director of CAPSAW.

 WATERSHUTOFFSANTA MARIA TEENS WORK TO COMBAT OBESITY THROUGH
PROJECT TEEN HEALTH
On Monday, students at Santa Maria High School were exposed to more than a dozen organizations to learn about living a healthy lifestyle.

This is the second annual health and fitness fair at Santa Maria High school. The program is put on through San Luis Obispo's Community Action Partnership's Project Teen Health. program coordinator Jenna Miller said, "This nutrition and fitness education is extremely important to youth, two out of three children and adolescence are obese nationally, here in our community our statistics in our school are right along those with the nation. We're here to help them implement a healthy lifestyle."

 hermanFOR BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBER, IT'S ALL ABOUT TIMING
Herman G. Hernandez speaks often to youngsters and teens, many of them Latino. He tells a bit about the oscillating arc of his own life and encourages the students to aim high, get involved, study hard and fail, fail, fail.

Today, at 29, Hernandez is an elected member of the Sonoma County Board of Education and managing the campaign by Lynda Hopkins for election to the county Board of Supervisors. In his day job, he raises money, coordinates events and does marketing and outreach for the Santa Rosa-based nonprofit social services agency Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County.

Hernandez views himself as someone who can help correct the imbalance of Latinos in leadership positions in Sonoma County and beyond, and he tries to get the sons and daughters of Spanish-speaking immigrants to begin thinking of themselves that way, too.

pinwheelCAP RECOGNIZES PAST ACHIEVEMENTS, NEEDED EFFORTS
 
Putting their heads together to make the community stronger. Tuesday, members of the Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area gathered to "celebrate the past year and look ahead to the coming year and celebrate what we're doing and what still needs to be done," said John Bennet, Director of Communications and Public Relations.

This year, Bennet says achievements include hosting a town hall meeting with U.S. Representative John Conyers (D-MI), as well as the area's home weather assistance program.

The Community Area Partnership's mission is to work in tandem with local communities to eliminate the causes and conditions of poverty and to promote individual independence and self-sufficiency, according to its website. The organization serves Montgomery, Preble, Greene, Darke and other counties, according to the website.

LIHEAPHISPANIC CHAMBER HONORS LATINO LEADERS ON CESAR CHAVEZ DAY
Brenda Salas Freeman, executive director of Community Action Partnership of Riverside County, received an award for her commitment to service and values in the spirit of Cesar E. Chavez
 
PARTNERSHIP NEWS 
toolkitCOMMUNITY ACTION MONTH 2016: PARTNERSHIP ENCOURAGES YOU TO SPREAD THE COMMUNITY ACTION WORD
May 2016 Marks the 52nd Annual Community Action Month!

The National Partnership encourages all CAAs to tell their story as often as possible throughout the year, particularly during National Community Action Month. The Communications Department within the National Community Action Partnership has created several tools for publicizing Community Action Month. These include a sample news release and sample proclamation for local elected officials.
  • The sample news release is used for announcing and promoting your upcoming Community Action Month events. The release is meant to be customized to best reflect the messages your CAA wants to communicate and the target audience you want to reach. Feel free to develop additional news releases - focusing on new CAA programs/services, local poverty data for your community, or recognition of staff, volunteers, corporate/community partners.
  • The sample proclamation is designed to be provided for governors, mayors, city council members, commissioners or other elected officials to proclaim May "Community Action Month" in their local jurisdictions. In the past, CAAs have adapted the sample proclamation with their local information and submitted it to their local officials for consideration. Procedures for submitting the proclamation should be available from the offices of your local elected officials and you can modify it to meet their requirements. 
Both templates, key tools from the Partnership's Community Action Month Toolkit, are available for download through the following links: CAM 2016 Press Release and CAM ProclamationKeep an eye out for the complete Community Action Month Toolkit!
MonthCOMMUNITY ACTION MONTH 2016: WE NEED YOUR HELP

 
Many of our Agencies were involved with last year's CAM efforts and now we're looking to have even more participation for 2016! Take to Twitter and Facebook to post about your CAA's outstanding program participants. Write a blog or upload photos to Pinterest and Instagram of your staff and volunteers in action, helping people and changing lives. Issue an op-ed on why it's important to help your community's most vulnerable citizens with food, housing, job training, and childcare assistance. Explain in a news release how services like Head Start, food banks and the Earned Income Tax Credit have helped your program participants strengthen their families and increase their economic security. 

We are ask that you share photos from your 2015 Community Action Month efforts. We're hoping to feature them in our weekly eNewsletter and through social media. Please send your photo submissions to Joi Ridley, Director of Communications, at [email protected] for inclusion in our weekly 2016 CAM wrap-ups.
conv16WE'LL SEE YOU IN AUSTIN! 2016 ANNUAL CONVENTION
AUGUST 30 - SEPTEMBER 2


The Convention brochure is now available to download!
Click here to register online

Click here for the 2016 Convention Registration Form

Avoid the rush! 
Reservations are now open to book your rooms at the JW Marriott Austin for the
2016 Community Action Partnership Annual Convention.
Rooms may be booked at the rate of $199.00 S/D. 
Watch this page for additional information in coming weeks.
Click here to book your hotel rooms online.
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SPONSORSHIP, EXHIBIT, and ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES
 
Support the Community Action Network by becoming a sponsor, buying exhibit space, and purchasing advertising in the Convention Program Book. Click here for complete information.
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TRACKS  
  • Effective Administration and Governance
  • Promising Anti-Poverty Practices
  • Strategies to Increase Visibility
  • Research, Policy, and Action
  • Performance at the Front Line  
PLUS - specially designated sessions for SSVF programs as well as for Tribal CSBG grantees.  
membJOIN THE PARTNERSHIP NOW FOR 2016!
Why Join Community Action Partnership?

Agencies like yours continue to shape the vision and the future of
Click above to apply online
Community Action. A strong network puts you in touch with many colleagues across the country and gives your agency a strong and  unified voice and a vital communications link to federal agencies and other organizations, both public and private, that share or support the mission and the Promise of Community Action.

Community Action Partnership looks forward to working with you in 2016.  We hope that you will invest in your future during this upcoming, critical year for our network.   
If your agency has already submitted membership dues for 2016 - "Thank You!"  We appreciate your involvement and support. We look forward to launching some outstanding opportunities for membership involvement in the coming year!

Your energy and involvement have helped to keep Community Action Partnership responsive to your needs and built the strongest community action network ever. Membership gives you more than ever before ... access to training, publications, educational resources, and management tools which help you run a CAA more productively.

Community Action Partnership welcomes like-minded organizations, friends, and affiliates as members - organizations and companies that are like-minded and support the work of Community Action.  If you would like to consider membership, you can check "affiliate" in the membership categories. Please contact Sranda Watkins, Membership Coordinator at [email protected] or by phone at (202) 449-9773 with any additional questions.

Please join us in welcoming the newest additions to the Partnership's National Staff! 

Hyacinth "Xandy" McKinley, Program Associate for the Learning Communities Resource Center

Hyacinth comes to the Partnership with a passion and interest in studying the conditions and causes of poverty in order to better advocate for those most in need. During her college years, she was actively engaged with numerous national organizations and social groups focusing on diversity, inclusion, and gender issues. Prior to accepting her position at the Partnership she served at the National Human Services Assembly, a membership organization for some of the nation's most prominent nonprofit organizations. While at the Assembly, Hyacinth played a major role in the mobilization of the Reframing Human Services Initiative, a multi-year research and development project for implementing a new way to talk about the work of the human services sector. To date, the presentations and communications that she helped to develop have been presented to over 3,000 human services professionals.

Hyacinth holds a Bachelors of Arts in Global Politics from Washington and Lee University and is currently a second-year Masters candidate at the Elliott School for International Affairs at George Washington University.  "I am thrilled to be here at the Partnership and take part in all of the amazing and essential work that we do!"  

Elizabeth "Liza" Poris, Rural IMPACT VISTA Leader 
 
Liza began her career working as a field organizer on political campaigns. It was during that time that she developed a passion for community-driven work. She found it fulfilling to see what could be accomplished when people together in their communities towards a common goal.
 
She became an Americorps VISTA in 2013 for the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, hoping to apply her prior campaign organizing experiences toward poverty alleviation. In three years at the Alliance, Liza became interested in the challenge of rural communities accessing basic human services.
 
"I am excited to now be working as a VISTA leader for the Rural IMPACT project and be a part of an initiative that is working to address the barriers faced by rural communities.
 
Liza graduated from Hendrix College in 2010 with a degree in Philosophy.
werehiringTHE PARTNERSHIP IS HIRING!  
Director of Community Economic Development 
Under the immediate supervision of the Chief Executive Officer, Community Economic Development (CED) Project Director is responsible for coordinating and promoting the Community Action Financial Institute (CAFI), the Community Action Partnership's CDFI. The individual will also be responsible for CED promotion and identification of CED best practices throughout Community Action Network related organizations. Will work in partnership with the CEO to seek CAFI funding including but not limited to private investments and government grants. Click here for information.
TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES 
FINCAPABILITYFINANCIAL CAPABILITY MONTH 

April is Financial Capability Month!

Community Action Agencies around the country offer critical services to increase the financial capability of their community. Share your story this month about the importance of financial capability services, as well as successes in your community.

Working in collaboration with the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) and the US Treasury (myRA) we are excited to offer a number of opportunities to engage:
  • Share the story of how your agency engages in financial capability through CFED's Story Bank.
  • Engage online in the #FinCapWorks conversation using CFED's social media toolkit.
  • Take advantage of the myRA free resources at myra.gov
  • Submit a blog post about what you know about financial capability from your work in Community Action (and tell us if you do so we can highlight you as well!)

Join the Partnership for a webinar related to Financial Capability this month:

Tools and Strategies for Helping Clients Build Financial Capability  
April 20, 2016 2pm ET
Financial well-being affects, and is affected by, every other aspect of life. Recent research suggests that improving a person's financial stability not only addresses material needs but also frees mental energy for parenting, job performance, and other important pursuits.

During this webinar, two community action agencies will share how they have helped clients build financial capability and improve their financial well-being. Webinar participants will also learn about Building Financial Capability: A Planning Guide for Integrated Services (the Guide), an interactive roadmap from the Office of Community Services with tools that walk organizations step-by-step through the process of developing a plan to incorporate financial capability services into existing programs. The presenters will discuss how organizations can use the tools in the Guide to gain a deeper understanding of clients' financial lives, determine which financial capability services would be most effective, and assess the resources (both in-house and external) available for delivering financial capability services.
Register


The National Alliance to End Homelessness has released its newest publication, The State of Homelessness in America 2016. This in-depth report utilizes the most current data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the U.S. Census Bureau, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to paint a vivid picture of homelessness, at-risk populations, and homelessness assistance across the United States.


For more information on this report and innovative strategies that are currently used to address homelessness, click here) to access the recording of recent national webinar series presented in collaboration with the National Alliance to End Homelessness.  The next Decreasing Family Homelessness Webinar is scheduled for June 15 at 2pm EST. 
lcrcwebsWEBINARS FROM THE LEARNING COMMUNITIES RESOURCE CENTER
The National Webinar Series 
Sponsored by the Learning Communities Resource Center, The National Webinar Series focuses on themes related to the specific anti-poverty approaches and is a way to showcase innovative strategies to the broader CSBG network. Please join us. All presentations are free.

Two Generation Resource Webinar
April 19, 2016 2pm ET
(ICF International)
Research demonstrates that children born into poor families are more likely to experience poverty as adults and, in turn, raise their own children in poverty. Programs have started serving parents and children through two-generation approaches designed to meet both the child development and parental economic security needs of a family to effectively mitigate challenges and support positive outcomes for all its members. Presenters from ICF International will provide an overview of the theory behind two-generation anti-poverty, highlight resources on two-generation programs, and provide tips on translating the research into effective practice. 
Trauma Informed Approaches: A Guide to the Resources
May 11, 2016 2pm ET
(ICF International)
There is a growing understanding in both the Child Welfare and TANF fields about the short- and long-term effects of maltreatment and other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on child and adult functioning. Recent findings relating to brain research and toxic stress suggest that prolonged and unmitigated exposure to trauma in childhood can alter brain function well into adulthood--affecting school, work, and health outcomes. Presenters from ICF International will provide research around trauma-informed case management and offer participants promising strategies around trauma-informed care utilizing the research available. 

Bundling Services Resource Webinar
June 7, 2016 2pm ET
(ICF International)  
Presenters from ICF International will outline evidence-informed tools and resources for implementing integrated services in Community Action agencies. Bundle service approaches align services to fit a family's diverse needs, but collaboration and partnerships across agency lines can be a challenge. Presenters will provide an overview of the challenges around creating bundled service approach and provide participants with resources to address those challenges and foster integrated solutions to build family self-sufficiency.  
cedCOMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WEBINAR SERIES -- SAVE THE DATES!

BOOTCAMPCAPLAW OFFERS CAA LEADERS LEGAL BOOT CAMP

SAVE THE DATES
CAA Leaders Legal Boot Camp
CAPLAW
 
The CAA Leaders' Legal Guide, a new resource developed by CAPLAW in collaboration with Community Action Partnership, is geared for both new and seasoned CAA leaders. The five-part webinar series provides an overview of the many legal requirements that these leaders will encounter on a regular basis. 
 
Registration is now open
 
Tuesday, April 19: Public CAA Essentials

caplaw2

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