C OU N T Y OF O R A N G E 2 0 1 9 A cco m pl i sh m e n t s a n d 2 020 G oa ls
S O C I A L S E RV I C E S AG E N C Y 2019 ACCO M PL I S H M E N T S •
Placed 1,052 children in family-based care with caregivers who are related/have a personal connection to the children, in alignment with Child Welfare Continuum of Care Reform and help the Orangewood Children and Family Center reduce youth stays as a 10-day temporary shelter.
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Implemented a new state policy in June that allows recipients of Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payments (SSI/SSP) to be eligible for CalFresh benefits. Since May, SSA has received nearly 16,700 CalFresh applications for households that include an SSI/SSP recipient, with an 82 percent approval rate for CalFresh benefits.
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Successfully expanded the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP) countywide. RMP allows elderly, disabled and homeless CalFresh recipients to use their Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to buy prepared meals from participating restaurants. Over 95 restaurants participate, representing about 70,000 RMP-linked EBT transactions and totaling over $1.1 million in redemptions.
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Significantly expanded the number of homeless families served by the CalWORKs Housing Support Program, from 66 in FY 2017-18 to 99 in FY 2018-19. Of the families assisted with housing support services, 71 were successfully placed into permanent, stable housing, representing a 45 percent increase over the previous year.
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Transformed the existing CalWORKs program model to CalWORKs 2.0, a statewide effort to assist California’s most vulnerable families. This new, whole-family tailored approach is designed to better assist families in achieving self-sufficiency through collaborative goal-setting and greater, more active engagement by families in the program.
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Delivered a comprehensive suite of professional development and engagement programs designed to increase employee satisfaction, enhance productivity, encourage succession planning and promote the agency’s reputation as a County employer of choice. Offerings include: robust leadership training, mentorship, a multi-cultural advisory committee, career and educational advisory programs and employee engagement campaign.
2020 G OA L S •
Implement Foster Family Agency (FFA) services at the Tustin Family Campus and Temporary Evaluation Community Homes (TECH) to help place more dependent children in familial settings with approved resource families. This initiative will help divert youth from entering into/remaining longer than 10 days at the Orangewood Children and Family Center.
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Collaborate with the 15 local Family Resource Centers (FRCs) through our Families and Communities Together platform on the Warm Hand Off pilot initiative. Staff and interns will provide a direct connection for high-risk families who are subjects of child abuse reports to a local FRC to access prevention/intervention services.
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Participate in the mandated California CalWORKs Outcomes and Accountability Review (Cal-OAR) three-year implementation plan. A local, data-driven program management system that facilitates continued improvement of county CalWORKs programs, Cal-OAR collects, analyzes outcomes/best practices and reviews client engagement, addressing “How are we doing?” and “Where can we do better?”
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Streamline and enhance the agency’s outreach function and processes to provide greater accessibility and responsiveness and continue to meet the needs of our community, especially with hard to reach populations.
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Implement Electronic Visit Verification (EVV), for Medicaid-funded personal care services by January. Provider timesheets will be processed through a state developed EVV portal and Medicaid recipients, and will be required to verify timesheet information online or via telephone. The new process will ensure greater accuracy and timeliness in payments.
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Continue to expand the footprint of the Restaurant Meals Program across the county to increase food options for elderly, disabled and homeless CalFresh recipients.
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