July 22, 2024
Tanner Lappano, Housing Program Analyst
City of Santa Ana - Community Development Agency
20 Civic Center Plaza, Sixth Floor
Santa Ana, CA 92701
Dear Mr. Lappano,
FAMILIES F@RWARD
On behalf of the Board of Directors of Families Forward, I am pleased to submit this proposal requesting an Eviction Prevention Program grant of $730,046. The funds requested will help prevent local Santa Ana individuals and families from losing their housing and experiencing homelessness.
In this post-pandemic economic recovery period, Families Forward recognizes that many of our community members are vulnerable to experiencing a financial crisis that can lead to homelessness. Consistent with the aims of the City of Santa Ana's Strategic Plan, Families Forward seeks to prevent and end homelessness for low:..income residents of the city. ERA2 funds will support Families Forward 's work to prevent evictions of income-qualified tenants through temporary rent subsidies throughout the City of Santa Ana. Through this work, it is our aim to help those seeking to overcome hardships and provide stability for individuals and families.
We·appreciate the time taken to review this proposal and our continued partnership with the City of Santa Ana. With your support, we can continue to advance our mission to prevent and end family homelessness by providing access to housing and resources that create lasting stability.
Nishtha Mohendra
Chief Program Officer
EXHIBIT 2
Santa Ana Eviction Prevention Program
Table of Contents
Services Provided ...................................................................................................... 1 Agreement Statement ................................................................................................ 2 Firm and Team Experience ......................................................................................... 2 Proposed Work Plan................................................................................................... 5 Fund Utilization Proposal ........................................................................................... 9 Budget Proposal ...................................................................................................... 10 Resumes ........................................................................... .................................................11
FAMILIES F@RWARD
UNTIL EVERY FAMILY HAS A HOME
EXHIBIT 2
1 Services Provided
Families Forward’s Eviction Prevention Program will provide all services laid out in Exhibit 1 – Scope of Services. Based on our history of providing similar programs throughout the county, including in the City of Santa Ana, Families Forward is well poised to implement an effective program on day one of the grant term. While providing direct financial assistance to families with past-due rent payments who are facing imminent eviction will be paramount, what sets Families Forward apart is our ability to provide additional eviction prevention services to those clients. Through this grant, Families Forward will serve any individual or family from Santa Aana seeking eviction prevention services Families Forward’s supportive services include case management, housing navigation, mental health counseling, career coaching, financial literacy education, connection to legal services and access to basic needs like our food pantry. All our services are of the highest quality while also being voluntary and tailored to meet the needs of each household. By being able to provide these wrap-around services in tandem with direct housing subsidies, Families Forward sets clients up for lasting success. As an Access Point for the Central Service Planning Area, and with an easily accessible office located in Santa Ana (1801 E Edinger Ave, Suite 100, Santa Ana) Families Forward has the local presence and knowledge to serve the entire Santa Ana community, and the background, structure, and experience to provide prevention services to all Santa Ana residents.
Due to the high barriers of families, the Families Forward team updated our service model to include a multi-disciplinary CARE Team. Through this model, a CARE Team from diverse specialties comes together to coordinate and offer comprehensive services to each resident through their case managers, housing resource specialists, career coaches, and mental health therapists. Residents needed significant resources and team support to achieve permanent housing goals. After implementing our multi-disciplinary CARE Team model, residents began to see increased success in stabilizing housing insecurity. Families Forward CARE Team connected Santa Ana residents to broader emergency shelter resources, longer-term rental subsidy resources like rapid re-housing when needed, and increased the number of residents obtaining permanent housing. Overall, the CARE Team helps to provide at-risk residents with housing stabilization, case management, linking families to relevant resources in the community, and establishing and maintaining relationships with partner agencies, community members, and other homeless service providers.
EXHIBIT 2
2 Agreement Statement
Families Forward is in concurrence with the provisions laid out in Exhibit II – Sample Agreement of this RFP for an ERA2 grant in the amount of $730,046.
Firm and Team Experience
What started out in 1984 as a community-based, grassroots, humble effort to house families experiencing homelessness in two farmhouses and five rented apartments, has since grown into one of Orange County’s most impactful nonprofits. With two offices, one in Santa Ana and one in Irvine, Families Forward serves as official county access points in both the Southern and Central Service Planning Areas. Families Forward now owns or is in partnership with 136 affordable housing units with plans to have access to 150 units by 2025. Tackling the pervasive issue of family homelessness, Families Forward improved the lives of 14,325 people last year. In 2022-23, we successfully prevented homelessness through providing rental assistance for 184 families (669 individuals), provided bridge housing for 23 families (87 individuals) and provided other prevention services such as referrals, budgeting, or care coordination for over 1,500 individuals. We provided over $1,900,000 in rental assistance to our prevention and rapid re-housing clients to ensure they could move into and stay in their homes, with over $400,000 specifically earmarked for eviction prevention. Since the onset of the pandemic in 2020, Families Forward has supported over 1,000 families with over 2.8 million dollars in rental assistance for eviction prevention. Today, Families Forward provides a full range of housing solutions for homeless clients, including motel stays, short-term interim housing support, rapid rehousing, and affordable housing. Families Forward has also developed significant partnerships with landlords, property managers, communities, and housing developers to increase the number of permanent housing opportunities available in Orange County and offer customizable, adaptable programs and allow for the best possible solution for each family in need. Working with housing partners in the community, we cultivate relationships that provide tenants with additional support through education, mediation, and lease negotiations. Our Housing Program builds trust with landlords to offer opportunities for heads of families with prior evictions or poor credit who often need a second chance.
Families Forward is committed to the Housing First principles outlined by HUD and the Interagency Council on Homelessness. The Families Forward homeless services Care Team includes multi-lingual and multi-cultural family navigators, housing resource specialists, career coaches, and mental health counselors who work together to provide comprehensive, personalized care and a plan for each family to achieve housing stabilization. The Housing Program is designed to assist literally homeless families for a short period of time, averaging 4-6 months, to regain independence and achieve housing security. Families in our Housing Program are provided access to our seasonal programs such as Back to School with school supplies for children, Thanksgiving baskets filled with EXHIBIT 2
3 food to prepare a holiday meal, and a holiday gift program. Our comprehensive approach giv
es parents the tools they need to make lifelong changes that prevent future homelessness and provide stability for their children. The Prevention and Diversion Program works with families experiencing a housing crisis but who are not homeless, with the exception of families in transitional housing. Family Navigators work with these families to provide case management, direct financial assistance, supportive services, and referrals to outside resources. Our team provides initial screening, working with each household to identify barriers that have led to homelessness and developing goals to remedy each barrier. Our goal is to intervene before a family becomes homeless and provide the tools and resources needed to maintain their current housing or find alternative stable housing. Our supportive services provide access to our onsite food pantry, mental health counseling, career coaching, life skills education, acute health care services, and financial support for childcare and transportation. The program will be implemented by our Prevention team. This team is staffed by dedicated, experienced professionals with a passion for preventing and ending homelessness, and includes Prevention Manager Lisa Perez (4 years), Senior Family Navigator Briana Velazquez (4 years), and Family Navigator Tania Liceaga (3 years). Resumes for these three staff are provided in this proposal. The Prevention Team is supervised by our Director of Programs Rosalinda Bermudez who has over 12 years of experience in the field. Our Prevention team will work collectively with other Families Forward teams who provide case management, counseling, housing resources, and career coaching. Many of our staff have decades of experience of dedicated service to helping families achieve housing stability.
Families Forward has 40 years of experience applying for, receiving and administering CDBG, ESG, HOME, HHAP and other public grant funds (local, county, and federal) to help families achieve housing stability and financial self-sufficiency. Grants that Families Forward is either currently administering or has administered include Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA), CDBG with 10 cities (Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Lake Forest, Laguna Niguel, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, Orange, Rancho Santa Margarita, Tustin) CDBG-CV for Costa Mesa, Irvine, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Rancho Santa Margarita, and Santa Ana, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), COVID-19 Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG-CV), Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP), California Emergency Solutions and Housing (CESH), Emergency Housing Voucher (EHV) with the County of Orange, HOME funds, HHAP funds and various private grants.
Many o
f these grants specifically focus on prevention. Currently, we work with the City of Irvine on their ESG prevention grant, the City of Costa Mesa on both their Tenant Based Resident Assistance grant and a new No-Fault Eviction Prevention grant, and the Emergency Food and Shelter Program grant administered by the United Way. We are in a collaborative of providers, including the United Way, who have been selected to administer EXHIBIT 2
4 the County’s new countywide 2-y ear Prevention and Stabilization Pilot Program. We are also part of an Irvine-led Eviction prevention program and chair the county-wide eviction diversion task force, which looks at intersectionality between courts and the intervention offered by service providers such as ours. We also work with private grantors on prevention initiatives. We are currently concluding a grant from San Diego Gas and Electric which provided over $200,000 of rental assistance to their customers in Orange County, worked with Providence Hospital on a prevention program that focused on direct payments to residents in need, and are working with the Samueli Foundation on a new countywide prevention initiative.
We
partner with a large variety of nonprofit organizations, including Fair Housing, United Way, Human Options, Providence Hospital, South County Outreach, Abrazar, Family Assistance Ministries, Laura’s House, and the Family Solutions Collaborative, to ensure that residents get the supportive services they need beyond rental assistance, and will bring that expertise to this work.
In addi
tion to our past experience, Families Forward currently operates an agency budget of over $12 million with a healthy amount of reserves making it feasible for the agency to expend the grant amount of $730,046 before reimbursement is received from the City of Santa Ana. Families Forward understands the importance of having a diverse funding base.
The strength of our budget comes from a balanced approach of government, corporate, foundation and individual contributions to implement programs and services. Funding comes from government grants, private foundation and corporate grants, and the community through contributions and in-kind donations.
We
are proud to share, for the 14th consecutive year, that we have earned Charity Navigator’s top 4-Star rating, placing our agency among the top 2% of rated charities nationwide. Additionally, Families Forward was recently awarded the 2024 Platinum Seal of Transparency. Due to Families Forward's exemplary management of resources, an extensive volunteer corps, and thousands of in-kind donations, 90% of financial contributions directly fund programs and services for our clients. This further highlights Families Forward’s financial capacity to manage and expend ERA2 funding from the City of Santa Ana.
Fam
ilies Forward operates as an access point in the Central and South Service Planning Areas and recognizes the need to have a physical presence in both SPAs. Our Santa Ana EXHIBIT 2
5 office is at 1801 E. Edinger Street and is easily accessible by public transportation and car.
All
our services can be accessed in this office. Families Forward’s Headquarters is located at 8 Thomas in Irvine.
The primary contact for this bid process will be Nishtha Mohendra, Chief Program Officer.
Her email is [email protected]. Should Families Forward be selected for the grant, Lisa Perez, Prevention Manager, will serve as the Project Manager.
Proposed Work Plan
As the City of Santa Ana is aware, with the end of the eviction moratorium that had been put in place to prevent evictions during the pandemic, families are now facing homelessness at a high rate, with landlords eager to evict with one missed rent payment.
Given the high cost of living and increased spending on essentials such as food, transportation, health care, childcare, and other essential household bills, families are easily falling behind on housing payments. According to the U.S. Census Household Pulse Survey, many low-income people and people of color are disproportionately impacted by the rapid increase in rent. Nearly half of those families falling behind on rent are between “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to be evicted. This sentiment is primarily due to these individuals not earning enough to cover their living expenses. Many residents have compounding barriers, such as informal renting arrangements, undocumented or mixed immigration status, large, multigenerational households, and mental health concerns.
Thus, organizations like Families Forward that can provide flexible rental assistance and other comprehensive housing and supportive services are crucial to families and individuals facing homelessness.
Through an Eviction Prevention Program grant with the City of Santa Ana, Families Forward will serve Santa Ana residents who are facing eviction through direct housing subsidies and our comprehensive safety-net services, including housing search and stabilization services, case management, motel vouchers, mental health counseling, food pantry access, and various seasonal programs including Back-to-School supplies. Families Forward has an extensive history providing this type of program, having partnered with the City of Santa Ana specifically through ERA funding as well as through a partnership with the Santa Ana Unified School District. Families Forward is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of the City, given our depth of knowledge and the breadth of wrap-around services we provide. As such, Families Forward is ready to begin implementation of the Eviction EXHIBIT 2
6 Prevention Program on day one of the grant term. Our staff is poised to work closely with that
of the City of Santa Ana to further develop a project plan based on City specific needs and to provide regular progress reports and status updates throughout the grant term.
Eac
h resident is triaged, and an individualized action plan is created to ensure the greatest success for them. Families Forward’s goal is to have a client-centered approach grounded in Housing First and Trauma Informed Care, ultimately diverting families from shelter and literal homelessness; however, if resident need more intensive support, including rental assistance and case management, Families Forward will provide those services as well.
The frequency and length of client services will be tailored to match individual needs and will be determined through a best-practice Progressive Engagement model. Based on need, our programs will provide vulnerable residents with financial, utility, and/or rental assistance, case management, conflict management assistance, and connection to mainstream services such as welfare agencies. In addition, a Family Navigator will provide housing search support, ensuring families that need a new housing option have access to the best solution for their particular needs. Families Forward provides each resident with a housing plan and specific action plan developed through a diversion assessment unique to a family’s circumstances and level of need.
Ty
pically, Families Forward makes payments directly to landlords, but we have experience and capacity to make direct payments to tenants if extenuating circumstances require that. Additionally, we can provide assistance to both clear existing debts and past due rent and can provide ongoing rent for clients that need it. Using a progressive engagement model we aim to offer up to 3 months of financial assistance, in a shallow subsidy model and up to 12 months of case management and supportive services. Usually if a client has incurred significant past due rent, they will also require some support to move past the immediate crisis and regain stability.
We
will take a broad approach to outreach for this program which will leverage our existing presence in Santa Ana, partnerships with many other agencies in Santa Ana and throughout the County, participation in the eviction prevention collaboratives and the Family Coordinated Entry System, social media, and traditional outreach methodologies such as community fairs. We will work closely with the City of Santa Ana to create a seamless referral process that will prioritize residents that seek support from the City and will build on our existing relationship with the Santa Ana Unified School District to do the same. We will communicate with our many nonprofit partners that they may also refer their clients to this program. If selected for this program, any Santa Ana residents that come to Families Forward through eviction prevention collaboratives, Coordinated Entry, or simply EXHIBIT 2
7 through phone calls to our front desk will be evaluated by our team for el igibility in this program. We will also leverage our Food Pantry and seasonal programs as an outreach source. In the past 12 months, our Food Pantry served at least 215 households from Santa Ana, many of whom are facing other challenges and may be potential candidates for this program. We will outreach to those households—particularly those who come regularly— to identify if they have eviction prevention needs that this program can address. We have an internal triage and ticketing system which will ensure that any Santa Ana resident is identified and shepherded quickly and responsively to minimize the time that in-crisis families need to wait.
One
of the biggest challenges in ensuring the success of this program is our ability to provide lasting change for each resident served. While providing housing subsidies once for past due rent may be all some families need to avoid eviction, Families Forward is prepared to assist beyond that should a resident need more in-depth assistance to reach long term housing stability. In tandem with the services outlined above, Families Forward will provide an array of comprehensive supportive services from both our Santa Ana office and our Irvine-based Program Center, as needed, including an on-site food pantry which typically serves more than 30,000 meals annually, a Mental Health Counseling program, one-on-one career coaching, life-skills education, and support for low-income children and adults returning to school and during the holidays.
Ano
ther challenge we have seen for residents is a language barrier, leaving parents at a disadvantage when looking for housing, jobs, or counseling. For this reason, Families Forward remains committed to hiring staff across all client-based programs which are bi- lingual/bi-cultural in languages such as Spanish, Vietnamese, and others. Also, with funding from another source, Families Forward currently has an active subscription with Boostlingo, which is offered to all our clients. Through Boostlingo, our clients have access to video remote interpretation and over-the-phone interpretation with access to many languages and professional interpreters. By eliminating the language barrier, our clients receive equal opportunities through our comprehensive services to address the long-term needs of their families.
Fam
ilies Forward believes strongly in accountability and meeting all program outcomes and our Eviction Prevention Program will be no different. All client files are reviewed both by a program manager and our dedicated Data and Compliance team for service quality and compliance. Program teams hold regular team meetings and supervisory meetings to review all client work. Client case files regularly undergo quality assurance checks to EXHIBIT 2
8 ensure all relevant information is being documented and tracked. We hold monthly Grant Trac
king Meetings for all program management staff. At these meetings, we review performance to all grant objectives and problem solve any issues. Our managers also maintain spreadsheets for all grants as real-time monitors for performance, spending, and deliverables. Families Forward tracks and evaluates progress made towards these goals with the HUD-approved Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and if needed on an internal database called CiviCore. We calculate the long-term success of our Housing Program by assessing the number of residents who graduate from our program and do not re-enter the homeless service system within one year. Our process for this calculation includes cross-referencing the names of graduate residents with the county- wide HMIS database. Residents are assessed at the time of entry into all programs. This baseline gives us a starting place to track a family’s success. Data is gathered, and an evaluation is administered at the completion of the program at six months and one year after. Information gathered includes resident issues, barriers to housing, employment history, housing stability, drug and alcohol use, education, and other demographics.
Families Forward projects serving approximately 150 households through this $730,046 Eviction Prevention Program grant. We anticipate $568,476 of program assistance being available at an average of $3,790 per client. Although it is not possible to project the exact household size, we estimate approximately 40 single adult households, 25 households with two adults, and 85 families with minor children with an average family size of 3.5 individuals. Based on these estimates, Families Forward’s Eviction Prevention Program will serve at least 387 unduplicated Santa Ana residents. During the grant term, this is broken down by quarter as follows:
Grant Quarter New residents served Dollars expended to date Quarter 1 75 $77,500
Quarter 2 100 $220,000
Quarter 3 110 $385,000
Quarter 4 102 $568,476
This
schedule allows for a slight ramp up period at the beginning of the grant term, and reserves grant funds to ensure that support is available throughout the term.
Grant deliverables for this funding will be:
• Serving 150 households (approximately 387 individuals) with rental assistance to prevent eviction
EXHIBIT 2
9 • Providing supportive services such as case management, seasonal programs, food pantr
y access, and other individualized services as needed by clients • At least 95% of those receiving services will remain housed 6 months after receiving services.
Key Performance Indicators for this grant will track these deliverables closely. Our Data and Compliance team will create a grant dashboard showing the number of households and individuals supported each month, the number receiving additional supportive services, and, for those who have exited the program, their housing status. This dashboard will be reviewed internally by the Prevention Manager and Program Director, bi-weekly, and will be shared with the City of Santa Ana at all regular meetings. This will be a critical step to ensure that the rental assistance is being disbursed at the correct pace, to prevent either money being left unspent at the end of the grant term or the money being spent too quickly, with nothing remaining in the final quarter. If other KPIs are identified by the City or Families Forward, they will be added to the dashboard and tracked accordingly.
Fun
d Utilization Proposal
As detailed in the program budget, we are requesting the maximum amount of 730,046 for the Santa Ana Eviction Prevention Program. We will take great care to maximize the amount of funding that will provide direct project support to Santa Ana residents and will minimize administrative and staffing costs.
Families Forward is requesting the de minimis 10% for administrative costs which will cover all indirect and administrative costs. These costs include program leadership and oversight, data and compliance functions such as income verification, data entry, and reporting, finance functions such as cutting checks, verifying w-9 forms for landlords, and all financial tracking and reporting, and any other required administrative tasks. The administrative costs will also cover any program operational costs that arise, such as social media marketing.
We are also requesting 1.1 FTE for staffing, which includes 1 FTE of a trained and experienced front line prevention staff specialist and .1 FTE of our Prevention Manager who will serve as the main project manager and liaison with the city of Santa Ana. The remainder of the budget, 568,476, will be entirely available for rental assistance, either provided to landlords or directly to residents in the rare cases when that is determined as necessary. With our expectation of serving 150 households, this provides an average assistance of 3,790 per household. Families Forward will work closely with the City of Santa Ana to develop a process by which clients will be vetted for this program, balancing getting support out quickly to address immediate needs while also reserving some funding EXHIBIT 2
10 for clients that have needs later in the grant term. This will require consistent monitoring of commu
nity needs, grant expenditures, and communication with the City to ensure funds are deployed effectively.
Budget Proposal
Expense Amount
Rental Assistance $568,476
Personnel Costs – Staffing (See Rate Sheet) $88,570
Administrative Costs $73,000
Operational Costs $0
TOTAL: $730,046
Rate Sheet
Role Status Hourly
Rate
Total Projected
24/25 Salary +
Benefits
FTE for
Project
Projected
Cost
Prevention
Manager
Exempt N/A $103,200 10% $10,320
Family Navigator Non-
Exempt
$33.00 $78,249.60 100% $78,249.60
TOTAL: $88,569.60
EXHIBIT 2
Lisa P
erez
Work Experience____________________________________________________________________________________ Families Forward, Irvine, CA February 2023- Present Service Navigation Manager
♦ Hire, train, manage, and evaluate a diverse team of Family Navigators ensuring consistent quality, Trauma Informed Care services focusing on Housing First approaches to ending and preventing family homelessness ♦ Manage the integration of Families Forward as an access point into the Family Solution Collaborative’s Family Coordinated Entry System for the central and south service planning areas. ♦ Oversee program evaluation, metrics, best practice evolution, and system improvements as it relates to Prevention & Diversion, the Housing Program, and Housing Navigation. ♦ Monitor financial transactions and budget spending related to the Prevention & Diversion programs & prepare for grant monitoring and audits.
♦ Track and manage support team caseload and service deliverables & assist with assessing families’ challenges, strengths, and areas where they may need assistance.
♦ Ensure that all grant-required documentation is maintained appropriately and that all case files are current and compliant with grant requirements. Evaluate the entry, storage, retrieval, and quality control of client information on client databases.
Families Forward, Irvine, CA December 2021- February 2023 Senior Housing Resource Specialist
♦ Oversee day-to-day coordination of the housing resource specialist team, caseload assignments, and training. ♦ Collaborate with Data Quality Specialist in collecting, maintaining, and compliance of all grants-required documentation and reporting metrics for housing programs. ♦ Provide supervision to housing resource specialists during case conferencing sessions and assist HRM with semi- annual and annual evaluations
♦ Collaborate with Case Manger after the client is matched to complete the enrollment process with clients - including packet review and tenant screening.
♦ Assist and collaborate with Senior Case Manager in the monitoring and tracking of program delivery to grant requirements
♦ Provide risk mitigation and serve as an ongoing liaison for property managers, community managers, and private landlords.
♦ Facilitate workshops and training for families and agency staff members Families Forward, Irvine, CA August 2020- December 2021 Housing Resource Specialist
♦ Responsible for identifying permanent housing for families experiencing homelessness and working with diverse populations such as military-connected, veterans, and refugee families ♦ Created partnerships with apartment communities, affordable housing, and private landlords to increase housing opportunities for homeless families
♦ Collaborate with other housing agencies and housing authorities throughout the county to network and provide an easy transition for the family
♦ Facilitate Tenant education training for families and community ♦ Conduct HUD inspections & monthly home visits to caseload to ensure units stability ♦ Continually monitor SFSC deliverables to ensure completion of goals (Housing training, case management sessions, Outreach sessions)
♦
Human Options, Santa Ana, CA August 2019- August 2020 Family Support Specialist/ Certified Peer Navigator
♦ Provide comprehensive case management and family advocacy services to military-connected families experiencing domestic violence.
EXHIBIT 2
♦ Provide case management and family advocacy services to families referred from community-based agencies and OC Social services Differential Response program & Emergency Response Program ♦ Facilitate military competency training & domestic violence safety presentations to collaborating agencies ♦ Provide ongoing guidance and education to FRC and SFSC staff of Domestic violence (safety planning, intake support, and asking questions regarding domestic violence) ♦ Manage project and emergency assistance spending budgets to ensure end of year spend outs ♦ Participate in collaboration meetings with internal programs, partner agencies, OC social services and community-based agencies
The Priority Center (formerly Child Abuse Prevention Center), Anaheim, CA August 2016-December 2017 Monitored Visitation Specialist
♦ Facilitated court-mandated visits between parents and children who reside in out-of-home placement ♦ Assisted Children and Family Services Social workers with the ongoing observation of children to assist in their safety and kept in constant contact with social workers regarding cases ♦ Ensured a safe and secure environment for children during visitation and transportation ♦ Provided accurate and objective reports of family interaction during monitored visitation sessions to children and Family Services’ Social Workers using ETO system
♦ Provided crisis intervention during monitored visitation sessions ♦ Kept up to date on caseloads and progress reports to my superiors and attended weekly meetings Institute of Applied Behavior Analysis (IABA), Santa Ana, CA February 2014- November 2014 Behavior Support Staff (Respite)
♦ Served as primary support staff to assist and increase skills in children with developmental disabilities ♦ Maintained and updated work report documentation on a daily basis and kept client’s files up to date and organized
♦ Provided a break in care and supervision to the parents (respite) ♦ Recorded, documented, and submitted information pertaining to billing, time sheet data ♦ Completed the Nonviolent Crisis Intervention training program ♦ Trained 5 new and current staff by providing shadowing opportunities and constructive feedback over a period of 4 months
Volunteer Experience_____________________________________________________________________________ 22qties Unite, Fontana, CA May 2018 - Present Volunteer/ Board Member/Fundraiser Coordinator
♦ Attend monthly Board of Directors meetings
♦ Organize, coordinate and assist in major fundraising events. ♦ Planning and running activities during nonprofit scheduled events for families ♦ Provide presentation to additional board member on event for non profit ♦ Collaboratively write grant proposals to secure funding ♦ Prepare materials for fundraising events and attend networking events to bring in new donors Education__________________________________________________________________________________________ ♦ California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) Fullerton, CA 92831 August 2014-May 2016 Bachelor of Arts in Sociology Concentration in Health & Social Welfare Professional Trainings ______________________________Skills____________________________________________ ♦ CPR, First Aid & Mental Health First Aid ♦Computer: MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Exym ♦ Crisis Intervention Training completed (CPT) ETO, Vista share, Civicore, HMIS, One page, ♦ Completion of 40-hour Domestic Violence training ♦Knowledgeable of Mandated Reporting Laws ♦ AAOC Certified Housing Provider Training ♦ Fluent in Spanish ♦ Completion of Peer support and Recover Training
♦ Fair Housing Certification Training
EXHIBIT 2
Briana Velasquez
Education
Brigham Young University-Idaho April 2016
Bachelor of Science in Social Work
Professional Development and Skills
• Certified Domestic Violence Advocate, 2017
• Fluent in Spanish
• Proficient Microsoft Office program use
• Databases: VistaShare, HMIS, CiviCore, CalWIN
Work Experience
Families Forward-Irvine, CA
Senior Family Navigator November 2021-Present
• Assist in the oversight of the day-to-day coordination and support of the Family Navigator team and program • Train and oversee program volunteers; plan and run a bi-monthly volunteer meeting • Collaborate with agency staff in the collection, maintenance, and compliance of all grant requirement documentation and reporting of metrics for housing program
• Assist in the monitoring and tracking of program delivery in relation to grant requirements • Maintain duties performed as Family Navigator
Family
Navigator June 2020-November 2021
• Assess immediate needs to provide resources and information to families experiencing homelessness • Administer Coordinated Entry System (CES) program assessments to connect clients to services • Coordinate diversion plans as appropriate to assist literally homeless families outside of CES services • Advocate for literally homeless clients in weekly Housing Placement Match Meetings • Perform timely data entry and submit case notes into the Homeless Management Information System • Complete rental assistance process and comply with federal grant and general fund requirements • Provide commun ity resource linkage, goal setting, and budgeting for families receiving rental assistance Children’s Bureau at Oak View Family Resource Center- Huntington Beach, CA Family Stabilization (FS)/Family Support Specialist July 2017-June 2020 • Partnered with CalWORKs case managers to develop an individualized service plan for FS clients • Provided clients support with job readiness skills, budgeting, crisis management, health, and child safety • Aided families in crisis situations such as immediate need for food, clothing, employment or shelter • Maintained monthly housing and emergency assistance budget • Connected FS families to FRC services, such as parenting, counseling, and domestic violence education Family Support Specialist June 2016-July 2017
• Assessed cli
ent needs, connected clients to resources and maintained client case notes and files • Presented cases to a multidisciplinary team and collaborated to link families to needed services • Provided crisis intervention and safety planning for clients • Organized and facilitated life skills and community workshops, while also supporting other FRC events • Experience in reporting child and elderly abuse to the County Child Abuse Registry Social Wo
rk Intern-Corbin FRC January 2016-June 2016
• Learned and practiced the Family Support Specialist role. • Assisted the FRC I nformation and Referral Specialist and other FRC staff in completing daily FRC tasks.
Jefferson County School District 251- Ri gby, ID
Social Work Intern September-December 2014
• Assisted
the school counselor and behavioral companion with observation recording , activity planning, and social skills groups and lessons
• Worked with at risk children with behavioral needs and their families • Assisted in translating between teachers and parents
EXHIBIT 2
Tania Liceaga
Objective: Seeking a position where I can utilize my social service skills in the community .
Experience
JUNE 2021 - PRESENT
F
amilies Forward, Irvine - Family N avigator
● Manage monthly caseload of 50 clients providing homeless prevention/diversion services ● Navigate families through the Coordinated Entry System by screening for eligibility, providing resources, referrals to shelters, and permanent housing program opportunities. ● Review client files weekly to complete housing intakes, data entry, and case management ● Conduct housing assessment plans, document collection, develop client goals, address client barriers, and input client data in the Homeless Management Information System ● Collaborate with Career specialists, Housing staff, and Counselors to assist families ● Establish and maintain relationships with local agencies and families to meet housing goals MARCH 2019 - JUNE 2019
South Coast Community Services, Costa Mesa - Mental Health Care Worker ● Assisted Transitional Age Youth in a holistic approach to assess client’s behaviors ● Conducted therapeutic interventions, rehabilitation, and case management services ● Facilitated daily group therapy sessions on mental health and independent living skills ● Developed client goal sheets and provided skills for transitioning to attain self-suf ficiency
● Completed client intakes, psychological evaluations, assessments, and program discharges ● Coordinated with the team in weekly treatment meetings to plan individual client goals JUNE 2015- MARCH 2019
Florence Crittenton, Fullerton - Residential Counselor
● Provided direct care to high-risk minor aged children in a group home setting ● Encouraged youth to use healthy skills to improve coping mechanisms ● Implemented Therapeutic Crisis Intervention and behavior management ● Designed, coordinated, and facilitated recreational activities for youth onsite and school ● Documented youth case notes in activity logs and reports on home visits Education
JUNE 2013 - MAY 2015
California State University, Fullerton - Bachelor of Arts, Psychology Skills
Bilingual in Spanish ● Records Management ● Motivational Interviewing ● Adaptability ● Con flict
Management ● Collaborative skills ● Crisis Prevention and Intervention ● Organizational skills EXHIBIT 2
Rosalinda Bermudez
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Forward-thinking leader with over 15 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. Driven and ambitious change manager dedicated to continuous improvement focused on enhancing revenue and strengthening business operations. Proven skills in operations oversight, policy development, grant writing, and program operation. Mission focused leader with a passion for local community, diversity, equity and inclusion. Strong technology skills including proficiency in Excel, Microsoft Office Suite and other client database tracking systems. Bilingual in English and Spanish.
Policy Development & Optimizations - Strategic Planning - Contract Management - Budgeting Operational Leadership - Partnerships - Board & Community Relations – Grant Writing
EXPERIENCE
FAMILIES FORWARD, Irvine, CA
Director of Programs 2020-Present
• Manage the daily operations of the housing, prevention, diversion, career, counseling and community resources programs; totaling in approximately $8M in government grant funding • Participate and implement strategic initiatives alongside various constituents including Board of Directors, staff, and industry leaders
• Present and speak on behalf of the agency and the mission at city council meetings, for corporate partners/supporters, volunteer groups, and through various news media outlets • Experienced in the organizational budgeting process offering insight to program revenue, expenses and staff labor allocations.
• Develop and implement new strategies and policies based on emerging industry standards ensuring that services delivery is current and utilizing best practices • Maintain effective staff and resource utilization to balance financial, operational, and contract obligations
• Evaluate program performance by analyzing, interpreting data, metrics and system performance Grant Compliance Manager 2015-2020
• Government grant writing including local city, state and federal grants • Lead agency audits insuring successful clearances on various grant funded projects • Actively monitors data content for third-party thresholds and for internal program goals on a monthly basis, providing feedback to agency and program staff to adjust data entry procedures and program implementation
• Manage and interpret funding regulations, terms, and compliance • Proactively reviews grant requirements for tracking and reporting; clearly communicates service goals by grant to program staff and monitors progress
• Provides all required data for grant reporting and System Performance Measures • Develops and maintains departmental policies and procedures to ensure data quality for the organization
• Implement program evaluation strategies to determine the efficiency and effectiveness of the agency’s programs and services
Career Coach/Case Manager 2013-2015
• Effective direct services provider navigating families through their programmatic experience Rosalinda Rivera – Page Two
EXHIBIT 2
[email protected] – 714.833.0062
WORKING WARDROBES, Costa Mesa, CA
Client Services Manager 2007-2013
• Plan and execute volunteer training and scheduling for volunteers; oversee the management and mentoring of 20–100 volunteers and interns on any given day • Assess, problem solve, and implement tracking system to stay within time and budget restraints • Prepared participants to successfully present themselves to employers by facilitating image and job readiness workshops to groups and individuals
• Work with partner agencies to conduct outreach, follow-up, and develop collaborative relationships to achieve and support client success
• Managed program budget
EDUCATION
Bachelor of Arts, Integrated Social Science 2021
Brandman University Chapman University System, Irvine CA EXHIBIT 2