HDMEFIRS T
Where Homelessness Ends.
11/10/23
We wanted to take a moment to addressa recent situation that hasprofoundly affected our organization and to set the record straight regarding serious and unfounded allegations. Our commitment to transparency and accountability is at the core of our values, and it is essential to share our perspective on the matter.
On October 2, 2023, in response to allegations made by terminated ex-employees of HomeFirst, the San Jose Branch of the NAACPraised concernson behalf of former staff alleging wrongful terminations and discriminating practicesagainst Black employees. Sincethen, there have been storieson the allegations in the San JoseSpotlight.After an internal investigation, we have determined thatt he concerns raised were based on inaccurate and incomplete information. We are confident we made the right decision in accordance with our policies, the best interestsof the organization and our clients, and the law.
While we cannot comment on specific personnel matters, examplesof why an employee may be terminated include:
• Engaging in actsof violence or threats of violence toward fellow employees or clients • Using abusive or threatening language with an employee or client • Violating client-staff boundaries asstated in the Client/Tenant/Guest Interactions Policy Terminations are never taken lightly, but these examples illustrate why terminations sometimesoccur and are necessary. We have invited the former employeesto waive their privacy rightsand publicly make their employee files available, allowing usto refute their tenuous claims more publicly. We believe these files reinforce HomeFirst'sjustified reasonsfor the terminations and rigor taken during the process. The health and safety of clientsand staff isour highest priority.
We would like to unequivocally state thatt he allegations are not only inaccurate but also contrary to the principles and values we hold dear. Over 70%of our approximately 450 employees identify as persons of color. Of that, 14%identify as Black. Among our management team, 66% percentage identify as people of color. For the past six years, our agency has invested in supporting astaff-driven Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEi) council or workgroup. In January of 2023, we hired a DEi Director. Without a doubt, we believe HomeFirst's diverse staff iswhat makes usstronger and more effective as an organization.
Asour community facesthe worst homelesscrisis in decades, we are committed to effectively serving our unhoused neighborsand fulfilling our mission. The heroic effortsof our teams placed 865 individuals in permanent housing in the past fiscal year.
We will continue to celebrate our diverse staff asthey do thisessential workthey are tasked with daily.
Sincerely,
Andrea Urton, CEO Rene Ramirez, COO
_ _____ _ A
O @HomeFirstServices 8 @HomeFirstServices_SCC C, @HomeFirstServices • www.homefirstscc.org V Attachment 2
HGMEFIRS T
Where Homelessness Ends
HomeFirst is a beacon of hope and resilience at the heart of compassionate community action, tirelessly dedicated to addressing homelessness across multiple counties. Through a holistic approach encompassing prevention, outreach, shelter, interim, permanent housing, and management of a coordinated entry system, we are committed to serving and connecting people to resourcesto meett heir immediate needsand long-term housing goals.
FY23 PROGRAM OUTCOMES
JULY1,2022 -JUNE30,2023
OURVISION
We envision a community in
which everyone hasa home.
I
T35 I &DpT s
COMPLETEDTOSUPPORTACCESSTO
PERMANENTHOUSING OPPORTUNITIES
150,123 EMERGENCY INTERIM HOUSING SITES
NIGHTLY SHELTER STAYS
TO 2,800 PARTICIPANTS
<¿ EXCEEDEDLOCALSHELTERBENCHMARKS BY
1111
9%,GRADUATING 41% OFPARTICIPANTS
INTO PERMANENT HOUSING.
OUR MISSION
Every day HomeFirst worksto
end homelessnessby
providing a fullspectrum of
servicesto help people find a
home,improve theirlives,and
stay housed. 1
WEMOBILIZEDDURING EXTREME
WEATHERTOSUPPORTOUR
COMMUNITY,OPERATING
EVACUEETRANSITIONFACILITIES.
OURVALUES
Creativity
Excellence
Passion
Respect
Responsibility
Teamwork
Activism
OFTHEPARTICIPANTS
SUCCESSFULLYEXITED THE
PROGRAMTOTEMPORARY
ORPERMANENTHOUSING
DESTINATIONS.
ZLIIELI3 EL-EE3LILLE-IE7LIL3
TACKLEDANEARIMPOSSIBLEHOUSING
MARKET,HELPINGPARTICIPANTSEXPERIENCING
HOMELESSNESSTOMOVEINTOPERMANENT
HOUSINGINAMEDIANOF9I AY .
WEPREVENTED HOMELESSNESS
FOR92%OF THEPARTICIPANTS
SERVED IN OURHOMELESSNESS
PREVENTION PROGRAMS.
OFOURPARTICIPANTSIN PERMANENT
SUPPORTIVEHOUSING ORMAINTENANCE
PROGRAMSRETAINED HOUSING.
Attachment 2
OUR WORKFORCE
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2% 1%
Multi-Racial
•
Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander
Black
14%
White
26%
Hispanic
46%
HOMEFIRST STAFF
DEMOGRAPHICS
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Official logo of the DEi Council
Our organization h as a strict policy against discrimination, including racial discrimination. We have communicated this policy clearly to all employees and provided training to promote diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. In January of 2023, we hired a DEi Director. Further, our core values are further represented by choosing to support a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council (DEIC) m ade up of volunteer staff from across all levels of the organization.Our council has successfully:
• Influenced employee handbook
• Influenced agency Performance Appraisal comp etencies • Participated in comm unity advocac y including SV Pride • Assisted in hiring process of DEi Director and HRDirector Advised on the implementation of mental health days for staff
EXTERNALOVERSIGHT
For the 3rd time in as many tries, we are receiving the 3-year accreditation by CARF,the highest level of accreditation.CARFtests more than 1,000 criteria '· items related to policies,practices,and plans across all agency departments including HR, training, services, leadership, management, and DEi among many others.
Being granted the 3-year accreditation is a testament to our strong policies and procedures across the agency including hiring practices. Additionally, the CARF surveyors formally requested permission to share our DEi plan with other organizations across the country as a model plan. a
'CREDI
U.S. Department of Labor,Office of Federal omn o r ro t«A cor r Compliance Programs (OFCCP), completed
an audit of our equal employment opportunity
policies and found no violations.
Attachment 2
HDMEFIRST
Where Homelessness Ends
ServicesSnapshot in Sunnyvale
Fair Oaks
Hotel/motel placement and supportive servicesfor individualsdisplaced during the encampment resolution of Fair OaksPark in 2020. Case Management serviceswereprovided to ensure connection to essential servicessuch asemergencyshelter, interim housing, and permanent housing.
Fair Oaks Destinations
Discharge Destination
Place not meant for habitation (e.g., a vehicle, an abandoned building, bus/train/subway station/airport or anywhere outside)
Emergency shelter, including hotel or motel paid for with emergency shelter voucher, Host Home shelter
Jail, prison, orjuvenile detention facility
Staying or living with family, permanent tenure
Rental by client, no ongoing housing subsidy
Rental by client,with ongoing housing subsidy
Total:
Sunnyvale Outreach
Street based outreach to individualsexperiencing homelessnessinSunnyvale. Supportive servicesinclude referral to emergencyshelter resources, access to hygiene and other basicneedsassistance, case management and Housing Problem Solving, among others.
Outreach Services Quick Figures:
• 347 Case management and housing problem solving sessions since FY23 • 190 Completed VI-SPDATs, connecting participants into the Coordinated Entry System for possible housing subsidy opportunities.
• 173 basic needs services including provision of hygiene kitsand food • 15 individuals have accessed the reserved emergency shelter beds at BRC • Shelter Average Length of Stay: 19 days
Outreach Services Rendered FY23-Present:
Program Name Service Name Unique # of
Clients Services
City of Sunnyvale Outreach Case Management (Sunnyvale): El 5 5Camino and Bernardo City of Sunnyvale Outreach Case Management (Sunnyvale): Fair Oak 20 25Park City of Sunnyvale Outreach Case Management (Sunnyvale): 3 3Fairwood Park # of Clients Percentage
5 16.13%
14 45.16%
1 3.23%
2 6.45%
3 9.68%
6 19.35%
31 100.%
Attachment 2
HOMEFIRST
Where Homelessness Ends
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
City of Sunnyvale Outreach
Case Management (Sunnyvale):
Lakewood Park
Case Management (Sunnyvale) Orchard
Garden Park
Case Management (Sunnyvale): Other
Location
Case Management (Sunnyvale) Pastoría
and Hermosa
Case Management (Sunnyvale): Sonora
Court
Case Management (Sunnyvale):
Sunnyvale City Center
Case Management (Sunnyvale):
Sunnyvale Community Center
Case Management (Sunnyvale):
Sunnyvale Library
Case Management (Sunnyvale): Wolfe
and Stewart (Lowe's Parking Lot)
Clinical Services (Sunnyvale): Sunnyvale
Community Center
Clinical Services (Sunnyvale): Wolfe and
Stewart (Lowe's Parking Lot)
HPS (Housing Problem Solving) Success
(Sunnyvale): Pastoría and Hermosa
HPS (Housing Problem Solving) Success
(Sunnyvale): Sunnyvale Library
5 8
27 18
11 5
26 17
11 10
84 43
21 8
81 51
Outreach Destinations:
Discharge Destination
Place not meant for habitation (e.g., a vehicle, an abandoned building, bus/train/subway station/airport or anywhere outside)
Emergency shelter, including hotel or motel paid for with emergency shelter voucher, Host Home shelter
Hospital or other residential non-psychiatric medical facility Jail, prison, orjuvenile detention facility
Transitional housing for homeless persons (including homeless youth) Hotel or motel paid for without emergency shelter voucher Staying or living with family, temporary tenure (e.g., room, or house) Staying or living with family, permanent tenure
Rental by client, no ongoing housing subsidy
Rental by client,with ongoing housing subsidy
No exit interview completed
Deceased
Total:
# of Clients Percentage
29 27.36%
14 13.21%
1 0.94%
4 3.77%
1 0.94%
2 1.89%
2 1.89%
1 0.94%
2 1.89%
3 2.83%
46 43.4%
1 0.94%
-106 100.%
Attachment 2
HDMEFIRST
Where Homelessness Ends
Sunnyvale Shelter
Nightlyshelter operated365 daysper year to individualsand householdsreferred by the Here4You Hotline.
Supportiveservices availableinclude access to mealsand showers, on on-staff Clinician, cose management, and Housing Problem Solving.
Services Rendered FY23:
Service Name
Case/Care Management: Case/Care Management
Aftercare: Case Management
Clinical Services: Intervention
Unique
Clients
241
27 3
# of
Services
1,669
40 9
Destinations FY23:
Discharge Destination
Place not meant for habitation (e.g., a vehicle, an abandoned building, bus/train/subway station/airport or anywhere outside)
Emergency shelter, including hotel or motel paid for with emergency shelter voucher, Host Home shelter
Hospital or other residential non-psychiatric medical facility Jail, prison, orjuvenile detention facility
Long-term care facility or nursing home
Psychiatric hospital or other psychiatric facility
Substance abuse treatment facility or detox center
Transitional housing for homeless persons (including homeless youth) Hotel or motel paid for without emergency shelter voucher Staying or living with family, temporary tenure (e.g., room, apartment, or house)
Staying or living with friends, temporary tenure (e.g., room, apartment, or house)
Staying or living with family, permanent tenure
Staying or living with friends, permanent tenure
Rental by client, no ongoing housing subsidy
Rental by client,with ongoing housing subsidy
Total:
# of Clients
343
111
18 6
3 1
2 6
1 1
8 13
6 29
29 577
Percentage
59.45%
19.24%
3.12%
1.04%
0.52%
0.17%
0.35%
1.04%
0.17%
0.17%
1.39%
2.25%
1.04%
5.03%
5.03%
i 1 o .%
Attachment 2
HDMEFIRST
Where Homelessness Ends
FY 23 Pay Rates I Santa Clara County - Services Positions Position Rate
Director $121,275.00 Annual
Manager $95,917.50 Annual
Shift Supervisor $35.57 Hourly
Resident Coordinator $22.44 Hourly
Resident Advocate $25.99 Hourly
Peer Specialist $27.30 Hourly
Outreach Specialist $28.56 Hourly
PSH Outreach ** ** $29.81 Hourly
Case Manager $29.77 Hourly
Housing Specialist $29.77 Hourly
BenefitsSpecialist $29.77 Hourly
IQ Placement Coordinator $29.77 Hourly
Healthcare Navigator $29.77 Hourly
IQ Placement Navigator $29.40 Hourly
PSH Resident Coordinator $29.77 Hourly
Clinician $41.35 Hourly
'9 408.539.2100 o@HomeFi,stSe~ im • @HomeFi,stS,<,i<es_SCCo@HomeFi,stSe,,im e www.homefüstscc.ocgo Attachment 2
11/14/23, 10.32AM Shewas homeless and abused. Now,she's a CEO in Silicon Valley NEWS >HOUSING• News
Shewashomeless andabused.
Now,she's aCEOin Silicon
Valley
It can happen toanyone,Andrea Urton says
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA- FEBRUARY08:Andrea Urton, CEO of HomeFirst,which runs Santa Clara County's biggest homeless shelter, poses for a portrait on Feb. 8, 2021, in San Jose. Calif. (Dai Sugano/BayArea News Group) •
By MARISA KENDALLI Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: March 8, 2021 at 6:00 a.m. I UPDATED: March 9, 2021 at 8:29 a.m.
https://www.mercurvnews.com/2021/03/08/she-was-homeless-and-abused-now-shes-a-ceo-in-silicon-vallev/ 1/7 Attachment 2
11/14/23, 10 32AM She was homeless and abused. Now, she's a CEO in Silicon Valley The question, as she stood in front of a roomful of angry neighbors complaining about her youth homeless shelter, made Andrea Urton's blood boil.
What happens to these shelter kids, anyway?awoman asked. Do they amount to anything?
"I got really angry and I said very calmly,'Well, some of them grow up to be CEOs of homelessness nonprofits.That'swhat happens to these kids,"' Urton said. "And the room fell silent."
Urton should know. It's exactly what happened to her.
Today, Urton runs the nonprofit HomeFirst Services, making her responsible for Santa Clara County's largest homelessshelter and a network of other programs that support more than 6,000 unhoused people ayear. She's been instrumental in the county and city of SanJose's effortsto shelter people during the pandemic using new, safer models, which other cities now may duplicate.
SANJOSE, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY08: A client spends time inside the Boccardo Reception Center, one of HomeFirst's homeless shelters, on Monday, Feb. 8, 2021, in SanJose, Calif. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
https://www.mercurvnews.com/2021/03/08/she-was-homeless-and-abused-now-shes-a-ceo-in-silicon-valley/ 2/7 Attachment 2
11/14/23, 10.32AM She was homeless and abused. Now, she's a CEO in Silicon Valley But as ateenager abandoned by her abusive, alcoholic father, she was homeless off and on for about four years. After decades of feeling guarded and ashamed of her past, she decided to tell this news organization details of her story, hoping it will help dispel stereotypical views of unhoused people asmentally ill, addicted and dirty.
"When people see me, I look like their aunt,their sister,their mother," 53-year old Urton said, while sitting in her SanJose backyard with her dog Lulu. "I could be any one of them or anyone in their circle. So if that woman could be homeless, then holy cow, maybe it really could happen to anyone.And that's what I want the message to be."
Urton grew up poor outside of LosAngeles,with an older sister, a hard-drinking father and achronically ill mother who died when Urton was 9.
Her father was acharming man who played bongo drums and guitar, but he could also beterrifying, Urton said. She remembers him spanking her so hard he broke his wooden paddle; shoving her to the ground because she spilled a box of cereal; throwing her sister across a room.
Andrea Urton poses for a portrait on Feb. 8, 2021, in San Jose, Calif. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
Memories of the sexual abuse are less clear Urton said she unconsciously https://www.mercurvnews.com/2021/03/08/she-was-homeless-and-abused-now-shes-a-ceo-in-silicon-vallev/ 3/7 Attachment 2
11/14/23. 10:32AM She was homeless andabused. Now, she's aCEO in Silicon Valley Ragan Henninger, deputy director of the San Jose Housing Department, didn't know about the trauma Urton had gone through.
"It sheds a light on why she certainly leads with her heart and is always such a reliable partner," Henninger said. "Even when we call her with the most Herculean of tasks, she's always up for the challenge." One day when she was 15, Urton decided to fight back, punching her father until hefell and she could run away.After that, he began disappearing for weeks or months at atime, often leaving Urton alone without money or food. When he did come home, Urton would couch-surf at friends' houses or sleep in her car.
About one month before Urton's high school graduation, her father told her he'd sold their house and she had to get out. Urton lost the only semblance of home she had.
"I don't want to say it was all worthwhile, because you gothrough life feeling broken to some extent," Urton said. "But at least those terrible experiences have meaning now because it wasn't for nothing.When I meet one of our shelter guests and she says, 'Oh honey I was raped,' I can hold her hand and I can say, Tm so sorry,' because I get it. I know what thatf eels like.'I lost everything, I'm terrified, I'm so hungry.''I get it. Let me give you asandwich. I've been there." Urton worked variousjobsto feed and support herself through school, including at Kentucky Fried Chicken, ashoe store and a businessthat copied medical records for hospitals.Afew months after her father sold their condo, she found a cheap, seedy room to rent. She graduated high school and enrolled in community college. When she was 27, she followed her boyfriend to the Bay Area and finished her psychology degree, and then a master's, at SanJose State University.
Urton launched a career in organizations that focused on families' and childrens' mental health, working her way up from atherapistt o the e-suite. Her father died in 2011. In 2015, Urton was hired as CEO of HomeFirst. https://www.mercurvnews.com/2021/03/08/she-was-ho meless-and-abused-now-shes-a-ceo-in-silicon-valley/ 4/7 Attachment 2
11/14/23, 10.32AM She was homeless and abused. Now, she's a CEO in Silicon Valley California Governor Gavin Newsom, right, and CEOof HomeFirst, Andrea Urton, take a tour during an event celebrating the opening of SanJose's first Bridge Housing Community an interim housing program that provides tiny homes for homeless individuals as they seek permanent housing, on Feb. 27, 2020, in SanJose, Calif. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
She made it look easy, said her sister, 57-year-old Kris Rogers. But Rogers, who remembersthe violence and uncertainty of their childhood, knows it wasn't. "Her experiences really have made her who she is today," said Rogers, who lives in Sacramento, "and she'staken from them and just done something incredible with them."
The pandemic has brought additional challenges over the past year as Urton scrambled to help city and county officials protect homeless residents from COVID-19.The city tapped HomeFirst to turn community centers, convention halls and other spaces into emergency homeless shelters.Then, HomeFirst worked with the city on a new experiment: small, modular unitsthat house people individually to reduce the spread of the virus. Urton'steam runs two of those sites, one at Monterey and Bernal roads, the other on Rue Ferrari. https://www.mercurvnews.com/2021/03/08/she-was-homeless-and-abused-now-shes-a-ceo-in-silicon-vallev/ 5/7 Attachment 2
11/14/23, 10:32AM She was homeless and abused. Now, she's a CEO in Silicon Valley °
An emergency interim housing site on Monterey Road in SanJose is photographed during the grand opening on Friday, Oct. 23, 2020. It's one of two such sites run by HomeFirst. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
Now, San Francisco-based organizations are in talkswith HomeFirst to replicate SanJose's modular model. Officials in Sunnyvale are interested aswell, Urton said. It's exciting,she said, because itf eels like a real solution. "If I would have had a unit available to me like that when I was homeless asa teenager, I would have gone straight to college and graduated instead of at 31, at 23," Urton said. "And I could have started my life and my retirement savings earlier."
Because she's experienced homelessness, Urton listens to the unhoused people she serves and makes changes based on their needs, saidJennifer Loving, CEOof Destination: Home. For example, Urton opened all HomeFirst shelters to pets, so residents don't have to choose between their furry companion and a bed.
Bruce Ives, CEO of LifeMoves,called Urton's decision to share her story "incredibly brave."
"There area lot of other people out there who are going through similar things now," he said. "And being able to hear Andrea's story,to read about what she wentt hrough, I think it would be incredibly helpful for a lot of other people." https://www.mercurvnews.com/2021/03/08/she-was-homeless-and-abused-now-shes-a-ceo-in-silicon-vallev/ 6/7 Attachment 2