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Page 1 COMMUNITY ACTION PROGRAM PLAN SFY 2023 NOTE: This document contains text in GREY and BLACK font. GREY indicates that the text is guidance from the Division of Aging and Adult Services. BLACK indicates that the text is part of the Community Action Program Plan itself. Organization: City of Glendale – Community Action Program ADES Contract No: D120-002260 Executive Summary A. Community Action Agency Director: Jean Moreno Address: 5850 W Glendale Ave, Suite B-63 Glendale, AZ 85301 Phone: (623) 930-2973 FAX: (623) 930-2141 B. CSBG Contact Person: Ismael M Cantu Address: 5850 W Glendale Ave, Suite B-51 Glendale, AZ 85301 Phone: (623) 930-2846 FAX: (623) 930-2141 Page 2 I. Agency Overview Please provide a description of the CAA as an organization, its primary functions, mission, responsibilities, organizational structure, and its association as a part of a larger entity if appropriate: Page 3 Mission The mission of the City of Glendale Community Action Program is to provide responsible and efficient support services that foster self-sufficiency and emotional stability to individuals and families facing financial hardship and/or a major life crisis. Responsibilities Glendale CAP operates as the main point of resources for City of Glendale residents facing financial hardships and is the state designated Community Action Agency for Glendale, AZ. Glendale CAP is committed to providing direct services to low and moderate-income Glendale residents in the most dignified and compassionate manner possible. Services include energy assistance payments, municipal utility assistance, crisis assistance for families, rent and mortgage assistance and assistance for residents experiencing homelessness. The four program focus areas are Community Resources and Referrals, Emergency Services, Housing Stability Programs and Case Management. Glendale CAP operates its service delivery throughout the City of Glendale city limits, which includes approximately 248,325 residents with a poverty rate of approximately 17.2%, 26.1% for children under 18 years of age, according to Census.gov 2020: ACS 5-Year Estimates. Glendale CAP maintains an on-going, year- round capacity for providing immediate financial assistance to clients by utilizing a broad base of funding sources. Sources may include: • LIHEAP – Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program • NHN – Neighbors Helping Neighbors • TANF – Temporary Assistance to Needy Families • Wildfire – Arizona non-profit • CDBG – Community Development Block Grant • ESG – Emergency Solutions Grant • CSBG – Community Services Block Grant • Emergency Rental Assistance Program – US Treasury • City of Glendale – Water Assistance Fund Organizational Structure: The City of Glendale Community Action Program operates as one of five (5) divisions within the City of Glendale Community Services Department. Other Divisions include Public Housing, Community Revitalization, Community Engagement and Libraries. Key staff that directly support the CAP mission and assist in the coordination of services for clients for FY23 include: (1) Community Service Director (1) CAP Program Administrator, (1) Administrative Support Supervisor, (2) FTE Administrative Support Specialists, (1) FTE Community Services Representative, Sr., (4) FTE Community Services Representatives, (7) Temporary Community Service Representatives and (3) Temporary Administrative Support Specialists. Glendale CAP anticipates the recruitment and hiring of (4) Success Coaches during the first quarter of FY23, two specifically to work with our homeless clients and two that will take referrals from the community and CAP to establish goals aimed at attaining self-sufficiency. Page 4 Please identify subcontracting agencies, CSBG funding levels, and services provided by each agency: SUBCONTRACTING AGENCIES AGENCY NAME ADDRESS TELEPHONE NUMBER SERVICES PROVIDED CSBG FUNDS AWARDED NONE TOTAL II. Assessment of Community and Clients A Community Needs Assessment (CNA) is an opportunity to not only find out what assistance clients within your community require, but also how a client would need that service delivered. That is, how to create the best implementation processes to deliver a required service. It may become self-defeating for a Community Action Agency (CAA) to plan for and implement a program, service or activity that has little impact, not because it was not a needed service or a good strategy, but because the processes of implementation prevented clients from taking full advantage of the assistance provided. The client knows best how he or she could use a service to its full potential, and so gathering this kind of information during a CNA could inform implementation practices at a later stage. Time and resources often prevent for in-depth, long term study of problems. An ideal situation would allow for a review of existing information, the creation of a research design, the identification of variables, data gathering, analysis, interpretation and communication of results and a CNA review process. Though all of these steps are no doubt important, the use of standard research practices may not be the most effective way to assist clients, especially in the face of the immediate and dire assistance need. That being said, it should be noted that there should be as much focus as possible on the correct identification and operationalization of variables within the CNA. In other words, Agencies must be very clear about what they want to look at when conducting a CNA (the variables), and how they will measure it (how they are operationalized). Inaccuracies in either of these steps will lead to bad data, false conclusions, low-impact programs, services or activities and therefore an ineffective Strategic Plan. Page 5 Given the difficulty of doing in-depth, long-term community needs research, creating tactics to further assist existing CNA practices may strengthen the results of the CNA. One such tactic may be the cataloguing and analyzing of results of all CNAs over time. This will allow your CAA to track changing — or consistent — needs within your community. Good record keeping practices will also allow CAAs to communicate these changing needs in the form of raw data to other Agencies service providers or the Department of Economic Security to help guide policy so as to better suit the needs of the Agency. Alongside any primary data, a CNA may make use of, amongst other things: o Direct evidence - tangible, visible, self-explanatory information that allows you to deduce a community need that should be addressed, including information directly from a target audience o Indirect evidence – Information that allows you to deduce a community need that should be addressed o Quantitative data and qualitative data – numerical information that is able to measure the size of a community need (e.g. number of clients that need assistance), and descriptive information that is able to give details about that community need (e.g. does a client have a medical condition that prevents them from taking full advantage of a service?) Once completed, two questions to be asked of any CNA are “What are my key findings?” and “How may I use them in creating my Strategic Plan?” Describe below (with page or section references) the CNA key findings which informed the Strategic Plan: Page 6 The Glendale CAP relies on a variety of available reports, surveys, government census information sites and citizen input to complete its needs assessment of low-income people within the Glendale community. Some of the data sources include Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) service priorities and planning documents as well as annual Point-In-Time (PIT), the U.S. Census Bureau, Wildfire publications, Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES), CDBG Annual Action Plan and our in-house CAP60 data base. Glendale CAP also utilizes Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) to track and analyze data related to homelessness efforts and outcomes. According to Census.gov, 2020 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates population estimates for the City of Glendale, AZ is 248,325 and the percent of persons in poverty for the City of Glendale is 17.2%. Based on these estimates, 42,712 residents and 16,057 households in Glendale live at or below the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). For FY22, Glendale CAP assisted approximately 17.6% of the total Glendale households that are at or below the FPL. This was a significant increase from FY21 whereas Glendale CAP was able to provide services to approximately 8% of the total households that were at or below the FPL. This is largely to do with the additional funding provided for crisis assistance by the U.S. Treasury through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP). In preparation for City of Glendale’s HUD 5-year strategic plan, the City of Glendale Community Services Department created and distributed a community needs survey to residents of Glendale, community partners, business owners and others with a vested interest in the future of the service delivery and availability of resources within the city. The surveys were distributed electronically and in paper form between the dates of October 15, 2019 and December 16, 2019. A total of 462 surveys were completed, including 450 in English and 12 in Spanish. 90% of all respondents identified themselves as residents of Glendale. Community needs data collection and analysis revealed 5 major points of concern for survey participants. These included Housing-Related Activities, Community and Public Facilities, Public Services, Barriers to Financial Stability and Infrastructure and Economic Development. Housing Regarding Housing-Related Activities, data revealed the needs of the community to be as having access to affordable energy efficiency improvements, followed by Heating/cooling HVAC replacement or repairs and affordable ADA or senior-safety home improvements and supportive housing for people who are homeless or disabled as the top five concerns. Community and Public Facilities Regarding Community and Public Facilities, the top five identified needs by the community needs assessment were Homeless Shelters, Parks and Recreation Centers, Youth Centers, Facilities for abused/neglected children and Community Centers. Public Services Regarding Public Services, data collection revealed mental health services as the highest needed service in Glendale, followed by Financial Literacy Training, Substance Abuse Services, Services for Victims of Domestic Violence and Crime Awareness Education. Barriers to Financial Stability The five most identified needs in this area were access to living-wage employment, education, housing, transportation, and affordable healthcare. COVID-19 In FY22, the COVID-19 pandemic continued to create uncertainty in the workforce, resulting in a continuing need for emergency assistance. The City of Glendale Community Action Program, assisted approximately 2819 unduplicated households in FY22 to date, expending over $15M in Covid and non-Covid-related funding provided by various sources. Although this community need was not identified during the 2019 Community Needs Assessment (CNA), the need for financial assistance will undoubtedly continue to be a community need at least through the first half of FY23. Page 7 III. Strategic Plan The Strategic Plan is the framework that will guide your Agency’s actions and programs, and it is therefore essential that it is well-thought out. An effective Strategic Plan will be developed along the results of a recent CNA. This will, first and foremost, allow for the identification of the Strategic Plan’s goals and objectives. That is, the results of the CNA will tell you where you want to go, so that you can plan how you will get there. The Strategic Plan will essentially act as a road map on your journey towards your Agency’s various objectives in reaching their ultimate goals. Besides setting out a program’s goals and objectives, a Strategic Plan will outline how best CAA resources, like Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) funds, should be spent in order to achieve those objectives and goals. If the Strategic Plan is the map, then community programs, services and activities is the road upon which an Agency would walk. One must follow the other. Standard planning procedures often assume that plans are constant in the ways in which they guide programs, and are therefore resistant to change and flexibility. Given the ever-changing landscape that CAAs work in, it is extremely important to create Strategic Plans that are able to evolve and adapt with changes in resource-availability and client needs. Building flexibility into a Strategic Plan may be in the form of various alternatives (options) to choose from in the case of unexpected roadblocks, or contingency plans in case of unpredictable events. For example, Strategic Plan flexibility allows for changes to be made if a program evaluation finds that a program, service or activity is not as effective as it should be. Those changes could be in the form of suspending a program while it is reassessed, replacing the program completely, etc. A Strategic Plan should detail all actions that are relevant to a program, service or activity, whether they have already happened or will still happen, from how the results of the CNA were used in creating a Strategic Plan, to methods for implementation, to analysis of results, to program evaluation. This is not only in keeping with the Results Oriented Management and Accountability (ROMA) cycle, but also promotes the development of strong practices in program development and management. The aforementioned actions should certainly include processes for program analysis where feasible. There are several ways to conduct a program analysis. One is to conduct a test for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (a SWOT analysis). Another is a Force Field analysis, which assists a program team in identifying what factors – both internal to an Agency, and external – can help them reach desired objectives (forces for change) and what factors might keep them from reaching those objectives (forces against change). Using a combination of two or more forms of program analysis, or combining elements from each, may assist in meeting the needs, or working within the constraints, of your Agency. Some questions that you could ask of a Strategic Plan may be: i) Is your CAA’s plan based upon the results of your latest CNA? ii) Does the Strategic plan clearly outline its goals and objectives? iii) Are these goals and objectives measurable? Is there a way to determine if they are being met? Are they realistic in their expectation (are they too big to achieve?) iv) Does your program budget clearly and categorically state how funding, like CSBG money, will be used to achieve goals and objectives? Are all stakeholders aware of this? Page 8 v) Does your Strategic Plan align with the Statement of CSBG Assurances? For example, one of the assurances provided by the CAA (below) is to “Support activities that are designed to assist low-income families” – does Strategic Plan outline ways in which this will be done over the short, medium and long term? vi) Does your Strategic Plan include a program-evaluation plan (cf. the Achieve and Evaluate phases of the ROMA cycle)? Is there a way to internally make sure that the plan is being followed, and its objectives are being met? vii) Does your Strategic Plan align with your CAA’s mission statement? Where a Strategic Plan details an activity, service or program that will be used to achieve specific objectives, it is of vital importance to include a way to measure the results of that activity, service or program. Recording the raw results of an activity or program after implementation allows Agencies to compile a database to be used to not only analyze how well a program or service works (as discussed in the Implementation section), but also a Strategic Plan in its ability to move an Agency towards its goals. Data is the cornerstone in program analysis and evaluation, and it is therefore important to have the ability to gather that data built into any program/service/activity design. Analysis of program results requires careful consideration of data. It would do no good at all if a good program was working well was cut (or vice versa) as a result of bad data interpretation. Describe below (with page or section references) the Strategic Plan objectives which informed this CAP Plan: Page 9 Data analysis from the City of Glendale community needs assessment survey identifies five major areas of need: Housing Activities, Community and Public Facilities, Public Services, Barriers to Financial Stability and Infrastructure/Economic Development. Below are the key points and the needs most identified by survey respondents, as well as goals and proposed outcomes to help close gaps in service delivery. HOUSING ACTIVITIES The need for affordable housing continues to be a major source of concern for Glendale’s low-income residents. Additionally, housing for Glendale’s homeless and the availability of affordable energy and ADA and senior safety home improvements for existing low-income homeowners have also been identified as priorities according to survey results. The City of Glendale, with funding from its Community Revitalization division will continue to prioritize the funding of programs that address the need for energy efficiency, home repair and ADA upgrades using CDBG funding. In FY22, the Community Revitalization Division committed approximately $650K of ESG and CDBG, both CARES and non-CARES to Glendale CAP to assist with homeless and rent assistance need in the Glendale community. The issue of sufficient affordable housing for Glendale’s low-income residents will require continued dialogue with lawmakers, landowners, local municipalities, and the public to develop a comprehensive system that allows for working poor to afford housing. COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC FACILITES To address the need for facilities serving special populations such as veterans, mentally ill or children aging out of foster care, it will be the continued strategy of the City of Glendale to rely on long-standing partners who specialize in these areas. The City of Glendale Public Housing Division for FY22 maintained 17 vouchers to assist youth aging out of foster care. To date 13 have been successfully housed and the rest (4) are currently seeking housing to utilize their vouchers. For FY22 to date, approximately $132K has been expended by Glendale Housing to assist these youths. For FY23, the City of Glendale CAP looks forward to hiring four (4) success coaches to assist clients in becoming self-sufficient. One of the groups that will be specifically targeted for this program will be disengaged youths between the ages of 16-24 years of age, a population that would most benefit from workforce and career training opportunities included in wrap-around case management services. Glendale Parks and Recreation Department will continue to partner with CAP to provide after school and summertime programming for adults and children and will continue its relationship with partners specializing in youth-centered activities for its low-income residents. PUBLIC SERVICES The City of Glendale Police Department’s Community Action Teams will continue providing crime-prevention information for all Glendale residents. The Community Services Department will collaborate with community experts in financial literacy to develop a referral system to address this need, especially for recipients of CAP, Public Housing and Community Revitalization services who all require low to moderately low-income status. The need for substance abuse, domestic violence and mental health counseling remains an identified need. Glendale will rely on established partners specializing in these areas to help address these needs. BARRIERS TO FINANCIAL STABILITY Most notably, living wage employment and educational opportunities as it relates to creating more income seem to be of “highest need” in this category. The need for information regarding credit and money management also emerged as major barriers for attaining financial stability. To address these identified needs, Glendale will make efforts to strengthen partnerships with workforce partners to establish a formalized and trackable referral system that will allow for measurable outcomes. Glendale will also explore options with local skills training partners, such as Westmec, Glendale Community College, Arizona Automotive Institute, Arizona Christian University and Arizona@Work, Maricopa County for a possible pilot for underemployed adults as well as disengaged low-income youth to provide training in areas of need. In FY23, the goal will be to strengthen these relationships to establish a referral system for the future success coaches to utilize when they identify a training or workforce need. The Community Services Department will also seek to establish a formalized referral process that includes scheduled follow-ups for Glendale residents wanting financial literacy training to include guidance towards home ownership. INFRASTRUCTURE The City of Glendale is well poised with the introduction of its new Glendale1 service request system to adequately address citizen concerns regarding city properties, roadways, water quality, bridges, and park issues. These were all issues of most concern that were identified in the Community Needs Assessment. BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Second only to Phoenix in Western Maricopa County in population, the City of Glendale boasts a variety of amenities to entice and retain businesses. Glendale is accessible by freeway using four major freeways, public transportation, and its own airport. Glendale is also currently in the process of expanding annexed land along I10 and portions of Loop 303. These future developments will allow for additional business expansions and additions as well as the additions of jobs. Glendale Community Services Department looks forward to working with the city’s Economic Development team to help fill employment gaps with CAP clients seeking employment as the city continues its economic expansion. Success coaches scheduled to be recruited and hired in FY23 will also work with Economic Development to assess what skills are most needed to fill the jobs associated with the 303 expansion. Page 10 IV. Implementation Program implementation strategies should emphasize that CAAs are agents of change, and not simply service providers. Each Agency may have its own contextualized methods of program implementation that meet the unique needs of clients in their own service areas. These methods, however, should be consonant with the overall structure of Community Action as laid out in the Community Services Block Grant Act, as amended (Public Law 105-285 §672 et seq.). The following section asks the Agency to describe its service implementation methods in the context of assurances required by the CSBG Act in Section 676. Since part of the planning process (cf. Section III) is to establish the mechanism through which the CAA will deliver programs to serve low-income communities, it is possible that each of these assurances may be closely aligned with a Strategic Plan objective. The CAA assures that funds made available through the CSBG will be used: o To support activities that are designed to assist low-income families and individuals [‘676(b)(3)(a)], including homeless families and individuals, migrant or seasonal farm workers, and elderly low-income individuals and families; [‘676(b)(1)] Describe below how the Agency will target its activities to such populations: Page 11 o To attain an adequate education, with particular attention toward improving literacy skills of the low-income families in communities involved, which may include carrying out family literacy initiatives; Describe below the Agency’s education strategies for the coming SFY: The Glendale CAP is committed to providing a responsive, customer service-oriented delivery system for our low-income clients utilizing CSBG funds. To learn about our services, Glendale residents can access our website (www.glendaleaz.com/cap) 24 hours per day or call the CAP main phone line of 623-930-2854 Monday through Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding holidays, which has bi-lingual (English/Spanish) customer service staff that can provide instructions on how to apply for services. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Glendale CAP has invested in an application portal that allows for residents to apply for services and includes a document upload feature. This 24/7 access allows for residents to apply from the comfort of their own home and is available in 105 different languages utilizing a built-in Google translate feature. Once an application is received, it is date and time-stamped to preserve our policy of serving on a first come, first served basis. Application materials are reviewed for accuracy and to determine eligibility. When all documents are received and verified, applications are imported into our data tracking system for assignment and processing. Initial and follow-up communication are conducted via telephone as no person-to-person interviews are conducted throughout the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional technology upgrades include a secure document portal for uploading and downloading documents. This allows for obtaining of signatures when required by program rules without having any physical contact with clients. Client with no access to internet, computers or smart phones can visit the Glendale CAP lobby and scan documents into a secure email account (Communityactionprogram@glendaleaz.com) Faxed documents are also accepted and are directed to a digital folder for review and paperless uploads. Prior to COVID-19, elderly home-bound or disabled clients were provided the option of requesting a special accommodation home visit to process applications for services. Accommodations for these clients now consist of telephone calls to guide clients to our application kiosk. Glendale CAP also coordinates with local senior housing facilities to provide mass utility assistance document uploads using one of the platforms described above. The continued barriers to safety posed by COVID-19 continued to restrict in-person utility events, but Glendale CAP looks forward to expanding service delivery to home-bound or restricted movement seniors as the restrictions lessen in FY23. Clients are introduced to case management services during the initial phone call designed to address both immediate and emergency situations as well as long-term issues. The assessment phone call allows caseworkers to determine final eligibility for services and to provide relief for the immediate crisis. Homeless clients can be provided program information documents Monday through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. by visiting the Glendale CAP lobby. The City of Glendale has also contracted with Central Arizona Shelter Services (CASS) on a three-year agreement to address all aspects of homelessness within the City of Glendale. One of the services provided by CASS is the use of a CASS housing navigator to assist homeless residents with finding property managers willing to work with our Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) program. This housing navigator is available to assist by calling the CAP office and requesting contact information for the currently assigned navigator. Additionally, in FY21 the City of Glendale Community Revitalization division created a specialized position of Landlord Liaison which has since been utilized to conduct outreach to Glendale property managers/owners to educate them on the benefits of accepting assistance funding for homeless individuals and families, youth aging out of foster care, and other recipients of HUD-funded vouchers. The duties and job description has expanded during FY22 to meet the changing needs of the community. For Glendale low-income seniors, Glendale CAP works closely with Maricopa County Senior and Adult Services (SAIL) program to ensure that Glendale seniors are provided utility assistance benefits to supplement their income, especially those on fixed incomes. In FY22, Glendale CAP continued this relationship by providing training to SAIL Case Managers on how to most efficiently apply for services using the CAP remote application kiosk and establish a streamlined process for enrolling as many Glendale SAIL clients into the Senior Recertification program as possible. For FY23, Glendale CAP will introduce a new application and case management system which will also include a public facing application kiosk with document upload features. Glendale CAP looks forward to training the SAIL program staff on how to most effectively assist Glendale senior clients in applying for CAP services. Page 12 o To obtain emergency assistance through loans, grants, or other means to meet immediate and urgent family and individual needs; Describe below the Agency’s emergency assistance strategy for the coming SFY: The Glendale CAP provides information for accessing various locations that provide literacy training. Clients are referred to Glendale Community College, Arizona@Work Maricopa County West Valley Center and Western Maricopa Education Center (West-MEC) to improve literacy skills and to pursue training opportunities for high-demand careers. The Glendale CAP also refers clients to one of Glendale’s four branch libraries that offer literacy and reading programs as this is a core mission of Glendale’s libraries. Glendale will make efforts to strengthen partnerships with workforce partners to establish a formalized and trackable referral system that will allow for measurable outcomes. Glendale will also explore options with local skills training partners for a possible pilot for disengaged low-income youth to provide training in areas of need. This was a goal for FY22, but spending deadlines and eligibility barriers made establishing the program difficult. For FY23, Glendale CAP intends to incorporate partners such as West-MEC and Arizona@Work Maricopa County as priority referrals for success coaches due to be hired in early FY23. The program will include working with our own Glendale Economic Development Department to identify labor needs associated with the continuous expansion of Glendale along the 303 corridor to establish a pipeline of low-income clients for high-paying jobs within Glendale. Additionally, Glendale Community Revitalization division has contracted with Phoenix Rescue Mission to add an additional FTE to provide workforce services as part of Glendale Works, an established program that provides day labor opportunities and case management for Glendale homeless. The Community Services Department will seek to establish a formalized referral process that includes scheduled follow-ups for Glendale residents wanting financial literacy training to include guidance towards home ownership. This is a goal that will continue through FY23. Page 13 o To achieve greater participation in the affairs of the communities involved. This may include the development of public and private grassroots partnerships with local law enforcement agencies, local housing authorities, private foundations, and other public and private partners to document best practices for grassroots interventions and to strengthen and improve relationships with local law enforcement agencies; Describe below the Agency’s strategy to promote community participation in civic affairs for the coming SFY: Glendale CAP is the main resource for low-income Glendale residents facing financial crisis. FY22 included the addition of two CAP-dedicated City of Glendale customer service staff hired to address the high call demand from residents seeking CAP assistance exclusively. In FY23, these two CAP-dedicated customer service staff will be included in the City of Glendale general fund budget as permanent positions. Glendale CAP will also continue to utilize and improve the efficiency of our remote application kiosk, as well as alternative secure document submission options to ensure that all Glendale residents have equal opportunities to apply for services. This will include the development of our new Oracle case management, reporting, data tracking and application system that is due to launch during the 2nd quarter of FY23. In FY22, CARES Act and Emergency Rentals Assistance funding allowed Glendale CAP to expand personnel to include the addition of 15 additional staff, both administrative support and eligibility determination staff in order to meet the high demand for services during the pandemic. By the end of FY22, additional temporary staff will be reduced to 9, and likely to 6 or less after the first quarter of FY23. This is due to the anticipated expiration of CARES-related funding and concerns about the future of administrative funding from DES starting after the first quarter of FY23. Glendale CAP does not anticipate receiving any ESG or CDBG funding in FY23. For FY23, Emergency/crisis assistance provided by Glendale CAP will include: • Utility Payment Assistance (LIHEAP, WILDFIRE) • Utility Payment Assistance (LIHEAP ARPA)* • Homeless Assistance (ESG) • First month’s move-in rent assistance (ERA1, TANF) • Eviction Prevention rent assistance (ERA1, TANF, CDBG, CSBG CARES*) • Homeless Assistance (TANF, CSBG CARES*) • Municipal Bill Assistance (Water, Sewer, Trash) CITY OF GLENDALE *expire on 9/30/2022 Page 14 o To meet the needs of low-income youth through initiatives like the creation and expansion of innovative community-based youth development programs that have demonstrated success in preventing or reducing youth crime and promotion of the primary role of the family; [‘676(b)(1)]. The CAA will also use CSBG funds to support these innovative community and neighborhood-based initiatives (related to the purposes of CSBG), which may include fatherhood initiatives and other initiatives with the goal of strengthening families and encouraging effective parenting; [‘676(b)(3)(D)], [‘676(b)(3)(C)] Describe below the Agency’s youth and family-oriented strategies for the coming SFY: Glendale CAP has been a leader in developing partnerships with local social service agencies, law enforcement, public housing programs, parks and recreation, faith-based and other public and private organizations. Continuing in FY23 will be the Stand up for Veterans and Getting Arizona Involved in Neighborhoods (GAIN) Events that include partners in financial services, mental health, business development, education, employment assistance, social service referrals and more. Glendale CAP will continue these long-standing partnerships and strive to create others to expand resources for low-income residents of Glendale. Glendale CAP will also continue to participate in homeless coordination meetings which includes partners such as; Glendale P.D., Glendale Fire, Phoenix Rescue Mission, Community Bridges, Glendale Municipal Courts and others who support the Continuum of Care efforts in Arizona. In FY23, Glendale CAP will continue to partner with Benevilla and Glendale Elementary School District to schedule pop-up resource events at the CAP office for low-income families, especially those with young children and the elderly. In FY23, Glendale CAP looks forward to the reintroduction of Glendale CAP’s annual utility and resource fair. Usually held in November, this event will take place in the spring of 2023 and will include partners offering health care services, nutrition assistance, mental health, financial literacy, homeless services and workforce services. This event will also include a job fair with employers needing to fill immediate vacancies. Glendale CAP will continue to actively participate in Glendale Strong Family Network, a collaboration of community partners with a focus on helping better the lives of young children in Glendale’s poorest neighborhoods. Other participating partners include: Arizona Children’s Association, Vineyard Community Church, Valleywise Health Foundation, Phoenix Rescue Mission, Benevilla, Westside Head Start, Glendale Elementary School District and the Judicial Branch of Arizona, Maricopa County. Other yearly events include, “Sleep in Heavenly Peace”, an event that utilizes volunteers to build beds for children in need, bi-annual food gathering events coordinated through Glendale Elementary School District and Glendale Strong Family Network, and two adopt-a-family events per year, one during the holidays and another in July. Glendale CAP anticipates that these events will continue in FY23 with the assistance of low-income Glendale volunteers. Page 15 o To the maximum extent possible, coordinate, and establish linkages and partnerships between governmental and other social service programs and their providers — including but not limited to religious organizations, charitable groups, and community organizations — to assure the effective delivery of such services to low-income individuals and to avoid duplication of such services. The CAA will coordinate the provision of employment and training activities in the communities with entities providing activities through local workforce investment programs; [‘676(b)(5)], [‘676(b)(9)]. Finally, the CAA will, to the maximum extent possible, establish these aforementioned linkages in order to address gaps in service deliveries, making use of information, referrals, case management, and follow up consultation in order to do so; [‘676(b)(3)(B)] Describe below the Agency’s linkages strategy for the coming SFY: The Glendale CAP works closely with the Glendale Community Center. Operated by Glendale Parks and Recreation, it offers a free drop-in after school recreation program for children 5-14 years of age. It is a non- licensed program that currently runs from August through May during the school year. Snacks and meals are offered to all participants. Glendale CAP refers families to the center for a wide variety of services including the YWCA Food & Nutrition program, homework club and recreational activities. Many of these activities have been shown to reduce criminal activity among youth. Glendale family and youth-oriented partners are well versed on the services provided by Glendale CAP and often make referrals to CAP which strengthens the collaborative approach to meeting family needs. Other resources utilized by Glendale CAP to reduce criminal activity among youths include Boys and Girls Club, Glendale Elementary School District After School Programs, Rose Lane and O’Neill Community Centers and Velma Teague Library which is located within one of the most poverty-plagued neighborhoods of Glendale. The Community Engagement Division of Glendale Community Services will also continue to be a resource for Glendale CAP for family and youth community engagement efforts. Some of these activities include Cesar Chavez day of service, annual fruit gleaning event and Granada Estates Coalition Serve Day. All of these events have historically included a high turnout of youths. Page 16 o To remove obstacles and solve problems that block the achievement of self-sufficiency. This may be achieved by making effective use of program coordination related to the purposes of CSBG, (including State welfare reform efforts); [‘676(b)(1)]. Self-sufficiency is defined as the ability to live beyond reliance upon recurring assistance, and is therefore seen to be a product of, amongst other things, finding/keeping meaningful employment, The Glendale CAP has been instrumental in leading coordination efforts of government and social service programs through the facilitation of quarterly Agency Collaboration Group meetings. Although the COVID-19 pandemic will pose obstacles to meeting consistencies, FY23 will include efforts to revive these meetings on a quarterly basis with the focus being assessing effective delivery of, and appropriateness of the social services being provided to residents. The group will discuss current and emerging issues and develops solutions to these issues while striving to prevent the duplication of services in the Glendale Community. Specifically, these agencies will be included in a list of resources to be utilized by success coaches due to be onboarded in early FY23. These meetings will serve to ensure that the focus and goals, as well as follow up and reporting are coordinated and consistent throughout the network. Glendale CAP will also continue to participate in the West Valley Human Service Alliance, as well as Glendale Strong Family Network, a coordinated effort between Glendale Elementary School District, various non-profits and members of the Glendale community. The focus of Glendale Strong Family Network is to “harness the existing infrastructure and human capital of Glendale to connect families to the services they need and to develop natural leaders to strengthen the community.” Glendale CAP works closely with Arizona@Work Maricopa County, West Valley Career Center in a coordinated referral process to ensure that low-income Glendale residents have access to the one-stop employment center and the wide variety of services they provide. Some of these services include access to various job listings, resume workshops, interviewing classes, soft skills training and more. Also, the City of Glendale Revitalization Division has appropriated funding for one FTE position in FY23 with Phoenix Rescue Mission to provide workforce-type services for Glendale homeless specifically. Within the Glendale CAP office, Glendale CAP has partnered Benevilla as well as with Central Arizona Shelter Services (CASS). For CAP clients in need of assistance applying for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and to help parents with children 0-5 years to start school healthy and ready to succeed. Benevilla was available by referral only during the COVID-19 pandemic, but FY23 looks to provide an increase in person-to-person referrals. Likewise, Central Arizona Shelter Services has partnered with Glendale CAP to provide housing locating services for our homeless clients in search of affordable housing. CASS is now available to CAP clients face-to-face, with meetings taking place at the Norton and Ramsey Empowerment Center at 7031 N 56th Ave, Glendale, AZ 85301. The CASS partnership is vital in addressing the gap in service delivery when it comes to a homeless person or family having the resources to actively look for housing. Additional CAP Partners include, but not limited to are: Non-Profit Goodwill of Central Arizona, YWCA Senior Center, Hope for Hunger Food Bank, St Mary’s Food Bank Alliance, Area Agency on Aging, International Rescue Committee, Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest (Refugee Focus), Vietnamese Community of Arizona, ARC (Administration of Resources and Choices), One n Ten (LGBTQ) HomeBase Youth Services, Family Promise, US VETS Faith-Based First United Methodist Church, Vineyard Church, Salvation Army, New Life Community Church, St John’s Lutheran Church, Catholic Charities St Vincent De Paul Government Maricopa Health Integrated System (MHIS), Maricopa County Department of Public Health (First Teeth First), Maricopa County Weatherization Services, VA Community Resource and Referral, Glendale Elementary School District, Pendergast Resource Center Page 17 making efficient use of available income, having access to suitable nutrition and social supports, and achieving/maintaining a suitable living environment. Describe below the Agency’s self-sufficiency strategies for the coming SFY: V. National Performance Indicator (NPI) Targets In eGov, please enter the NPI targets related to your program implementation strategies detailed in Section IV. Check the box when complete: ☒ Targets Entered VI. Observing Achievement of Results Glendale CAP, utilizing a self-sufficiency matrix tool within its data gathering system and through case management process positions itself to assists families and singles remove obstacles that block achievement of self-sufficiency. Glendale CAP workers utilize various tools to help identify barriers to success. Assisting clients to understand budgeting and credit scores to reduce financial burden has proven successful in helping residents achieve financial independence. In 2019, Glendale CAP staff received extensive training in financial literacy and, although not qualified to formally advise in these areas, the training has increased the awareness of these financial barriers to make the most appropriate referrals to CAP partners that specialize in financial matters. Glendale CAP also encourages low-income clients to take advantage of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) funding offered by various employment and training assistance organizations in western Maricopa County. Many times, with short-term training, resume writing assistance and interview coaching, clients may increase their salary demands enough to achieve self-sufficiency. Low-income applicants are considered a priority for these funds and the programs often offer transportation assistance, childcare assistance, and other services to reduce barriers and increase chances of success. For nutrition assistance, the Glendale CAP staff refers clients to local SNAP offices or utilizes the partnership with Benevilla to assist in applying for SNAP benefits and other resources for low-income families with young children (0-5 years). Additional nutritional referrals utilized by CAP staff include St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance, Area Agency on Aging “meals on wheels”, Vineyard Church, Salvation Army, Phoenix Rescue Mission and Glendale school district’s free or reduced lunch programs. In FY23, The City of Glendale will recruit for and hire four (4) success coaches (case managers) to be able to provide a comprehensive case management service for appropriate clients. Willing clients that meet guidelines will be assessed for barriers to success, goals will be set and timelines will be established to ensure progress. This evidence-based coaching model will be client-centered to ensure maximum buy in by participants and the best chance of success. The goal is to have subject-matter experts available to assist with matching up resources to barriers to success. Financial literacy, credit counseling, workforce services and more will be offered. Success coaches will be provided with resources to resolve unmet needs such as food insecurity, transportation, and childcare. The goal of Glendale CAP in this endeavor is to make the unwillingness to participate by the client the only avenue for failure. Page 18 Collecting clean and accurate data is a critical step in the ROMA cycle, as it enables the subsequent Evaluate phase, without which the cycle of continuous improvement is broken. Agencies should place great importance on establishing and maintaining data collection systems and procedures which will allow them to gather, organize, and analyze their performance data. Understanding data results is as valuable as the data itself. Without context, data is almost useless to all who would use it. There are a variety of ways to organize and display data for purposes of analyses and presentation, each with its own benefits. Your Agency will need to know what it is trying to show or determine with the data it has (i.e. how that data will be used for purposes of strategic planning/program implementation/evaluation etc.) in order to decide on the best way of organizing and displaying the data itself. In observing any data, it is important to understand that, although the data in its raw form may be objective and free of human bias, the interpretation of that data is what will ultimately determine the actions an Agency will take, and it will never be possible to have an interpretation that is truly objective. Whether our biases are conscious or not, they will manifest themselves in our own personal world-views, value systems and, yes, interpretations. It is imperative to realize this when attempting to observe and interpret data, and take steps to minimize the impact that bias may have on the actions that are taken as a result of those interpretations (having multiple people observe data and comparing their findings may be one way of minimizing bias impact). Biases also appear in the ways in which we organize and display data — a pie chart may emphasize data variation more than a line graph, something that may of great importance when presenting to, say, potential funders with limited time and seeking a very condensed description of a problem. Data collection procedures will always require data organization at some point within the process. That is, whether you decide to conduct focus group interviews, and organize the data to be measured after the fact, or use a pre-organized, pre-set questionnaire, you will have, at some point, needed to organize data into a measurable outcome scale. The outcome scale that ROMA-based Community Action calls for is a five- point continuum that details whether or not an individual or family is Thriving, Safe, Stable, Vulnerable, or In Crisis. If an Agency is to measure their data along this scale, then it is important to ensure that the way in which data is organized will, at some point, allow for comparison against the ROMA scale standard. Also affecting the ability to use the ROMA five-point scale is that way in which the data is gathered. For example, if an Agency is attempting to gather information on a target population’s vulnerability, using either-or questions (that is, questions with answers that are “yes” or “no”) may not help one place data accurately along the five-point scale — more detailed method of data collection is required (see any description of nominal ordinal, interval and ratio data scales for more information). Using a yes-no scale to determine placement along the ROMA-sanctioned five-point scale may not yield the information that an Agency hopes to find, resulting in a loss of time and resources. Knowing what you are looking for is a pre- requisite to what kinds of methods you will use to find it. Describe below the Agency’s data collection systems and procedures: Page 19 VII. Program Evaluation Given the limited resources that CAAs must work with, it is imperative that Strategic Plans and their resultant programs are as successful as possible as often as possible. A program evaluation helps an Agency understand key constraints that must be addressed for a program, service or activity to be successful, or continue in its success. Programs, services or activities risk failure if fundamental limiting factors, weaknesses or threats are not addressed. Findings from the program evaluation inform the design of the program and identify clear actions to be taken to enhance the potential for success. A program evaluation will help CAAs identify the effectiveness of their programs, and the efficiency with which those programs use resources. For example, it would not work for a program to reach thousands of clients but fail to deliver on the promises of that program (effectiveness). Similarly, it would also not work for a single program to use hundreds of thousands of CSBG dollars and only serve five people, regardless of how successfully those five people are served (efficiency). A program evaluation will assist in maximizing both of those aspects of any program, and in doing so help keep a program, and therefore a Strategic Plan, on track. Program evaluation is essentially asking “Does this program work in achieving our objectives as described in the Strategic Plan?” A program evaluation will also help determine the speed of progress of a program or service. Progress over a certain period of time will give an Agency an indication of the speed at which its target audience (clients, communities etc.) feels the impact of a program, service or activity, and the point at which an Agency may CAP utilizes CAP60, Yearly MAG PIT Count Data, HMIS and City of Glendale Community Services Consolidated Report as its primary sources of data collection. CAP60 is the daily operational software utilized by Glendale CAP to document all activities related to client assistance. Demographic information, family composition, household income and education levels are just some of the information gathered in CAP60. CAP60 is subsequently utilized for reporting expenditure and demographic data utilizing a date-range feature. In FY23, Glendale CAP will migrate towards an Oracle-based application, data entry and reporting system that will replace CAP60, likely by the end of calendar year 2022. MAG yearly PIT count data is made available to track year-to-year homeless data specific to the City of Glendale. HMIS or Homeless Management Information System is a centralized tracking and reporting system for regional homeless efforts. CAP staff document all individuals assisted through our Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) program. HMIS has built-in reporting features to capture demographic data for Glendale CAP clients that have been assisted using ESG funding. The City of Glendale Community Services Department has created a data dashboard that captures relevant data from all Community Services Divisions, including demographics, expenditures, client counts, services provided and more. The City of Glendale has enrolled two staff for introductory ROMA training and intends to enroll the CAP Administrator and CAP Administrative Supervisor in similar training in FY23. Glendale CAP’s yearly advisory committee retreat scheduled for August 2022 will also include ROMA training for Community Service management staff and for the board members. The City of Glendale will also continue to utilize auditing procedures already in place throughout the city. Page 20 begin to see and measure results. The amount of time it takes a program, service or activity to create an impact for a client or community may be important in deciding on its effectiveness, especially if time is of the essence in addressing client needs. If a program, service or activity is deemed ineffective, the Strategic Plan may need to be changed to bring a program back on track (hence the importance of flexibility in the Strategic Plan, as mentioned previously). Using the concepts outlined above, what did you learn at your previous evaluation that informed this CAP plan? How did you come to these conclusions? What strategies did you employ in order to vet previous practices for efficiency and/or effectiveness (for example, did your Agency use a SWOT analysis, a client survey, etc.)? Describe below: a. Any insights from the most recent program evaluation which informed this CAP Plan b. Any planned changes to the Agency’s program evaluation process to increase its harvest of actionable insights The City of Glendale’s Community Action Program is currently operating under a community needs assessment completed during 2019. The major themes that emerged from the assessment were concerns about affordable housing, the need for more community resources for youth, the need for public services to address homelessness and mental health, the need for better opportunities to achieve financial stability and economic development to create more jobs and opportunities for business start- ups. In FY21, the COVID-19 pandemic created a dramatic increase in requests for emergency assistance from the CAP office. Subsequent CARES Act and ERAP funding provided the resources to employ the additional temporary staff needed to process the increased demand. This increase in emergency assistance demand has taken priority in FY21 and continued in FY22, therefore limiting the resources aimed at addressing the themes that emerged in 2019’s CNA, prior the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. To capture the needs of the community more fully during the pandemic, the City of Glendale CAP intends on completing another community needs assessment to inform FY23, 24 and 25. This detailed assessment will be a coordinated effort between Glendale CAP, Glendale Public Housing and Glendale Community Revitalization. As of the end of FY22, Glendale is in the process of determining the focus of the Community Needs Assessment that will yield the biggest move towards decreasing poverty in our city, as well as establishing a vendor to complete the scope of work. For FY23, Glendale CAP will continue to self-assess with continuous improvement in mind, especially around efficiency regarding processing of crisis assistance requests. These efficiency concerns will be addressed ongoing throughout the development of our new case management, data entry and reporting system due to launch in the 2nd quarter of FY23. Page 1