HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 08-17-1993 - VII-A 1
ORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
Action Agenda
Item No. VIT-A-
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: August 17, 1993
SUBJECT: Human Services Coordinating Council Status Report
DEPARTMENT: County Manager PUBLIC HEARING YES: NO: X
ATTACHMENT(S) : INFORMATION CONTACT:
Report Albert Kittrell
Ext. 2300
TELEPHONE NUMBER-
Hillsborough -732-8181
Chapel Hill -968-4501
Mebane -227-2031
Durham -688-7331
PURPOSE:
To receive Human Services Coordinating Council Report.
BACKGROUND:
The Task Force for the Future of Human Services was created in May
1991 to develop a strategic plan for human services. The ad hoc
committee was composed of representatives from United Way, Chapel
Hill, Carrboro, the Association of Community Agencies and Orange
County. The final report of the task force was presented in May
1992 . The report recommended establishing a human services
coordinating council. Local governments, United Way and the
Association of Communities Agencies endorsed the proposal.
In August 1992 the Human Services Coordinating Council began a two
year pilot effort with the following charge: ( 1) create a system to
collect, analyze, and share human services information, (2 ) produce
an annual report on the state of human services for use during the
funding application process and (3) encourage community problem-
solving efforts by identifying and keeping informed about task
forces and interagency groups working on human services issues.
Jan Schopler, Chair of the Coordinating Council will present the
status report.
RECOMMENDATION(S) :
Manager recommends the Board receives the report as information.
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Human Services Coordinating Council of Orange County
Status Report August 1992-July 1993
The Human Services Coordinating Council of Orange County
was created by the Association of Community Agencies, the
Town of Carrboro, the Town of Chapel Hill, Orange County, and
the United Way of Greater Orange to enable the human services
system to work towards making the human services mission
statement for the county a reality. To accomplish this goal,
the Council is charged with three tasks during its first two
years: ( 1) creating a system to collect, analyze, and share
human services information; (2) producing an annual report on
the state of human services for use during the funding
application process; and, (3) encouraging community problem-
solving efforts by identifying and keeping informed about
task forces and interagency groups working on human services
issues.
In the Summer of 1992, each of the governing bodies were
asked to appoint representatives to the Council. The
membership currently includes: Maribel Carrion, Carrboro;
Mark Chilton, Chapel Hill; Mary Bobbitt-Cooke and Tom McKeon,
United Way; Marti Pryor-Cook (Co-Chair) and Jan Schopler
(Chair) , Orange County; Jodi Flick and Margaret Henderson,
Association of Community Agencies. Staff support is provided
by Anita Daniels, United Way; Albert Kittrell Orange County;
and, Julia Mack, Chapel Hill. The Council was convened in
August and has met quarterly. The primary work of the
Council is carried out in the subcommittees on Information
Management, the Snapshot Report, and Task Forces.
The January 1993 Snapshot Report was distributed to all
of the governing bodies to provide common background
information for setting human services priorities prior to
making funding decisions for the 1993-94 year. Without the
assistance of an intern, preparation of this report required
numerous volunteer hours and was the primary focus of the
Council ' s work during the first half of the year. The
Council is evaluating the usefulness of the report to
decision makers and exploring ways to make the report more
comprehensive.
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Goals for the countywide information management system
have been adopted by the Council. The Council is also
evaluating the current joint applications forms. Funders are
being surveyed to find out if the forms provide the
information needed for funding decisions. Agencies who apply
for funding from the County and United Way and the Towns of
Chapel Hill and Carrboro are being surveyed to find out if
the form allows them to give an accurate picture of their
needs. In the coming year the Council will also be compiling
information on all task forces working on human services
issues.
Plans for the coming year include:
* Increase participation and commitment to
accomplishing Council charges
* Prepare the January 1994 Snapshot Report
* Evaluate usefulness of Snapshot Report from
perspective of the Association of Community
Agencies, County, Towns and United Way
* Analyze results of Survey of funders and agencies
regarding Joint Funding Application
* Identify task forces and interagency groups working
on human services issues and develop a plan for
facilitating their efforts
* Propose central location where human services
information can be collected and reviewed