Corncnitieie Ac^ecida Date :FebtuaiY 18

County of Santa Clara
Social Services Agency

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Department of Family and Children's Services
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CSFC SSAOl 021804

Prepared by: Mary D. Patterson
Special Assistant for
Children's Services

Reviewed by: Norma Doctor Sparks
Director, Department of
Family and Children's
Services
DATE:

Februaiy 18, 2004

TO:

Supervisor James T. Beall, Jr., Chairperson
Supervisor Don Gage, Vice-Chairperson
Children, Seniors & Families Committee
s

FROM:

Will Lightboume

Agency Director, Social Services Agency

SUBJECT: Report Back on Children's Shelter Reuse

RRCOMiVIENDED ACTION

Accept status report from Social Services Agency on potential alternative uses of the
Children's Shelter.

Bo:vd ijfSupeiviirtfi Dori.?-ld F.

Blanca Alv.?irado, Pele McHugh, Jim Beall, Lii l•.^l

F nijntv Executive Pelei icutrai Ji
1

CoiTirTiitlee AciHnd3 D3t8 Ftbru-stv iy, dUU4

FTSCAT.IMPLICATIONS
None.

CONTRACT HISTORY

Not applicable.
REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION

At the May 21, 2003 meeting of the Children, Seniors and Families Committee, there was

discussion of the need for reevaluation of new long-term strategies for the Children s Sheltei

based on the successful placement of children into homes and ensuing decline of the Shelter

population. Federal performance standards for child welfare require states and counties to

reduce the number of times children in the foster care system are moved among placements
and to minimize the use of institutional care. Decreased reliance on the Children s Shelter

it increasingly important to determine
helps Santa Clara County achieve this goal, and makes
the appropriate role for the children’s shelter facility as a factor in child welfare system
reform. At the subsequent Committee meeting of June 4, 2003, the Committee approved the
formation of a task force to propose ideas for potential alternative uses of the facility.

A Shelter Use Committee was formed in August 2003, comprised of a subset of participants
from the broader Child Welfare System Community Stakeholders' group who met for the first

time on August 7th to learn about impending federal and state system reforms. The

Committee met four times in half-day meetings, and subcommittees convened more

federal and state outcome
frequently, to review focus group findings, research reports,
measures, and local need and capacity. The Committee narrowed down recommendations tor
Shelter Use to three ideas and presented them to the SSA Director on January 30, 2003

This status report provides a description of the work and recommendations of the Sheltei Use
Committee. In order to proceed thoughtfully, the Social Services Agency proposes to take the
following next steps before reporting back to the Children, Seniors & Families Committee at
its April 21, 2004 meeting:

a. Explore potential funding opportunities to support the specific suggested alternative
programming at the facility;

Board of Supervisors. Donald F. Gage, Blanca Alvarado, Pete McHugh, Jim Beall, Lii Kniss
Countv' E.:<ecutive. Peter Kutras Jr.

Committee Agenda Date :Febnjarv' 1 8, 2004

b. Research licensing and regulatory requirements and constraints regarding the specific
suggested alternative uses; and
c.

Explore the interest and preferences of other key stakeholders involved in the Children's
Shelter.

BACKGROUND

The Shelter Use Committee began its first meeting in September 2003 by formulating a vision

and affirming its charge. The Committee adopted the vision of the statewide CWS Redesign,
and added some additional definition:

"Every child lives in a safe, stable, permanent home, nurtured by healthy families and
strong communities. Strong communities provide safe and nurturing environments for
children who are removed from their parents, and a speedy return to a family and a
home."

The Committee operated under the following set of assumptions:

1. Emergency, short-term residential care will continue at the Children s Shelter foi
15-30 children.

2. The intake and assessment function for the child welfare system will continue at the
facility.

3. Alternative uses will be for children and families served by the dependency system or at

clear risk of entry or re-entry into the system, and compatible with the functions listed
above.

4. Alternative uses must be able to be implemented in a timely manner.

The charge of the Committee was to identify and make recommendations regarding possible
additional activities that would be compatible with the continuing shelter and child welfare

system intake and assessment center functions. See attachment for Committee membership.

generated its criteria, or lules
Prior to exploring potential alternative uses, the Committee
for deciding which ideas would be recommended. These were considered, along with the
assumptions stated above:
• Serves the vision

• Meets a compelling need
• Contributes to local, state and/or federal outcome measures

Board of Supervisor a;

Don.sid F. Gage, Blanca .Alvarado, Pete McHugh,.Jirn Beall, Liz Kniss

Count','' Executive: Peter Kutras .Jr.

3

C0mmittee Agenda Date :Fel:iruary 1

2004

• Avoids duplication

• Consistent with philosophy of family-centered care
• Evidence-based

The Shelter Use Committee gathered information necessary to make infonned

recommendations, including input from national experts, and local experts represented on the
Committee, demographics on the county's child welfare population, and input from 25
community stakeholder focus groups. As ideas emerged and solidified, the Committee
matched them to its decision-making criteria and prioritized the identified need areas and
service ideas.

Two themes were most often repeated regarding the needs of children and families: supports

to strengthen families and caregivers, and support for the edueational success of foster youth
diverse groups of stakeholders
of all ages. The virtual unanimity in this regard acrossabout
the needs of our community.
validated the great understanding of county residents
been working over the past seveial
Indeed, leadership at the state level and in our county have
these needs. Both the County's redesign
years to design meaningful reforms that better addressand
of the Department of Family and Children's Serviees, the State's Child Welfare Services

Redesign reflect a stronger emphasis on strengthening families and promoting edueational

success of foster youth.

A third theme consistently raised by community focus groups and Committee members was
the need to make available a continuum of services to children and their families that reaches
where they live. Many of the services
beyond a County faeility and into the neighborhoodsthose
that would, ideally, contain
and activities suggested in the proposals below are

components that could be offered at community-based sites throughout the eounty, enabling
children and families to aceess them more easily.

Once the ideas were reviewed and grouped, the Committee organized into workgroups to
conduet further research and develop proposals. A summary of the three proposals follows.

All three proposals refleet the repeated themes supported by community residents and
research m the field. A strong synergy exists among the proposals such that not only are
themes repeated, but some proposed strategies and desired outcomes are interchangeable. is

commonality, and the Committee's eonsensus on the need for services and strategies contained
m

the three proposals lead to a decision not to rank the three proposals, but to present them on

an equal basis.

Board of Supervisors:

Donald F. Gage, Blanc:a Alvarado, Pete McHugh, Jim Beall , Liz Knees

Cuuntv E:Kecutive. Peter Kutras Jr .

Curnmittee Agenda Date February 1 8, 2GU4

1 ■ Educational Support

It is widely recognized that support for the educational achievement offoster youth is an
enonuous need that has gone sorely unmet. California counties and educational systems are

being held increasingly accountable for this poor record through state legislation and federal
and state standards. The California Youth Connection, a statewide advocacy group comprised

of former and current foster youth has declared education for foster youth one of its main
policy goals.

Children in Santa Clara County's child welfare system, ages birth to 17, need stronger support
for their educational success. This would be achieved through the following services.

1. Timely and comprehensive assessments and services to reduce any barriers to learning,
such as mental health and physical health care
2. On-site preschool
3. Tutoring

4. Assistance to parents and caregivers in navigating school and human service systems,
as well as other support

5. Access to enrichment activities would also be included to increase children s

engagement in education, as has been well documented through programs of the Silicon
Valley Children's Fund.

7 Family Mental Health Services

This concept seeks to promote a unified philosophy of family-centered, strengths-based
supports to promote the health and vibrancy of families. Services would be designed to
provide comprehensive support to birth parents, foster and adoptive parents and relative
caregivers to promote reunification and prevent re-entry into the system. Services would
include

1. Therapeutic parenting classes

2. In-home and shelter-based family assessment, care planning, transitional and crisis
services, and linkage to mental health services

3. Opportunities for foster parents and birth parents to meet and plan transition to
reunification

Board of Supervisors, Donald F, Gage, Blanc
Countv' EKecuti'ce, Peter Kutras Jr

Mvarado, Pete McHugh, Jim Beall , Liz Kniss
5

C0rr'irnittee Agenda Date :Fet;iruaty 1 y, lULi4

4. Parent support groups

5. Linkage to public health and drug and alcohol services
3. Family Visitation

Supervised visitation in Juvenile Dependency and Family Court cases is inadequate foi
families, yet a most critical need in the effort to keep families unified and strong, and to keep
children bonded to and nurtured by their parents. Research has demonstrated that frequent

Inadequate visitation, particularly
parent—child visitation is positive for children and parents.
visitation
also has been demonstrated to
for younger children (0-6), can be harmful. Sibling
be positive for children who are in out-of-home care.

Visitation and enriched parenting activities would require safe and comfortable areas where

parents and children can visit and learn and play together. The following services would be
offered:

1. Supervised and secure exchange of children between parents in Family Court cases
2. Supervised visitation for children and parents in Dependency and Family Court
3. Interactive (less formal) visitation to include recreational play, cooking together, etc.
4. Therapeutic visitation to include a mental health specialist offering counseling and

cases

family therapy

5. Parenting education classes

These proposals represent the hard work and hours of input and analysis by community
members and key stakeholders, to whom the Social Services Agency is very grateful. The
Agency is now tasked with exploring funding opportunities, researching licensing and
stakeholders as next steps befoie
regulations, and exploring further the interests of other key with
its recommendations.
returning to the Children, Seniors and Families Committee
rONSFOlIENCES OF NFr.ATTVK ACTION

Negative action would result in the Children, Seniors, and Families Committee not accepting
the infonnation contained in this report.
STEPS FOLLOWING APPROVAL

The Clerk of the Board will follow the usual steps for this type of report.

Board of Supervisors.

Donald F. Oage, Blanca Alvarado, Pete McHugh,Jim Beall, Liz Kni;

o'0untv Executive: Peter Kutras Jr

6

CommitteH Agenda Date :Febr'uai'v' 1

2004

ATTACHMENTS

• Stakeholders: Shelter Use Committee (Miscellaneous)

Boatd of Supetvisote. Donald F. Gage, Blanoa Alvarado, Pete McHugh, Jim Beall, Lc K.nl
C0u n tv EX e c u 11 v e Peter K u t r a s J r,

7