Contracts Review Committee Meeting Minutes

February 23, 2012

CONTRACTS REVIEW COMMITTEE

MEETING MINUTES

February 23, 2012

10:00 a.m.

YWCA of McLean County

Bloomington, Illinois

PRESENT:Cathy Byers, Decatur; Nancy Crowder, Danville; Megan Jones-Williams, Carbondale; Sharmili Majmudar, Chicago, RVA; Linda Moser, DeKalb; Kimberly Schellin-Rog, Elgin; Kerri True-Funk, Urbana; Erin Williams, McHenry

STAFF:Carol Corgan, Mary Hill and Carrie Ward

I.ORIENTATION

The Committee and staff conducted an orientation for new member, Erin Williams at the start of the meeting.

II.SITE VISIT REPORTS

A.Fiscal – Mary Hill

1.Chicago, RVA

The Committee reviewed the site visit report and agreed the center has satisfactorily remedied all issues identified during the site visit.

2.Carbondale

The Committee reviewed the site visit report and agreed the center has satisfactorily remedied all issues identified during the site visit.

3.Quad Cities

The center is still working to remedy issues raised during the site visit. The Committee agreed staff can approve the center’s resolution of remaining issues.

B.Programmatic – Carrie Ward

1.Kankakee

The Committee reviewed the site visit report and agreed the center has satisfactorily remedied all issues identified during the site visit.

2.Arlington Heights

The Committee reviewed the site visit report and agreed the center has satisfactorily remedied all issues identified during the site visit.

3.Streator

This was a needs-based site visit conducted as part of a corrective action plan. The Committee reviewed the site visit report and agreed the center has satisfactorily remedied all issues identified during the site visit. The center submitted a corrective action plan as required by Contracts Review Committee. The Committee reviewed and approved the plan as submitted.

III.CENTER UPDATES

A.Belleville

Carrie noted that Executive Committee approved the Belleville grievance report. The center submitted its first status report on February 15. Executive Committee will review this report.

B.Arlington Heights & Gurnee – Geographic Service Region

Two Contracts Review Committee members, Carrie and Carol met with representatives of Zacharias Center and NWCASA on February 22 to discuss a conflict over geographic service region. Zacharias Center has received a grant to establish a service site in the communities defined as NWCASA’s service area. The two centers have not reached an agreement about this initiative and NWCASA asked Contracts Review Committee to review the issue under the Geographic Service Region policy.

The meeting focused on the geographic area in question, the meaning of collaboration, center boundaries and what they represent and the need to plan together when seeking funding for an area that receives services from more than one center. The meeting did not yield an agreement between the two centers.

Committee members agreed that geographic boundaries, even if somewhat fluid, are essential to guide centers’ work within communities. Erin said it would be a bad precedent to permit a center to establish services in another center’s service area.

The Committee discussed the situation at length and agreed on feedback to send to the two centers.

C.Chicago Services

The Committee discussed the establishment of services in C4’s service area now that C4 has ceased to provide rape crisis services. Carrie summarized funds available within FY12 (lapsed by C4) as follows:

General:$ 32,554.13

VAWA Prevention:$ 10,700.79

VOCA Advocacy/Counseling:$ 44,745.86

SASP:$ 4,188.50

VOCA One-Time:$ 9,048.21

TOTAL$101,237.49

The Committeereviewed the notes from a February 3 meeting of Chicago centers/NWCASA and a memo from Dickelle Fonda, Evanston resident and former ICASA center staff (Attachment #1). The February 3 discussion did include possibility of a collaboration among the Chicago programs to establish a satellite office. The practicality of managing such a collaboration poses real difficulties with implementation, both in terms of fiscal and program management. The group that participated in that call identified three options:

Establish a program (e.g., satellite site) managed by a current ICASA member center;
Establish a program managed in collaboration by multiple current ICASA centers;
Establish a program managed by a new organization.

Ultimately, the group focused discussion on option one.

Contracts Review Committee needs to decide on a recommendation to the Governing Body regarding redistribution of C4’s FY12 lapse and FY13 funds. The Committee considered Dickelle’s request for an agency to be established in Evanston.

The Committee discussed which centers should be eligible to apply for the funds. Evanston figures into the discussion because C4 historically has served St. Francis hospital in Evanston. NWCASA is serving St. Francis hospital now and Rape Victim Advocates is serving the other three hospitals previously served by C4. The Committee considered whether NWCASA should be eligible to apply.

Contracts Review Committee reviewed the idea of a 14-month contract, which would permit the applicant to use a portion of the FY12 lapse funds in FY13. The applicants would apply to establish a satellite, providing a 14-month program plan and budget.

Contracts Review Committee agreed on a recommendation as follows:

Contracts Review Committee will issue an application to establish a comprehensive sexual assault services satellite office in previous C4 service area.

Applicants will submit a 14-month application/budget describing their plan to establish direct services beginning June 1,building toward comprehensive services per ICASA guidelines/standards by December 31.

The timeline is as follows:

March 8Governing Body review recommendation

March 14Mail application

April 18Application Due

April 26CRC review application

April TBDExecutive Committee review and approve application

Contracts Review Committee recommendsthat only agencies with their primary office in Chicago be eligible to apply.

Each application will be reviewed and scored by all Contracts Review Committee members except Sharmili Majmudar, RVA.

IV.QUARTERLY & SUPPLEMENTAL MONITORING REPORTS

A.Danville

Carrie reviewed the center’s 6-month progress report. Service reports should be at approximately 50% of projections. The center continues to struggle to meet projections in some service areas. Contracts Review Committee encourages the center to continue to monitor performance.

B.Kankakee

Carrie reviewed the center’s 6-month progress report. Service reports should be at approximately 50% of projections. Service reports reflect progress toward most projections that are on target at 6 months. The center will be asked to submit a third quarter report.

C.Notice of Personnel Change Reports

Mary summarized information from second quarter notice of personnel change reports. There were six 90-day vacancies in the quarter.

D.Direct Service Personnel Reports

Mary presented a summary of direct service personnel reports. Not many are low, and Mary has spoken with centers that need to review and consider budget revisions.

V.FY13 APPLICATION FOR FUNDS

A.Application

Carrie distributed the FY12 application and Contracts Review Committee’s previous ideas regarding possible changes to make for FY13. Committee members will review this information for discussion at the March 29 meeting.

B.Contracts Review Committee Week

Contracts Review Committee agreed on August 29, 30 and 31 as application review dates. Staff will draft the allocation process timeline based on those dates.

VI.OTHER

A.Center Audits

Mary is still reviewing audits. Two late fines were previously assessed per policy. Contracts Review Committee assessed late fees to three more centers.

B.FY12 Committee Chair

Contracts Review Committee needs a Committee Chair for the remainder of FY12. Sharmili nominated Megan as Chair and Megan accepted. Contracts Review Committee recommends that Megan Jones-Williams be approved as Chair of Contracts Review Committee. She will resign as Chair of the Program Committee.

Recorded by:

Carol Corgan