DVAC Minutes – September 2016 Approved March 10, 2017
Page 7 of 7
Edmund G. Brown Jr.Governor / / Mark Ghilarducci
Director
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ADVISORY COUNCIL (DVAC)
Friday, September 09, 2016, 10:30 am
Cal OES, California Room
10390 Peter A. McCuen Boulevard, Mather, CA 95655
MEETING MINUTES
Members Present: Cherri Norvell Allison (Chair), Anastacia L. Snyder (Co-Chair), Connie Chung Joe, Louis Gill, Lynda Smallenberger, Debra Suh, Christine Ward
Cal OES Staff Present: Leigh Bills, Gina Buccieri-Harrington, Samantha Clay, Ricki Hammett, Tammy Pratt, Peter Town, Nicole Watanabe
Phone: Ben Schirmer
Absent: Krystle Contreras, Sheri Farinha, Patricia Giggans, Nancy O’Malley
I. CALL TO ORDER
Cherri Norvell Allison, DVAC Chair, called the meeting to order at 10:30 am.
Introductions were made of the DVAC members, Cal OES staff, and members of the Public.
II. CAL OES UPDATES
Gina Buccieri-Harrington, Cal OES Assistant Director, stated that Cal OES has hired a new federal funds administrator, Peter Town. Cal OES has hired and will continue to hire new staff due to the increase in federal funds.
Cal OES has received an additional increase in Victims of Crime Act Funds (VOCA) funds to work on additional gaps in services. Cal OES will give an additional two years of funding to the new projects that were funded for two years, extending their grants. There could possibly be another increase in 2017 to sustain the new programs. Last year Cal OES received 10 million dollars for a human trafficking program and received another 10 million for this year. This money will be used to build upon new programs and add additional programs.
Outcomes will be a new focus for the projects. Cal OES is hoping to provide outcome information to the legislature. Cal OES is working on defining outcomes and what information will be collected and retained.
Cal OES received 10 million in general fund dollars for the homeless youth population. Currently, there are not enough emergency shelters and beds for this in-need community. Funding is not restricted to victims only. The program will be for a five year period. Each of four counties (El Dorado, Fresno, Orange, and San Bernardino) will receive 2.5 million dollars. The RFP will be competitive only within each county.
Cal OES has partnered with Blue Shield to help evaluate the new Domestic Violence Housing First (XD) Program.
Robert Lehner, Chief of the Police for the City of Elk Grove, has retired and resigned from the DVAC. The Governor’s Appointment is actively looking to fill his position.
Cal OES is actively involved in responding to the multiple fires across the state. Cal OES staff has been deployed to respond to these fires which have burned over 100,000 acres.
Leigh Bills, Cal OES Victim Services Division Chief, stated that of the number of projects that were increased, 22% were new subrecipients.
III. REVIEW AND APPROVE MINUTES FROM JUNE 10, 2016 DVAC MEETING
The DVAC reached a consensus that the minutes from the June 10, 2016 DVAC Meeting are correct and accurate.
IV. FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND SERVICES ACT (FVPSA) UPDATES
Ricki Hammett, Domestic Violence Unit Chief, briefly explained the purpose of FVPSA funds and went over the FVPSA priorities identified from the previous DVAC Meeting. Priorities identified were:
· Intervention around children/teens exposed to violence
· Public awareness campaigns and focusing on engaging men in the movement
· Bystander intervention around domestic violence
· First responder perpetrators
Due to time constraints Cal OES does not have enough time to develop any Request for Proposals for the remaining 2016 FVSPA funds. Ms. Hammett stated the following are 2016 FVPSA options:
· Increase support at the local level for identified priorities
· Support the extension of the 2016 DV Program.
· Support the beginning of the 2017/2018 programs.
DVAC members discussed the options and recommended increasing support at the local level for identified priorities.
Motion: Debra Suh
Second: Christine Ward
Discussion: None
(Aye:5 Nay:0 Abstain:2)
Ms. Hammett stated that for 2017 FVPSA planning, Cal OES will use the priorities the DVAC identified, to make recommendations to the Director of Cal OES.
V. UNDERSERVED PROGRAM REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR ORGANIZATIONS NOT CURRENTLY FUNDED BY CAL OES
This item was on discussed at the last DVAC Meeting and it was requested that it be readdressed. Connie Chung Joe, DVAC Member, feels strongly that providing technical assistance to small underserved programs wanting to apply for Cal OES grants would allow smaller programs to be more competitive in the selection process. Other options DVAC Members discussed were holding webinar’s on MOU’s, narratives, budget pages, and other items that are required on Request for Proposals. It was also discussed that bidder’s conferences would be extremely helpful to get new agencies and organizations funded by Cal OES. DVAC members discussed partnering seasoned agencies with smaller agencies in the communities and funding training or technical assistance. DVAC members also discussed not being too restrictive on the funds, being flexible, and seeing what works both in smaller and larger communities.
VI. 40-HOUR DOMESTIC VIOENCE COUNSELOR TRAINING
Ms. Hammett asked the DVAC Members for feedback on how the 40-Hour Domestic Violence Training is currently being conducted, if it is in-person, online, or by reviewing a manual. DVAC members shared that some agencies provide one-on-one training and other agencies provide large scale training within a classroom setting. Some do background checks on the volunteers and ask volunteers to commit to a certain number of hours. Some agencies follow up with professional development trainings for each person who is directly working with victims.
Jacquie Marroquin, Capacity-Building Program Manager for the Partnership, stated that the Partnership is in the learning phase of providing distance learning for the 40-hour training and the different components that are required. She stated that they have converted three in-person trainings to distant learning. She stated that certain modules should be taught in-person, such as crisis intervention. She stated that some individuals are taking professional development training that is not meant for working with victims.
Ms. Chung Joe, is concerned that the requirement might be too restrictive and likes that it is flexible. However, she thinks it might be good to have guidelines or best practices and it would be helpful if Cal OES provided recommendations.
Debra Suh, DVAC Member, said that it gets confusing when it is a dual agency, providing both rape crisis and domestic violence services. Ms. Bills stated that
Cal OES certifies the Rape Crisis training, but that the Domestic Violence Evidence Code Section is not written that way. She stated that Cal OES does not want to put more restrictions on the training, but Cal OES is receiving concerns about it. Right now, agencies must follow the Evidence Code Section.
The DVAC recommends that the 2017 Request for Application (RFA) require that each agency describe how they are providing the 40-hour training to their staff and volunteers and how they are addressing on-going changes within the Domestic Violence field. It was also recommended that there be a minimum standard within the 2017 RFA of what classes should be taught in-person. Agencies should explain what their training plan is for volunteers and staff and what on-going training is provided for current staff on new topics.
The Partnership will survey the Domestic Violence field about how this training is being taught and implemented at agencies. The Partnership will provide this information at the next DVAC meeting.
The DVAC requested that Cal OES send out the requirements for the Sexual Assault certifications, for them to review.
VII. PUTTING THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM ON A FEDERAL FISCAL YEAR
Cal OES is considering putting the Domestic Violence Assistance (DV) Program on a federal fiscal year. This is due to when federal funds are received by
Cal OES and the federal data requirements of federal funders. The California state budget has been passed timely within the last few years. However, in the past if there isn’t a budget passed Domestic Violence agencies would not be able to bill Cal OES. An additional reason to put the DV Program on a federal fiscal year is that Cal OES does not know how much federal funds they are going to receive each year, allowing for the possibility of fund reductions or fund increases and a new fund charts being released to the field. Moving the DV Program to a federal fiscal year will require a shorter liquidation period for FVPSA funds because they expire on September 30th. DVAC members discussed the reason why the program was moved to a state fiscal year.
VIII. ADVANCE OF FEDERAL FUNDS UPDATE
This is a follow up from the last meeting, however, after researching the issue it is a Cal OES policy not a federal policy to not advance federal funds. DVAC Members and Cal OES staff discussed this topic. There are major concerns that Cal OES has such as, agencies taking the money and then not spending it, an agency receiving funds having to write a check back to Cal OES if the advance was not used for a certain purpose, needing to keep the advance in an account that accrues interest and the interest must come back to the federal government, requiring the agency to track the interest and write a check. Another possible issue is if the money is dropped into a general fund account it makes tracking difficult and opens the agency up to inappropriate spending of the funds. Cal OES receives very few requests for an advancement of funds. It is not good, in terms of risk assessment.
Not receiving an advance would make it more difficult for smaller agencies, if they only receive federal funds. Ms. Bills will present the issue to Sonia Banales,
Cal OES Victim Services & Public Safety Branch Chief, and the Cal OES executive office will make the decision. Cal OES will report back the decision to the DVAC, once the final decision is made.
IX. Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) Victim Assistance Formula Grant Program UPDATES
VOCA allocations have been increased over the last two years. The Cal OES VOCA Federal Fund Administrator just came back from the VOCA State Administrators meeting and provided the following information:
· Updated definitions for spousal abuse and child abuse
· Clearly states eligibility is not dependent on immigration status
· On-site monitoring is required every two years unless a different frequency is determined based on risk assessment
It was suggested that all agencies review the new VOCA Rule to increase their knowledge of the funds and to be aware of the new changes. Cal OES may move the requirement of having site visits from three years to every two years.
Cal OES will use input from the VOCA Steering Committee Meeting, on
August 31, 2016, to create a funding recommendation for the Director’s consideration. Cal OES will closely monitor reverted 2015 VOCA funds and reallocate funds as needed.
X. California Partnership to End Domestic Violence Updates
a. Blue Skies Listening Tour Status and Updates
Ms. Marroquin passed out the Blue Skies Listening Tour Summary Report. There were seven sites, 194 participants, 119 organizations represented, and 30 counties present. Ms. Marroquin went over the strong themes identified and the gaps in services identified. There was a lot of discussion around other options besides the criminal justice system. Ms. Marroquin stated this was a snapshot of the field and is a good starting point.
b. Cultural Responsiveness Organizational Assessment Tool Updates (CROS)
This is a tool that allows organizations to measure their level of cultural responsiveness. The Partnership helped develop the database. The English version has been launched. The Spanish version will be launched soon. A Vietnamese version will launch early next year. The entire process takes an agency about six to eight weeks to complete and is free of charge. This tool will also allow agencies to create a follow up plan to increase their cultural responsiveness within their agency. There will be an RFA released by the Partnership to help agencies put their cultural responsiveness plan into place and implement what is in their reports. This is one of the only tools of its kind in the country and is meant for any type of agency doing social justice work.
c. The Language Access Toolkit
The Partnership has created a toolkit and a series of recorded webinars, which is currently available on the Partnership’s website. Each webinar is created with a region in mind. Agencies can put data into their language access plan. This is not just about who is being served but is also about infrastructure. Agencies can play on their strengths versus their weaknesses.
XI. CURRENT PREVENTION CAMPAIGNS
Nancy Bagnato, California Department of Public Health State and Local Injury Control Section Chief, presented information on how to run a successful prevention campaign. She stated that successful prevention campaigns take time and money to create and implement. It is important to know who your target audience is and the specific purpose of the campaign. She stated that campaigns can’t stand alone and it is recommended to build the campaign so it is linked with local funding and local efforts and engage the local community. It is important to have an overall comprehensive approach with your campaign.
Ms. Bagnato spoke about the Stand2together Campaign. This campaign didn’t require much funding, was pilot tested on Facebook, and took over a year to create. Ms. Bagnato also spoke about the My Strength Campaign, which also took a year to create and there are still efforts around it. This was done in conjunction with schools and clubs and implemented locally.
Ms. Bagnato spoke of taking advantage of existing campaigns and leveraging those campaigns. Certain campaigns are looking for partners. She also spoke about the Futures Without Violence website and that there is a lot of information on this website. She shared information on the Respect Campaign and the That’s Not Cool Campaign. In this campaign there are sample text messages that could be sent back in response to abusive messages. She mentioned efforts around trauma and children the political power around these efforts. There is brain-trauma associated with children exposed to trauma at an early age. The Changing Minds Campaign raises awareness around children exposed to trauma.