BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
CHILDREN’S SERVICES ADVISORY BOARD
REGULAR BOARD MEETING MINUTES / Meeting Date
May 20, 2016
Time Called to Order: / Time Adjourned: / Location: / Minutes By:
9:14a.m. / 11:27 a.m. / 115 S. Andrews Avenue, A337
Fort Lauderdale, FL / DAS
Members Present / Members Absent / Other Participants
Jarvis Brunson
Cassandra Evans, Secretary
Commissioner Dale Holness (via telephone)
Carmen Jones
Robert Mayersohn
Audrey Millsaps
Nora Rupert
Dan Schevis, Chair
Joel Smith, Vice Chair / Kim Gorsuch
Laurie Sallarulo
Michaelle Valbrun-Pope
Lidia Wallace / Staff:
Linda Raybin, CSA
Mandy Wells, CPD
Scott Silverman, CSA
Deborah Scott, CSA
County Attorney:
Sharon Thorsen
Guests:
Catherine Baez Sholl, Children’s Services Council of Broward County
Lisa Bayne, Kids In Distress
Vicky St. Fort, Ritaid and You
Item / Action/Discussion/Recommendations / Due Date / Status/
Staff Responsible
1. Call to Order / Mr. Schevis, Chair, called the meeting to order at 9:14 a.m.
2. Roll Call / At the request of the Chair, Ms. Raybin called the roll and a quorum was established with eight members present.
3. Recognition of Barbara Stuart / Mr. Schevis presented a certificate of appreciation to Ms. Stuart, who recently left the CSB, in recognition of her many years of service on the Children’s Services Advisory Board.
4. Approval of Minutes / Ms. Millsaps moved and Ms. Rupert seconded to approve the minutes from the CSB meeting of April 15, 2016. Ms. Raybin commented that a scrivener’s error was found in the name of Henderson Behavioral Health in the minutes. The agency was referenced by its previous name, Henderson Mental Health Center. Ms. Raybin requested that the minutes be corrected to reflect the correct name. Ms. Millsaps amended her motion to approve the minutes as corrected and Ms. Rupert seconded the amended motion. MOTION PASSED.
5.Chair’s Report / Mr. Schevis reminded the CSB that at the previous meeting, the CSB approved its Public Participation procedures for meetings of the CSB and its committees. As a result, beginning at this meeting, any member of the public who wanted to speak would complete a Speaker Request Form and give it to staff. Members of the public may speak on any agenda item except those that are solely ministerial such as proclamations. The CSB did not want to place time limits on speakers, but indicated that the chair could set a time limit based on factors such as the number of speakers, the remaining time for the meeting and number of agenda item to be addressed. Ms. Millsaps asked how it should be handled if a CSB member wants to ask a question of a member of the public in attendance. Mr. Schevis indicated it should be done through the chair.
Mr. Brunson arrived at 9:17 a.m.
Mr. Schevis commented that at the April CSB meeting, Mr. Smith distributed a list of possible areas for funding consideration. He thanked Mr. Smith for sharing this information and noted that it highlighted the need for a process that the CSB could use to discuss these types of ideas. In response to Mr. Schevis’ comment, CSB members suggested a number of options including: biannual CSB workshops, identifying specific CSB meetings for this purpose, designating an hour of a regular meeting for workshop issues and the other hour for business. Mr. Smith suggested having an agenda item on new business for members to raise new ideas and then the CSB could determine the best way to address the issues raised.
Following further discussion, Mr. Smith moved and Ms. Rupert seconded to add new business as a standing item on each CSB meeting agenda and to engage in workshop sessions. MOTION PASSED.
Ms. Evans commented that the CSB should embark on another strategic planning process. Mr. Smith thought it important to begin with a presentation of the Human Services Department’s (HSD) Strategic Plan. Ms. Raybin commented that at the request of the Needs Assessment Committee, she had contacted Ms. Campbell, HSD Director, who indicated that September would be an appropriate time to do so.
Commissioner Holness joined the meeting via telephone at 9:38 a.m.
Mr. Smith also indicated it would be important to review and coordinate with the Children’s Strategic Plan that the Children’s Services Council manages as well as take into consideration the funding priorities of other funders. In response to a question from the Chair, Ms. Baez from CSC commented that there have been preliminary discussions about planning a meeting next spring for community input into the Children’s Strategic Plan.Ms. Wells stated that there are coordinated planning meetings among funders at the staff level and the staff can provide information from those meetingsto the CSB.
Ms. Raybin commented that during the CSB’s previous strategic planning process, information from other funders was incorporated as was their input into the identified priority areas. Additionally, for a contextual framework, each focus area included a reference regarding how the CSC Children’s Strategic Plan addressed the area. This allowed for coordination between the two plans.
After continued discussion, Mr. Schevis summarized the options discussed and requested a motion. Mr. Smith moved and Ms. Rupert seconded that after September the CSB should convene a strategic planning session and include input from other entities. Staff should lay the groundwork with other funders as well as gather information for the CSB to review. MOTION PASSED.Mr. Schevis indicated that the date of the planning session will be finalized at a subsequent meeting.
6. Byrne/JAG Program / Ms. Scott gave a presentation highlighting the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne/JAG) program including a brief history of the funding source. She indicated that the County has been the grant recipient for many years, but in the past the United Way Commission on Substance Abuse provided programmatic administration. Solely due to changes in federal regulations, United Way could no longer provide this support and the County assumed full administrative support and oversight. The Byrne/JAG program is now administered by the Community Partnerships Division, Children’s Services Administration Section. Ms. Raybin reminded the CSB that it had recommended local funds to match Byrne grant funds in FY 16 to help support the County’s planning and oversight responsibilities for the Byrne/JAG program.
Ms. Scott reviewed the Byrne/JAG funding priorities and the projects currently funded under the program. She outlined the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s (FDLE) requirements for Byrne/JAG. She explained that the current program maintained the previous focus areas. Ms. Raybin commented that the FY 16 Request for Proposals indicated that the County would be realigning the strategic direction for Byrne/JAG in the future.
Ms. Scott concluded by sharing that preliminary plans for the program funding going forward would be to focus on reducing recidivism among youth offenders, with an emphasis on services to youth in the newly established Juvenile Predisposition Services Project. Services would include employability skills development, job preparation/coaching, and prevention and education. She asked the CSB for their feedback and ideas they thought should be further considered.
Ms. Rupert indicated that it would be important to include coordination with the school system with regard to youths’ academic needs. Mr. Smith asked about how the needs of siblings might be addressed to intervene before they become involved in the Juvenile Justice system. Because Broward County leads the state in violent crimes by youth, Ms. Evans suggested giving further consideration about the focus for recidivism reduction. Ms. Scott thanked the CSB for its suggestions and indicated that she would present the proposed plan for the FY 17 Byrne/JAG RFP for the CSB’s consideration at the June meeting.
7. Committee Updates / Crossover Pilot Advisory Committee - Ms. Evans reported that the committee met on April 27, 2016. Henderson Behavioral Health had provided an update on the pilot project. The Youth Advocate who provides peer counseling attended the meeting and shared her perspective on the project and working with crossover youth. Ms. Evans stated that an important factor for these youth is trusting adults to remain in their lives. Issues related to system fragmentation were also discussed as was self-sufficiency for the youth. She announced that the next meeting was scheduled for June 1, 2016, and all CSB members were invited to attend and would receive a meeting notice.
Needs Assessment-Ms. Millsaps reported that the committee convened on May 9, 2016. The committee was charged with the responsibility of reviewing the eligibility criteria used for CSA contracted services and presenting its findings and recommendations to the CSB in the areas of age/non-postsecondary school eligibility, income, and insurance/Medicaid status. Ms. Millsaps commented that the Needs Assessment Committee discussed the approach it would take in embarking on this undertaking. This will include compilinginformation from other funding sources (both local and from public funders in other parts of the state and nation) as well as securing input from providers.This information will assist the committee in developing recommendations.
Ms. Millsaps stated that as tasked by the CSB, the committee also had an in-depth discussion of the excused absence criteria for advisory boards related to the County’s Sunset Review process. The committee recommended three changes to the criteria: 1) Under death of an immediate family member, the addition of grandparent and guardian/custodian to the list of family members who are considered immediate family; 2) Expansion of the member’s hospitalization category to include, “or other regularly occurring life-saving or life-sustaining form of medical treatment substantiated by documentation;” 3) Expansion of the category of a member being issued a subpoena to also include, “or other official request” by a court of competent jurisdiction.
Ms. Millsaps moved and Ms. Evans seconded to accept the recommendations of the Needs Assessment Committee for the proposed revisions to the excused absence criteria. Ms. Rupert made an amendment to the motion to add death of a grandchild to the list of immediate family memberfor whom an excused absence would be authorized. Mr. Mayersohn seconded the amended motion. MOTION PASSED. Mr. Schevis commented that this recommendation would be communicated for consideration as part of the Sunset Review process for County advisory boards.
Mr. Mayersohn moved and Ms. Jones seconded to extend the meeting time by twenty (20) minutes to complete the business at hand. MOTION PASSED.
Ms. Millsaps commented that due to the added focus on Juvenile Justice in Children’s Services, the Sunset Review process offered an opportunity to expand the areas of expertise on the CSB and to review other current membership categories. She reviewed the Needs Assessment Committee’s recommendations:
- The Superintendent of Schools should serve on the CSB and there should not be a provision for the Superintendent’s designee.
- There should be a representative of the Judiciary.
- A representative from the Children’s Consortium was recommended to be stricken because that organization no longer exists.
- A representative from the Broward Behavioral Health Coalition was recommended to be added since BBHC has responsibility for administration of state behavioral health funds, and behavioral health is also a focus area for Children’s Services Administration.
- A representative from One Community Partnership or one of its committees was recommended to be stricken because it was developed out of the previous OCP initiative and the work of the former OCP Committee of the CSB has been transitioned to BBHC. Instead a community child advocate was recommended as an additional at-large member.
- The reference to a past or current consumer of services was recommended to be clarified to indicate that it could either be a peer or a parent.
Ms. Millsaps also mentioned that the issue of term limits was discussed briefly since it was recommended in the Human Services Department’s Needs Assessment report, but no vote was taken. Ms. Schevis stated that across-the-board term limits are not necessary because Commissioner-nominated members must be appointed when a Commissioner is elected and the at-large members serve four-year terms.
Ms. Millsaps announced that future committee meetings will be held on the second Monday of the month. The Needs Assessment Committee will next convene on June 13, 2016, and CSB members would be notified in advance,
Transitional Independent Living (TIL) Steering Committee–No report at this meeting.
6. Children’s Services Administra-tor’s Report / Ms. Raybin provided a brief update on Children’s Mental Health Awareness Month activities. She thanked Commissioners Holness and Wexler for the Commission proclamation they jointly presented designating May as Broward County Children’s Mental Health Awareness Month. ArtServe again displayed youth artwork as part of its Art as Healing Therapy exhibition. Among the activities coordinated by OCP 2 was a Wellness Day attended by approximately 250 youth and family members. Ms. Raybin also mentioned the success of the Behavioral Health Conference sponsored by the United Way, Broward County and the Broward Behavioral Health Coalition.
7. Public Comment / There were no public comments.
8. Good of the Order / Mr. Schevis, Chair, announced the upcoming of retirement of Ms. Linda Thompson, CSA Administrative Aide, after 37 years of service to Broward County. He acknowledged his appreciation for her service to the County and especially to the CSB.
9.Adjournment / The meeting was adjourned at11:27a.m.
The next meeting of the Children’s Services Advisory Board is scheduled for June 17, 2016,at 9:00 a.m.
These minutes were approved at the Children’s Services Advisory Board meeting dated June 17, 2016,as certified by
______
Cassandra Evans
Children’s Services Advisory Board Secretary
ApprovedCSB Minutes–May 20, 2016Page 1