Once again in 2010 county leaders and their staff showed they were up to the challenge by creating innovative and successful programs that are meeting the needs of a growing and increasingly diverse constituency.

California Counties Innovation Award

The following programs were honored for their innovation and creativity. The judging panel selected these programs among Challenge Award recipients as the most innovative.

The following programs were honored for their innovation and creativity. The judging panel selected these programs among Challenge Award recipients as the most innovative.

Challenge Award Recipients

Population: Under 50,000

Calaveras County — Behavioral Health Educational Career Ladder

Contact:

Christa Thompson
Senior Administrative Analyst
891 Mountain Ranch Road
San Andreas, CA 95249

Phone: 209/754-2810
E-mail: cthompson@co.calaveras.ca.us

Calaveras County Behavioral Health created an educational career ladder, sponsored previously non-existent certificate and degree programs, and funded tuition assistance to support staff growth. The county faces occupational shortages due to rural geographic barriers, inaccessible educational opportunities, and a lack of local colleges or universities. Hiring qualified mental health staff is difficult, leaving significant shortages when positions are vacant. In response to this challenge, the county created two new psychology programs at Columbia College, a new rural mental health program at CSU Sacramento, and tuition assistance. The programs have been relatively cost effective and have come in substantially under budget for the past two years. Since the implementation of these programs, 40% of mental health staff has returned to school, and the educational programs were the first of their kind in California.

Population: 50,001 – 200,000

Nevada County — Assisted Outpatient Treatment Program

Contact:
Michael Heggarty
Director, Nevada County Behavioral Health Department
500 Crown Point Circle
Grass Valley, CA 95945

Phone: 530/470-2784
Email: Michael.heggarty@co.nevada.ca.us

In 2008, Nevada County behavioral health officials faced a tough task: convincing some individuals with untreated mental illnesses that they were in need treatment. The Nevada County Assisted Outpatient Treatment Program offered a unique solution that bridged the gap for people that are dangerous and in need of treatment, but may not be on probation, and are not gravely disabled, or do not meet criteria for emergency involuntary hospitalization. Nevada County was the first California County to fully implement this program, and met with immediate success. Of 22 eligible candidates, 13 met program selection criteria in varying degrees and continue to receive Assisted Outpatient Treatment. Data from the Milestones of Recovery Scale indicates that seven candidates succeeded with recovery, and five others are stable and receiving voluntary intensive mental health treatment. Program costs of $80,000 were offset by savings estimated at $203,000, based on decreased hospitalization costs and reduced incarcerations.

San Benito County — Night Reporting Center

Contact:

Brent Cardall
Chief Probation Officer
400 Monterey Street
Hollister, CA 95023

Phone: 831/636-4070
E-mail: brent.cardall@sbcprob.org
San Benito County created the Night Reporting Center, a cost-free collaboration between the probation department, faith-based organizations and volunteers that provides a one-stop center for probationers. This center provides a centralized location for clients to receive many of the resources they need to aid in their probation plans and successful completion of their probation. It also serves as a location for educational and cultural services as well as a place that teaches physical well being and offers parenting classes to teach positive parenting techniques. The center has saved the county more than $100,000 because it provides one centralized location for clients to receive all the services ordered in their probation plans.

Tuolumne County — HOPE House: Emancipated Foster Youth Transitional Housing

Contact:
Karen McGettigan
Staff Services Analyst
20075 Cedar Road North
Sonora, CA 95370

Phone: 209/533-7378
E-mail: kmcgettigan@co.tuolumne.ca.us
In response to the county’s need for stable foster housing, intensive services and mentoring, Tuolumne County created the Housing and Opportunities for Emancipated Foster Youth (HOPE) House. This program gives emancipated youth a place to learn about living independently while giving them a safe place to sleep. Since August 2009, the HOPE House has been providing guidance, role-modeling, and assistance to help each youth achieve self-sufficiency. In addition to providing transitional housing to former foster youth, HOPE House is a cost-effective investment as supportive housing improves health, reduces dependence on public assistance, and promotes residential stability. All four of the young males living in the HOPE House are benefitting greatly from the services they are receiving.

Population: 200,001 – 700,000

Santa Barbara County – Operation Medicine Cabinet

Contact:
Geoffrey Banks
Deputy Chief
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department
4434 Calle Real
Santa Barbara, CA 93110

Phone: 805/681-4295
Email: gpb2413@ sbsheriff.org
Medicines left unattended or improperly disposed are a danger to the community through rising, illegal drug use, accidental ingestion, or contamination of water supplies. To mitigate this problem, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department partnered with local cities and the Department of Public Works to create Operation Medicine Cabinet. A key component of the program was to raise awareness of the dangers of prescription and over the counter drugs and reduce the availability for misuse. Staff parlayed a modest $26,676 budget into a massive earned-media campaign that led to more than 1,300 pounds of unused medications being dropped off at various disposal sites throughout the county. As a result, the program has received plaudits from various organizations and television stations throughout the county.

Santa Barbara County – Recycle a Bicycle Program

Contact:
Mark Mahurin
Lieutenant
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department
4436 Calle Real
Santa Barbara, CA 93110

Phone: 805/681-5334
Email: mvm1419@ sbsheriff.org

Each year, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department collects dozens of bicycles, either through evidence, recovered unclaimed stolen property, or abandonment. In many cases, the bicycles are in need of minor repair or reconditioning. To get these bikes back on the road, the department started the Recycle a Bicycle Program, where Jail inmates enrolled in work programs refurbish the bikes and effect minor repairs. The program has grown over the years and, in 2009, 35 bicycles were refurbished and recycled to children and youth through the Unity Shoppe and the Good Samaritan Shelter programs. Recycle a Bicycle requires no budget, since inmates do the work. And, the positive publicity has resulted in several local citizens donating more bicycles which in turn are given to underprivileged children in the county.

Sonoma County – Korbel Summer Crossing – Innovations in Access

Contact:
Phillip M. Demery
Director, Transportation and Public Works Department
2300 County Center Drive, Suite B100
Santa Rosa, CA 95403

Phone: 707/565-3580
E-mail: PDemery@sonoma-county.org

Sonoma County’s Korbel Summer Crossing, which traverses the Russian River in the western part of the county, provides vital access to CDF crews during fire season but typically has too much water in the winter months to allow for passage. Each year the county would construct a temporary bridge that involved large amounts of staff time and expense. County personnel designed a bridge that could be installed and taken down each season, resulting in a structure that is readily available for use every year, providing vital access to community residents and fire crews. It is easily constructed using portable decking segments and the support structure is durable enough to survive the high level and turbulence of winter storm water. The new abutments also allow for better river flow during the summer, creating fewer environmental impacts and allowing improved recreational use of the river.

Population: 700,001 and Above

Alameda County – New Beginnings for At-Risk Youth

Contact:
Aki Nakao
Director, General Services Agency
1401 Lakeside Drive, Suite 1005
Oakland, CA 94612

Phone: 510/208-9700
Email: N/A

Given the increased number of older foster youth deemed at-risk once they reach adulthood, preparing the most vulnerable youth to successfully transition to productive adulthood became a key challenge for the County General Services Agency. Utilizing a public-private partnership and $600,000 from Aramark Corp., the County created the Fresh Start Café, staffed with youth who work for $8 an hour, earn food handling certification and course credit toward high school graduation. The program became so successful that a second café opened in 2009 and expanded to include its own line of products such as coffee, water bottles and gift bags, coffee mugs. As a result, 44 minors have participated in the program since 2007. Benefits have been many: students have gained employment and public speaking experience, money earned goes toward restitution payments, and some youth have been offered additional job interview opportunities with Aramark upon completion of the cafe training program.

Los Angeles County — Simply Speaking: Plain Language Initiative

Contact:
Ruth A. Wong
Executive Director
County of Los Angeles Quality and Productivity Commission
500 West Temple Street, Room 565
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Phone: 213/974-1361
Email: rwong@ ceo.lacounty.gov

Understanding “government-speak†is often a difficult and tedious. The Los Angeles County Quality and Productivity Commission had a better idea: develop a program that promotes effective communication in easy-to-understand terms. The Simply Speaking – Plain Language Initiative created a writers network for managers to promote plain language and a core writers group to develop strategies. The county used a modest $289,636 budget to bring together all 37 county departments as active participants. As a result, several communication protocols were repurposed, various documents, fact sheets and contracts were rewritten in easier to read terms, and websites used plain language to articulate programs and activities. Increased cost savings and improved productivity ensued which also resulted in fewer calls to various government hotlines.

Los Angeles County — South County Family Visitation Center

Contact:
Frank Ramos
Regional Administrator
4060 Watson Plaza Drive
Lakewood, CA 90712

Phone: 562/497-3335
Email: Ramosf@ dcfs.lacounty.gov

Ensuring that at-risk children who have been detained remain with their families is a key challenge facing the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services. Together with faith-based organizations and the South County Office, the Department created the South County Family Visitation Center - designed to get children back to their parents. The Center offers a safe, home-like environment where parents can visit their children and assist them in the preparation of a safe return home. The county uses a blend of paid monitors and volunteer staff, which has resulted in annual savings of $3,960. More importantly, the program has become so successful that three more centers have opened in other areas of Los Angeles County.

Los Angeles County – Cost Avoidance Outcomes for FSP Programs

Contact:
Debbie Innes-Gomberg, Ph.D.
District Chief
Department of Mental Health
695 So. Vermont Ave., 15th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90005

Phone: 213/251-6817
Email: Dinnes-Gomberg@dmh.lacounty.gov

The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health needed to find a way to reduce hospitalization and incarceration days for individuals with lengthy histories of mental illness and psychiatric disorders without sacrificing quality of care. Enter the Full Service Partnership Program, which sets a staff-to-client ration not to exceed 1:15 in order to provide intensive care management, mental health, and supportive services. Using this approach, team members are able to respond to clients in crisis much more efficiently. Results were striking: homelessness days for older adults decreased 58 percent, and incarceration days dropped 30 percent, and other measurements experienced similar declines. This resulted in a $39.8 million cost avoidance for Adults and Older Adult program clients.

Orange County – SECURE Multi-County Electronic Recording Delivery System

Contact:
Renee Ramirez
Assistant Clerk-Recorder
Orange County Clerk-Recorder Department
12 Civic Center Plaza, Rm 101
Santa Ana, CA 92701

Phone: 714/834-2248
Email: renee.ramirez@rec.ocgov.com

Orange County, a pioneer in electronic recording and filing since the mid 1990s, brought together Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego counties in a multi-county agreement to allow 190 authorized statewide and national submitters to record documents electronically in a secure environment. Orange County Clerk-Recorder Tom Daly involved the state’s largest counties to ensure maximum efficiency. Submitters now use one environment to scan and send documents for recording. Since its launch in December 2009, the SECURE recording delivery system has reduced postage, mailroom labor and in-house scanning by $900,000. The success of the system has earned official certification by the state Attorney General’s Office, with other counties encouraged to join as partners.

San Diego County – TEAM SAN DIEGO

Contact:
Brenda Schmitthenner
Aging Program Administrator
Aging & Independence Services
P.O. Box 23217
San Diego, CA 92193-3217

Phone: 858/495-5853
E-m ail: brenda.schmitthenner@sdcounty.ca.gov

San Diego County created TEAM SAN DIEGO, a training program for healthcare and social service provides to improve service delivery to the aging and disabled populations, especially those with chronic conditions. The program consists of eight online modules, self-contained slide presentations that are recorded by a different, highly regarded local instructor who is an expert on the subject matter presented, and one in-class session to reinforce and practice the lessons learned. The goal of this program is for multiple providers to work together to improve access to comprehensive and coordinated health and social programs for individuals with complex needs. It is anticipated that the improved care coordination will allow the chronically ill to remain independent in the community and reduce unnecessary emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and nursing home admissions. Although the program is still in progress, 125 health, social, and supportive service providers have completed the training so far. The training has been very successful, and evaluation outcomes have been excellent.

Orange County – Trial Attorney Partnership (TAP) Program

Contact:
Todd Hart
Director, Government and Community Relations
County of Orange/Office of the District Attorney
401 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701

Phone: 714/347-8413
Email: Todd.Hart@da.ocgov.com

The current recession created a double-problem for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office: Caseloads for misdemeanor, felony and juvenile cases continue to rise, but budget cuts reduced the number of prosecutors from 25 to 18 per court. The solution: an innovative pubic-private partnership that recruits attorneys from local and city law firms to work full-time as temporary Deputy District Attorneys for eight weeks. By adding experienced trial lawyers from the private sector, caseloads have been reduced and expedited. In fact, the 85 participating attorneys have conducted 151 jury trials, 28 court trials and 675 preliminary hearings which have provided over $2.2 million to county taxpayers.

 

Merit Award Recipients

Population: 50,001 – 200,000

Napa County – Adult Correctional System Master Plan

Contact:
Molly Rattigan
Senior Management Analyst
County Executive Office
1195 Third Street, Suite 310
Napa, CA 94559

Phone: 707/253-4112
Email: molly.rattigan@countyofnapa.org

Napa County created the Adult Correctional System Master Plan, changing the way the county manages the criminal justice system by using evidence-based practices to effectively treat the offender population. After four years of researching ways to alleviate capacity restraints on the jail, the county developed and implemented a plan that includes the use of practices and programs proven to reduce recidivism, improve re-entry outcomes, increase public safety, and ultimately reduce the number of jail beds needed in the future. This program provides a model to not only punish, but treat, correct, and reduce offender behavior. Since the implementation of these practices, the Probation Department’s overall caseload has decreased by approximately 11%, and the average caseload per probation officer has decreased from 150 to 98. By 2025, it is estimated that the county will need 103 fewer jail beds, saving the county construction and operational costs. By reducing recidivism, the program will lessen the cost of crime and increase the safety of the county’s residents.

Yolo County – High School Summer Intern Program

Contact:
Mindi Nunes
Yolo County Human Resources
625 Court Street, Room 101
Woodland, CA 95695

Phone: 530/666-8055
Email: mindi.nunes@yolocounty.org

Yolo County created a summer intern program designed to attract high school students to careers in government. The program’s ultimate goal is for student interns to remember their positive experience with Yolo County and to seek regular employment with them upon graduation from high school or college. The program consists of weekly learning activities designed to introduce students to county government, department assignments matching future career and college goals, mentors, and rewards and recognition at the end of the eight weeks. Two years of survey data shows that 100% of respondents gained a positive impression of county employment, and 100% gained experience from the program that will help them make an informed choice about a career in government. The program has also shown county departments that this generation is intelligent, conscientious and committed.

Population: 200,001 – 700,000

San Joaquin County – Social Media Marketing Campaign

Contact:
Pamela Sloan
Director of Community Services
605 North El Dorado Street
Stockton, CA 95202

Phone: 209/937-8362
Email: Pamela.sloan@ci.stockton.ca.us

The Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library launched a social media marketing campaign to increase interest and advocacy in library services. The library had faced a significant reduction in both staff and funding, resulting in marketing the old fashioned way, such as print ads and printed marketing materials, no longer an option. However, marketing in some fashion had become even more necessary, and the library had to find new ways of marketing that were essentially cost free. The library decided to create an online presence on the most popular social networking sites and converted their printed bimonthly newsletter into a monthly digitally emailed newsletter. This digital shift saved the library thousands of dollars each month and has allowed the library to continue reaching the community and sharing news in a new modern way. This economical way of marketing has been extremely successful. Membership in the different social media communities has continued to grow each month, and library branches are seeing increased attendance to their programming due to the information shared on the social media sites.

Santa Barbara County – 2010 Census Multimedia Communications Campaign

Contact:
Susan Curtis
Senior Planner
County of Santa Barbara
123 E. Anapamu Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Phone: 805/568-3573
Email: scurtis@countyofsb.org

During pre-Census planning, Santa Barbara County faced a critical challenge: the federal government couldn’t provide funding resources necessary to target the hard-to-count segment of the county’s population. Partnering with several cities and the private sector, the county developed a 2010 Census Multimedia Campaign focused on regional Census outreach. The campaign included English/Spanish products, a web site, press kits, posters, and other collateral. Paid for by $175,000 in general fund dollars, the campaign saturated the county using a wide range of mediums, including branded spots on local access Channel 20, messaging on electronic display boards and movie theatre promotional items. All told, the campaign helped Santa Barbara County exceed Census expectations as census forms were mailed back in at a return of 72 percent.

Santa Barbara County – EOC in a Box: Innovation is King

Contact:
Daniel Milei
Assistant Director, IT
105 E. Anapamu Street, Suite 406
Santa Barbara, CA 93103

Phone: 805/568-2671
Email: dmilei@co.santa-barbara.ca.us

Quick deployment of technology resources in connection with Emergency Operations Centers during an emergency can sometimes be threatened by the emergency itself. To reduce this risk, Santa Barbara County created “EOC in a Box,” whereby equipment needs, Internet and wireless connectivity and other core response mechanisms are put into place. The concept was born during the 2008 Gap Fire in Santa Barbara County, and today serves as a template for a quick set-up and response command center. Investment in the strategy is modest: $2,250 for office equipment and $300 for plastic containers. Today, the concept has enhanced the County’s ability to quickly respond to emergencies by speeding up the setup of all technology components at an Emergency Operations Center.

Santa Barbara County – Radio Ready: Emergency Commercial Radio System

Contact:
Michael D. Harris
Emergency Operations Chief
Santa Barbara County
105 E. Anapamu Street, Suite 3
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Phone: 805/560-1081
Email: mharris@countyofsb.org

In the event of a county emergency, providing residents with accurate and time-sensitive public information is critically important. Last year, Santa Barbara County added a new tool to the communications tool kit: “Radio Ready,” which allowed radio stations to communicate information during emergencies even when power, cellular or telephone service is lost. Using a $257,000 grant from the Orfalea Fund, a local philanthropic concern, “Radio Ready” was deployed using seen broadband satellite station/telephones that provide back-up communications in the event traditional phones or Internet communications fail. The result: a highly effective and reliable system that did well during a recent weather even in northern Santa Barbara County where the OES Duty Officer was able to communicate with that area’s radio station via their satellite station.

Santa Cruz County – Pinto Lake County Park Children’s Playground

Contact:
Cristina James
Park Planner
County of Santa Cruz Parks Department
979 17th Avenue
Santa Cruz, CA 95062

Phone: 831/454-7963
Email: prc033@scparks.com

Santa Cruz County rebuilt the failing Pinto Lake County Park children’s playground. Constructed in 1995, the single playground facility was not in compliance with current accessibility codes. The project vision was to provide playground and trail improvements to park users of all ages and abilities. The improvements increased safety and viability by serving disabled or elderly caretakers of children and youth. By coordinating multiples partners to accomplish one shared goal, together the organizations were able to accomplish what could not have been done alone. Pinto Lake Park now has a new play structure that is unique because it was built by the community for the community.

Population: 700,001 – Above

Alameda County – Teen/Senior & Computer Gadget Connection

Contact:
Gary Morrison
Teen Services Coordinator
Alameda County Library
2450 Stevenson Blvd.
Fremont, CA 94538

Phone: 510/745-1438
Email: N/A

Alameda County developed a clever way to help teens earn school-required volunteer credits: teach local seniors basic computer skills and training in an environment that fosters interpersonal communication and learning. Both of these community needs, coordinated by the County’s respective Senior and Teen outreach services coordinators, were met through the newly-created Teen/Senior Computer and Gadget Connection. Teen volunteers parlay training in library services and basic computers into teaching older adults a wide range of computer and internet skills. The cost of the program is limited to staff time, with collateral produced for under $100 per recruitment. The program has become so successful that, at any given time, there are up to a dozen trained teens and a waiting list of seniors wanting their assistance. Teens gain an understanding of the important role of teaching, and participating seniors learn in a comfortable setting that fosters accomplishment and self-esteem.

Alameda County – Youth UpRising

Contact:
Olis Simmons
Executive Director
Alameda County
8711 MacArthur Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94605

Phone: 510/777-9909
Email: oils@youthuprising.org

Providing employment opportunities and health and educational resources was a key challenge faced by Alameda County following racial unrest in 2005 at Oakland’s Castlemont High School. Students identified the aforementioned areas as being deficient, so county officials responded by bringing together a coalition of community-based organizations that led to the creation of YouthUprising, a one-stop center designed to provide youth and young adults with tools in comprehensive health and wellness, arts and expression, leadership development, life skills and career and education programs. Program organizers used a vacant facility adjacent to the high school, and today, YouthUprising involves more than 5,100 members from eight cities in the county. The program has shown great promise: More than 77 percent said the program helped develop long-term career paths and 81 percent felt more hopeful about their lives. The $1.8 million program is jointly funded by the County and various philanthropic, individual donors, and community foundations.

Los Angeles County – Contracts in Plain Language for Small Business

Contact:
John L. Geiger
Standards & Practices
Phone: 323/267-3443
Email: jgeiger@isd.lacounty.govDebbie Cabreira Johnson
Office of Small Business
Phone: 323/881-3958
Email: dcabreira@isd.lacounty.gov

Gerald Plummer
Purchasing & Contract Services
Phone: 323/267-2670
Email: gplummer@isd.lacounty.gov

Presenting contracts in simple, readable language for small businesses became a key goal of the Los Angeles County Office of Small Business. Together with legal counsel from the county’s internal Standards & Practices division, the Office of Small Business re-purposed main portions of contracts into easily understood language and conducted an outreach program to educate small businesses and potential contractors. Response from the business community was positive: over 400 vendors have been drawn in by various symposia, and oral and written evaluations have shown tremendous support. Project cost came in well under its nominal $1,165 budget, and the retooled contract earned a 2010 ClearMark Award for Excellence by the Center for Plain Language in Washington, D.C.

Los Angeles County – Customer Service Center

Contact:
Carlos Sanchez
PS II In-Charge
County of Los Angeles Department of Social Services
Bureau of Contract and Technical Services
14714 Carmenita Road
Norwalk, CA 90650

Phone: 562/623-2080
Email: carlossanchez@dpss.lacounty.gov

Increased caseloads, coupled with limited phone hours translated into longer telephone wait times, busy signals and heavier lobby traffic for customers of the Los Angeles County Department of Social Services. The solution: creation of a fully automated Customer Service Center as a single point-of-contact that provided customers with a toll-free phone number so they could speak directly with a customer service representative. Results exceeded expectations. Customers no longer need to go to the district offices to resolve case issues. The center handles 105,000 calls per month, which has cut lobby wait times by one-third and significantly increased response time. Success of the center has paved the way for future improvements such as the planned Department’s Electronic Document Management System.

Los Angeles County – Election Poll Monitoring Program

Contact:
Efrain Escobedo
Executive Liaison
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk
12400 Imperial Highway
Norwalk, CA 90650

Phone: 562/462-2721
Email: eescobedo@rrcc.lacounty.gov

The monitoring of polling places on Election Day during recent presidential elections has increased significantly in scale and sophistication. Still, these efforts lack a coordinated, measured approach that results in ill informed complaints, negative media inquiries and voter confusion. In 2008, the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk created an Election Monitoring program, designed to work collaboratively with election personnel to better manage Election Day issues. The initiative was launched during the February 2008 primaries. More than 200 complaints from election monitors were logged and resolved during voting hours, resulting in a more seamless voting experience for other voters. Developed in-house at no cost to the department, the initiative now serves as a model of the department philosophy that “elections are a collaborative process between the election official and the community.”

Los Angeles County – Steps to Excellence Project

Contact:
Kathleen Malaske Samu
Director
County of Los Angeles Office of Child Care
222 South Hill Street, 5th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90020

Phone: 213/974-2440
Email: kmalaske@ceo.lacounty.gov

For parents choosing a daycare provider, finding quality child care can be a very subjective and inexact science. To address this challenge, the Los Angeles County Office of Child Care developed the Steps to Excellence Project (STEP), a new rating system that provides clear, concise, and accurate information on child care quality. The rating system included components in quality of care, site visit measurements and various other data-driven criteria. Results were outstanding. More than 115 child care programs that care for up to 4,500 children up to age five have received STEP quality ratings. The program is paid for through $2.6 million in public-private financing, which also distributed 180 grants totaling $853,000 to participating local programs to support quality improvement efforts.

Los Angeles County – Wellness is Everyone’s Business

Contact:
Laura Span
District Chief
Northeast Wellness Center
5564 N. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90042

Phone: 323/341-5100
Email: lspan@dmh.lacounty.gov

County and State budget shortfalls, coupled with the national recession have resulted in larger numbers of people seeking mental health services, challenging Department of Mental Health officials to continually address increasing client needs. The County created a Volunteer Program that relied on the efforts of Wellness consumers to make meaningful contributions, while gaining work experience. By using trained volunteers, the Northeast Wellness Center Volunteer Program increased the capacity of the Wellness Center, provided 24-7 visits to clients hospitalized or facing other personal distress, and created a valuable work and relationship experience for volunteer/clients involved at no additional cost, saving the department $282,000 annually.

Orange County — Corporate Sponsorship Program

Contact:
Neal Kelley
Registrar of Voters
P.O. Box 11298
Santa Ana, CA 92711

Phone: 714/567-5139
Email: Neal.Kelley@rov.ocgov.com

Recruiting as many as 10,000 volunteers to work 1,300 polling stations on Election Day can be a daunting task. The Orange County Registrar of Voters formed a clever, public-private sector alliance to recruit new and veteran poll workers: The Corporate Sponsorship Program, which attracted participating businesses to provide their employees to work on Election Day. In 2008, the Registrar of Voters partnership with Wells Fargo resulted in an increase in the volunteer database by nearly 4,000, while simultaneously earning more than $1 million in earned media advertising for the bank. For the June 2010 Primaries, Sprint/Nextel not only provided poll workers, but technical support as well. By emphasizing local business involvement at no expense to taxpayers, the Corporate Sponsorship Program has become an example of successful public-private sector collaboration.

Orange County — Creating a Virtually Integrated Delivery System

Contact:
Dan Castillo, MHA
Administrator, MSI Program
County of Orange
405 W. 5th Street
Santa Ana, CA 92701

Phone: 714/834-5728
Email: dcastillo@ochca.com

The County’s Medical Services Initiative delivers services to low-income, uninsured adults, providing comprehensive medical services through a public-private partnership between the County Health Care Agency and community health care providers. But the 22-hospital system is fragmented, and 6,000 participating doctors do not share clinical data in a timely enough manner to impact clinical outcomes. The solution was to create a virtually integrated delivery system that provides timely clinical information to key network providers. Paid for through a blend of local, state and federal sources totaling $526,000, the system has experienced great success. When an emergency physician used the system to electronically refer a patient from the emergency department back to their Patient-Centered Medical Home, a 52 percent decrease in the likelihood of future emergency visits was seen.

Orange County — OC Waste & Recycling Material Exchange Program

Contact:
Dylan Wright
Deputy Director
300 N. Flower Street, Suite 400
Santa Ana, CA 92703

Phone: 714/834-4137
Email: Dylan.Wright@ocwr.ocgov.com

Managing the more than 8.5 million pounds of household hazardous waste that is collected at the County’s Household Hazardous Waste Centers is a considerable challenge. Orange County Waste & Recycling developed a regional Material Exchange Program that provides an innovative solution to prevent household hazardous waste from entering county landfills. At no cost to taxpayers, the county established four permanent, drive-through centers to drop off unwanted household products, such as used motor oil and yard care products. Since their inception in 2004, participation at the centers has not increased by more than 20 percent, but they collect the highest volume of hazardous waste for any permanent center in California. This translates into annual savings of at least $280,000 in transportation and management costs.

Orange County — Gang Reduction, Intervention, Prevention (GRIP) Program

Contact:
Todd Hart
Director, Government and Community Relations
County of Orange/Office of the District Attorney
401 Civic Center Drive West
Santa Ana, CA 92701

Phone: 714/347-8413
Email: Todd.Hart@da.ocgov.com

With law enforcement focusing on more serious crimes, minors involved in gang activity has increased in Orange County. Together with the Anaheim Police Department, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office created the GRIP Program, aptly named to focus on intervening with children deemed at-risk of joining gangs before they commit a crime. The program is designed to educate faculty, parents and students at elementary and middle schools in neighborhoods terrorized by street gangs. The more than 1,200 students at three selected schools achieved perfect attendance from December 2008 thru April 2009, as truancy plummeted. In fact, truancies decreased from 760 at Marco Forster Elementary School to just 99 in one year. The GRIP program has been lauded as an innovative and cost-effective approach to gang prevention in Orange County.

Orange County — READ/Orange County Family Literacy Partnerships

Contact:
Steve Franks
Director, OC Community Resources
1770 N. Broadway
Santa Ana, CA 92706

Phone: 714/480-2788
Email: Steve.Franks@occr.ocgov.com

Research suggests that nearly one in four adults need help with the basic reading, writing and comprehension skills necessary to accomplish personal goals and fully participate in family learning and societal activities. Together with OC Public Libraries, Family Resource Centers and Head Start, Orange County Community Resources introduced READ/Orange County Family Literacy Partnerships, which provides resources and programs to assist adult learners in becoming “learning partners” with their children ages 5 or younger. Since its inception in 2006, READ/Orange County has expanded Family Reading Times from three to seven locations in the community. In the past year alone, more than 200 families and 300 children participated and more than 900 books were provided to families. Most expenses for the program were absorbed by the department’s budget.

Riverside County – Esperanza Fire Arrest, Prosecution and Conviction

Contact:
John R. Hawkins
Fire Chief
Riverside County Fire Department
210 W. San Jacinto
Perris, CA 92570

Phone: 951/538-8202
Email: John.Hawkins@fire.ca.gov

In 2006, local authorities suspected that the Esperanza fire, which destroyed 34 homes and killed five firefighters, was the work of an arsonist’s torch. Investigators from several agencies led by the Riverside County Fire Department collaborated on what would be the first major conviction of a serial arsonist and murder in Riverside County. Key to the case: forensic evidence including matching tire tracks at the scenes, DNA from cigarette butts, and witnesses that identified the key suspect’s vehicle at the scene of three of the fires. After more than two years, evidence gathered led to the conviction of Raymond Lee Oyler in March 2009 of five counts of murder and of setting 20 fires. Oyler is currently on death row awaiting execution.

Riverside County – Facade Program, Investing In Communities

Contact:
Trish Field
Senior Development Specialist
Riverside County Economic Development Agency
3403 10th Street, Suite 500
Riverside, CA 92501

Phone: 951/955-6688
Email: Tfield@rivcoeda.org

Economic development planners sought to revitalize several unincorporated communities of Riverside County. A lack of infrastructure was identified as a key reason businesses were not investing in upgrading their buildings, which resulted in a general decline in aesthetics. To solve this problem, the Riverside County Economic Development Agency implemented the Façade Improvement Program, which provided grants of up to $125,000 for design and construction costs associated with business storefront improvements. Several projects have been completed, but the program’s cornerstone effort can be seen in the central business district of Rubidoux where nine projects are finished and 10 more are being designed. The program has become so successful that it is being replicated in other jurisdictions of the county – all of which improves quality of life for area residents.

Riverside County – Family Self Sufficiency Program

Contact:
Cindy Hui
Principal Development Specialist
Riverside County Housing Authority
5556 Arlington Avenue
Riverside, CA 92504

Phone: 951/343-5428
Email: Chui@rivcoeda.org

Since 1990, Riverside County’s Family Self Sufficiency Program has helped families stay off public welfare assistance while furthering lives through gainful employment. In recent years, however, a waiting list for families seeking rental assistance swelled to more than 40,000. To ease this challenge, the Riverside County Housing Authority augmented the program with a Scholarship Fund and a Revolving Loan Fund – the former sustained by fundraising activities; the latter through partnerships with local banks. Scholarships totaling $38,424 have been awarded while 37 loans totaling $30,014 have been made to local families. In its entirety, the program has helped 184 families achieve economic self-sufficiency – 183 of which graduated without need of any form of welfare or rental assistance. Moreover, 44 families purchased homes of their own.

Sacramento County – Time Management System

Contact:
Daniel Kim
Deputy Director
Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance
2433 Marconi Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95821

Phone: 916/875-3744
Email: KimD@saccounty.net
Sacramento County Department of Human Assistance developed an integrated time management system that streamlined payroll processes, improved financial reporting, and helped reduce county costs by over $1 million annually. Department of Human Assistance didn’t have sufficient information to accurately forecast its spending or determine whether they were overspending or underspending various funding sources. Since implementing a new time management system, the county has seen improved and more accurate time study submissions, reduced workload due to greater employee-self-service and automation of manual payroll and fiscal processes, and reduced costs for supplies and storage and faster processing time by becoming a completely paperless process. Because of the new time management system, Department of Human Assistance is now better positioned to leverage more funds, has increased staffing for fully-funded programs, and has prevented or mitigated layoffs in programs receiving less funding.

San Bernardino County – The Office of Consumer and Family Affairs

Contact:
Robert Sudol
Program Manager
268 W. Hospitality Lane, Suite 400
San Bernardino, CA 92415

Phone: 909/386-5029
Email: rsudol@dbh.sbcounty.gov

San Bernardino County established the Office of Consumer and Family Affairs to provide assistance, support and representation to consumers and their families in accessing resources and services throughout the county. As a large and geographically diverse county, San Bernardino County’s mental health service system lacked input about the experiences and knowledge of consumers and families who encountered numerous bureaucratic obstacles and were in need of access to treatment, support services, and links to other county systems. One of the primary functions of the program is to assisting consumers and family members in understanding and accessing services that are available to them. The program has been very successful, having received more than 400 contacts for assistance, including a number of contacts from out-of-state family members seeking assistance for consumers in the county.