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MINUTES <br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES <br />September 19, 2011 <br />2 <br />2. Social Services Institute <br /> <br />The Social Services Institute will be held in Hickory, NC from Wednesday, October 26th to Friday, <br />October 28th. Ms. Coston asked whether any Board members are interested in attending. Arthrell <br />Sanders stated that she was interested in attending. Valerie Foushee and Pat Garavaglia noted <br />they would be interested in attending for the day on Thursday. <br /> <br />3. Work Support <br /> <br />Lindsey Shewmaker and Nancy Coston talked about the Work Support Strategies Grant for which <br />the State of North Carolina is applying. This grant and the strategies behind it will seek to <br />streamline the eligibility and income criteria across all programs in public assistance. Changes in <br />the processes and procedures across public assistance would alter the way departments of social <br />services do business. <br /> <br />Valerie Foushee asked whether there was anything the Board could do at this point outside of being <br />supportive. She also asked that staff let the Board know when the Work Support meeting is being <br />held at the Institute. Pat Garavaglia commented that it looks like this could be far reaching and <br />stated that she was interested in the outcome. <br /> <br />4. CPS Automation <br /> <br />Nancy Coston informed the Board that the State is looking at an interim solution for child welfare <br />while waiting for NC FAST. Since NC FAST is focused on preparing for the health care changes in <br />2014, child welfare has been pushed to the end of the list for development. The Annie Casey <br />Foundation has developed software that the State is looking at bringing to the counties. Ms. Coston <br />noted that Denise Shaffer saw the demonstration and liked the software. Child welfare is also <br />implementing REAP (Reaching Excellence and Accountability in Practice), which is data driven. It <br />would be much easier to look at the required data in a case management system. <br /> <br />Duston Lowell is attending a meeting on child welfare for Native American children. The <br />Occaneechi Tribe is now recognized and the agency will be responsible for following all laws <br />associated with tribes in North Carolina. Albert Williams asked whether most of the tribes were <br />located in Orange County. Ms. Coston replied that there are many tribes across the state and child <br />welfare cases involving members of the tribes are handled differently. <br /> <br />5. Director’s Report <br /> <br />The Second Family Foundation wants to fund a research project to interview former teens in foster <br />care. The research project will look at teens in care over the last twenty years. The Foundation is <br />working with Orange County Social Services and the state to gather data on the teens and interview <br />them about their experiences. To complete the research, the Foundation is funding a part-time <br />position at the agency. The data collected through this project will help tailor services for current <br />teens in foster care. In addition to interviewing former foster teens about their experiences, the <br />Foundation is also planning to ask the former foster teens whether they are currently in need of <br />services. The Foundation funded a variety of recreational opportunities for current teens in foster <br />care this summer, including swimming with dolphins and a trip to New York. <br /> <br />The county still does not have an MOU with Smart Start even though there have been many <br />meetings between the agency and the Partnership for Young Children. Some providers are still <br />upset about the cuts and changes. The electronic cards for child care payments are getting started. <br />For the first three months, the agency will run a dual system.