Membership Council–Minutes

Wednesday,December 9th, 2015

10:00-11:30AM

LifeWorks-East Multi-Purpose Room

Attendance: Ann Denton (ECHO Board); Jo Kathryn Quinn (Caritas); Darilyn Cardona-Beiler (ATCIC); Lauren Avioli (NHCD); Stephanie Hayden (Chair); Mariana Salazar; Niki Paul; Becky Casey (ECHO Staff); Vella Karman (City HHS); Natalie Metzger-Smit (LifeWorks); Mandy De Mayo (Housing Works); Julia Spann (SafePlace); Monica Keller (VA); Susan McDowell (LifeWorks); Michelle Wilkinson (Easter Seals)

10:00-10:05Welcome and IntroductionsStephanie Hayden, Chair

10:05-10:10Approval of October 28th2015 MinutesStephanie Hayden, Chair

  • Will approve minutes in January. Did not reach quorum.
  • Thank you to departing 2015 Members!

10:10-11:15HUD Continuum of Care BusinessN. Paul/K. Manganella

  • 2015 HUD NOFA
  • Submitted 11/17/15-Early bonus points achieved
  • Review: After Action Summary Report-Niki P.
  • Some areas of benchmarks we have not reached yet as a community-will not receive points
  • Opportunities for improvement:
  • Currently do not have representations from school liaisons or law enforcement on CoC Board
  • Reach out to Edna Betts/Cathy Requejo about joining board; reach out to Don Baker
  • Ann Denton to speak with Captain of Sheriff’s department
  • Follow up with LGBTQ stakeholder group
  • Focus on human trafficking victims
  • Do not meet 75% threshold to receive points for being a majority of a low barrier community-Did not receive points for Housing First
  • Several Housing First projects partnering with non-Housing First projects-ineligible for 12 points immediately
  • Criteria for low barrier:
  • Intake criteria-screening out for credit history, criminal background, required income, sobriety
  • A program that is low barrier is most likely also Housing First
  • Project threshold for any renewal projects need to be drawing down their funds quarterly and have timely APR
  • Inaccurate reporting of beds being utilized for VASH-makes our percentage of beds filled seem low
  • Need to focus on improving timely data entry
  • System Performance:
  • Did not reduce overall unsheltered count
  • Did not reduce number of unsheltered chronically homeless
  • Need to monitor number of first time homeless
  • Need to monitor length of time homeless
  • Need to ensure family separation policies are followed
  • Need to prove we are meeting goals of rapidly re-housing families within 30 days
  • Place more weight on serving families, victims of domestic violence, and unaccompanied youth as we know
  • Identify strategies to reduce youth trafficking and exploitation
  • Did not decrease veteran homelessness by 75%
  • Review: HUD Chronic Homeless Definition-Final Rule Issued
  • Significant changes:
  • Cumulative amount of time spent homeless in each episode must add up to 12 months
  • Replaced “disabling condition” with “homeless individual with a disability”
  • Not a minimum number of days in which each occasion must total but instead, occasions are defined by a break of at least seven days not residing in an emergency shelter, safe haven, or residing in a place meant for human habitation
  • Stays in institutions of fewer than 90 days do not constitute a break and count toward total time homeless
  • Establishes recordkeeping requirements for documenting chronic homelessness that take into account how providers use HMIS
  • Concern with loss of funding due to numbers of chronically homeless decreasing and individuals who are experiencing significant homelessness being overlooked due to not being chronically homeless
  • CoC Funded Projects: Quarterly Perf. Report Process Update
  • Katy Manganella is to present at January Membership Council Meeting
  • Point in Time Count Planning Update-Mariana S.
  • Volunteer Status
  • Recruiting 10-15 ServicePoint Users as volunteers to assist with shelter data entry
  • In case of cold weather shelter night-will work to complete surveys at shelters
  • Katy Manganella will be stationed at Front Steps to lead ServicePoint Users in collecting/inputting data
  • Sheltered Count Procedures
  • ECHO team created instructions for non-cold weather night vs. cold weather night
  • Summarize Universal data elements-9 data elements; 4 program specific
  • Encouraging shelters to check data quality prior to day of Point in Time Count
  • Night of count: collect all information; collect any data entry errors-due diligence on ensuring data entry is as efficient as possible
  • State ESG Funding Local Competition Option—Mariana S.
  • TDHCA receives annual funding from HUD so they can run local competition where they give state ESG funding to chosen recipients
  • Currently asking if CoC’s are interested in competing-Travis County has been approached
  • Tentative timeline-must apply by mid-January
  • To become ESG Coordinator-must complete a NOFA and collect applicants within the CoC; must submit applicants by May
  • Not beneficial for the CoC to run the competition if only two programs will apply-based on capacity and time
  • Other programs (besides LifeWorks and SafePlace) can apply directly to TDHCA if they want
  • Create annual report to show integration of feedback without having to take on the local competition

11:15-11:30ECHO UpdateNiki Paul, ECHO

  • Pay for Success Update
  • Brief opening today on Pay For Success
  • Veteran Functional Zero Update
  • Drafted report for USICH-receiving feedback from VA and transitional programs
  • USICH has fleshed out criteria for achieving functional zero-very narrative-based; describing our system including changes we have put in place
  • USICH benchmark: taking average of past 90 days-how many new veterans have come into our system and how many veterans have been housed; veterans being housed needs to equal or surpass veterans entering our system
  • System in place that allows veteran homelessness to be rare, brief, and non-reoccurring
  • Council for Social Work Education Initiative
  • Opportunity with the Council for Social Work education initiative-community support for social work programs; priming social work students to come into this field (i.e. training in HMIS)
  • Medicaid Update

11:30AMADJOURNStephanie Hayden, Chair

*Next Scheduled Membership Council Meeting: January 6, 2016, LifeWorks East Multi-Purpose Room 10AM-11:30AM

**New MC Member Orientation: 1/6/16, 8:30-9:45AM (New 2016 members are required) Preceding January MC Meeting