Maricopa Regional Continuum of Care: February Newsletter

Arizona Department of Health Services Mobile Clinics:   

ADHS' robust mobile vaccination and testing programs are free, and available to all Arizonans regardless of insurance status, or immigration status and are also available in-home to homebound Arizonans! Vendors will come to you without any additional support needed from your staff. They provide a COVID-19 Mobile Vaccination Program and LTCF Booster Vaccine Program, MPox Mobile Vaccination Program, and a COVID-19 Mobile Testing Program. If you have questions about any of the programs, reach out to Jessie Barbosa at jessica.barbosa@azdhs.gov.  

City of Tempe Section 8 Waitlist is Opening  

The City of Tempe Housing Authority is accepting applications for the Housing Choice Voucher Program – also known as Section 8 – beginning on February 28 until March 13. To apply or to assist clients in applying, visit https://www.waitlistcheck.com/AZ177-4067. For those needing special assistance or without internet access, call 480-350-8076 or 480-858-2818, Monday-Friday 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. - noon. For more information, visit City of Tempe’s website.  

Free File program with the IRS   

It's that time of year again. If you need help with your taxes, look no further! The IRS offers the Free File program for qualifying individuals. Their website also includes resources and tools to help you avoid errors and master the process. Learn more here. 

NOFO Scorecard Input Session 

The project applicant scorecard for the annual CoC Notice of Funding Opportunity is being revised for the FY2023 grant cycle, and community feedback is crucial to this process. Please join us for an input session on February 15, from 10 – 11:30am, on Zoom to discuss ways the scorecard can be a more effective and equitable tool for the funding process. The draft revised scorecard will be distributed for review a week prior to the input session to those who register. Click here to register! 

Third Annual My Dog Is My Home’s Co-Sheltering Conference 2023 

My Dog Is My Home’s Third Annual Conference is March 21-23, 2023. This year’s theme is “Changing Systems. Changing Lives. Creating a world with equitable access to homes for people and their animals.” Through their curated program of speakers and workshops, organizations across disciplines will acquire tools and build their capacity to serve human-animal families. Learn more and register here! 

PAST MEETINGS 

The Continuum of Care Board continues to meet to update the Board Strategic Plan. In addition, the Board approved a series of Policies and Procedures, reviewed the System Flow Dashboard, and heard an update on Pathways Home. The Board also began discussions on the annual gaps analysis and will continue discussing in February.  

The Continuum of Care Committee discussed the work they accomplished in 2022 and what they hope to work on in 2023 and shared this information with the Board for consideration in the Board Strategic Plan update. They also discussed the importance of capturing those who may not have been counted in the annual Point in Time Count and expressed a need for a better way to identify those who are currently living in their cars, such as hourly employees and teachers. The CoC Committee also received an update on the Arizona Housing Coalition’s legislative priorities for 2023. 

The Coordinated Entry Committee (CEC) welcomed Homebase to give a Coordinated Entry System evaluation update; they will be returning on February 9th for a Q & A session. Both Coordinated Entry Lead Operating Agencies provided their monthly data update. The Family Housing Hub has 175 families on their shelter waitlist; the current wait time for shelter is 5 weeks. The Human Services Campus Housing Match team reported that there have been 650 referrals made in the past 6 months to housing programs; this includes Permanent Supportive Housing, Rapid Re-housing, and Emergency Housing Vouchers. The CEC continues to work towards integrating the DV system and Homeless Prevention with Coordinated Entry. Both workgroups will meet this month to continue to move the work forward. 

The Data Committee began discussions on data quality within the By-Name-List (BNL), including establishing that a workgroup will be convening for this specific request from the Board Strategic Plan. Additionally, the Data Committee discussed 2023 planning for the committee’s goals and objectives, including bringing a greater focus to the communication and accessibility of the system’s data. Data Committee member recruitment opens in February. Please check the MAG website for a link to the Survey Monkey application. If you have any questions about the application process, please contact Cleo Warner at cwarner@azmag.gov. 

The ESG Committee compiled funding information across the ESG recipients to create a matrix that will be used to further foster collaboration within ESG funding in our community. The ESG Committee also participated in a detailed presentation on monitoring best practices. This training series, hosted by CSH, will continue into March with a deep dive into ESG policies and procedures. ESG recipients are encouraged to invite members of their teams who may benefit from the training subject.  

The Lived Experience Committee (LEC) welcomed Vanessa Carthell from Arizona Behavioral Health Corporation to present and gather feedback on the Move On Strategy flowchart. The Lived Experience Committee continues to work on the Shelter Bill of Rights and will have a draft ready for input by March 2023. 

The Local Jurisdiction Committee (LJC) reviewed Pathways Home updates for the quarter and provided feedback for next steps as completed action items move into a second phase. LJC also prioritized goals for 2023, such as fostering a learning space for shared policies, discussing ways to approach local challenges, and increasing access and understanding of local data. LJC will begin holding supplementary Office Hours meetings in 2023 to delve into specific topics, starting with a deep dive on data in February. 

The Race Equity Committee reviewed and selected four additional virtual trainings, to be offered by Race Equity Partners, in 2023. The first webinar will be Friday, February 24, 2023 at 2 pm. Registration information will be shared when finalized.  

The Chronic Workgroup will meet on February 21st to review data on chronic shelter stayers and identify outcomes that have stabilized our chronic numbers. They will work towards identifying trends and decide on next steps to decrease 98+ days in shelter stays. This also includes looking into the returns from "inactive" and identifying if individuals returning from "inactive" are returning chronic. 

The Veterans Workgroup welcomed Marcus Foerster of Veterans 5-9, who shared about their program. More information about Veterans 5-9 can be found here. The VA shared contracting opportunities and the links during the meeting.  

The Data Analytics Workgroup continues to work through questions concerning returns to homelessness, focusing on the particular metric of reentry into the system after exiting to a permanent housing destination.  The group plans to compile findings into a report to share with CoC committees that can provide input on recommendations to improve system outcomes. If you are interested in data analytics around returns data and want to join the workgroup, please reach out to Cleo Warner at cwarner@azmag.gov.  

The Outreach Collaborative’s suggestions to add additional data points to the Outreach Viewer have been finalized and are ready to be used! The new data elements let users know if a housing assessment is needed, total encounters in the past 12 months, and current shelter provider at the time of outreach contact. These new updates will support outreach teams in coordinating their client's next step toward housing. The Outreach Collaborative has also begun brainstorming ways to increase connection to local services, such as medical, behavioral health, and substance use treatment programs. The conversation on the next steps will continue during the meeting on February 9th. 

UPCOMING TRAININGS AND WEBINARS 

All CoC meetings and Events can be found on our Meeting and Event Calendar. If you are interested in attending and do not have a meeting invite, register on the event page or reach out to hsinfo@azmag.gov. 

Understanding Doubled Up: National Center for Homeless Education is hosting a webinar on the definition of doubled up and the factors that lead to shared living arrangements – Register Here! 

TODAY, February 1st from 12:00 p.m. - 12:45 p.m. 

AHCCCS’ Implementation Plan: Vitalyst Health Foundation would like to invite you to a second Community Insights session. You will hear from ACCCHS and have the chance to offer your insights to their H20 implementation plan – Register Here! 

February 2nd from 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. 

Zoning, Aging, and Health Webinar: University of Arizona Director and Assistant Director of Applied Health Policy Institute explore how zoning laws affect urban communities for seniors, focusing on housing and walkability – Register Here! 

February 8th from 1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m.  

Paving the Way to College for Students Experiencing Homelessness: National Center for Homeless Education is hosting a webinar on how to support youth experiencing homelessness as they seek to attend college – Register Here! 

February 22nd from 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. 

Housing Services for Persons Impacted by Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Webinar Series: HUD is hosting a two part webinar series on how to identify persons impacted by Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault and how to ensure these individuals are protected when entering housing programs – Register Here! 

February 23rd from 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. 

March 9th from 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. 

Maricopa HMIS Trainings: Solari Crisis and Human Services, the HMIS lead for the Maricopa Regional CoC, hosts a series of trainings each month for Homeless Management Information System users. Learn More and Register Here!