Click Here to Register

About Warriors Path

Every veteran who has been in a season of crisis and is now moving towards positive change and Post Traumatic Growth deserves a fresh start and a second chance to reconnect with the warrior within. While serving, being a warrior means engaging in physical battle, training for war, and ensuring the safety and well-being of your fellow service members.

Once our service is over, a new type of battle begins; it is a battle in the heart and the soul of veterans and their families. The warrior must now use trauma they have suffered as a source of strength and fuel to live their best life in the civilian world. The sense of Ethos found in service must be rekindled and utilized to move forward.

Our 6-week course supports veteran as they design and pursue a better future. A future that they choose. The Warrior’s Path is not a program, it is a course of study to learn how to drop labels such as “broken”, “damaged” and not be anchored to diagnoses such as PTSD. We are so much more than that, and embarking on the Warrior’s Path is to acknowledge our role as leaders in our families, churches, and communities, and forgive ourselves for whatever our role may have been in past traumatic events.
Post Traumatic Growth is a powerful force which improves our families, our communities, and ourselves.

Click Here for More Information                                    Warriors Path Clip

Compassionate Responses to Family Addiction

University of MN Extension is excited to partner with Thrive Family Support on:  Compassionate Responses to Family Addiction.  

There will be 2 FREE offerings with Registration through Eventbrite.  

1. Changing Families, Changing Outcomes :  A 90 Min Webinar, Tue. 9/21, 2:30-4 PM, CST.  Geared for providers, community partners and families. 
2. Small Changes, Big Results : A 4-Part Workshop, geared for families, but helpful to anyone working with families.  Tuesdays, 6:30-8 PM CST (10/12, 10/19, 10/26, 11/2) 

Find more details about these offerings and the presenters in the attached flyer!  

Attendance:   Each participant who completes all 4 sessions of the 4-part workshop will receive a certificate of attendance + one of the following books: 

• The Anatomy of Peace, by the Arbinger Institute, or 
• Beyond Addiction: How Science and Kindness Help People Change, by Jeff Foote. 

*NOTE:   

• There is a separate registration link for Event #1 and #2.   
• Your registration confirmation emails - which will also include the Zoom Link to JOIN -  will come from Eventbrite (please check spam or junk mail!).   
• Contact Pam Lanhart if you have any questions about registration: pam@thrivefamilysupport.org   

COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence in Minnesota Prisons and Jails Survey

The team at the University of Minnesota Prevention Research Center has recently received funding to support a community-partnered project focused on COVID-19 vaccination. The goal of this project, led by Dr. Rebecca Shlafer, is to understand barriers to COVID-19 vaccination and inform intervention strategies to increase COVID-19 vaccine confidence and uptake among people who are incarcerated and corrections staff in Minnesota’s jails and prisons. You can read more about the project here. 

They have a couple of compensated opportunities to hear from people in the community who have been directly impacted by incarceration. This includes, but is not limited to, people who have previously been incarcerated in Minnesota or have had a family member(s) currently or formerly incarcerated in Minnesota.

Survey:

They are inviting you to share this survey with anyone who has been directly impacted by incarceration in Minnesota. This survey will be open for approximately two weeks (unless we get an overwhelming amount of responses, then we may shorten the survey duration), will take about 5-10 minutes to complete, and all participants will receive a $5 Target gift card. The survey is now open (Friday, September 17th) and we anticipate closing it on Friday, October 1st.

The survey should only be taken by each person once; if we suspect someone has taken it multiple times, they will not be compensated. Here is a link to the survey:

https://umn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3Xe15ZUrwbOSBgi.

Interviews or Focus Groups:

They also would like to hear from directly impacted people in the community through interviews and focus groups. These will be approximately one hour, conducted virtually, and participants will be compensated $50 for their time. There are a limited number of spots for interviews and focus groups, based on our capacity to conduct them, so we have created a sign-up form linked here.

Friday Night Freedom

(Virtual Peer Support Network Plus Virtual Zoom Meetings)

A place for connection through community. Wherever you are on your journey we are here to listen.

Every Friday Night in the month of August 2021 from 7:00pm - 8:00pm

Click Here For More Information

Apprenticeship resources translated into Hmong, Karen, Somali and Spanish 

Registered apprenticeship is a time-tested, employment-based training system that combines job-related technical instruction with structured on-the-job learning for workers. It's an investment in your workforce and your business.

A selection of documents about registered apprenticeship and its benefits were recently translated into multiple languages. Additionally, documents related to wage-and-hour questions, building codes, workers' compensation and more are also available:

• Hmong
• Karen
• Somali
• Spanish

Questions?

• Learn more about becoming an apprentice or starting a program at your business.
• Email: dli.apprenticeship@state.mn.us
• Phone: 651-284-5090
• Sign up for the Apprenticeship Works newsletter, a quarterly publication from Apprenticeship Minnesota.

Apprenticeship Minnesota was awarded $1.35 million dollars from the U.S. Department of Labor's (U.S. DOL) Employment and Training Administration to expand registered apprenticeship programs in Minnesota. This initiative is wholly funded with U.S. DOL grant funds, for the purpose of the MNRAE Grant.

The Office of Economic Opportunity shelter and housing team is hiring for two positions

(Link to posting here: Homeless Programs Grant Manager)

 Job Summary

As a Homeless Assistance Programs Grant Manager you will coordinate and administer policy and program development for Homeless Assistance Programs in the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO). Two positions are being filled with this posting.

• The first position - will have the primary focus of managing the Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Program including grant management, communicating and connecting with the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) field office.
• The second position - will have a focus on data collection and program evaluation and will coordinate and administer policy and program analysis for housing/shelter programs including the Homeless Youth Act, Safe Harbor Shelter and Housing, Transitional Housing, Emergency Services and Emergency Solutions Grant Programs.

Both positions will provide grant management, training and technical assistance to grantees, policy and program development, and reporting on outcomes of homeless assistance programs in the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO).

Responsibilities 

• Coordinate and administer federal, state and private funds-for homeless assistance program initiatives including Emergency Services, Homeless Youth, Emergency Solutions Grant, Safe Harbor and Transitional Housing Programs and to build the capacity of nonprofits engaged in these initiatives. Establish program goals and objectives, monitors organizations compliance and evaluates policies and procedures for program administration.
• Initiate, build and sustain strategic partnerships essential to carry out the mission of the office and advancing policy and program initiatives to increase economic self-sufficiency.
• Development and implementation of recommendations on housing policy for individuals and families experiencing homelessness.

More information about the positions and application information can be found here: Homeless Programs Grant Manager

CLICK HERE FOR REFERRAL FORM

New Resources Available to Your Facility to Help with COVID-19 Testing and Response

Updated Jail Toolkit from MDH

This toolkit is intended to help correctional facilities responding to cases of confirmed or suspected COVID-19 among incarcerated/detained people or staff. It provides an overview of investigative steps and gives recommendations for testing, quarantine, and isolation. Recommendations in the toolkit are based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) guidelines. 

Follow this link for the updated Toolkit for correctional facilities: https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/coronavirus/jailtoolkit.pdf

New Testing Opportunity through Hennepin Healthcare

MDH can now offer testing to correctional facilities through a contract with Hennepin Healthcare. This new testing strategy can be used for expanded testing in response to symptomatic people and suspected/confirmed cases of COVID-19. If a facility is interested in using this testing contract, there is no cost to the facility. Testing supplies and specimens may be transported by overnight shipping or by courier service. If interested, please reach out to Health.R-Congregate@state.mn.us.

Change to MDH Public Health Lab COVID-19 testing Capacity

Due to the increased need of the MDH Public Health Laboratory (PHL) to dedicate resources to sequencing COVID-19 specimens, there is reduced availability to test COVID-19 specimen. If your facility has previously worked with PHL for testing, please contact us at  Health.R-Congregate@state.mn.us to discuss new testing options, including using Hennepin Healthcare lab, vault tests, or Cue testing.

Hennepin County and City of Minneapolis launch Hennepin Homeownership Preservation Program

Foreclosure prevention advising, limited financial assistance for homeowners in certain circumstances

Hennepin County and the City of Minneapolis have partnered with Minnesota Homeownership Center to create and administer the Hennepin Homeownership Preservation Program (HHPP). HHPP is promoting foreclosure prevention advising to Hennepin County homeowners, and limited financial assistance may be available under certain circumstances.

The maximum amount available to any household through HHPP is $35,000. Payments will be made directly to the entity owed the funds.

Application and eligibility

• To determine eligibility for HHPP, applicants should complete the eligibility form at HennepinHPP.com.
• For assistance, applicants may call 651-236-8952. 

Once eligibility for HHPP has been confirmed, applicants will be referred to a foreclosure prevention advisor with a Minnesota Homeownership Center network partner. These organizations include Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES), LSS Financial Counseling, Neighborhood Development Alliance, NeighborWorks Home Partners, PRG Inc. and Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity. Foreclosure prevention advising is required in order to be eligible for any potential financial assistance.

Read the full news release.

Hazelden Betty Ford's virtual Family and Children’s program

Below are links to both Hazelden Betty Ford's virtual Family and Children’s program that I mentioned, which is free to the public regardless if they have attended a Hazelden Betty Ford Program.

• Free Public Resource: Hazelden Betty Ford's virtual Family Program: https://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/treatment/family-children/family-program
• Free Public Resource: Hazelden Betty Ford Children's Program: https://www.hazeldenbettyford.org/treatment/family-children/childrens-program

Immediate Openings In Residential, Outpatient with Lodging & Outpatient at ANEW

ANEW Chemical Health Services offers high and medium intensity residential treatment for women ages 18 and up as well as high intensity outpatient treatment. Sober housing is available for our outpatient women and women with children.

For referrals contact our intake coordinator, Ashley Beadell, at 952-466-1803 or at ashley.beadell@anewchs.org.

Referrals can also be faxed to 651-493-7057

Call for Proposal Reviewers

The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) is recruiting volunteer reviewers for multiple grant program proposal reviews. The grant programs are the Community Justice Reinvestment Grants, American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Violence Intervention Grants, Sex Trafficking Investigations Grants, Violent Crimes Enforcement Teams Grants, ARPA Survivor Support and Prevention (RFP not released yet) and Youth Intervention Prevention Grants (RFP not released yet). Please click on the grant program above to view the request for proposals.

WHO: Everyone is welcome to apply. If you have or will be submitting a grant proposal you are still eligible to apply to be a proposal reviewer.

Review teams may include business members, faith community members, other community members, including youth, county attorney staff, social service workers, juvenile justice service providers, public health specialists, law enforcement representatives, evaluators, state agency representatives, etc.

HOW TO APPLY: Complete the Reviewer Application directly online

WHAT WOULD I DO AS A REVIEWER?

• Watch ‘How to Review a Proposal’ on the OJP website
• Read and score 8 – 10 applications based on set grant criteria
• Write explanations for scores given
• Upload scores prior to the meeting
• Meet via Zoom with other reviewers who have read the same proposals to discuss scores
• Finalize scores based on discussion and give funding recommendations

WHAT IS THE TIMELINE?

• Reviewers receive packets of proposals to read and score – within a week after the due date of the RFP
• Reviewers will have about two weeks to review and score proposals
• Attend a three hour Zoom review group

Please contact Claire Cambridge at claire.cambridge@state.mn.us with any questions.

Poverty Declined In 2020, The Result Of Government Aid, Census Bureau Reports

Poverty in the United States fell last year, even amid the impact of the pandemic, due to government aid, including relief payments and unemployment insurance. That's according to new data just released by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Supplemental Poverty Measure rate in 2020 was 9.1%, 2.6 percentage points lower than that rate in 2019.

Relief payments moved 11.7 million people from poverty, according to the Census data, and unemployment insurance benefits kept 5.5 million people from falling into poverty.

The official poverty rate was 11.4%, up 1.0 percentage point from 2019. But that official rate does not include many types of government aid, including stimulus checks, though it does include unemployment insurance.

The poverty threshold is an income of about $26,000 for a family of four, or about $13,000 for an individual. Last year there were more than 37 million people living in poverty in the United States by this definition.

But there's another way the government measures poverty. The Supplemental Poverty Measure, or SPM, incorporates food and housing assistance and in 2020, COVID-19 relief checks. This is the first time that the supplemental rate is lower than the official poverty rate.

Click Here to Read Entire Article

DHS is seeking proposals to provide Social Security Advocacy Services

The first deadline to submit an RFP Application to provide Social Security Advocacy Services is September 30, 2021 by 4pm.

To view and/or complete the RFP Application for Social Security Advocacy Services go to: https://edocs.dhs.state.mn.us/lfserver/Public/DHS-7750-ENG Email all required documents to DHS.SSAadvocacy@state.mn.us with the following text in the subject line: RFP Application for Social Security Advocacy Services.

Who can apply? Anyone with experience helping individuals apply for Social Security disability benefits including but not limited to: Minnesota county agencies and Tribal Nations, for-profit agencies, law offices, legal aid services, nonprofits, and sole proprietors.

Everyone applying must complete the Social Security Advocacy Services RFP application, and be able to meet the contract requirements and service expectations. Partnerships are encouraged.

All currently contracted DHS Social Security Benefits Advocacy and SOAR grantees are encouraged to apply by the first deadline as current grantee contracts expire on 12/31/2021.

DHS is seeking proposals to provide Social Security Advocacy Services

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) through its Housing and Support Services Division, is seeking proposals from qualified responders to provide Social Security Advocacy Services. Social Security Advocacy Services help individuals (both children and adults) who are experiencing homelessness or are at risk for homelessness and are unable to do any substantial gainful activity (work) due to a medical, physical or mental impairment that is expected to last more than a year or result in death, apply for Social Security Administration disability programs.

DHS is focused on growing its Social Security Advocacy Services in Minnesota and acknowledging that intensive advocacy services are sometimes required to assist vulnerable individual’s through the complexities of the Social Security disability benefits application process. DHS' Social Security Advocacy services allow agencies the flexibility to use a variety of best practices and person-centered service models depending on an individuals need. The term of any resulting contract is anticipated to be for five years, from approximately January 1, 2022 until June 30, 2027.

For more information about this RFP, and to view submitted questions by responders and DHS’ answers, go to http://mn.gov/dhs/partners-and-providers/grants-rfps/open-rfps/index.jsp?id=1053-486825

* Click Here for Transitions Fairs Updates *

* Click Here for Transition Coalition Meeting Updates *

Brainerd/Baxter Transition Coalition website - https://centralmntc.wordpress.com/

* Click Here for Statewide Resource List as updated due to COVID-19 *

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