The Buzz - September 2021

SEPTEMBER 2021

ALAMEDA COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICES AGENCY • OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS & COMMUNITY RELATIONS • EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER

A Message from the Agency Director:

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opefully, as we move toward 100 percent vaccinations in the US, or some percentage very close to that, we will not forget to carry with us the acts of kindness we have heard of and witnessed during this time. I hope we remember that individual actions can collectively change lives. This is true not just in the context of a pandemic but in every aspect of our society. As Social Services Agency employees, you know this better than most.

This pandemic is unlike anything we have seen in our lifetimes. We saw the world shrink as we watched the spread, and it transformed our lives. When we look back, here’s what I hope we carry forward.

• I hope that we have a greater appreciation of how inextricably

connected we are, and that globalism reaches far beyond our economy.

• I hope we appreciate the role of teachers and the profound impact they have on our children. I hope we recognize that their contributions are priceless and compensate them accordingly.

• I hope we appreciate that this planet is on loan to us as momentary caretakers and that we begin to take our job of conserving it more seriously.

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IN THIS ISSUE 1 Agency Director’s Message 1 ONE-on-ONE with Vanessa Cedeño, SSA Policy Director 2 Root to Bloom: Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) Workgroup 3 Children & Family Services Staff Secure $136,000 in Pandemic Relief Funds for Current and Former Foster Youth 3 Departments of CFS and WBA Focus on Back to School Readiness 4 The Advance Child Tax Credit (ACTC): Money From The Federal Government With No Strings Attached

County of Alameda Social Services Agency

ONE-on-ONE with Vanessa Cedeño, SSA Policy Director

ntroducing our new ONE-on-ONE WITH...Series that we hope you will find compelling and interesting. We want to provide you with a glimpse into the roles of individuals throughout the Agency that you might not otherwise know about or understand. Send us an email and tells us who you would like to see us go ONE-on-ONE with next. Stay tuned.

In July 2021, Vanessa Cedeño joined SSA’s Government and Community Relations Department as the Agency Policy Director. For the last five years, Vanessa served as the Policy Director and Deputy Chief of Staff for County Supervisor Wilma Chan. Previously, Vanessa served as a program coordinator and researcher for an immigrant and refugee organization.

She has served as a Commissioner (Alternate) for First 5 and as a Board Member for the Alameda County Mental Health Advisory Board. She has a B.A. from the University of Chicago and has a Masters in Public Policy from UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy.

Vanessa oversees SSA’s Office of Policy, which provides fund development, legislative and budget analysis, and decision-making support resources for the Agency.

Welcome, Vanessa!

Check out this ONE-on-ONE interview with Vanessa and hear her thoughts on what excites her most about her Policy Director role, why it’s important for SSA staff to care about the world of policy, and what she does to relax on the weekend. https://vimeo.com/616423364

Continued from page 1: Message from the Director • I hope that we take time to be present, to live in

• I hope that we have learned to appreciate the power of

the moment, and enjoy the nuance of life that we hurriedly overlook.

Thank You; and I saved the best for last: • I hope that each of you know, that I know, we could not have kept our doors open without you. You have embodied the “service” in Social Services. I have often described what you do every day, under normal circumstances, as a vocation rather than a job. The past 18 months have cemented that sentiment for me. As your agency director, I am proud of how you show up and continue to embody our Core Values and Mission.

• I hope we recognize that injustice in any form is a

cancer on society that cannot be contained and will only metastasize.

• I hope we appreciate that no number of text

characters on a screen will ever replace the joy that hearing someone’s voice brings.

• I hope we encourage children to dream of being

doctors, nurses, and medical researchers—and help them appreciate that their service might change the world someday.

I hope you know how much I appreciate you.

– Lori

Root To Bloom: Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) Workgroup WRITTEN BY: Dr. Denicia Carlay, Foster America Fellow

Department of Children & Family Services

Root To Bloom (RTB) is a new workgroup within the Alameda County Social Services Agency’s Department of Children and Family Services, started in July 2021 under the leadership of Division Director Gloria Carroll, and cofacilitated by Program Manager Jon Pettigrew and Foster America Fellow Dr. Denicia Carlay. The workgroup was birthed from an equity-centered framework to enhance stability for foster youth who encounter the highest placement disruption—children and youth who have experienced sexual exploitation. Given that the systemic inequities that lead to the trafficking of children are vast and deeply ingrained within our society and communities, the workgroup is seeking to re-root and transform the systems of support that surround youth who are exploited to bloom outcomes that promote their healing and well-being.

RTB seeks to accomplish this over the next 12-18 months through a six point strategic initiative centered around the following task team:

The task teams are being led by experienced Child Welfare Workers, Supervisors, and Managers—Tasha Knighten, Chandra Bailey, Camille Cyrus, Melissa Phillips, Vinilta Sagran, and Tracy Scott-Jefferson—with the support and thought partnership of their peers and upper management: Mia Buckner-Preston, Melissa Fegurgur, Connie Linas, Jason Johnson, Dolanda Charles, Karla Gonzalez, Karen Canady, Kristine Pratt, Kelly Wood, Nora Foster, Ta’Shelle LeBlanc, Michaella Conteh, and parent and youth advocates Sophia Reyes and Maria Mendoza.

Be on the lookout for future updates from this dynamic team of change agents!

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Children & Family Services Staff Secure $136,000 in Pandemic Relief Funds for Current and Former Foster Youth WRITTEN BY: Michelle Love, Assistant Agency Director

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Department of Children & Family Services

s if protecting vulnerable children, reuniting families, creating new families through adoption, and supporting Resource Families—to name a few—is not enough, CFS staff have gone one step further to help secure financial resources for foster youth.

$600. Between July 22 and September 3, our department confirmed 226 eligible Non-Minor Dependents (NMDs), which will result in a total of $136,000 in pandemic relief funds disbursed to these young people! Our colleagues in Juvenile Probation verified another 112 eligible youth for another $67,200.

Thank you to all of our Child Welfare Workers, Child Welfare Supervisors, and Independent Living Program (ILP) support staff for their recent efforts to verify eligibility of our current and former foster youth aged 18 to 20, so they could receive one-time cash stimulus payments of

The timely response to this unique opportunity provides much needed financial support to the young people we serve.

SSA’s Departments of Children & Family Services and Workforce & Benefits Administration Focus on Back to School Readiness WRITTEN BY: Colette Katuala, Child Abuse Prevention Services Coordinator

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Department of Children & Family Services

SA’s Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS) has always been committed to protecting society’s most valued asset: its children. Equipping children to thrive academically is equally important. Learning is difficult if a child does not have the necessary school supplies needed to build their path to success.

Alameda County Child Abuse Prevention Services has provided “Back to School” backpacks to youth and teens for almost two decades. Over time there has been an increase in demand for supplies year after year from dependent and non-dependent youth, challenging the DCFS to rise to the occasion. The department provides an estimated 1,000 fully loaded backpacks annually. This school year will be no different, as approximately 1,200 backpacks were distributed in August 2021 to students who are involved with Child Welfare Services.

In addition to the staples (binders, pens, markers, folders, and paper)—no pun intended—the DCFS included COVID-19 personal sanitizing items bearing the Strong Family Alliance logo. Strong Family Alliance is a network of providers committed to the prevention of child abuse and neglect in Alameda County with leadership from Alameda County Child Abuse Prevention Services. The DCFS knows that small gestures like school supplies can make all the difference in the academic success of vulnerable youth.

The Workforce and Benefits Administration (WBA) Department also provided school supplies to children receiving public benefits assistance. Building on the department’s commitment to extend its reach beyond mandated services to meet the unmet needs of families, WBA staff personally donated all school supplies and distributed over 400 backpacks this school year to deserving children.

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The Advance Child Tax Credit (ACTC): Money From The Federal Government With No Strings Attached WRITTEN BY: Sylvia Soublet, Director of Public Affairs

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Office of Public Affairs & Community Relations

ou may have heard or seen the acronym “ACTC” used quite frequently over the past couple of months and thought…why is there heightened interest in the Alameda County Transportation Commission—also known by the acronym “ACTC?” Not the case.

When we refer to “ACTC,” we are talking about the Advance Child Tax Credit—the Biden administration’s legislative acknowledgment that poor families need additional government intervention to help move them beyond their current economic circumstances The ACTC in the American Rescue Plan provides the largest Child Tax Credit and the most historic relief to working families ever. As of July 15 most, but not all, eligible families automatically received monthly payments of $250 or $300 per child without having to take any action. The American Rescue Plan increased the Child Tax Credit from $2,000 per child to $3,000 per child for children over the age of six and from $2,000 to $3,600 for children under the age of six, and raised the age limit from 16 to 17. All working families will get the full credit if they make up to $150,000 for a couple or $112,500 for a family with a single parent (also called Head of Household), or if they have no earned income at all but have a qualifying child(ren).

Tax preparer Linda Slater meets with a customer and her daughter at the Eden office.

How do eligible recipients access the ACTC? The SSA is providing limited Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) through October 30, 2021 at the following locations: Eden Area Multi-Service Center 24100 Amador St, Hayward Saturdays: October 2, 16, and 30 10:00 am - 4:00 pm

As further clarification, the word “Advance” was added to the Child Tax Credit under the Biden administration’s American Rescue Plan because, for the first time ever, eligible families can receive Child Tax Credit payments early or in advance payments from the IRS for up to 50% of the estimated amount of the Child Tax Credit that they may be eligible to claim on their 2021 tax return during the 2022 tax filing season.

Thomas L. Berkley, Self Sufficiency Center 2000 San Pablo Ave. Oakland Saturdays: October 9 and 23 10:00 am - 4:00 pm Services are designed to help qualifying families secure the tax credits they deserve. To learn more, clients can be referred to our VITA hotline at 510-271-9141 for assistance. Families with qualifying children who did not file a 2019 or 2020 tax return can use the IRS Child Tax Credit Non-filer Sign-up Tool: https://www.irs.gov/creditsdeductions/child-tax-credit-non-filer-sign-up-tool. If someone is unsure about their qualifying status, they can visit: https://www.irs.gov/credits-deductions/advancechild-tax-credit-payments-in-2021

How does this benefit the families served by the SSA? This is huge for our foster youth, IHSS providers, CalWORKs, Medi-Cal, and CalFresh recipients who have at least one child age 0-17. The exciting part that directly impacts our clients: they do not have to be employed, have worked during the tax year, have filed a tax return, or have any earned income to qualify for the ACTC! Their only source of income can be public assistance benefits. An important note: child(ren) who are claimed to qualify for the ACTC cannot have been claimed as dependent(s) by anyone else on a 2020 tax return. Receipt of the ACTC does not impact eligibility for public assistance benefits.

CONTACT THE BUZZ Send comments to Sylvia Soublet • ssoublet@acgov.org Content and Design Editor: Andrea Wong

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