The Buzz - April 2022

APRIL 2022

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

A Message from the Interim Agency Director

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little over a month ago, on March 21, 2022, I became your Interim Agency Director. I am excited to serve in this position and I look forward to the personal interactions that I hope to have with you in my current role. If you happen to pass me in the hallway or take a trip with me on the elevator, please take the opportunity to introduce yourself, and I will do the same.

IN THIS ISSUE 1 A Message from the Interim Agency Director 1 SSA Welcomes Back Customers into Lobbies and Client Waiting Rooms 2 WBA Redefines “Fresh” 2 SSA Runners Achieve Top Placements in County 5K Event

I understand and appreciate many of the unique challenges your departments face. I also appreciate the strength, ingenuity, and resourcefulness, that staff bring to the work, which makes it possible to continue providing critical services to children, older adults, families, and individuals. You rise to the occasion despite the work demands, customer service frustrations, work disparities, communications void, staffing challenges, and the public’s misperception of what we do.

3 Being Proactive about Healthcare Decisions

If we have learned anything the past few years, it is that we cannot predict all the challenges that lie ahead. What we know for sure is that the Alameda County Social Services Agency will always find new and better ways to embody our mission. I look forward to working with all of you.

5 VITA Volunteers Rise Above Second Pandemic Tax Season to Serve Families in Need

All the best, Andrea Ford

3 A Connected Child is a Protected Child: Child Abuse Prevention Month 4 Successful Opening ACT: SSA’s Agency Communications Team Gets to Work

County of Alameda Social Services Agency

SSA Welcomes Back Customers into Lobbies and Client Waiting Rooms After more than two years of pandemic-impacted operations, SSA re-opened its lobbies and client waiting rooms for full service on Monday, April 11, 2022. The Agency’s priority is the health and safety of our staff and our customers; appropriate social distancing and mandatory mask compliance are still being enforced.

Thank you to staff for their diligence and flexibility during this transition.

Photo credits: Amada Robles, Division Director (Eden) and Charles Balderama Sanchez, Admin Specialist II (Public Affairs)

SSA’s Department of Workforce & Benefits Administration Redefines “Fresh”

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ach year Nourish California, a nonpartisan, statewide 501(c))3 nonprofit organization founded in 1992, recognizes government organizations for their exceptional work to improve food access throughout California.

The Freshy Awards are based on performance measures established by the California Department of Social Services This year SSA’s Department of Workforce and Benefits Administration (WBA) walked away with the 2022 Large County Freshy Award. If this were the Oscars, they would have won for Best Picture of the Year. The Large County Freshy Award was based on the below performance by Social Services staff.

Congratulations to WBA and staff for their outstanding performance and this distinguished recognition!

Wings on Their Feet: SSA Runners Achieve Top Placements in County 5K Event Congratulations to all County 5k Runners and Walkers!

Over 200 Alameda County employees and family members successfully competed in this year’s Total Health Dental Care run. The 5k race, which is part of the annual Oakland Running Festival, was held Sunday, March 20, 2022 at Snow Park.

Special recognition and prizes were awarded to the County’s top three male and female finishers. SSA was well represented!

Men’s Division: 1st place, 18:42 min/sec Charles Balderama Sanchez, Administrative Specialist II Office of Public Affairs & Community Relations Women’s Division: 2nd place, 27:27 min/sec Jiandi Liang, Social Worker II Adult & Aging Services |In-Home Supportive Services

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Being Proactive about Healthcare Decisions WRITTEN BY: Faith Battles, Assistant Agency Director

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Department of Adult & Aging Services

o your people know what you want? April 16, 2022 marked “National Healthcare Decisions Day,” founded in 2008 by a healthcare lawyer in Virginia with the intention of encouraging Americans to provide simple, clear, and to-the-point information about healthcare decision making in the event they are not able to communicate those wishes themselves.

Here are a few resources to help you in the process: The Conversation Project: https://theconversationproject.org/ How to Start a Conversation About End-of-Life Care (from AARP.org) Free California Advance Directive Form (PDF from caringinfo.org)

End of life discussions are hard to have, and it’s easy to avoid this heavy lift because we think we have time.

Until we don’t. COVID has reminded us that life can take swift turns that leave us flatfooted if we are not prepared, yes? Consider using National Healthcare Decisions Day as a reminder to be proactive and think of what you want to happen in the event you can’t communicate those decisions yourself and share your thoughts with your loved ones.

End of Live Planning: A Complete Guide for Navigating a Difficult Time (FAQ, Checklist, and Timeline from trustandwill.com) What Caregivers Should Know About Managing a Loved One’s Money (from AARP.org)

A Connected Child is a Protected Child: Raising Awareness during Child Abuse Prevention Month WRITTEN BY: Colette Katuala, Child Abuse Prevention Services Coordinator

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Department of Children & Family Services

t takes everyone together to prevent child abuse and neglect. The efforts of all those involved to support this tireless work is a sign of the community’s dedication and commitment to keeping all of Alameda County children safe, well-cared for, and protected. It truly takes a village. One of the ways that we can collectively support prevention efforts is to bring awareness and attention to this important issue. In recognition, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors proclaimed April as Child Abuse Prevention Month.

It takes a village to raise awareness and support child abuse prevention efforts. Throughout the month of April 2022, the Strong Families Alliance encouraged community supporters to share, refer, and participate in activities and events aimed at fostering connections with children and their caregivers.

This year’s theme, A Connected Child is a Protected Child, focused on one of the protective factors that connects child protection to the strength and resilience that comes from the support of the family’s network and community of support. It is the goal of the Alameda County Child Abuse Prevention Council to reduce the incidence of child abuse by 90% by the year 2030.

The Alameda County Child Abuse Prevention Council supports all efforts to bring awareness to and reduce the number of children who are abused or neglected.

The Strong Families Alliance member organizations work together throughout the community to support families by offering psychotherapy, case management services, parent education and peer support, referrals to other community organizations, youth programs, and support with basic needs to parents and caregivers. Their goal is our goal: to prevent child abuse by supporting their parents and caregivers and to stop children from entering into the child welfare system.

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#WearBlue4Kids on April 1

Let’s Chalk About It on April 8

April 22 Family Story Time online with Snaxx

Children’s Memorial Day on April 22 and flag raising

Successful Opening ACT: SSA’s Agency Communications Team Gets to Work WRITTEN BY: Kim Fogel, Administrative Specialist II

Office of Public Affairs & Community Relations

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right and early Monday morning on April 25, 2022, the inaugural meeting of the Agency Communications Team brought together six representatives from SSA’s departments to begin transforming communications inside and outside SSA. This “opening ACT” was scripted by – you.

ACT participants were each selected by their departments. Janet Campbell, a Program Manager in Adult and Aging Services, said she viewed serving on ACT as “an opportunity to stretch myself out of my comfort zone…and make a contribution.” Svetlana Lesova, a Program Manager in Children and Family Services, said, “I am aware of the importance of this effort, and I am really thrilled that this group is getting formed and I was selected to participate.” Michael Little, TACT Staff Development Manager, laughed as he recalled, ”I first heard when I got the e-mail saying ‘Congratulations,’” but noted he is happy to participate.

When you responded to the Agency Climate Survey in 2021, you and your coworkers sent a clear message that you want to see more effective communication, both internally between management and staff and externally with the public. The Agency Communications Plan was produced as the blueprint for making this happen, and the Agency Communications Team (ACT) has been created to transform that blueprint into reality.

Not surprisingly, it will take more than one meeting to accomplish ACT’s ambitious agenda – three years is the anticipated timeframe. Ms. Soublet emphasized that what those three years look like will be up to the ACT participants. But she had one vision of the future that everyone shared: “We have to move beyond email.”

Andrea Ford, Interim Agency Director, noted that the group will play a critical role in implementing the Agency Strategic Priorities. “You work with (SSA staff) in your respective departments or divisions and you know what they need. We need you to bring their needs and their wants to this Agency-wide Communications Team,” she said, adding, “When you participate around this table…you are going to be speaking on behalf of this Agency. That’s around diversity, equity, inclusion, and anything else that comes to the forefront to meet our Agency needs.”

If you have thoughts or ideas about SSA’s communications, contact your department ACT representative:

ACT is coordinated by Sylvia Soublet, SSA’s Director of Public Affairs and Community Relations, with the assistance of consultant Carol Burton of Jeweld Legacy Group, which will support ACT with data collection bimonthly reports to the Agency Executive Team (AET), and assistance with moving the agenda forward and developing goals.

Adult & Aging Services

Janet Campbell, Program Manager, IHSS jcampbell@acgov.org

Children & Family Services

Svetlana Lesova, Program Manager svetlana.lesova@acgov.org

Finance

Robert Woolley, Interim Finance Director Robert.Woolley2@acgov.org

Government & Community Relations

Lorena Briseño, Senior Management Analyst LBriseno@acgov.org

Human Resources

Michael Little, TACT Staff Development Manager Littlmb@acgov.org

Workforce & Benefits Juan Ventanilla, Associate Program Specialist Administration jventanilla@acgov.org (Program Planning & Support)

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VITA Volunteers Rise Above Second Pandemic Tax Season to Serve Families in Need WRITTEN BY: Charles Balderama Sanchez, VITA Coordinator|Administrative Specialist II

Office of Public Affairs & Community Relations

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or the second year in a row, SSA’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program braved the ongoing pandemic to serve more than 2,100 low-income families. Ninety volunteers—including college students, retirees, County employees, and other community members—came together to apply their tax law knowledge to return more than $5.2 million dollars in tax refunds to Alameda County residents.

While many other VITA sites across the Bay Area remained closed, SSA was able to serve tax filers at four locations: our Eden, Enterprise, and Thomas L. Berkley offices and Alameda County Supervisor Dave Brown’s district office in San Lorenzo. This was quite an accomplishment considering 41% of the VITA volunteers this year were new to the program.

The SSA VITA program also renewed its partnership with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office by providing tax consultation to tax filers at the Santa Rita Jail seeking to claim stimulus payments. The overwhelming response from tax filers was positive.

In addition, the Biden administration made significant changes to the tax law once again to provide extra funds to struggling families. One major change was expanding the Child Tax Credit by 150-180%, increasing the age limit, making the credit fully refundable, and expanding eligibility to families receiving public assistance. As a result, for the first time ever, families with no income could file a tax return simply to claim Child Tax Credit payments.

Despite the ongoing challenges that Alameda County residents face, our VITA program continues to rise above to meet their needs. None of this would be possible without the hard work and dedication of our volunteers.

Jenna Seo, a Social Welfare major from UC Berkeley expressed, “I never thought I would say this, but I’m sad that the tax season has come to an end! This has been one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had to the point where I want to continue volunteering at VITA for years to come.”

One SSA client, who is struggling to raise four children on her own, was in disbelief that her family was eligible for Child Tax Credit and stimulus payments. Initially, she was worried it would impact her benefits. When informed otherwise, she expressed gratitude to VITA volunteers: “Thank you so much for standing with me and my children to get our rights. Without your help and support, we couldn’t do that.” This year, our volunteers produced more than $1.46 million dollars in Child Tax Credit.

If you’re interested in being part of our next cohort, keep an eye out for our recruitment emails in October!

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

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