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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 2006Minutes approved EVAINSTON MENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2006 Members Present Sue Canter, Gill Krulee, Ann Gauthier, Doug Geyer, Jane Grover, Randy Walker. Linda Laatsch Presiding: Sue Canter Staff: Harvey Saver Community Pam Thomas (Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services); Megan Kashner (Infant Welfare Society of Evanston); Helen Roberts Evans (Child Care Center of Evanston); Don Baker (Y.O.U.); Willis Francis (Trilogy); Tucker Wilde (Housing Options) Ms. Canter called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. I. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms. Canter welcomed the guests and asked that they introduce themselves. A number of the agency directors indicated that they had comments and questions regarding the MHB's proposed 2006-2007 purchase of service allocations in the City Budget. Pam Thomas, Program Manager at Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services, commented that her agency does a tremendous amount of outside fundraising to support the programs that they have in place. A cut in any of the funds that they are expecting will be very difficult. A cut would hinder their ability to serve some of their clients, could result in the loss of some staff time, and make it dif- ficult to avoid a waiting list. Ms. Thomas said that their parent organization would continue to do outside fundraising and they will do what they can if there are reductions. Megan Kashner, Director of Infant Welfare Society of Evanston, said that ever since an economic downturn several years ago, that not only have agencies received funding cuts, there have also not been any funding increases along the way. They have experienced reductions in funding from foundations that have decided to no longer support programs that they have supported for a long time, or the funding levels have been slashed. Government funding has not increased for most agencies. Ms. Kashner said that ever), year her agency is struggling to give their staff any kind of an increase just to be able to retain them. And they cannot cut services because they are seeing the need to serve more teen moms, not less. They have been trying to exceed their previous fundraising accomplishments just to stay in place and make up the gap for what they have Iost in the past. Ms. Kashner said that for her agency cutting expenses can only take them so far. 801/0 of an agency budget is generally staff expenses. Willi fewer funds it is getting more difficult to take care of them professionally and retain quality people. She said that her staff is well trained, wonderful in what they do, and anything that would threaten them would probably affect the agency's ability to retain them. With all of their extra fundraising activity, she said that she thinks that they are looking for new sources that are just not there. At this point, it seems that agencies are just taking money from each other in their efforts. January 12, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 1 r Minutes approved Helen Roberts -Evans, Director of Child Care Center of Evanston, said that a 10% reduction would put her organization in a bind. They are already not able to cut their liability or health insurance costs, or their energy costs; all of those expenses are going up. Even if the agency could increase their fees to help cover the costs, many of their families would not be able to pay them. Rates from DCFS are stagnant in paying for care. Asa result, many centers have to increase the number of full - fee paying families in care. And that results in a loss of slots for families who are receiving subsi- dized care «ith certificates from DCFS. Willis Francis, Program Manager at Trilogy/Evanston, said that his program is experiencing increased costs. Their clients are experiencing the same thing in their households. In addition, State - funded mental health agencies are now expected to increase their productivity under a new fee -for - service arrangement. Much more service must be delivered in order for an agency to earn the same amount of money. Currently, many of trilogy's clients are having new fees attached for things like Medicare Part D, and are having to financially struggle to come up with co -pays for their psychiatric medications. In 6 months, Trilogy has already gone through its entire budget for client support for medications. A 10% cut would further shrink Trilogy's ability to provide direct support to its clients. Don Baker, Executive Director of Y.O.U., said the process of doing more with less has been going on for years. He said that it has gotten to the point where there is nowhere left to cut. Already, the agencies have to find different ways of doing things. But most of them are on the edge financially. Mr. Baker said what it comes do-v%m to for his agency is that if Y.O.U. loses 10% if its allocation from the MHB, then it will have 10% less ability to provide services with what it was able to do with local tax dollars. 11. APPROVAL OF DECEMBER 08, 2005 MiNUTES Ms. Grover moved and Ms. Gauthier seconded a motion to approve the December 8, 2005 minutes as delivered. Motion approved unanimously (7 aye-0 no). Ili. DISCUSSION ABOUT PROPOSED CUTS iN CITY BUDGET FOR MHB 2006- 2007 COMMUNITY PURCHASED SERVICES ALLOCATIONS Ms. Canter reported on the first budget presentation to the City Council the previous Saturday. She said that she had an opportunity to address Council at the end of the meeting about the proposed cuts to the MHB's allocations. Ms. Canter distributed an editorial from the Evanston Round Table that opposed the MHB's reductions. She said that the Board was asked to submit a guest essay about the budget reductions for a future issue of that paper. Ms. Grover volunteered to work with Ms. Canter on the essay. (Ms. Laatsch joined the MHB at 7:25 p.m.) Ms. Canter said that she has been contacted by several groups in the community that were concerned with the Board's proposed budget reductions. They were looking for information about the impact of the changes and wanted to advocate for a restoration of the funding. Ms. Canter pointed out an advo- January 12, 2006 Mental Health Board Mooting Minutes Page 2 Minutes approved cacy letter to this effect that was being submitted to the local papers by the Mental Health Associa- tion of the North Shore. The Board talked about various steps that needed to be taken to discuss and raise the visibility ofthe issue of the budget cuts. Several Board members expressed interest in speaking with their own AI- dermen about the potential impact of the cuts. Ms. Canter encouraged members to talk with their Liaison agencies to find out what the proposed cuts might mean to their services. Ms. Canter discussed the calendar for the consideration of the proposed 2006-2007 Budget. She en- couraged the Board to attend the various meetings about the proposed Budget, and to monitor what is being discussed. She said that the Public Hearing on the budget would be at 7:00p on Monday, Feb- ruary 6. Ms Canter asked Mr. Saver to review a report that the Board requested on the history of the MHB's allocations. He said that the combined allocations for community purchased services in the 1985-86 City Budget were approximately the same amount of money as the Board had in 2005-2006. In re- sponse to a question, he said that in 2001-2002 the total, combined purchase of service budget was approximately S 1.06 million. Since then, these allocations were reduced twice by a total 23.5% re- duction. With a 10% reduction in the 06-07 Budget, purchased services would have been reduced for a total of approximately 5312,000 or 33.5% in six years. Ms. Canter recognized Megan Kashner in the audience. Ms. Kasliner said that her understanding, of the Board's discussion about a flat budget for several years should actually be considered a reduc- tion. Everyone's costs continue to go up. She said that the agency directors' comments earlier indi- cated that. Ms. Kashner continued that even the same amount of money in 85-86 would have had a significantly greater purchasing value at that time than it does right now. Ms. Grover raised a concern about whether there is a change in the City's philosophy towards fund- ing human services. She said that it is not clear what a cut this year will mean in the future, and whether this is only the first of many cuts. The Board discussed the City's draft Strategic Plan in relation to the budget documents. Ms. Canter and Ms. Grover expressed concerns that the Plan seems to omit discussion about people in need in the community as apart of the key constituents. Ms. Canter said that it also seems to omit any men- tion of issues related to mental health. The draft Strategic Plan seems to be directed towards devel- opment and the way that it is changing the face of Evanston. But is seems to be leaving out a lot of the groups of people who are being served by MHB funds. Ms. Canter encouraged any available Board members to hear the presentation about the Strategic Plan on Tuesday, January 24 at 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium at Evanston Hospital. IV. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY Evanston Substance Abuse Prevention Council (ESAIPC). Ms. Gauthier reported that she spoke at the City Council's December 5 meeting in opposition to an amendment to the Liquor Control Or- dinance to permit youth under the age of 21 in B 1 licensed drinking establishments after midnight, as January 12, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 Minutes approved long as they were in attendance at an approved fundraiser-. She said that she was testifying with sev- eral members of the ESAPC, and read her comments into the record: Ms. Gauthier said that the Or- dinance that was being amended had only been in place for a short period of time. It made it illegal for youth under the age of 21 to be in any B 1 licensed drinking establishments after midnight, unless accompanied by a parent. She said that she thought that Ordinance was a positive step that the community had taken towards beginning to change the culture in the community, and to limiting un- dcrage drinking in Evanston. Agency Liaison Reports Dimensions. Ms. Grover said that she met with Kate Mahoney to begin the discussion about the MHB's feedback for the program that came out of the 2005 allocation process. She said the next step would be to also meet with some of their Board members. Childcare Network of Evanston. Ms. Gauthier said she met with Chris Baer regarding the Learning Together program. They reviewed new outcome measures for the program that seemed to be more informative. Ms. Gauthier presented 2 case studies from the program. Thresholds/Transidons. Mr. Krulec reported that he had his orientation to the agency when hemet with Peter Illing, the Director. Infant Welfare Society. Ms. Walker said she met with Megan Kashner and the Teen Baby Nursery staff to begin to get familiar with the program. They spoke about the agency's vision for the program, as well as the Board's concerns about a possible duplication of services with one of Family Focus's programs. Ms. Kashner emphasized that she thought there are definite differences between the pro- grams. Ms. Walker said that she would focus on the similarities and the difference in her visits with the program in the future. Sunday, May 07, Infant Welfare Society will have their first annual "hot tea" fundraiser that will be held at the Onington Hotel. Follow-up with Agencies identified in Allocation Process. Ms. Canter discussed recom- mendations that came out of the 2005 allocation process to follow-up on specific issues with both Dimensions and Evanston Community Defender. Ms. Grover commented that she has already begun the discussion with Dimensions in her Liaison role. She said she would also attend one of the agency's board meetings to discuss the issues. Mr. Geyer asked what the goal was in pursuing these issues, and at the end of the year what did the MHB want to see come out of it. Ms. Canter commented that the MHB was concerned about Di- mensions over -reliance on the Board's funding. At the same time the services were thought to be very strong. The MHB was instrumental in initiating and providing start-up funding for the program. Now, however, the MHB is hoping that they will consider an alternative structure or different devel- opment strategy to become more financially independent. There was a discussion about how to approach both of the agencies in regards to different issues. There was a consensus that there should be more than the Liaison involved in talking about the con - January 12, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes gage 4 Yinutos approved cerns with both agencies. Ms. Canter reported that she will be attending Evanston Community Defender's Board meeting on February 1. She asked Mr. Saver and Ms. Grover to join her and discuss the issues that were raised about the agency. Mr. Saver said that he thought the Defender's Root -to -Fruit grant from the Evans- ton Community Foundation was going to be very helpful in assisting that agency in beginning to deal with some of the concerns. V. FUTURE BOARD ACTIVITY Mr. Saver reviewed the materials from the packet regarding the Board's activities for 2006. The in- formation was organized under the functional areas in the Bylaws that were recently revised and adopted. Mr. Saver said that the activities are based upon ongoing, continuing activities; routine, administrative functions; and, issues in which the MHB has expressed an interest or concern. Ms. Canter reviewed the Board's areas of responsibility. She asked whether there were other activi- ties that should also be included in the Board's plans this year, or items that should be discontinued. Ms. Grover said that the Board should also include advocacy activity and promotion of the Board's agenda to support its own resources. She said that it was something that can take up a lot of time, and as can be seen from the proposed City Budget, should be ongoing. She added that Board mem- bers should also be doing more to keep the Board's activities in the eye of the community. One thing that had been discussed is a celebration of the Board's 40'h anniversary in 2008. As an example, she suggested that the Board try to have the anniversary placed on the City sticker. After discussion, there was a consensus that the levels of activity for the year seemed to be appropri- ate. V1. STANDING COMMITTEE Funding Priorities Committee. Mr. Saver said that the MHB's Administrative Procedures require the Board to annually review and reaffirm or revise the Contract Policy Guidelines, and adopt them for use with Purchase of Service Agreements for the coming year. Ms. Grover said that she and Ms. Walker met with staff to review the Guidelines for 2006-2007. She said the majority of the proposed revisions were "clean up" to clarify language as well as eliminate some inconsistencies between sec- tions. Mr. Saver reported that the Committee was recommending a change to Section 5.4. The language required a reporting mechanism that was no longer practical or useful. The Committee revised it to require each agency to submit with each of their quarterly reports a summary of all funding proposals that they submitted during the previous quarter. This would provide the Board with an ongoing pic- ture of each funded agency's fundraising activity, as well as plans for potential program expansion or new programming. This is different than what is asked for annually in the funding; proposal. Mr. Saver said the Committee thought that it would also provide information the Board looked for in the January 12, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 5 Minutes approved funding criteria this past fall. Section 8.2 was being recommended for revision to clarify the intent of the Board about bills and re- ports that are submitted late. Rather than leaving an option available ("may waive responsibility'l for not paying a bill that is late, the recommendation is for the clause to become a definite sanction ("shall waive responsibility"). The Committee's rationale is that this was the substance of the Board's discussion and decisions that were communicated to the agencies last spring regarding this matter. Ms. Laatsch moved and `is. Gauthier seconded a motion to adopt the Contract Policy Guide- lines for FY2006-2007 as presented. Motion approved unanimously (7 aye — 0 no). Board Development Committee. Ms. Canter said that she appointed Mr. Geyer and Ms. Gauthier to serve on the Committee this year. They will develop and propose a calendar for board develop- ment this coming year. Several topics were suggested for the Committee to consider while develop- ing a plan: role of the faith -based community in responding to mental health concerns; discussion with ETHS social worker about the issues the school deals with related to cognitive disabilities, men- tal health, and substance abuse, and how they collaborate with community agencies; what social ser- vices are provided by the local Salvation Army. Vll. STAFF REPORT A solicitation was recently sent to agencies to participate in one or more ofseveral behavioral health screening days in the coming year. A letter was sent to not -for -profit agencies that serve the Evanston community and have clinical resources to enable them to partner and assist in implementing any or all of the programs. The target groups would be residents and employees in the Evanston commu- nity. A copy of the advocacy letter that the Board endorsed at the December meeting, and that was to be sent to the Governor, was distributed. It advocated for funds to be appropriated in the State's 2006- 2007 Budget to support activities in the Children's Mental Health Act of 2003. Joan Earott, Secretary for the MHB is leaving City employment on February 10. The followingpro- fessional staff at agencies funded by the MHB will also be moving on in the coming month: Jim Graham, Executive Director, Trilogy; Sara Christensen, Community Prevention Program Coordina- tor, PEER Services. Meeting adjourned at 8:50. Respectfully submitted, Harvey Saver Assistant Director January 12, 2006 Mental Health Board Mooting Minutes Page 6 Minutes approved EVANSTON NIENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETING ;MINUTES THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2006 Members Present Sue Canter, Gil! Kndee, Ann Gauthier, Doug Geyer, Jane Grover, Randy Walker. Presiding: Sue Canter Staff: Harvey Saver Community Pam Thomas (Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services); Nfegan Kashner (Infant Welfare Society of Evanston); Helen Roberts Evans (Child Care Center of Evanston); John Mayes, Willis Francis (Trilogy); Tucker Wilde (Housing Options); Martha Arntson (Childcare Center of Evanston); Karen Allen (Metropolitan Family Services); Jeff Simon (Evanston Township High School #202); Sue Uue (Mental Health Association of the North Shore); Tom Laue At 7:10 p.m., Ms. Canter said additional Board members were expected and that she was going to rear- range agenda items to be able to start the presentation. The meeting would be called to order when there was a quorum present. 1. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms. Canter welcomed the guests and asked that they introduce themselves. John Mayes was introduced as the new Executive Director of Trilogy, Inc. 11. BOARD DEVELOPMENT: DISCUSSION WITH JEFF SIMON, SOCIAL WORKER FROM ETHS DISTRICT #202: "BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ISSUES AT THE HIGH SCHOOL." Mr. Simon joined the MHB. He indicated that he has been a Social Worker with ETHS for 17 years. The position is in the Student Services Department. He explained that the Social Worker's role at ETHS is first as educators as they think about their job. Before they bet involved with a situation they have to ask whether it is affecting a student's schoolwork and to assess in what way. Mr. Simon explained that kids at ETHS «ho are seen long term by Social Workers are in the Special Education Department. Their specific needs are identified in a manner prescribed by la%v in an Indi- vidualized Education Plan (iEP). All of the school's S Social Workers have some special education responsibility and tasks. Only one has special education as a primary responsibility. There are a high percentage of students who receive special education services. The other 4 Social Workers are assigned to separate grade levels. They follow a group of students throughout their 4 years in school. There arc psychologists that arc also in the Special Education Department, but they also work with grade levels. Mr. Simon distributed a handout and discussed the roles and differences between a Social Worker and a Counselor at ETHS. He pointed out that the Counselor may or may not help out with students' social. February 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Mooting Minutes Page 1 Minutes approved emotional needs. That is a primary role for the Social Worker. The Social Worker works closely with Counselors regarding how social -emotional issues are ha%ing an impact upon academic performance. The job of the Social Worker is driven by the Pupil Personnel Services (PPS) Team, which has weekly meetings. PPST is responsible for identifying and intervening in student problems. There are approxi- mately 3000 students at ETHS; 400 students receive Special Education services. PPS annually serves 400- 500 students outside of Special Education. It is mandated by law that the school must have a way to screen kids to find out which ones have a need for testing for more specialized services. The Team is used to refer kids for screening for all types of special services. The basis for the referral is "something isn't working out for them." Parents, students, teachers, counselors, and coaches may all make referrals for a staffing by the Team. The Social Worker has to screen all referrals to see whether follow-up is already in process. Sometimes an intervention can be done immediately without the need for anything else being put in place. Input is sought from teachers and parents before the Team meets to do a staffing. Mr. Simon discussed the structure of the meetings and how a student might be recommended for different services. (Ms. Grover joined the meeting at 7:30 p.m.) Mr. Simon said that ETHS has multiple levels of programs foracademics for kids at different points along a continuum. He discussed and described several of the levels for students who have different levels of needs or disabilities. Various instructional and resource programs can be put in place for each student, de- pendent upon their level of need. Mr. Simon said that ETHS also has a Student Assistance Ser% ices (SAS) Coordinator, Linda Selway, to work with students on issues related to substance abuse. The position is able to work with outside agencies like PEER Services for issues like prevention and education. The services are intended to not be punitive. A teacher may make a referral when they witness or have concern about a behavior that seems to be related to substance abuse. In that case, SAS works with PEER's early intervention services. Mr. Simon continued that when there is a known problem, SAS also could intervene. The Coord i nator of- fers a recovery support prom am, a parent support program. and a support program for students whose par- ents are using and abusing substances. Ms. Selway also works with Student -to -Student, a group of students who "choose not to use," and are visible and public in their position. These students are also used to do mentoring for students at some of the classes at School District #65. Mr. Simon said that, in response to some of the \iHB's interests for his presentation, he compiled a non- scientific list of current and emerging issues that are at the high school. He circulated it among his col- leagues and came up with a consensus list of their impressions about changes in the priority of issues that seem to be at the school. He said that the following were problems that have been consistent over recent years: teen pregnancy; sexual acting out; substance abuse; racial tension; truancy; and, the achievement gap. He said that substance abuse is an issue that seems to have remained constant, although it is one about which there is more of a "buzz" at one time or the other. He said that right now there is seems to be a heightened concern as a result of a recent article in the papers about a party at a home in Evanston where there was underage drinking. Mr. Simon said that the following areas at the school are improving: homophobic attitudes; cults; and, stu- dent/staff disputes. February 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 2 Minutes approved The following seem to be areas of increasing concern: a significant increase in cutting and depression; poverty; non-verbal learning difficulties; angerlviolence issues between students' family dysfunction; low motivation for academic achievement; and requests for accommodations under 504 plans. He added that there seems to be more involvement in gang conflict among gangs, but not more gang activity. This espe- cially seems to be the case with Latino gangs. Mr. Simon said that ETHS has a special program at Family Focus for students who are pregnant. After their 5"' month, they can go into the program to do their work if they are not comfortable staying in the classroom. There are also about 20 students who bring their pregnancy to term during the year. They work with Teen Baby Nursery to provide support for these young mothers. Mr. Simon responded to the following questions from the Board members: TVltat interaction is there tvith conitttunity agencies for sonic of the issues identified? Family Focus, as was already discussed. The Family Institute provides interns for ongoing guidance and support. Referrals to Metropolitan Family Services. Y.O.U. for runaway youth issues. ENH for their Bridges Program dealing with mental health issues at the school. Services at the School -based Health Clinic. ii'Irat are non-verbal learning difficulties? Communication difficulties that are on a spectrum. Theperson may not fully understand meaning in communication because some of what is being expressed non - verbally is getting lost, e.g., sarcasm may be taken seriously. Wiat is the impact of the social norms marketing model? It is novel. Students often think that the data is being fudged, especially when it does not support their own impression or position on substance use/abuse at the school. It is effective as a way of begin discussion on related issues with students, especially among those who have chosen not to use or not made up their minds yet. The total tusmber of kids who are in special education or under the PPS Team is about 900, or approxi- mately 30%. Does this seettt high? The number is not totally reflective. Many who are seen by the PPS Team are short-term and just need a little boost to get back on -track. Does ETHS welcome agencies to have outposts in the building? Is this eff `eclive? Agencies certainly seem to think it is areal advantage to gain easier access to tine kids. In Student Services they have seen some real positive and negative experiences with it. There is a long learning curve for the agencies about how to function in school settings, e.g., how and when to pull a student out of class. An agency being in the school does not necessarily change the work relationships. Being in the school does not necessarily mean that an agency coordinates any better with the school staff. The access and availability does not mean things are any different about communication. The Board expressed their appreciation to Nit. Simon for his preparation and presentation. 111. APPROVAL OF JANUARY 12, 2006 MINUTES Ms. Grover moved and Ms. Walker seconded a motion to approve the January 12, 2006 minutes as delivered. Motion approved unanimously (5 aye — 0 no). February 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 Minutes approved IV. CONSIDERATION OF THE CITY OF EVANSTON'S DRAFT STRATEGIC PLAN Ms. Canter discussed materials in the packet regarding the Cit}'s draft Strategic Plan (Plan). She said that she had attended 2 separate presentations about what is being proposed. The City Manager requested that all boards and commissions review the City's draft Strategic Plan (Plan) and provide any written comments by February 28. Ms. Grover discussed the community forum that was held January 24 at Evanston Hospital regarding the Plan. She said that there were a number of groups and individuals that discussed and raised issues about the current goals and objectives. She said that a number of comments made seemed to reflect a perception that the Plan was missing a dosage of compassion, as well as the inclusion of issues that are important forpeo- plc with special needs and disabilities. Board members discussed a number of positive elements and goals being proposed in the Plan. There also seems to be a good deal of creative energy going in to the numerous community, Aldermanic and staff meetings in developing the document. Concern was raised that the focus on the enhancement of Evanston residents' quality of life in the Plan should also incorporate goals that address populations that are Iiving with such things as mental illness, substance abuse, disability, isolation, teen pregnancy, homelessness, and poverty. Ms. Grover suggested recommending a new goal area. In addition to the focus in the Plan for development, she thought that there should be a focus on supporting the network of human services providers in the community. Ms, Canter said that she thought there was a need for clarification about the meaning of item #6, Other Not for Profits, under Partnerships Vision. She thought that it was unclear as to what organizations were being described. In addition, she was concerned about the intention of "mitigating the not -For -profit burden from the City." Mr. Geyer said that he thought more emphasis should be placed upon recovering participation in the life of the community of those individuals who have not been able to participate. This might be the result of any number of the issues already identified as limitations or handicapping conditions. Mr. Geyer added that this might also have an impact upon key constituent groups under the section regarding Future Image. Ms. Walker recommended that Goal # 13 about boards and commission include providing more outreach on an ongoing basis to get more diversity in board composition. Additional comments that were raised by Board members: the Plan should incorporate the community's values about human services; in attention to being sensitive to the needs of its citizens (Vision Statement), the community should be meeting or responsive to the needs; items that focus on health -related issues should also incorporate human services. Ms. Canter said that she and Ms. Grover would develop a draft response from the Board to the City Man- ager, the Mayor and the City Council. The draft will be circulated for review by all Board members before being submitted. February 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 4 I � s Minutes approved (Ms. Gauthier joined the meeting at 8:20 p.m.) V. FOLLOW-UP ON PROPOSED 2006-2007 CITY BUDGET Ms. Canter reported that earlier the City Council restored funds to the MHB's Purchased Services Alloca- tions for 06-07. At this point of the Council's deliberations, the Board's Budget is being considered at the same level as it was last year. Ms. Canter thanked agencies and members of the community who had sent in letters and made calls to Council members about the impact of the proposed budget cuts. She said that a number of Board members had been attending Council meetings and talked with the Aldermen. VI. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY Liaison Reports/Quarterly Reports Family Focus. Ms. Gauthier reported that she recently attended the Community Advisory Board meeting. There was a very positive report about the agency's involvement with District #65's 21' Century grant. Family Focus is participating at Haven School where there has been a very strong increase in both language and math skills this past year. Childcare Network of Evanston. Ms. Gauthier discussed the dinners that CNE has for parents who have kids in childcare. She described a new outcome measure that the agency has developed for Learning To- gether. It will be a part of the contract next year. She said that she thought it would a very useful measure to track. Childcare Center of Evanston. Mr. Krulee reported that funding and budgets are particular problems currently for CCCE's home care providers. It is also a problem for parents who have been experiencing reductions in their scholarships. Thresholds Transitions. Mr. Krulee said that he visited the site and saw how the services are delivered. He indicated that, in addition to the day programming that is offered, they also offer a job track for people who want to work but do not want all of the psychosocial programming. Mr. Saver said that during the fall funding hearings there was concern expressed about the difficulty that Transitions was having, in relation to their projections, attracting Evanston clients. He said that the program's monthly reports through De- cember show that they have surpassed their 04-05 annual totals, as well as their program projections for 05- 06. If they continue on the same track, they will come close to serving as many Evanston individuals as the site did when it was `'TS W First Step. Y.O.U. Ms. Canter reported that she visited the site on Sherman, by Nichols School. She got to observe program, and the homework and social activities. She said that there appears to be a high percentage of youth in the program who have IEPs, or otherwise have special needs. She said that the staff told her that they were dealing with some serious issues. Ms. Canter said that the program appeared to provide a great deal of structure in providing supports. The quarterly report indicated that the program is progressing on accomplishing its outcomes. They are providing a variety ofpositive youth development activities, and are spreading those to all of their services locations. Ms. Canter reported the following for Carol Sittler, who was out of town: February 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Pago 5 Minutes approved BEHIV. The agency is planning their next annual fundraiser. They are operating a new mental health support group that is focusing on self-esteem and depression. Center for Independent Futures. The program is on track for meeting their annual outcome projections. They have increased the time available for their residents with Life Skills tutors. Many of their members are getting additional social activities through the Center for Enriched Living. Metropolitan Family Services. The agency's programs are meeting their outcome projections. Theyare also successfully meeting the hours that they will need for their DHS-funded programs under Fee forSer- vice. Follow-up with Agencies Identified In Allocation Process. Ms. Canter said that she, Ms. Grover, and Mr. Saver met with the entire staffof Evanston Community Defender. They discussed the Board's is- sues and concerns with the agency, as well as questions about the numbers of people being served. Ms. Canterpointed out that the agency was late again in submitting theirquarterly report and seems to have had some difficulty being able to gather the data to show progress in their outcome measures. Ms. Canter said that the agency seems to be going through a restructuring and reorganization as a result of the Root2Fruit grant that they recently received from Evanston Community Foundation (ECF), at 510,000 a year for 3 years. The foundation is strongly encouraging the agency to expand and diversify their board of directors, a concern that the MHB had with the organizational capacity. Mr. Roy said that ECF would also be provid- ing technical assistance and connecting the Defender to other programs that can mentor on various organ- izational issues. Ms. Canter said that Mr. Roy also reported that they finally got a fundraising eam- paign/appeal off the Bound and has already received 57400. She said that the next step will be meeting with members of the agency's board. Contract Compliance. Mr. Saver distributed a report on agency compliance with the deadlines forsub- mitting bills, reports and data. He pointed out that there was only one agency during this period that was extremely late, and had just submitted its quarterly report via email prior to the meeting. He discussed a few, unique problems that some agencies have encountered with the deadlines. He added that it has been helpful to have agencies respond with their reports and bills as email attachments. However, he has to keep a close watch on his spam filter because sometimes it is "capturing" emails with attachments. In response to his question, the Board asked that the reports continue to be provided on a quarterly basis. Mr. Saver said that, generally, compliance with deadlines has increase significantly since the Board notified agencies last August about increased consequences for being late. VII. STANDING COMMITTEES Board Development Committee. Mr. Geyer and Ms. Gauthier presented the materials from the Board Packet regarding the Board Development process. They reviewed the Committee's list of proposed devel- opment topics for quarterly presentations and asked for additional suggestions from the .'%iHB. The follow- ing items were identified from the list for the Committee to consider in setting up a schedule: mental health issues for victims/survivors of domestic violence; most up-to-date dynamics in dealing with family issues; role of the faith -based community in dealing with mental health issues; discussion with social worker(s) from # 65 about theirwork with behavioral health issues in the schools, and how they cooperate with community agencies. The suggestion as also made to also include the following: a follow-up on in- formation in the packet related to child abuse in Evanston that was prepared by Jay Terry's intern; mental February 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 6 Minutes approved health issues in the Evanston Latino community. Ms. Canter asked the Committee to present a quarterly schedule at the March meeting. Vlil. STAFF REPORT Mr. Saver reported the following: • He has already met with two agencies that have expressed interest in applying for MHB funds in the fall 2006 funding process. There are 2 more that have expressed interest in setting up appoint- ment during the next several weeks to also discuss the Board's process. • The 2005 Mental Health Conference will be on Sunday, June 5 and will focus upon depression in adults 20-50. He briefly discussed some of the conference topics. He distributed and briefly described a concept paper regarding a proposed Youth Initiative in Evanston. Alderman Jean -Baptiste presented this at one of the City Council Budget Meetings, and at a community -planning meeting of the Evanston Community Foundation. Meeting adjourned at 9:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Harvey Saver Assistant Director February 9.2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 7 Minutes approved EVANSTON MENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 2006 Members Present Carol Sittler, Sue Canter, Gill Krulee, Ann Gauthier, Doug Geyer, Randy Walker Presiding: Sue Canter Stab: Jay Terry, Haney Saver Community Pam Thomas (Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services); Megan Kashner (Infant Welfare Society of Evanston); Helen Roberts Evans (Child) Care Center of Evanston); Willis Francis (Trilogy); Martha Arntson (Childcare Center of Evanston) Ms. Canter called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. I. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms. Canter welcomed the guests and asked that they introduce themselves. II. APPROVAL OF 1=EBRUARY 9, 2006 MINUTES Mr. Krulee moved and )its. Walker seconded a motion to approve the February 9, 2006 minutes as delivered. Motion approved unanimously (5 aye — Ono). III. REPORT ON 2006-2007 CITY BUDGET Ms. Canter discussed the final Budget adopted by City Council for 2006-2007. She said that the restora- tion of the proposed 10% cut to MHB funds for Community Purchased Services was adopted. Asa result, the Board will not have to make any changes to its agency allocations. Staff will begin to develop the con- tracts. Ms. Canter thanked all of the Board members and agency representatives who worked to have the cuts re- stored. She especially thanked Ms. Grover for her help with all of the Ietters and memos that were sent to Council members about the impact of the cuts. his. Canter said that she also received several calls from agencies thanking the Board for providing leadership in ,-vorking to have the cuts restored. She added that several AIdermen contacted her to thank the Board for information about the need for the restoration. Mr. Geyer said that the Board should begin to consider what can be done to promote the programs that are funded. He said that he was also concerned that there might be a need to correct some misperceptions about the services that are funded or the need for the funding. Ms. Canter said that she wanted the Board to start early in considering how to justify a request for addi- tional funds for purchased services next year. As the Board's research indicated, the MHB has about the March 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Mooting Minutes Page t Minutes approved same amount of money for community agencies in 2006-2007 that it had 20 years ago. She said that she would be meeting with Jay Terry to discuss how the Board might pursue this before next year's funding hearings. Mr. Krulee suggested that the Board look into what other communities fund. He said the thought it might be useful to see how Evanston, with its diversity, compares with other comparable cities as well as nearby communities. IV. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY Liaison Reports Metropolitan Family Services. Ms, Sittler reported that MFS is 150 years old and is one of the oldest social service organizations in the metropolitan area. She reviewed the agency's programs and staffing. Currently they are struggling with the conversion to fee -far -service and arc having trouble with their billable hours. They have adopted an incentive plan to reward staff that meets their criteria and targets for billable time. They currently have 2 Spanish-speaking staff. Recently MFS did a program for P and 4d' graders at u65 about bullying. Center for Independent Futures. Ms. Sittler said that CIF is getting its own office space on Elmwood across from the Fire Station. They currently have 11 people in their housing programs. When the first phase is developed, they will have 6 units at the new Sienna Gardens. The spaces will be physically accessible. CIF has already been successful in assisting 2 people to move out of their housing into their own independent housing in the community. Y.O.U. Ms, Canter reported that the agency is having their Annual Dinner and Auction on March 18, where they will be honoring State Rep. Julie Hamos. Their Sherman office space will be closed for 1 week for minor repairs. Discussion about Summaries of Quarterly Reports. Ms. Canter said that 2 years ago the MHB decided that each Agency Liaison would summarize theirown agencies' quarterly reports for the rest ofthe Board. This was gong to be done as an overview so that everyone would not need to spend the same amount of time with all of the 19 reports. Since then, this has been done inconsistently. Ms. Canter said that there seems to have been a drop-off in interest in doing this regularly, and asked whether the Board still thought that there was reason to try to restore the practice. Ms. Walker said that it started to seem too cumbersome in practice because the meetings were already so long. Some of the summaries were much too long and were not providing the highlights or new things. She said that she did not find all of the agencies' details and all of the commentaries about each outcome useful. She suggested that if there was nothing to report, a summary was a waste of time. Otherwise, that kind of detailed information is most useful for each of the current Liaison. Ms. Sittler said that she would find it more useful if the reports were more abbreviated. Mr. Krulee said that it would be more useful if the Liaison emphasized only those things that were noteworthy, or were sig- nificant about outcomes each quarter. March 9.2DO6 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Raga 2 Minutes approved Ms. Canter said that, based upon comments, the Board would not summarize the quarterly reports when they are presented. Instead, they would highlight only the strengths of each of their agencies' reports. Neighborhood Issues. fir. Saver presented the Board with a map of the Dempster -Chicago area that identified some adjacent areas of special interest and concern in that area of town. Mr. Saver reported that earlier, in response to a request from the Dempster -Chicago Merchants Association (DCMA), Alderman Wynne requested that Mr. Terry make arrangements to provide training to the Asso- ciation about issues related to Greenwood Care. This was not in response to a crisis or a neighborhood problem. The DCMA wanted information for some of the newer business owners. Mr. Saver had been working with them to put together a presentation about the nature of the individuals who are living at Greenwood; what are their rights and responsibilities; what are the facility's responsibilities to them; what kinds of services and supports are available to provide support for them; and who can be called in the event there are any problems that develop. The training was to have been in the late fall but the DCMA post- poned it. Subsequently, two problem issues developed over the late fall and winter months in the area identified on the map. One of the stores on Chicago was robbed at gun point. And there were increasing complaints about disturbances caused by some people who were living at 319 Dempster to the businesses. As a result, DCMA scheduled a forum for its members on Thursday evening, March 16 to discuss security issues and how merchants can work together to support each other in the area. While the security issues were not in- volving Greenwood, Mr. Saver said he was asked to provide information about the facility at that meeting. He arranged for the Director of Greenwood Care to be available at the meeting, and was going to provide information about available resources to the merchants. Ms. Sittler volunteered to also attend the meeting and follow the issues. Mr. Saver said that Housing Options' new building was also identified on the map and was only 2 block from the area in question. There had been some very strong concerns raised by the Crain neighbors at an initial meeting where Housing Options introduced them to their plans. While the agency's new program has not been an issue for the DCMA, he said he wanted the Board to be aware of the close proximity of both neighborhoods of concern. Mr. Saver reported that he and several members of the Police Problem Solving Unit met with 2 people representing the local neighborhood association to discuss their concerns as well as the role of the City with housing like Housing Options is developing. He said that they indicated they were initially opposed to the agency's plans and wanted to try to stop it. However, after some discus- sion and reconsideration, they changed their minds and wanted to move ahead in a positive direction, and to wort: with the agency to better understand their plans and their program. He was asked to make ar- rangements with Housing Options to come to a follow-up meeting. He and Alexander Brown wiIl be meet- ing with a much smaller group on Sunday afternoon, March 12, to discuss the issues further. Mr. Saver said that he expected that there might be a request that the MHB help develop some training for the neighborhood about community residential issues. Mr. Terry discussed the issues related to 3I9 Dempster. He said that it was affordable housing that had been significantly rehabbed in the past 4 or S years. The City has provided quite a bit of assistance to help that project along. Money from the City assisted in the process, and federal funds through the Homeless Continuum of Care are also being used to support several dedicated units. There have been a number of Police calls made to that address. In addition to some disturbances in the business district, there have been considerable complaints of resident -on -resident difficulty at 319 Dempster. The issue has also come to the March 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 Minutes approved attention of the 0 and 3d Ward Aldermen; the building is right on the border of both wards. Mr. Terry pointed out when there area significant number of Police interventions at an address, the Police Chief can move to have the site declared a nuisance address if the building management does not move to solve the problems with the tenants. The EPD has already met with management to assist them in resolving some of the issues. Mr. Terry discussed feedback he has heard about the Housing Options building; on Crain. He said that he has not heard any concerns about the agency. However, a number ofpeople have raised concerns about the proposed size of the building. The building on Crain will house 18 residents. This is twice as large as the agency's next largest building. Mr. Terry encouraged the MHB to monitor these issues that are being discussed and look for ways to get involved in assisting to educate the communities. V. STANDING COMMITTEES Board Development Committee. Mr. Geyer said that he and Ms. Gauthier met to review the Board's final set of recommendations from the February meeting. He presented the materials from the Board Packet re- garding the schedule that the committee was proposing for quarterly presentations. The Committee recom- mended the following list of presentations: most up-to-date dynamics in dealing with family issues; role of the faith -based community in dealing with mental health issues; discussion with social worker(s) from N65 about their work with behavioral health issues in the schools, and mental health issues in working with the Latino community. In response to Mr. Krulee's question, Mr. Geyer said that the Committee would look forexperts in the field for the discussion about family interventions. Mr. Krulee said that The Family Insti- tute would be a good possible resource. After discussion about some additional topics, there was a consen- sus decision by the Board to accept the Committee's recommendations. Allocations Committee. Mr. Saver discussed the Committee's recommendations for changes and edits to the proposal format for the next allocation hearings. He pointed out the following items in the packet: re- vised and streamlined Budget Form 2; changes and clarification in the Proposal Narrative section; and, formatting change to clarify all sections for instructions. Mr. Saver said that the Committee was also rec- ommending a new question in the narrative New Program Funding: -Is the service jar which -vorr are re- questing frrrrdhrg available in a nearby communit��? Ifso, why is it necessan• that this senice he provided in Evanston, as well? " There was general agreement among the Board to accept the Committee's proposed changes to the pro- posal. Board members asked that the following, additional issues be incorporated into the drag proposal for con- sideration: information about degrees and credentials for program positions; general information about rate of staff turnover; what activities are being provided for staff development. 110r. Geyer also requested that a question be included about what "community burdens" are relieved or lessened if the program is successful in achieving its goals and objectives. VI. RESCHEDULE APRIL MEETING March 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 4 ­ It Minutes approved Ms. Canter said that the April 13'' Board meeting will fall on the 2rd night of Passover. She asked for the Board's preference for rescheduling the meeting. After consideration of the issue, the Board decided to postpone the meeting until April 20. (Ms. Gauthier joined the meeting at 8:25 p.m.) VII. REPORT FROM THE CHAIR Ms. Canter briefly reviewed the recommendations that the Board submitted for consideration in the devel- opmcnt of the Strategic Plan. She thanked those who submitted comments and participated in developing the Board's position. Ms. Canter reported that the City Manager contacted her to thank her for the Board's comments. The next public meeting when the Strategic Plan will be considered will be Saturday, March 18, from 9:OOa-2:00p at the Levy Center. It will be a working session for the City Council and staff to de- velop the final language for the Strategic Plan for Council's consideration and adoption. Vlll. STAFF REPORT Mr. Terry reported the following: • There were funds in last year's City Budget for an RFP for the evaluation of youth services. Citystaff reviewed the three proposals that were received and thought that all were unsatisfactory. Alderman Jean -Baptiste set aside S25,000 in this year's Budget to implement some type of an assessment. Sub- sequently, the planning group met with the City Manager to discuss a range of alternatives for hoe these funds might be used. • Ebeneezer Church has made inquiries about developing a residential program for recently released ex - offenders. So far, there are no specific details and there have not been any applications filed. Mr. Terry said that, based upon some initial discussions, the program might need to be OASA-licensed and need a City license, as well. Before anything would be determined, the plans would first have to go through Zoning. Mr. Saver reported the following: He met with several agencies to discuss implementing one of a number of the national behavioral health screening days in Evanston. They agreed to wort: together to plan something for Depression Screening Day on October 9. So far, the following agencies have expressed interest in working on this and providing staff to implement the screenings: Trilogy, BEHIV, ENH Department of Psychiatry, and Mental Health Association of the North Shore. They will be soliciting participation from addi- tional agencies, as well, in order to try to provide the screenings in several community locations. • The MHB's meeting to identify community behavioral health needs will be Thursday, March 30 at 9:OOa in the Civic Center. The Board agreed to convene this meeting to provide additional community input for the Health Department's 2006 EPLAN. So far, 14 agencies have indicated that theywill par- ticipate. He encouraged Board members to attend, as well. • The Evanston Alliance on Homelessness was notified by DHS that this year the community would re - March 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Mooting Minutes Page 5 Minutes approved ceive S347,000 in homeless prevention funds. Locally, Cormections for the Homeless is the agent that does the screenings, manages the account, and is responsible to the State for all disbursements and re- porting. The allocation is significantly greater than the amount of homeless prevention funds that Evanston has received in the past. • Resumes are currently being solicited for the Board's Secretary II position. • When the Secretary position is filled, one of the person's early responsibilities will be to, as much as possible, convert the Board's mailing list for minutes and the meeting agenda to an email list-serv. • In conjunction with representatives from the Naomi Ruth Cohen Foundation, he assisted Pastor Phil- lip Bentley from Mt. Zion Tabernacle Church to begin planning a separate forum on depression for his congregation He will be updating local information about accessing community mental health re- sources for the event. • It has been six or seven years since the Board has visited either of the Evanston IMD's, Greenwood Care of Albany Care. In the past, Board members found it useful to become familiar with and get up- dated on their activities and issues. This was especially the case because of the number of individuals with mental illness who are being supported in these 2 facilities. In response to his question, the Board indicated that they were interested in visiting either or both of the programs sometime in the late spring. Meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Harvey Saver Assistant Director March 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Pago 6 Minutes spprowd EVANSTON MENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETINGMINUTES THURSDAY, JUNE 8, 2006 Members Present Sue Canter, Gill Krulee, Ann Gauthier, Randy Walker. Jane Grover, Doug Geyer Presiding: Sue Canter Staff: Harvey Saver Community Pam Thomas (Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services); Helen Roberts Evans (Child Care Center of Evanston); Willis Francis (Trilogy); Martha Amtson (Childcare Network of Evanston); Tucker Wildes (Housing Options); Sandra Stumme, Karen Allen, Greg O'Donnell (Metropolitan Family Services); David Ellington (Carepoint); Megan Kashner (Infant Welfare Society of Illinois); Joseph Krzysiak (Thresholds); Daniel Stutz (World Relief DuPage); AIejandra LuIe (SL Nicholas Church Hispanic Outreach Ministries); Abbey Eusebio (Office of Congresswoman Schakowsky) Ms. Canter called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. I. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms. Canter welcomed the guests and asked that they introduce themselves. Willis Francis, Program Manager of Trilogy Evanston announced that they recently refurbished their office and got new furniture. They will be having an open house the week of June 28 for members of the community. They will also be having a picnic for program members and staff at Dawes Park on June 28. He invited members of the Mental Health Board. 11. APPROVAL OF MAY 11, 2006 MINUTES Ms. Grover moved and Mr. Krulee seconded a motion to approve the May 11, 2006 minutes as corrected. Motion approved unanimously (6 aye — 0 no). III. NEW AGENCY APPLICATION FOR FUNDING CONSIDERATION: WORLD RELIEF I DUPAGE, DANIEL STUTZ, IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY Mr. Stutz joined the Board. He said that he was accompanied by Alejandra Lute from St. Nicholas Church's Hispanic Outreach Ministries; and .abbey Eusebio, a Constituent Advocate from the Office of Congresswoman Schakowsky. Mr. Stutz introduced himself and talked about his background. He said that he was an Evanston resident and a recently naturalized citizen. He was originally from Argentina. Currently he is working with World Relief (WR)/DuPage as Director of the Immigration Legal Services De- partment. He added that he was admitted to the BAR in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is recognized as an attorney in Spain and is accredited as an Immigration Attorney by the Board of Immigration Juno 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Mooting Mlnutos Page 1 Minutes approved Appeals. Mr. Stutz reported that NVR recently received a 510,000 grant from the Evanston Community Foundation to establish a new, Evanston office of legal immigration services. Evanston was selected because it seems to have a large, immigrant population base. There are also a number of other communities in the surrounding area that have a significant number of immigrants. Mr. Stutz said that WR determined that there was a strong need for these services in the Evanston area. The Chicago area has a large number of immigrants. Of those, 41, 5 % live in the suburbs. The largest concentration of the immigrant population occurs in suburban Cook County. This is also true in Evanston. In the last census it was reported that 11,448 individuals, or 14.4% of the Evanston population are foreign born. About 5.9 % of the total Evanston population, or 4396 people, are naturalized citizens. Mr. Stutz said that this group is frequently in need of services for family -based immigration, e.g., naturalized citizens often petition for their spouses and children under 21, or for their parents, for immigration of their family. He continued that 9.5 % of the population, or 7052 people, are not US citizens. He said that the census does not make a distinc- tion between legal and undocumented because the law prohibits census workers from inquiring about immigration status. Mr. Stutz described significant changes and increases in the demographics of the minority groups in Evanston. This has been particularly true among Asians and Hispanics. Since the 90's, the Asian population, approximately 4500 people, grew by more than 28%, or 976 people. The His- panic population, also around 4500 people, or 6.1% of the population, grew by 91% since or 2160 people. Mr. Stutz said that there were several communities of immigrants in Evanston and the surrounding communities that have strong networks of support, usually churches. He profiled the following: Hispanic, Caribbean, particularly Jamaican and Haitian; Korean; Armenian; and Filipino. Several of these have gown and spread out among surrounding areas between the north part of Chicago and the north and northwest suburbs. Mr. Stutz distributed a profile of the immigrant population in Evanston and communities close to Evanston. He said that the 9 communities listed were included in the 25 top immigration centers in metropolitan Chicago. The 3 cities closest to Evanston have significant immigrant populations: Skokie, with 37.0 ° o of its total population, Niles with 33.7 %, and Wheeling with 31.4 %. Mr. Stutz said that the need in this area was for affordable, immigration legal services for family - based immigration and naturalization law. Low-income immigrants have the same need for legal assistance as other individuals «-ho are at or populations near poverty. They often cannot afford to hire a private attorney, but it is essential that they have appropriate legal advice while filling out a naturalization application. Under current immigration law, some relatively small legal is- sues can lead to deportation. These issues can come out during the naturalization process. For some individuals who are undocumented, they might have the ability to legalize their status on the basis of some family relationships if they can secure good representation. Immigrants in the suburbs who need immigration assistance have to try to get help at organiza- tions in Chicago. Mr. Stutz said that they face problems in finding time and transportation to reach these services. These become hardships. Most immigration legal services providers are in June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 2 M1nutos approved Chicago. When he spoke to the Evanston office of the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metro- politan Chicago, they indicated that they do riot provide immigration legal services in Evanston. However, there organization provides these services to Evanston residents in Chicago. The clos- est immigration legal services provider is Centro Romero, in Chicago. Their focus is on Latin American immigrants. Mr. Stutz continued that the immigrants are not the only ones in need of assistance. There is a need for immigration knowledge and procedure by seminary students, pastors, educators, social workers and others within communities who are wanting to guide and help these immigrants find affordable immigration legal services, but don't ]snow how to assess and refer these cases. World Relief would want to provide training for those who wort: with immigrant residents and provide them with services and training about immigration so that they can direct them to affordable, ap- propriate services. Locally, WR will partner with Garrett Theological Seminary to provide family -based, legal im- migration services. They will provide training when they get the additional funding for these is- sues as well. Garrett will provide assistance with students, who will be trained to provide assis- tance and clerical help. Through the partnership they would also provide training on basics of immigration law and immigration issues to community leaders, Evanston -based educators and social workers, Evanston City officials, pastors, church members, and seminary students to be able to guide and refer whoever needs immigration legal assistance to legal service providers. Mr. Stutz concluded by saying that World Relief DuPage is accredited by the Board of Immigra- tion Appeals to provide immigration legal ser%ices. Their staff is trained in immigration law, and is multilingual in Spanish, English, and German. They provide assistance with immigration law to an estimated 4,000 immigrants and refugees yearly in the western suburbs of Chicago. World Reliefs Evanston immigration legal services office would function at first as a satellite office of the World Relief DuPage's office. It would seek the accreditation by the Board of Immigration Appeals for the Evanston office. Mr. Stutz responded to the following questions: Will Garrett be providing funding? No. Only 1 or 2 students to assist us. They may provide sti- pends for work study for the students. Does Garrett deal with Hispanics? Yes, they have both a Hispanic and an Asian Center. IVlrere ivill the WR Evanston of ce be? Not sure. May be in Reba Place Church. Currently in negotiations. WR partners with churches as its mission. Does IVR have religious of liation? Yes, that is its mission. It is the immigration arm of the World Association of Evangelicals. In the United States WR also does refugee settlement out of its national office. IVfiat other programs does IVR/DuPage provide? Serve refugees by providing employment, housing, educational programs, and training in ESL. The MM's f tnding priorities are to support services addressing issues of mental health, devel- opmental disabilities and substance abuse problems, or have a human services focus. How does June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 • 1 Minutes approved the IVR request fit the AfHB's mission? Immigration legal senvices help people's psychological stability. Does JPR sense a client or a family? It depends. We see them as a system. We see them quite a few times and have to educate them about a range of issues. We have to lead them through the process. R'Irat is fVR committing to this effort from its own resources? We want to but do not have a local office or a local fundraiser. We raise funds through churches; they are our natural support sys- tems. Is the IVR corporate office making any commitment to provide assistance with fiuiding? Not now. I have been trying to get them to provide some support, maybe a copier. But for now they are not. You received 510.000 from ECF. Are yore applying for other Evanston resources, or trying to get support from churches? We have been inquiring. frill you need any additional licenses or have to deal with other technical barriers in providing services locally? No, we can operate as a satellite office of World Relief/DuPage. But we will need to get accreditation, as I mentioned, in order to operate properly. Given your profile of the immigrant population in the surrounding suburbs, why have you chosen Evanston? This office Ivill be as far from the center of many of the population you tivant to serve, and as far for many of their as Evanston is from services in Chicago. You indicated that this was a hardship. WR responded to the interest expressed initially by Garrett. They approached us. We then began to explore the possibility. I am concerned about the religious affiliation. We would provide services to all with no dis- crimination. We do not make restrictions, and we do not proselytize. The issue may be a struc- tural one regarding the types of organizations that we can fluid with public dollars. Does World Relief/DuPage receive fiends from an iv local governments? No. Only funds from community foundations and county government. Are you asking for fiends from other communities to provide services to other inrnrigrant popula- tions that you indicate that you will be senving? No, we do not have connections with communi- ties elsewhere. We would be happy to partner with communities like Skokie if they approached US. If the MHB is not able to fiend IVR, will you still have a program in Evanston? We will do our best, but there are some things that we could not provide. It would be more difficult. For in- stance, wifac,-". , _ - 4^4-- we would not support training for other people who could help the immigrant population. In response to Ms. Canter's question about the sense of the Board on the request, Ms. Grover said that agencies the MHB funds that are not in the Board's priority categories were inherited during the funding consolidation process with the City Council. Many of those agencies fell out- side of the 708 Board focus. This seems to be something different, however. It is not clear June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 4 Minutes approved whether or how WR fits into the MHB's funding priorities. Mr. Krulee said that WR's services could be a mental health component. In response to a question about this, Mr. Saver said that he did not believe that, from their materials or their meetings with him, that WR was providing a mental health -focused service. Ms. Grover said that she was unsure about taxpayer services be- ing spent on programs with such a close religious affiliation. Ms. Walker said that she was also unclear about that issue. Ms. Grover said that she would look for some additional information on the issue and look at additional World Relief information. Ms. Canter thanked Mr. Stutz for his presentation. She said that the Mental Health Board would come to a decision about World Relief's request in the near future. (Mr. Krulee left: the meeting at 7:45 p.m.) IV. FINAL REPORT ON REACH, GROW AND LEARN (SAMHSA GRANT). GREG O'DONNELL, PROGRAM MANAGER, METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES Mr. Saver reported that the City's grant from SAMHSA to implement the Reach, Grow and Learn Program (RGL) would be coming to an end on June 30. He said that they were able to ex- tend the 3-year grant over a 4-year period, as a result of a slow start-up and careful monitoring of the expenditure of funds. He introduced Greg O'Donnell, the Program Manager from Metropoli- tan Family Services, who was responsible for the implementation of the grant. He was going to provide an overview of the outcomes of the program in early childhood centers. Mr. Saver said that he and Mr. O'Donnell will soon be preparing the final grant report, and he will be organizing the final financial reports and closing out the pant with SAMHSA by September. He added that this is the 3'd project report that Mr. O'Donnell has presented to the MHB over the course of the grant implementation. Mr. O'Donnell said that RGL implemented The Incredible Years (TM program, an evidence - based, early childhood mental health prevention program in a number of Evanston's private childcare centers. It was only towards the tail end of the grant that it was possible to gain access to some of the childcare classrooms at District #65. TIY emphasizes social -emotional learning skills. TIY was chosen for the grant -funded initiative because research has shown that kids who have good social emotional learning (SEL) skills are more likely to be able to manage their behaviors, effectively socialize and succeed in academics. Mr. O'Donnell said that the project deliverables included increasing social emotional and prob- lem -solving skills for children; anger management was a key component for this. Additionally, strived to enhance parenting skills and parental confidence; and, develop teacher confidence and better classroom management skills. Mr. O'Donnell said that there was also a community goal to educate the community about pre- vention and SEL in early childhood. For the past 2 years, the grant supported the conference on Alaxindzing Children's Potential. The conference incorporated information about brain devel- opment, and focused on what new research is revealing to us about "the power of the brain" and raising emotionally healthy children. The conference was very well received by teachers and par- ents. June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Pago 5 Minutes approved Mr. O'DonneIl described the key components of The Incredible Years program and discussed how the 3 different curricula were implemented. He said that the parents' groups provided an op- portunity for the adults to share their experiences and successes wti ith their children. The parents were able to provide support for each other, often through troubling times. The teacher work- shops allowed teachers from different centers to come together to share ideas and get more input on their classroom plans. It also enabled them to have the time and resources to develop an ac- tion plan for their own classroom. Mr. O'Donnell said that the program more than met the expectations for its deliverables. The grant projections were to serve 400 children and their parents and teachers. By the end of this month, RGL will have provided services to 540 children and 260 adults. The demographic com- position of the participants was Latino 34%; African -American 25* o, Asian 8%; and White 33%. Approximately 150 parents and teachers attended each of the annual conferences. The SAMHSA grant required not only that an evidence -based practice be implemented, but that the services also are formally evaluated over the course of the grant. Mr. O'Donnell reported strong success in the outcome areas that were measured: I. Reduced frequency and intensity of problem behaviors in children — 80% 2. Increased parent confidence in their parenting — 75% 3. Increased teacher confidence in working with their students — 67% 4. Increased belief in children's power and independence — 100% 5. Lowered belief in corporal punishment — 80% 6. Reduced inappropriate parental expectations of children — 80% Ms. Walker asked why the scale on teacher confidence was relatively low, at a 67% increase. Mr. O'Donnell said that he thought it was a function of teachers initially providing baseline in- formation that was overly generous. When the initial survey was implemented with the teachers, they were not familiar with many of the people who they were with. He said that, in discussion, it seemed that many of them were not going to be entirely honest with each other about their own professional limitations or concerns, and so they assessed themselves as more confident than they really were. The inflated, initial baseline rating on confidence would have held down the resul- tant increase reported. Ms. Grover asked where the data was reported and whether there were comparisons of success rates across the SAMHSA programs that were funded under this funding title. Mr. O'Donnell said that comparisons across programs were difficult because only 5 of the 28 projects that SAMHSA funded in this 3-4 year prevention initiative were using TIY. In addition, each project decided what tools it would use and which measures it would study. However, the results of Evanston's implementation of the TIY Program were very similar with national results. Mr. Saver said that a straight comparison was also difficult because each of the 5 TIA' projects im- plemented the program in a different way. Several implemented only the T1Y program in the schools with kids; some focused upon parents' groups. Evanston was the only community that attempted to implement all 3 phases of The Incredible Years at the same time. He added that he did not know whether and how SAMHSA would publish the outcome results of these grant - funded projects that targeted SEL and mental health prevention. .tune 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 6 Minutes approved In response to a question about maintaining the program after the grant is over, Sandra Stumme, Executive Director of Metropolitan Family Services, reported that they have been unsuccessful so far in obtaining additional funding for RGL. The agency has made a number of attempts to find continuation funding, but it has been very difficult. Her agency has a small, private grant to provide some TIY services in Skokie. Additionally, after seeing Mr. O'Donnell's presentation, the MFS Board of Directors decided to allocate a small amount of money from their resources to maintain the program at a minimal level. Mr. O'Donnell summarized his presentation and said that the 4-year project made a difference in the community and successfully met its goals. Ms. Canter thanked Mr. O'Donnell for his presen- tation. The members of the Mental Health Board and the community representatives in atten- dance applauded Mr. O'Donnell for the success of the Reach, Grow and Learn program. V. PROPOSAL FOR CANDIDATES' FORUM ON MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES Ms. Grover reviewed the materials in the packet regarding a candidates' forum related to mental health issues in the fall. lMs. Grover moved and 11s Walker seconded a motion for the MHB to be a cosponsor with other local partners for a candidates' forum regarding state mental health issues. Motion passed 5 aye — 0 no. Ms. Grover volunteered to work on the forum for the MHB. VI. STANDING COMMITTEES Funding Criteria and Assessment 1. Funding Criteria. Ms. Grover reviewed the materials in the packet. She said that there had been a generally positive evaluation of the use of the funding criteria and the assessment tools during the 2005 allocation process. Ms. Canter said that she thought it helped the Board by introducing greater objectivity to the decision -making process. Ms. Grover said that there were a few areas that were considered for modification. One of the concerns was the bunching of a number or programs around a very narrow range. She suggested that the rating scale be expanded from a 10-point scale to a 20-paint scale to enable Board members to maize greater distinctions between programs. Ms. Gauthier said that it might be all right to have programs lumped together if there were only small differences; a ranking of pro- grams in order should not imply that one program is better than another. In discussion it was pointed out that the ranking was not used to determine "better" or "worse" about the indi- vidual programs but, instead, as a way of developing funding rules for hoxv the programs would be considered for making funding recommendations. Ms. Grover said that the Com- mittee was also recommending that more weight be given to the program -specific scores than the agency scores. The recommendation was to re -weight the agency criteria as 30% of the Final Score and the 3 program criteria as 701,10 of the Final Score. Ms. \Valker said that the Responsiveness Category also seemed to provide some confusion and the Committee was recommending that the category and the criteria be made clearer. The Board tentatively accepted the recommendations in the Committee's report in the packet and asked that final recommendations be provided for the July meeting. 11. Funding Calendar. Mr. Saver reviewed the proposed calendar for the 2006 allocation process. He said that the calendar was organized around the same structure the previous year. The Board's October meeting that was a funding hearing was pushed back one week in June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 7 IMinutes approved order to provide the Board additional time to complete their review of proposals. There was a consensus to accept the calendar as proposed. Ill. Proposed Funding Proposal Revisions. Nis. Walker said that the Committee was recom- mending a new question be added to the proposal regarding what are the "best practices" in the agency's field, and whether or not the agency was employing them. Mr. Geyer said he was concerned about including that issue. He said that an agency may not be employing best practices, but what they are doing is working very %well. He added that, at some point, the MHB needed to settle on what is actually enough information and what is too much. Ms. Walker said that the Board had been focusing only upon outcomes, but she thought it should also be looking more at process. Some programmatic approaches were just not going to provide adequate results or an appropriate context for service delivery. Mr. Geyer said that he appreciated best practices models, but they are not always helpful. He would rather know what are the 3 best things that the agency does, and why. The Board decided that Mr. Geyer's question and a question about best practices would be added to the issues that are sent to the agencies in advance of their hearings. Board Development Committee. Mr. Geyer reported that he was having some difficulty find- ing a presenter for the presentation about up-to-date dynamics in family therapy. This was tenta- tively scheduled for the July meeting. The Committee may need to rearrange the scheduled pres- entations. Mr. Geyer said that he and Ms. Gauthier met to discuss a presentation related to CRAFT, an in- tervention in working with families who have a chronic, chemically dependent member that is unwilling to enter treatment. He said that this was not intended to be Board Development func- tion. Per the Board's request, they were recommending a community education presentation sometime in 2007, and probably tied to a national recognitions day related to either recovery or alcohol awareness. He provided a short overview and said that there were a number of details that would have to be worked out if this were something the Board wanted to pursue. The Board agreed in principle with the topic and asked for more information about the scope of the presen- tation and the details. In response to Ms. Canter's inquiry, Ms. Gauthier and Mr. Geyer agreed to begin the initial planning for this event for the Board's consideration. VII. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY Liaison Reports Family Focus. (Gauthier) Reviewed the school program for Pregnant and Parenting Teens. All eligible girls are graduating this year. Housing Options. (Geyer) June 21 the Kirk Home at 1304 Asbury will be dedicated as Gavin House. Progress is being made to obtain a 5750,000 loan from IHDA to rehab the new Crain lo- cation. The staff is recommending it for approval. The plan is to have rehab work completed and people moving in by December. Lerl Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago. (Geyer) This month is the agency's 40anniversary. LAFMC received a $150,000 infrastructure grant to upgrade the agency's tech- nology, which is outdated. June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 8 Minutes approved Follow-up on Agency Issues from Funding Hearings. Ms. Canter reported that she and Mr. Saver met for a second time with staff and Board representatives from the Community De- fender. They have been moving ahead with their plans and have brought on a new Board mem- ber. They are trying to recruit some additional Board members who are not attorneys, and par- ticularly are looking for assistance with fundraising. They have begun to do a SWOT analysis for their strategic plan and are targeting to be done by October. Vlll. BOARD OFFICERS FOR 2006-2007 The Nominating Committee's report for MHB Officers for 2006-2007 that was delivered at the May meeting was reviewed. tics. Grover moved and Ms. Gauthier seconded a motion to close nomi- nations. Motion approved unanimously (5 aye -- 0 no). Sts. Gauthier moved and Mr. Geyer seconded a motion to accept by acclimation the nomina- tion of Sue Canter as Chair and Randy Walker as Vice -Chair for the Mental Health Board's 2006-2007 program year. The motion passed unanimously (5 aye— 0 no). IX. REPORT FROM THE CHAIR Ms. Canter said that the City's newly formed Budget Policy Committee would be meeting for the first time on Monday, June 19. She added that the discussion at that meeting would be very use- ful in informing the MHB's discussion about future budget strategies at the special meeting on Thursday, June 22 at 7:00 p.m. at her home. She asked Board members to confirm with her their availability for the meeting. Ms. Canter reminded the Board that the regularly scheduled August Board meeting has been can- celled. There would not be a business agenda, and it just prior to a 3-month period when the MHB will be meeting 5-6 limes overall. She said that Thursday, August 10 at 7:00 p.m., the Board would be meeting to discuss the article "The Business of Giving" from The Economist X. STAFF REPORT Mr. Saver reported the following: • Chief Frank Kaminski will be retiring from City employment at the end of July and be joining School District #202 as their Chief of Security. • One of the strategic plan goal areas that he is working on will be doing an assessment of the City's boards and commissions. The committee will be looking at how boards are fulfilling their respective missions; how City staff provides support to boards; how board members are provided training and support; and whether there are duplications or gaps in the way that the current composition of boards is organized. Chairs of boards and staff will be interviewed separately to develop the overall profile. He said that he would provide the MHB with addi- tional information as it was available. • On Wednesday they interviewed 3 very strong candidates for the office's Secretary position. They expect to be making an offer by the following Monday. • He participated in the mental health workshop "Feeling Kinda Blue" at the Mt. Zion Tabema- cle Apostolic Church on Sunday, May 21. This was in partnership with the Cohen Founda- June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 9 Minutes approved lion. There were 60-70 people in attendance. The workshop was free and open to the com- munity, however, a major emphasis was for the organizers was to reach out and provide in- formation to members of the African -American community about depression. A number of people met with him after the workshop to discuss community resources, and 4 people con- tacted the office the following week to look for assistance with services. • He participated on the Steering Committee in planning the Fifth Annual Mental Health Con- ference on June 4. There was a very strong response to the event on depression in adults 20 through 50. Approximately 150 people were registered in advance, however over 250 people attended the event. Mr. Saver said that he has been invited to serve on the Steering Committee again. Meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Harvey Saver Assistant Director June 8, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 10 a Minum approved EVANSTON MENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, JULY 13, 2006 Members Present Sue Canter, Gil Krulee, Ann Gauthier, handy Walker, Carl LaMell, Doug Geyer, Carol Sittler Presiding: Sue Canter Staff: Harvey Saver, Casey Solomon Community: Aracely Canchola-Garcia, Wills Francis (Evanston Coalition for Latino Re- sources); Patricia Dixon (Evanston Community Defender); Sandi Johnson (North Shore Senior Center), Sandra Stumme (Metropolitan Family Ser- vices); Helen Robert Evans (Child Care Center of Evanston); Laura Min - Proctor, Mary Ann Moseley (Center for independent Futures) Ms Canter called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. I. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms Canter welcomed the guests and asked that they introduce themselves. Laura Min -Proctor introduced Mary Ann Moseley, the new Development Director for Center for Inde- pendent Futures. Mr. Saver introduced and welcomed Casey Solomon, the new Secretary for the Board. II. APPROVAL OF JUNE 8, 2006 MINUTES Mr. LaMell moved and Ms Gauthier seconded a motion to approve the June 8, 2006 minutes as corrected. Motion approved (7 ayes -O no). (Mr. Geyer joined the Board at 7:10 p.m.) III. BOARD DEVELOPMENT: "MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN WORKING WITH THE LATINO COMMUNITY." WILLIS FRANCIS, CHAIR, EVANSTON COALITION FOR LA- TINO RESOURCES Aracely Canchola-Garcia and Willis Francis joined the Board. Ms. Canchola-Garcia said that the La- tino community is the fastest growing minority population, both nationally and locally. July 2004 it became the largest minority population in the country. There has been a 57.9% increase in the Latino population since 1990. It is predicted that by 2050 1 in 4 U.S. residents will be Latino. This is a younger group with 35% of the Latino population being under 18 years of age, compared to 26% of the entire U.S. population. The Latino community has existed in Evanston since the late 60's-early 70's.The population has grown by 91 % over the past decade. There is no specific neighborhood with strong Latino demographics, but the 1990 census does reflect a high concentration in the I"tWard. This is likely influenced by North- western students, who are not full-time residents. In Evanston the population grew by 91% from 1990 to 2000, when it was 4539 people or 6.1 % of the total population. July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes page 1 Minutes approved Ms. Canchola-Garcia said that there were a number of traits and characteristics shared among the La- tino groups. People have to be aware of them in working with individuals and families who are Latino. They include the following: • Personalisino means that the person is valued over other things. Latinos have a very personal cul- ture, placing a high value on personal relationships and physical contact. Outreach efforts should be of a more personalized nature, and should be done face-to-face rather than through invitations and letters. Service providers need to know that people may not be on time for appointments because time is less important that relationships. • Fatalismo refers to the Latino community's tendency to feel a personal sense of powerlessness and an acceptance of things as they exist. They have difficulty seeing any ability to change. Individuals tend to be very religious -minded and view their fate in terms of "God`s will." • Latinos see family as extremely important, which is described by fandlismo. This is placing the needs of the family above the needs of the individual. They are very proud and won't seek help, but will try to fix problems, first, through their family. There is a strong sense of interdependence and they keep kids close. Protection and care -taking arc viewed as very important, which ties in the role of the extended family. • Collectivisnio applies to the Latino's view of community and their role in the community. They prefer to belong and work in groups, which are tightly knit. Members of the community rely on one another in much the same way that Anglo Americans regard their extended family. Personal accom- plishments perceived as groups accomplishment. • Spirimalismo, or the Church, plays an important role in the community. Members of the Latino community are likely to seek psychological advice from their priests rather than trained profession- als. Ms. Canchola-Garcia said that there are important core values of respect, dignity and pride. Latinos are proud and will not readily seek help, but will try to fix problems first through the Family. Respeto or "respect" places great emphasis on authority figures such as parents, teachers, elders or government officials. There is a reluctance to disagree or express doubts to a person in authority. Latinos have a tendency to respect authority more than their American peers. In comparing the differences between the Latino culture and the dominant culture, interdependence is emphasized more than independence. There is more interdependence among members of the commu- nity, and less emphasis upon individuals. Social competence is valued more than intellectual competence and development. Focus on children tends to center on social interactions than on cognitive growth. Ms. Canchola said that n the 0-5 age population, there is a need to start working on cognitive stimulation at an earlier age. Accomplishments are seen in terms of family accomplishments as opposed to an individual accom- plishment. Mr. Francis said that the Latino community faces some barriers in accessing; mental health service. They are the least insured demographic group; undocumented workers are paid under the table so in- surance is not available to them. Undocumented residents also fear that they may be turned into to Im- migration and Naturalization Services, so they do not reach out for help. The disparity in wages, com- bined with lack of insurance present strong economic barriers to seeking assistance. July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 2 Minutes approved Some behavioral factors place the Latino community at high risk. These include the high rate of pov- erty, immigration status issues, and limited access to medical and psychiatric care. There is a peculiar balance between assimilation and rejcction by the mainstream culture, which contribute to mental health disorders. Additionally, longer work hours, due to lower wages, increase stress. Studies have shown that rates of psychiatric disorders are much higher for the members of the U.S. born Latino community, than among foreign born Latinos. Approximately 64% of the Latino popula- tion is U.S. born. U.S. born Latinos present higher rates of depression and anxiety disorders than Whites. Latino children report higher rates of psychiatric disorders. Depression rates were 12% com- pared to 6% for whites. Overall, suicide rates were lower for Latino youth (6%) versus whites (13%). Latinos have the highest high school drop -out rates of any demographic group There are several cultural factors that also impact the assessment of needs. Latinos tend to look to their physician or clergy for mental health issues. Somatic symptoms are a common expression of mental health distress among Latinos who only speak Spanish. This may be a reason why reports of mental health issues arc lower for foreign -born Latinos. They also tend to interpret what may appear to be mental health concerns as cultural symptoms - "evil eye", fright, nerves. The symptoms make a diag- nosis with DSM IV difficult. Mr. Francis said that social service agencies are supposed to be meeting the needs of the community, and so they should be getting the input of community members in all stages of program design and dc- livery. He opined that in order to meet the needs of the growing Latino population, agencies should actively seek to reduce barriers and to engage in routine self -evaluation of the accessibility and quality of their service delivery. Agencies should network actively with local leaders and community based organizations that are representative of the target population. Bilingual and bicultural staff are key. The absence of a sufficient number of Latino professionals in the field is a factor that can negatively affect service delivery. Attention in program planning should be paid to the 7 A's: availability, accessibility, affordability, acceptability, appropriateness, accountability and adequate assessment. Agencies must join with the internal, personal resources of the Latino community. They should work with natural healers or other culturally compatible sources of health and healing in the community. Service providers should develop personal connections with referral sources, e.g. priests, primary phy- sicians. Ms Canchola-Garcia provided an example of the potential impact of a bilingual/bicultural agency em- ployee. Last year, Evanston's Head Start program had a very low number of Latino students enrolled. The program hired a Latino outreach person, and over the course of a year Latino enrollment grew by 90%. The following information was presented in response to questions: In the early 1970's many of the Latino immigrants in Evanston were from rural Mexico, and largely one state, with little education. Now, Latino immigrants come from all over Mexico, Central and South America (El Salvador, Guatemala, Chile), and Europe. Many are well educated. Locally, School Dis- trict ##65 has seen a dramatic increase of Latina students who account for 12.5% of student body. This is up from 8.5% in 2002. There are no longer defined barrios in the local community. Latinos are dis- persing throughout the community and are willing to move to a neighborhoods and suburbs that offer better schools or they follow affordable housing. July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 Minutes approved 90% of Evanston Latinos are from Mexico. However, where they come from does not make a differ- ence for the purpose of treatment. Issues that were presented would pertain to all of the Latino popula- tion. . The lack of bilingual and bicultural service providers makes it especially difficult when a child speaks English and the parents do not. Parents need to be able to communicate with the service provider, di- rectly, for obvious reasons. However, when presenting for services they are often paired with an Eng- lish-speaking therapist. The therapist may not really be able to address the mental health needs, and miss the cultural context for the presenting issue. And the child may be in the position of having to translate around some difficult or embarrassing issues for their parent. Increased aspirations as a result of success, for Latinos bom in this country, can cause a strain on cul- tural values, increase depression and lead to increase in risk of suicide. Many of those born here are first generation. With aspirations increasing, first generation individuals are running in to barriers and discrimination, and more tension and frustration accompanying success because there are also in- creased pressures to stay at home and help take care of the family. It is very hard to gauge the total need for mental health services in the Evanston Latino population. Many in the community are reluctant to seek help, due to cultural factors. Additionally, often the symptoms are different between cultures. What might manifest as anger and acting out may actually be depression. Ms. Canter thanked Ms. Canchola-Garcia and Mr. Willis for their presentation. IV. NEW APLICATION FOR FUNDING CONSIDERATION: WORLD RELIEF/ DU PAGE Ms. Canter reviewed the previous presentation by Daniel Stutz from World Relief (WR). WR was re- questing the opportunity to submit a funding proposal for FY07-08 to the MHB. WR wants to develop a local office of family based, legal immigration services. In terms of timing, a decision would need to be made that night. Mr. Saver reviewed the Board's policy about considering agencies that have not previously applied for MHB funding. Mr. LaMell asked whether the Board's budget for agency purchased services would be greater this corning year. Mr. Saver said, at this point, the Board was not expecting any growth in funds. How- ever, Ms. Canter would be presenting a report later in the meeting about this issue. He added that this fall there would be 2 new agencies applying for funds that are not currently funded. At the same time, several funded agencies are discussing a reorganization or expansion of their funding requests. Ms Canter said that she thought WR was a good, long-standing organization that has helped a lot of people. She said that she did not think the Board should request a proposal from them at this point. She said that she thought the proposal was %-cry loose. WR is a religious -based organization, and they have indicated that much of their funding usually comes from churches, but there were no plans to seek those funds locally. She said that she was not sure about whether an organization like WR was appro- priate to fund with City dollars. Ms. Canter continued that she thought Evanston might be the wrong community to start up this type of service. The information provided by WR in their presentation stated that the foreign -boat populations were much more significant in areas to the west like Skokie (37%) and Niles (33.7%). It would seem that those communities might be better places to start, where the need for immigration legal services July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 4 Minutes approved for people who arc foreign -born would be much higher. At this point the proposal does not seem to be planned out and is loose. She said she was reluctant to fund a start-up proposal. Though the impact of issues related to immigration can cause stress and have an impact on one's mental health, this is not a mental health intervention, and does not seem to be an MHB priority. With the Board's available funds being so tight and limited, all of these reasons have her not wanting to receive a proposal this year. Ms. Gauthier said that she agreed with Ms. Canter. She said that she was not sure whether the lack of mental health connection was a valid reason not to fund, given some of the other programs supported by the Board for broader needs. However, the agency's own information seemed to indicate that there might be a better plan for where to locate the services. Mr. Geyer said he also agreed with Ms. Canter. He said he was not concerned about the connection of the service to a religious organization. However, he had concerns that the parent organization was be- ing non -supportive financially. The proposed service seems very intriguing, and might be a valuable service to have in Evanston. However, it seems rather risky funding a start-up program.. In addition, he said he would not consider a grant as large as what WR indicated that they would be requesting. If the Board were to support WR's request, it should be for a much smaller grant than they have indi- cated. Mr. LaMell said that it was not going to be possible to fund everyone, and not to the extent that they need it. He said he was opposed to having another additional agency this year. Ms. Walker said that she was open to having broader diversity in the agencies represented, and perhaps more creativity in the proposals. Ms. Walker added that bringing more agencies into the process was a good idea. She said that she was prepared to give no funds to some agencies, if that is required to grow the Board's efforts. Agencies should not feel an entitlement for funding from year to year. More agencies will force that issue. Mr. LaMell said that there is not a need for additional agencies to accomplish that. And with no additional funds this year, any changes in a program's funding level will force that change. Mr. Krulce suggested that the MHB encourage WR to get better grounded first, and for the Board to see what happens with WR over the next year. The Board could then decide whether to consider fund- ing for the program in the future. He said he did not think the Board should try to provide start-up funding for programs. In response to a question, Mr. Saver said that he had been providing information about the Board's funding process to WR for some time. He said that he also referred them to the Evanston Community Foundation, as well as the City's Community Development funding. While ECF chose to fund WR, he did not know whether they were going to submit to CDBG. Mr. Stutz had said he was concerned about how difficult that funding process might be with little hope for funding. In the presentation WR said that they have not previously requested funds from municipalities. In addition. Mr. Stutz had in- dicated that WR was not currently seeking funds from their faith based alliances for this new initiative. Ms Walker mentioned that there are other groups besides Centro Romero that are working with the immigrant community such as Heartland Alliance. In addition, it was pointed out that Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago provides legal immigration services that are available to the Evanston community, but out of their Chicago office. She also was not certain that Evanston was the best location based on the population information provided. July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 5 Minutes approved The Board discussed not inviting NVR to submit a proposal this year. Ms. Canter said that she would like to invite them to resubmit a request to be considered for funding after the program gets off the ground. Air. Krulee moved and Mr. Geyer seconded a motion to respond to World Relief's re- quest by inviting them to resubmit a letter for funding consideration after the program is in op- eration. Motion passed unanimously (7 ayes — 0 no). V. REQUEST FROM ECHAB ABOUT PARTNERING ON BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ISSUES Mr. Saver reviewed the materials in the packet about Health Department's EPLAN. The Evanston Community Health Advisory Hoard (ECHAB) worked on the development of the plan that was to be submitted to the IL Department of Public Health (IDPH) about the public health issues and needs of the community, as well as how the community will address local health problems. He reminded the Board that this year ECHAB also incorporated behavioral health needs information that the MHB dc- veloped through the meeting with community agencies on March 30. Mr. Saver said that the new EPLAN includes "mental health" as one of the top 5 priorities for the stra- tegic health plan. ECHAB is requesting that the MHB join it in a partnership, and to coordinate their planning efforts with those of the Board in responding to mental health needs in the community. He added that ECHAB believes that the MHB is more prepared to take the lead in any partnering efforts. The EPLAN is projected over a 5-year period with benchmarks along the way. Mr. Saver pointed out that a number of ECHAB's objectives were parallel to major behavioral health concerns that the MHB has already discussed and identified as needs. One in particular was a study about the development of a community mental health center in Evanston. Additionally, the development of partnerships is one of the major goal areas in the City's Strategic Plan. This initiative might also incorporate additional gaups in the community. Mr. Saver said that the Health Department staff gathered a considerable amount of data from IDPH's data based while developing the EPLAN. One of the issues that were surprising was Evanston's t high rate of hospitalization for various mental health issues. It was higher than the utilization rates for the region, State and City of Chicago. IDPH's database did not include any information from state - operated facilities. Any planning efforts will necessarily need to include abetter quantitative assess- ment of issues and needs in the community. In response to questions, Mr. Saver provided the following: It is not clear how much of the hospitalization rate for mental health issues is accounted for from Northwestern. The information is broken out by zip codes and should be able to be made available. Roles for this partnership have not yet been determined. A lot of the work in this area will be staff driven, However, it will be important to have .\iHB and ECHAB representation on any work commit- tce, to both give direction and help establish priorities/ Mr. Geyer moved and Nis. Gauthier seconded a staff recommendation that the MHB engage in a partnership with ECHAB about planning for Evanston's mental health needs. Motion passed unanimously (7 aye — 0 no). VI. STANDING COMMITTEES July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 6 Minutes approved Funding Criteria and Assessment. Mr. Saver reviewed the materials in the packet. He said that the Committee used the Board's decisions and recommendations from the June meeting to reformat the Funding Criteria and their weightings. In response to Ms, Sittler's questions, Ms. Walker said the Committee was recommending the change in the category "Responsiveness." She said the previous year it caused some confusion and was mis- leading about what the intent was of using the category and criteria associated with it. It was intended to give each Board member an opportunity to provide a personal assessment of each program. Ms. Sit - tier said she was concerned that having no specific criteria for the Board Member Assessment category might make it seem too subjective. Mr. Geyer described the revised category as each Board member's perception of the quality of the agency. Mr. La Mell said that he thought it was all right to also have some subjective appraisal of each program with all of the more objective criteria. There was agreement to use the revised category and to identify it as Board Member Overall Qualitative Assessment. In response to questions, Mr. Saver pointed out the new sections in the funding proposal this year that would provide information about staff -related concerns in the program. This will address the funding criteria that refer to these issues. In a consensus decision, the Board adopted the revisions to the Funding Guidelines and Criteria. Board Development. Mr. Geyer said that at the June meeting, the Board asked this Committee to re- fine its proposal to develop training for families that have a chemically dependent member that is un- willing to enter treatment. This would incorporate materials about the CRAFT, an evidence -based pro- gram that was presented to the MHB at an earlier meeting. He reviewed the materials in the packet and said that the Committee is recommending that if the Board accepts the idea, that it be developed by a workshop planning group. The suggestion is that the event be planned for September 2007 so that it can be tied to National Recovery Month. Kate Mahoney from PEER Services assisted in developing the recommendations, and committed her agency to partner with the Board to plan the event. Ms Can- ter supported the discussion component in the proposal in order to productively engage the families. Mr. Krulee said the planning should also try to communicate the information with members of the La- tino community. Ms. Walker said she supported providing this type of training and information to consumers, and that it was one of the reasons she wanted to be on the Board. Mr. LaMell asked about the budget and how the event would be paid for. Mr. Saver said that the plans have not gotten that far, as of yet. As the Committee's report pointed out, that would be the work of a planning committee for the event. In addition, the Committee envisioned the Board joining with other partners in planning and providing this training. The operational plans and the budget would be the re- sponsibility of that group to develop. In a consensus decision, the MHB adopted the Board Development Committee's proposal, as pre- sented, to sponsor training for families that have a chemically dependent member that is unwilling to enter treatment. Ms. Gauthier and Ms. Walker volunteered to serve as the planning committee to plan the event. Ms. Canter asked them to report back to the Board as details began to be worked out. Committee Appointments Ms. Canter thanked everyone who had worked on different committees and work groups over the past year. She appointed the following committees for the coming year: Allocations Committee: Jane Grover and Doug Geyer Board Development: Anne Gauthier, Carol Sittler July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 7 Minutes approved Ms. Canter said that she and Ms. Walker would be working on funding strategies for the Board. VII. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY Liaison Reports Child Care Center of Evanston. Mr. Krulee reported that he observed both of the agency's programs. Home Day Care is a network of centers at homes throughout the community. The Board's funding provides the match for IDHS funding and State reimbursement. There are 18 sites in single family homes, each serving up to 6 children. There are always two parallel tracks in these sites -- education and play. The programs were Impressive and fun in their approach. Thresholds. Mr. LaMell reported he had an introductory meeting with the Transitions program. Center for Independent Futures. Ms Sittler said that CIF recently applied for and received $98,000 from the City to assist seven individuals in purchasing housing units in the agency's next program site. The money is HOME funds from the federal government. CIF will pass -through S14,000 to each per- son to assist them with their down payments. The agency is hosting a book sale the last Saturday in July. VIII. NEW BUSINESS Ms. Sittler said that she has become familiar with a business owner in the community that had been very helpful and supportive of individuals who are living in Albany Care and Greenwood Care. She suggested that the MHB develop a special citizen's award for businesses or individuals that provide significant community support for people with special needs and who are in the Board's areas ofcon- cern. She described it as something that would recognize people who stepped outside of their official roles or jobs to provide significant support. Mr. LaMell said that he thought it was a good idea, and something that could annually recognize a resident or business. Ms. Walker said that a citizen's award for something like this would be very ap- propriatc for the Board to manage. Mr. Geyer said that the Board could develop a nomination process to identify potential recipients. After discussion, the Board agreed to pursue the concept of a citizen award concept. Ms. Canter asked Ms. Sittler and Mr. Krulce to work with staff to develop a program proposal for the Board's consideration. Ms. Canter suggested that the item be considered at the Sep- tember meeting. IX. REPORT ON CANDIDATES FORUM ON MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES Mr. Saver reported that plans for the Candidates Forum had been moving ahead. The MHB, Mental Health Association of the North Shore, and the League of Women Voters were cosponsoring the event. Several mental health agencies are also being invited to be sponsors. The focus will be upon candidates for the State Legislature from the Evanston and Skokie Valley areas. Ms Grover has been contacting those running for office and is getting a positive response. Mark Heyrman, Director of the Mandel Clinical Law Program at U of C, and the Facilitator of the statewide Mental Health Summit, has volun- teered to act as the moderator. Mr. Saver said that the two tentative dates for the event are the evenings of September 27 and October 18, dependent upon the response from the candidates. The event will be in City Council Chambers at the Civic Center. July 13, 2006 Mental Health Boars! Meeting Minutes Page 8 Minutes approved X. REPORT FROM CHAIR Ms Canter talked about some of the upcoming funding issues that the MHB will have to prepare for. If the MHB expects any additional funds for the upcoming year, it might be useful to be thinking specifi- cally about new projects. However, the Board will not know about new program requests until after the proposals have been received in September. Mr. Saver said that he had spoken with a few of the Board's funded agencies that have been looking at the possibility of expanding or changing their fund- ing requests this year. Ms Canter said that she was particularly concerned about fully restoring some of the Board's funds that had been cut in the most recent past; the MHB had lost approximately 25% of its total funds to allocate to agencies. Her goal would be to incrementally increase the Board's funding level and capture what had been lost over the past 5-6 years. She said that to do this it would probably be important to start small. Ms. Canter said that she attended the first meeting of the Budget Policy Committee in June. In the ini- tial meeting, the City Manager indicated that she is interested in streamlining City government, looking at how each dollar is spent in the Budget, and evaluating where there are duplications of effort that might be able to be eliminated in order to make the most of Budget. Ms. Canter said that the Budget Policy Committee did not seem to provide a venue for citizen comment, or for the Board to be discuss- ing issues related to growth of the purchase of services budget. However, each department will be making a presentation about its performance, as well as to indicate areas where it needed additional resources. Ms. Canter said that the Board study group that recently met discussed a number of ideas about how to increase funds for allocations to programs. A number of issues were raised in a brainstorming session. First, the Board needs to prepare and frame its own rationale to present to Council about increasing the allocation for purchased services. There will be several opportunities to raise the issue. The Board will be presenting its proposed allocations to the Human Services Committee in December. In addition, Ms. Canter encouraged each Board member to reach out to their own Alderman to discuss the issue and explain the Board's proposal when it is developed. She added that she hoped to have an opportu- nity to discuss the issue of the Board's funding with the City Manager. One issue for the future is whether the Board should do any type of fund-raising in order to increase its funds for contract agencies. The Board is already getting funds from taxpayers. They may not appre- ciate the Board coming to them for additional funds. However, there are other City boards that also raise additional funds from the community for specific projects. Mr. LaMcll said that would put the Board into competition with its own funded agencies if it were to do its own fund-raising. The Board would also have additional expenses if it were to fundraisc. A different approach might be to look at how to support funded agencies when they do their own fundraising. Ms. Canter said that another suggestion was to speak with the Evanston Community Foundation about ways in which the Board might be able to collaborate with them in fundraising efforts to fund agencies. Ms. Canter said that there was also discussion about working with the funded agencies in soliciting their support for efforts to increase local funds for agencies. The Board is supporting their programs and mission. The agencies' boards and contacts should also serve as a local constituency in trying to get additional support from the community for the Board's mission in supporting an entire network of community services. July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 9 Minutes approved Ms. Walker said that her interest was in getting an increase in total funds to allocate for programs. The funds would be allocated based upon the Board's determination of needs and priorities. She said she was concerned about focusing only on funds for specific projects or programs. Those funds might then become inexorably earmarked for that particular program. While the Board might support a targeted program in that way, the purpose of additional funds should be to expand the level of support for the entire community network of services. Mr. LaMcll said that he thought any new funds should also be used to fill gaps in services, and to sup- port identified needs and priorities. He gave as an example some of the issues identified in the Board's assessment of behavioral health issues. Several community members in the audience asked whether the Board would entertain proposals from agencies that would work collaboratively on a new project. Ms Canter suggested that they discuss the matter with Mr. Saver as they prepare their funding proposals for the fall hearings. Ms. Canter said that she and Ms. Walker would serve as a work group to plan and develop recommen- dations for strategy for the Board's consideration around this issue. Other Board members are invited to also assist in the planning. Ms. Canter said that she would place the item on the agenda for the Sep- tember meeting to continue the discussion. XI. STAFF REPORT Mr. Saver presented the following: He received and is responding to the questionnaire from the committee working on the Boards and Commissions (BIC) goal in the City's strategic plan. This first phase of the goal is collecting technical information about BIC functions and operations. He and Jay Terry are meeting on Tuesday, July 18 with the Chief Professional Officer and Assistant Director of the United Way of the North Shore. This will be the first time that they have had the chance to meet since the United Way of Evanston got incorporated in the new organizational structure. This will be an opportunity to provide information about the Evanston community and look at ways that the City and the United Way can work together and to support each others efforts. It will also be an opportunity to coordinate efforts for the combined fall allocation hearings. There will be no August Board meeting. However, the Board will meet to discuss the article "The Business of Giving. " Ms. Gauthier will send out directions to the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Casey Solomon Secretary July 13, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 10 Mlnutas approved EVANSTON MENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, NOVEINiBER 9, 2006 Members Present Sue Canter, Gill Krulee, Ann Gauthier, Carol Sittler, Doug Geyer, Jane Grover, Randy NValker Presiding: Sue Canter, Chair Staff: Jay Terry, Harvey Saver, ShaRhonda Knott Community Pam Thomas (North Shore Senior Center); Martha Arntson (Childcare Network of Evanston); Helen Roberts Evans, Mary Ann Kerns, Claire Ket- telkamp (Child Care Center of Evanston); Megan Kashner (Infant Wel- fare Society of Evanston; Sandra Hill (Family Focus); David Daskovsky, Willis Frances (Trilogy); Sandra Stumme (Metropolitan Family Services); Hannah Dallman (Y.O.U); Paul Selden (Connections for the Homeless) Ms. Canter called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. 1. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms. Canter welcomed the guests and asked that they introduce themselves. If. COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD Ms. Canter discussed the presentation of a community service award that the MHB had agreed upon earlier. She said that the presentation would be at the December meeting. Ms. Sittler said the award was going to be presented to Carol Warkenthein, who until recently owned the CaR Express. She had been a very responsive and caring business owner for many years, and been very supportive of a number of the individuals who live in the nearby mental health facilities and were her customers. She encouraged them to frequent her shop, and had been very accepting of them. Ms. Sittler said what struck her initially was how kind she was to individuals with chronic mental illness, including those who were exhibiting some troubling behaviors. She enforced the rules of the store in a very kindly manner with those individuals. She also loaned them money and gave them free coffee or ran tabs when they were short on cash; found clothes and coats for them in the winter. Ms. Sittler said that Ms. Warkenthein exhibited a great sense of humor, and displayed sensitivity to people who all kinds of troubling behaviors. Ms. Sittler added that she also trained her staff to be equally responsive and accepting of differences. Ms. Sittler and Ms. Canter met with Ms. Warkenthein to invite her to come to the December Mental Health Board meeting for the presentation. She was totally surprised and delighted. Ms. Canter said that at the meeting the Board will present a proclamation and have a short celebration and refreshments to honor Ms. Warkenthein's award. Ill. CONSIDERATION OF ALLOCATON RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FY07-08 MHB PURCHASED SERVICES November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 1 Minutes approved Ms. Grover provided an overview of the Allocation Committee's report about funding recom- mendations and rationale. She said that the recommendations are for 510,000 more than the MHB currently has allocated for programs. They include the following: -- Elimination of 55,000 allocation to BE -HIV; — Increased allocation of additional 51000 to each of 5 programs that scored well and had good outcomes (Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services, Trilogy's Psychosocial Activity Program, both of SHOPE's programs, and Thresholds Transitions); — Funding for 3 new programs (55000 each for Youth Job Center Core Program Services and the YWCA's Transitional Housing Program, and S 10,000 for the Center for Inde- pendent Futures' (CIF) Full Life Model High School Outreach Program). Ms. Grover said that the allocation for the High School Outreach Program is dependent upon CIF be- ing able to obtain a matching grant from ETHS for the program. -- No funding for Trilogy's new funding request for a Collaborative Supportive Housing Program with the YMCA and Connections for the Homeless; — Maintenance for all remaining programs. Mr. Krulee asked how the Committee's recommendations lit with the City Council's budget pri- orities and directives. Ms. Grover said that the additional 510,000 that Board would be request- ing above the current funding level may not be warmly received. However, the MHB has had the same funding level for agencies for G years. Prior to that there were several deep funding cuts. Over the next few months they will be trying to present arguments to make the case for what would be a 1.2% increase, what would be the first new funds that would be available to the MHB in 9 years. Ms. Grover reviewed the scores on the Funding Criteria ranking sheets. She said that the results were developed by staff using the computerized assessment information that was submitted by Board members. Each of the scoring sheets is sorted using a different category score. She said that scoring was a large part of the Allocation Committee's discussion about the funding alloca- tion recommendations. She said that the scores provided more objective assessment information that supported the Committee's analysis. Ms. Canter thanked the Committee and staff for spend- ing so much time organizing and working with the assessment information. Ms. Canter asked the Allocations Committee to review their recommendations. Ms. Grover sug- gested that a straw vote be taken on each of the individual program recommendations and that there be additional discussion about those where Board members were in disagreement. Each of the following program funding recommendations was adopted unanimously in a straw vote dur- ing the first reading. (Unless otherwise indicated, the funding rationale and comments for each of these recommendations is incorporated by reference as an attachment to this document): Agency/Program Child Care Center of Evanston/Home Day Care Childcare Network Evanston / Learning Together Childcare Network Evanston 1 City Wide Scholarships Connections I Entry Point i Evanston Community Defender I Legal Services Recommendation Allocation Maintenance $18,500 Maintenance $30,200 Maintenance $101,800 i Maintenance $28,000 Maintenance $31,000 Novamber 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meoting Minutes Page 2 Minutes approved Agency/Program Family Focus / Primary Prevention Family Focus I Pregnant and Parenting Teen Housing Options 1 Residential Services Housing Options / SHIP Infant Welfare Society I Teen Baby Nursery Legal Assistance Foundation I Evanston Legal Services Metropolitan Family Services / Family Support and Prevention Metropolitan Family Services / General Counseling NSSC / Evanston/Skokie Valley Senior Services PEER Services / Adolescent Treatment PEER Services I Adult Treatment PEER Services / Dimensions PEER Services I Youth Early Intervention SHORE: Community Services I Lois Lloyd Center SHORE: Community Services I Residential Services Thresholds I Transitions Trilogy/ Activities Program Y.O.U. I Youth and Family Services YWCA 1 Transitional Housing and Community Based Services Recommendation Allocation Maintenance S25,500 Maintenance $17.200 Maintenance $11,800 Maintenance S14,000 Maintenance S80,000 Maintenance S36,400 Maintenance S87,500 Maintenance S6,800 Increase S38,300 Maintenance $13,300 Maintenance $39,400 Maintenance S60,000 Maintenance $21.600 Increase S23,100 Increase $25.200 Increase $10.000 Increase $7,000 Maintenance $90.400 New funding S5,000 BE -HIV. Ms. Grover said that the Committee was recommending that no funds be allocated to the agency's Mental Health Program. The agency requested S 12,000, a S7,000 increase over the current year funding level. However, several major concerns were identified. The program only served 5 Evanston residents in 05-06 for S5,000. Based upon their monthly reports, these were all individuals who had been served by the program in 04-05. They saw no new Evanston resi- dents in that service during the year, even though the program's overall service figures in 05-06 went up quite: a bit over the previous year. Ms. Grover said that the agency was not able to sub- mit reports about their outcome measures during 05-06, and the outcomes that were supposed to be monitored were not very useful in understanding how the program improves the lives of those served. In addition, the program received the lowest ranking in the Funding Guidelines of all of the programs that were considered. Ms. Walker said that the S5,000 reduction might seem like a small amount, but it sends the wrong message to not support the only agency that is asking the: N111B for funding for HIV and AIDS. If the issue was that only 5 Evanston individuals were being served for the S5,000, other agencies also have relatively high per capita costs. Ms. Walker added that the Board had worked with other agencies when there was a problem with their outcomes or their reporting in order to help them get to a place where the Board wanted them to be. The Board should be willing to work with BEHIV, as well, to assist them with what they to do in order to meet the Board's ex- pectations. Ms. Canter said that the MHB had a similar discussion about funding for BEHIV last year. The November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 Minutes approved Board indicated at that time that there were some concerns about the agency's performance, and that there was going to be strong scrutiny of their funding this year. She said that the Commit- tee's recommendation had nothing to do with the agency's mission or the service that they pro- vide. She pointed out that BEHIV also seemed to have significant financial resources. Last year there were concerns about it being important to provide symbolic support for BEHIV, and the funding was increased from S3000 to 55000. While it is nice to be able to provide an agency a small amount to show support, with so many other agencies that really need the money, it does not appear that BE -HIV really needs that support. Ms. Grover said that the Board had provided BEHIV with support and direction, similar to what was provided for other agencies where there were concerns. She said that she addressed the Board's concerns with them when she was the Agency Liaison, when the agency had been put on notice about several issues. Ms. Grover reviewed the Board's funding comments from the previ- ous year. She said concerns were that the Mental Health Program had been consistently serving fewer Evanston residents, and at that time the service figures were 20% lower than projections. Although, BE -HIV anticipated relocating to space in Evanston that would more adequately serve this program and provide considerable expansion, the program information made if difficult to see that the expansion would include more Evanston residents. In addition, at that time there were a number of concerns about the absence of relevant outcome measures. Ms. Walker said she did not know the reason for the decline in the numbers, but thought BEHIV should be given the opportunity to do what the Board expected. She said that the MHB owed it to the City of Evanston to support the program; the community has a high rate of HIV infection. Ms. Grover said that BEHIV did not provide data on current infection rates in the community. But if the rate is increasing, it would appear that Evanston individuals are not seeking mental health support from BEHIV. Ms. Walker said that the Board would not necessarily want to see more people being served as that would indicate more infected individuals. She added that ultimately it is very important for the City to fund HIV services. Ms. Canter explained that problems with the reporting problems were not only the low numbers served but also the actual performance with the outcome objec- tives. Ms. Walker recommended that the proposed allocation be revised to a reduced funding level rather than the elimination of funding, with assistance to be provided to the agency. There was no consensus to this recommendation so Ms. Canter said that the Board would proceed and re- visit BE -HIV towards the end of the allocation discussion. Center for Independent Futures (CIF). Ms. Grover reported that the allocation was for a new program, the Whole Life Model Educational Outreach Program. The request was for 520,000. The Allocation Committee was recommending funding the program at S 10,000. Mr. Geyer said that the Committee wanted to support the agency to continue innovative work. Ms. Grover said that the program was to provide services to a population at ETHS. The recommendation was made with a requirement that ETHS also support the program and provide S 10,000 in matching funds to support the new program Ms. Walker said that CIF should be seeking funding from different sources. The Board's funds November 9, 2006 Mental Hoalth Board Meeting Minutes Page 4 Minutes approved could be better used in other ways. CIF is a good agency with a great reputation and has been effective. But the new program that the Board would be funding would only be for an assess- ment with the student, with no assurance of the person receiving services. There is not a lack of assessment tools for work with people with developmental disabilities. She also thought the costs were high relative to the service that would be provided. She cited that CIF ranked 20 out of 29 programs in the Funding Guidelines under program services. Ms. Gauthier said that she agreed with Ms. Walker. OF is a wonderful agency. But they have access to a lot of resources. The MHB should not be funding them when there are many more pressing needs in the community. They should look elsewhere for the funding. She added that while they have served some minorities their programs do not serve a very diverse population. Ms. Grover said that this program would be serving a more diverse demographic base. Their pro- jections are that 85% of their clients will be minority, with a considerable number of low income individuals, based upon the school program they will be working with. They will accomplish their goals by training the teachers to use the tool and educating them to assist the aging -out stu- dents and their families to make plans for the future. They have also worked hard to get 3 people into their housing programs on scholarship, which was very difficult. ;•Is. Grover added that while the new program's ranking was 20, their overall rating score was 8.3, which indicated a high degree of compliance with the Board's Funding Guidelines. Ms. Canter said that CIF's proposal was precisely the type of innovative program that the Board should be supporting. All of the target group are Evanston residents and are in a priority group for Board interests. Individuals with developmental disabilities (DD) are one of the original man- dated population groups in the Mental Health Board's initial mission statement. The State of Il- linois is ranked 48`h or 49`s in supporting people with DD once they reached the age of 21 and transitioned out of mandatory community services. OF has developed an assessment tool, and they will be using it with students and families, but their work does not stop at the assessment. Ms. Walker said she thought that there were other agencies that went into ETHS to assist the stu- dents with DD who were aging out, such as Clearbrook. Ms. Gauthier said she thought that ETHS must already be providing the services to those individuals and %vas concerned that the new program was going to be a duplication of effort. Ms. Walker said she was sure the assess- ment tool was an effective one, but there are many of others that are good as well, and did not understand what was special about this tool and this process. Mr. Geyer said that CIF was the type of agency that he wanted to see the MHB support. An im- portant part of funding agencies was not necessarily restricted to providing a mental health ser- vice for the community but also considering support for innovative and creative projects that might be doing cutting edge, new efforts. CIF's proposal seems like a worthwhile investment. Ms. Walker said that there are mature agencies that she thought were already carrying out similar services at ETHS. She added that there should be no assumption that the current funds for CIF be automatically switched to their new program; it is important that they be treated as a new pro- gram for the consideration of the funding. Ms. Grover said that the S 10,000 allocation is contin- gent upon CIF being able to leverage matching funds from ETHS. So far ETHS has expressed enthusiasm about the program and already committed S1,000 for start-up funds. She said that the November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 5 Minutes approved agency has consistently surpassed their objectives in the past and been very responsive. They have consistently done what they said they were going to do, and were able to use 2 years of MHB funding to enable one of their services to become self-sustaining. This new program is dif- ferent with a focus specifically upon students within ETHS, so the funding proposed as being conditional is a good way of sharing the risk with ETHS, and demonstrating support for their work, as well. Ms. Gauthier raised concern about the costs that were reported for CIF's administrative expenses and fundraising. Both seemed high and she was not clear as to why, even alter the agency pro- vided an explanation. Ms. Sittler said that the agency does a lot of little fundraisers and has to actively fundraise because they do not have access to larger state grants. They also have other communities coming to them to help them replicate their creative models in the community. Ms. Walker suggested that 55,000 might be a more appropriate funding level. There was no con- scnsus on this recommendation so Ms. Canter said that the Board would reconsider the allocation for CIF towards the end of the allocation discussion. Evanston Community Defender. Ms. Grover reported that the Allocation Committee was rec- ommending maintenance funding for the agency; Legal Serviccs - 531,000, Social Work Services - $0. Ms. Walker said that she thought it would be more appropriate for the Board to fund the Social Work component, which is more in line with the Board's goals. Ms. Canter said that she felt good about the progress the Defender had made since last year, and thought that they did an effective job in their hearing presentation. She said that she thought their progress should be rec- ognized and a small amount be allocated to the Social Work Services, in addition to the Legal Services. There was discussion regarding the way that funds are divided between Social Services and Legal Services. Previously the MHB had funded Social Work Services and the Human Services Com- mittee funded Legal Services. Ms. Sittler pointed out that the mission of the Board had expanded over that past five years. The Board's mission was changed to eliminate some of the distinctions between service areas in the Board's funding concerns and to reflect a focus upon more broad - scale human services. She said that that if they can't keep the kids out of jail they arc not going to benefit from social work services. There are other social services available in the community, such as Y.O.U. and Metropolitan Family Services that are able to offer the social work support. Ms. Sittler said that while it is convenient to be able to receive both types of services from one agency, the Defender's Legal Services are the more critical and needed services that they offer. She supported the Allocation Committee's recommendation. Ms. Gauthier said that the services seem to be offered as a package, and people who arc offered legal support are also offered social work support. Mr. Geycr said that both programs are a part of the social services the agency provides. The legal services are a specialty and serve as a huge part of the agency's attempt to intervene in the systems of the young person's life. Ms. Grover mentioned that Legal Services arc often multi -layered services and that the legal issues arc just the tip of the iceberg; the Defender does address the youth's, and sometimes their family mem- bers' various needs. Ms. Canter said when the Defender has a court case, the legal services are provided by the attor- November 9, 2006 Mentat Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 6 Minutes approved ney while the aftermath is often handled by the social worker. She suggested initially funding the Legal Services program at the recommended level, and if there are additional funds at the end of the allocation process the Defender's Social Work program would be a good program to consider for those funds. In a straw vote of G ayes and 1 no, the MHB accepted the recommendation of an allocation of S31,000 funding for the Legal Service Program. Family Focus. Ms. Grover reported that the Committee was recommending maintenance fund- ing for both of the agency's programs: Primary Prevention Program - S25,500; Pregnant and Par- enting Teen - S17,200. She said that the Allocation Committee did discuss the concerns raised regarding duplication of services between Family Focus and Infant Welfare Society's Teen Baby Nursery. During the hearings, Meghan Kashner explained that there were 13 young women who were being supported by both Teen Baby Nursery and Family Focus. However, Teen Baby Nurs- ery deals with issues regarding the welfare of the child and parenting skills, and enables the mother to continue her education to graduation after the baby is born. Family Focus focuses more upon the social development of the young mothers, and enables them to continue their education before the child is born. Ms. Canter said she thought the descriptions that were provided in the hearings indicated that there was no duplication. In a straw vote, the MHB unanimously agreed with the recommendation to provide maintenance funding to Family Focus's two programs. Metropolitan Family Services (MFS). Ms. Grover reported that the Committee was recom- mending maintenance funding for both of the agency's programs: Family Support and Prevention Program - S87,500; General Counseling Program - S8,800. A 3% increase was requested for each program. Ms. Walker commented that the maintenance funding for the Family Support and Prevention Program represents a sizeable portion of the Board's total available funding. She said that last year the issue of having funding caps was raised by the Allocation Committee in response to a few programs that consumed such a large portion of the funding. Mr. Geyer said that the funding supports the provision of ongoing, intensive services to 37 families. It is difficult and costly to provide the level of services that the agency is offering for such a Iong period of time. With a very difficult population, they have regularly reporting successful outcomes with their client families. In a straw vote, the MHB unanimously accepted the Allocation Committee's recom- mendation to provide maintenance funding to MFS's two programs. Thresholds. GIs. Grover said the Allocation Committee recommended that the Transitions Pro- gram be allocated S10,000, a S1000 increase over the current level of funding. Last year, the pro- gram's allocation had been cut by S 1000 because there was concern about some of the difficulty they were having building an Evanston client base and falling below their service projections. The Allocation Committee cited that there has been a significant increase in the number of Evanston clients served, and 24% more than they had projected. They worked hard to build the client base and have moved ahead with the range of services that they are offering to help main- tain people with mental illness in the community. Their program supports seem to be excellent. In a straw vote, the MHB unanimously accepted the Allocation Committee's recommendation to November9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 7 Minutes approved allocate S 10,000 for the Transitions Program. Trilogy. Mr. Geyer said the Allocation Committee was recommending a 51,000 increase for the Psychosocial Activities Program, up to 57,000. The program has consistently scored well, has provided services and supports to an increasingly larger group of individuals, and provided a very specific service for the funds. The Committee thought that the Board was getting its money's worth with this program. Ms. Walker said that she agreed that the program was providing a good service. However, she was concerned that it was rated lower than all of PEER's programs, which received maintenance funding, yet Trilogy was being recommended for an increase. She said she was concerned about how the ratings were being used inconsistently. Ms. Gauthier commented that Dimensions had seen a steady increase in the number of their clients, yet the Board de- creased their funding last year and encouraged them to start seeking funding from a broader range of sources. Ms. Grover pointed out that the action the MHB took regarding Dimensions was not related. The decision last year was based upon the Board's increasing discomfort with Dimensions' dependence upon MHB funding, and an over -reliance continually on one funder. As a result, the budget for Dimensions reflects new fundraising activity this year, and the agency reported exploring some additional, major funding sources. In a straw poll, by a vote of 5 ayes and 2 nays the Board accepted the Allocation Committee's recommendation. Ms. Grover reported that the Allocation Committee was recommending that Trilogy's new Col- laborative Housing Program not be funded. There was concern about the program budget. The model is a collaboration involving three agencies, but the MHB was proposed to be the sole source of funding other than client fees. The Committee thought that the agencies should also be willing to contribute some of their own individual resources to start this program and share the risk. In addition, the funding request to the Board was for $65,000. The Committee thought it was difficult to determine what impact any reasonable allocation for this new program could have, i.e., 55000 would seem to be meaningless with no other revenues identified to start up the program. Mr. Geyer said that he thought there were some areas of the program that were not clearly de- fined. Ms. Gauthier said that she strongly felt that this program was something that the Board should support, but not as the sole financial supporter and at a cost of S65,000. She said that she would be interested in reconsidering the request if and when the program was able to get off the ground. Flowevcr, the Board's funds, at this point, arc not sufficient to provide program start-up funding for such a large portion of program budget. There was a discussion about the agency hearing and the extent to which services are already being used by residents of the YNICA's SRO program. The estimate was that 20% of the residents had sonic mental health issue. Ms. Walker said that she had been surprised to hear that the numbers were that low. Staff from the YMCA reported that about once a month a resident will talk with him about mental health concerns and they are referred to services for something like Dimensions or one of Trilogy's programs. She said that she supported providing some funding and that the target group was a priority popula- tion for the MHB. Ms. Gauthier said that based upon the presentation she thought that there was a significant need for supportive mental health services at the YMCA, but the Board is not able to be the primary funding source without making some significant cuts in other program funding. In a straw vote the Board voted G ayes and 1 nay to accept the recommendation to not fund this project for November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 8 Minutes approved FY2007-08. They also requested that Trilogy keep them updated on any progress in starting the program, and provide additional information about the needs at the YMCA. The Board indicated that it would be willing to reconsider a request for funding this program next year, ifit gets off the ground. However, it is unable to provide the start-up funding. Youth .lob Center (YJC). Ms. Grover reported that the Committee was recommending a $5,000 allocation for the Core Services Program. Last year the Board did not fund YJC; the re- quest was for a different program. The Committee was impressed by the progress the agency made in the past 12 months, their new practices that were evident in their grant application, the focus of their outcome measures and their more professional presentation. Nis Canter noted that YJC seems to be much more organized, and is more active in recruiting potential employers. They seem to have enhanced their expectations and performance measures for their staff, and are requiring more from their clients. Ms. Grover said that this funding recommendation supports the youth engagement goal (# 12) of the City's Strategic Plan. Mr. Terry asked whether the funding was linked to any specific or discrete activities or outcomes. Ms. Canter said that funds were not requested for a specific target, but the operating funds of the program. That is what the allocation would be for. She said, however, that YJC is tracking the outcome of their job placements, and how long clients actually stay on a job. Mr. Terry said that the City Council is increasingly concerned about objective outcome measures, and in being able to measure the impact in the community of City funds that arc used for youth employment. Ms. Canter said that she would like to reward the agency for their progress and effort over the past year and suggested allocating 510,000 to YJC's Core Program Services. She said that with the Board's total allocations requiring additional funds from the City, the Council might be more willing to increase the funding if services are tied to goals in tiie Strategic Plan. Ms. Walker said she was concerned about what she thought was an inconsistent way that the Board was evaluat- ing new programs. Ms. Grover said that YJC had been funded before: the Core Services Program was a reconfiguration of their services that were previously funded, so this is not a new program. The Board is looking at the program with fresh perspective and evaluating whether they serve an important need in the community, and whether they are able to produce an important outcome for Evanston. Ms Walker said that she fully agreed with that perspective but thought that the Trilogy Collaboration and YWCA also served great needs. She asked why YJC was thought to be more viable and should be receiving more funds than those 2 programs, especially since the Board has tried to encourage agencies to collaborate with others to increase their impact and make better use of resources. Ms. Canter said that she thought YJC had begun to prove itself and overcome many of the problems that the agency had earlier been dealing with, in addition to targeting their efforts to activities meeting the goals of the Youth Initiative. Ms. Walker said that she was con- cerned about tying the rationale for larger increased allocations for this program to the Youth Ini- tiative. She said that it meant that a number of equally deserving programs for priority popula- tions were not being given equal consideration. In response to a question, Mr. Terry said that after the Board adopts its allocation decisions Mr. Saver will submit them as a package to the City Budget Office. For each department, any in- creases above and beyond the current year's level of funding for any division will have to go through a review. Each department will have to provide a rationale in a staff vetting process as the request is being considered. The City Manager will provide her recommendations for the en - November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 9 Minutes approved tire City Budget when it is presented to the City Council at the beginning of January. City Coun- cil will deliberate and make the decisions about the proposed 07-08 Budget no later than the end of February. In a straw vote of G ayes and I nay the Board accepted the Committee's recommended allocation of S5,000 for the Core Scnices program. Ms. Canter said that, at this point, the Board would reconsider those programs where there was a lack of consensus about the initial allocation recommendation. Mr. Saver reviewed all of the pro- gram allocations that had been accepted. He said that the Board still had to make decisions about the following: BE-HIV's Mental Health Program; Center for Independent Futures High School Outreach Program; and, Evanston Community Defender's Social Work Services Program. He indicated that, based upon additional comments during the first round of review, there might still be some discussion about several of the accepted allocations, but those three programs had not yet received any allocation. Ms. Grover said that she would review the initial recommendations for each program, in turn. She suggested that the discussion should focus upon issues that had not yet been raised. After considering each program, a straw vote would be taken upon any proposals that were made. BE -HIV. Ms. Walker said that she wanted to allocate some funds to the Mental Health Program, even if at a reduced amount. Ms. Grover said that site felt that it was time to cut the agency loose. The agency is stronger than they were several years ago when the Board raised concerns about it. And they have been doing good things and actively raising funds for their services. But are seem- ingly not serving any new Evanston residents, and the numbers in this program have been con- stantly decreasing. She said that BE -HIV had been on a probationary status with the Board for a couple years, and it was for the same reasons that the Committee used to support the recommen- dation not to fund. The Board adopted the recommendation not to fund the Mental Health Pro- gram by a vote of 7 yeas and I nay. Center for Independent Futures. Ms. Walker recommended allocating S5,000 to the new pro- gram instead of S I0,000. In response to a question she said that her recommendation would still be based upon ETHS contributing; matching funds to support the program. Ms. Gauthier said that she was still opposed to funding the program, especially since the City Manager or the City Council might be strongly disinclined to allocate any additional funds for the %N1HB's budget this year. She added that she thought the Board had more important needs to respond to. Ms. Grover said that the Board should not make the decision in a vacuum of real information about the City Budget. She suggested making the decisions, and then revisiting them after the Board has had a chance to advocate with the Council for recommendations. She said that in many ways the deci- sions agreed upon during the meeting were not "set in stone," and would not be until the Board received the final outcome of the budget process. In response to Mr. Terry's question, Ms. Grover said that she thought CIF would be responsible for making the appeal to ETHS for the matching funds for the program. The Board could pro- vide support for that appeal. Mr. Geyer said that there were 2 recommendations for funding lev- els, S5,000 and $10,000. He suggested voting to see which one had the most support. The Board voted 5 ayes and 2 nays to allocate S10,000 to Whole Life Model Educational Outreach Program. November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 10 Minutes approved Evanston Community Defender. The Committee's recommendation was not to fund the agency's Social Work Services program. It had not been funded for the past 2 years. The first year the agency did not ask for funding and put their entire request under Legal Services. Last year, the Board decided not to fund their request. Ms. Walker said she was strongly in favor of supporting the program at some level. Ms. Canter said that she thought some funding for the pro- gram was important to show support for the effort of the agency over the last year. She said that she thought that support for the program also was supportive of the work that was proposed in the City's Strategic PIan for youth services. Mr. Geyer recommended allocating S5,000, similar to the other existing programs that came as new programs to the MHB this year. The Board ac- cepted this recommendation in a vote of G ayes and 1 nay. Ms. Walker said she was not opposed to the allocation of an additional S 1,000 this year to Thresholds Transitions. She said that they were a very deserving program. However, the pro- gram's score was much lower than the scores of a number of programs that were only considered for maintenance funding. The information from the Funding Guidelines was not being paid as much attention to as she thought it should be, which seemed to be resulting in some inequities in the way that the allocation recommendations were made. Ms. Canter said that when the Guide- lines were developed, the Board agreed that they were only going to be used as one tool to assist in making decisions. Other factors are also taken into consideration when developing the alloca- tions, including consistency and excellence in performance. Mr. Saver reviewed the entire package of program allocations. (See attached rationale and rec- ommendations.) He said that total allocation recommendations were for S844,000, a 1.8% in- crease over the 2006-07 level of funding. Ms. Grover moved and Mr. Geyer seconded a mo- tion to adopt the allocations as they were tentatively approved during the meeting. Motion approved 6 ayes (Canter, Krulee, Gauthier, Sittler, Geyer, Grover) and I nay (Walker). IV. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILIY Agency Liaison Selection Process for 2007. ,leis. Canter said that it was time to reorganize Agency Liaison assignments for the coming year. She said that Mr. Saver would send out infor- mation to the Board to identify the agencies with which members have already served as the Liai- son. She asked every Board member to rank order the top three agencies with which they were interested in being Liaison starting in January 2007. Everyone will be asked to submit their list of priorities for Liaison assignments for the agencies from which they have not already been as- signed, and the new assignments will be discussed at the December meeting. V. REPORT FROM THE CHAIR Ms. Canter reported the following: There will be a report to the Human Services Committee about the Youth Initiative at the No- vember 20 meeting. She attended the City Council's Budget Policy meetings. The Council received very detailed re - November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 11 Minutes approved ports and presentations from all of the City departments. Extensive information was provided about all the various program activities in each division, with the associated costs and staff time, service projections and outcomes. She said that the report that was presented by Health and Hu- man Services was in the packet. It was very informative and provided a great deal of information that would be useful for Board members to be aware of. At the last meeting of the Budget Policy Committee, the City Manager presented her considera- tions as she was preparing her submittal to the Council for 07-08. She indicated that there were long-standing, structural deficit issues that she was dealing with and discussed alternatives to help close the budget gap. Along those lines, she presented three possible scenarios to Council that included possible increases in taxes and staff reductions. Ms. Canter said that one of the issues that were discussed at one of the meetings with the City Council was a possible reduction in the City's provision of health -related services, such as school physicals or inoculations. If adopted, this would have an impact upon the Health Department. This was presented with the idea that local hospitals would be willing to pick up greater respon- sibility for these public health functions in Evanston. VI. STAFF REPORT Mr. Saver said Ms. Knott would be sending out an evaluation of the 2006 funding process to the Board to provide input to the Allocations Committee prior to the 2007 funding hearings. Meeting adjourned at 9:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Harvey D. Saver Assistant Director November 9, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 12 Minutes approved EVANSTON MENTAL HEALTH BOARD MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2006 Members Present: Sue Canter, Gil Krulee, Anne Gauthier, Randy Walker, Carl LaMell, Carol Sittler, Jane Grover Presiding: Sue Canter Staff: Jay Terry, Harvey Saver, Casey Salomon Community Representatives: Sheila McCorkle (City Manager's Office); Willis Francis (Trilogy); Martha Arntson (Childcare Network of Evanston); Pamela Thomas (Evanston Skokie Valley Senior Service Center); Helen Roberts Evans (Child Care Center of Evanston); Peter Illing (Thresholds Transitions); Paul Arntson; approxi- mately 20 customers from Cafe Express Ms Canter called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. I. PRESENTATION OF COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD TO MS. CAROL WARKEN- THEIN Ms. Canter spoke briefly about the Certificate of Appreciation from Mayor Lorraine Morton that was being presented to Carol Warkenthein, former owner of Cafd Express. Site was being recognized for the support she provided in her business for Evanston citizens who had a mental illness. Ms. Sittler said that Ms. Warkenthein had been the owner and manager of Cafc Express for 15 years. During that time she displayed tremendous kindness with citizens with mental illness. She was able to handle complex situations with members of that community --including calming them when they are acting out due to medication changes. She did so many things to be helpful, and displayed a very altruistic, compassionate nature and went out of her way to help those in need. Ms. Sittler said that she also had a wicked sense of humor, which helped brighten many people's days. Ms. Sittler said that Ms. Warkenthein had been a friend to everybody. She provided warm winter coats; she ran a tab when a person was waiting for their funds; she was the first one to circulate a card of condolence and provide emotional support when a family member died. Ms. Warkenthein led by example in training her staff to also be accepting and supportive of her customers who had special needs. She taught them how to be helpful to assist people who were struggling with something, and brightened many of their days. All of her customers were treated with equal respect and kindness. Ms. Canter presented Ms. Warkenthein with the City of Evanston Certificate of Appreciation on behalf of Mayor Morton, who was unable to make the meeting. I -is. Canter read the following: "The City of Evanston hereby awards a certificate of appreciation to Caroi Warkenthein for using her business to support citizens with a mental illness through donations, job opportunities, and other acts of kindness that are extended with compassion and acceptance." Ms. Warkenthein said that she thought that Evanston was a very special and welcoming community for people with diverse backgrounds. She said it is often difficult to tell whether individuals have special problems or disabilities. She discussed some of the people who she had worked with or knew from her experiences at Cafe Express, and said that most of the people that came around have not been a burden. December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 1 CE Minutes approved After talking about some of the individuals who she has worked %ith and supported, she thanked all for corning to share the evening with her. Ms. Sittler said that the Cafe has quite a large group of loyal customers that loved Ms. Warkcnthein. She welcomed a group of more than 20 who joined the MHB to recognize her. She expressed the gratitude of all for her contribution to the well being of the City. A number of the community mcm- bers offered their comments. The Board meeting was briefly suspended to enable the attendees to cn- joy a celebration and refreshments in honor of Ms Warkcnthein. The business meeting convened at 7:25 P.M. II. INTRODUCTIONS AND COMMUNITY COMMENTS Ms Canter welcomed the ,guests and asked that they introduce themselves. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM OCTOBER 19 AND NOVEMBER 9, 2006 Ms. Grover moved and Mr. LaMell seconded a motion to approve the October 19, 2006 minutes. Motion approved (7 ayes -O no). Ms. Grover moved and Ms. Gauthier seconded a motion to approve the minutes from the No- vember 9, 2006 meeting and allocation discussion. Ms. Grover complimented Mr. Saver and Mr. Solomon for all the work that went into accurately reporting in the minutes what was a very involved and lengthy process. Motion approved (7ayes--0 no) IV. "AGENCY IMPACT OBJECTIVES." JAY TERRY, DIRECTOR, HEALTH AND HU- MAN SERVICES Mr. Terry provided an overview of his memo in the packet. He said that the City has been going through a serious re-examination of everything being done by local government, e.g., pet licenses, snow removal, funding human services. City staff has been hard at work evaluating the efficiencies and effectiveness of all programs. City Council and the City Manager feel strongly that the City gov- ernment has reached a point beyond which tax rate increases will no longer be accepted by the com- munity. In addition, there is a structural deficit built into the City's budget due to salary increases man- dated by employment contracts. A number of issues have led to questions regarding the services Evanston is purchasing. People who are not familiar Nvith the Board's work, or human services and what the %1H13 and CDBG have been funding have questioned a hat the City is actually getting or purchasing for its investments. In discus- sion with the City Manager, fir. Terry said that lye and Dennis Marino. Director of Planning, both con- sidered and ultimately decided against the use of a consultant to review and evaluate the use of those funds because it would only take funds away from already limited human services funding. They re- ported that both CDBG and the MHB have been making efforts over the past few years to require funded agencies to report on outcome objectives. In their discussion they committed to working on and refining additional measures for accountability, performance, and outcomes, December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 2 Minutes approved Mr. Teary continued that as an overlay to his comments, the City's Youth Engagement Team has rcgu- larly been meeting to look at local funding for youth services. The discussion has focused upon what impact is being made by both CDBG and the Board in this arena. This is an ongoing process which he, Mr. Saver and staff from Planning will be involvcd with in the coming year. They will be researching and considering different community models. He pointed out specifically a model being used in Mary- land as one that is under consideration. Mr. Terry pointed out that currently we do not have a good statistical snapshot of li fe in Evanston. Try- ing to get good data is difficult and expensive, even for a community the size of Evanston. He com- mented that in the next year we will need to develop a better statistical picture of where vve are. Our situation is not as quantitative as we would like, and too often funding decisions are based upon anec- dote and persuasive presentations. Ms. Grover asked whether the Maryland model was only for kids' services, and are there any models that that can be used as broad community indicators for human services? The MHB would need some- thing like that. Mr. Terry said that there are a variety of best practices that might be considered, how- ever it would be difficult to do a comprehensive picture of the entire community and of all services funded at the same time. Youth services is a good place to start, and it is a current focus of the City. It is also easier to initially assess that than something like homeless services. Ms. Grover said that it would be very large undertaking to assess the breadth of community indicators for the spectrum of human services that are supported. Ms. Grover said that the information in the packet identified the two school districts as sources of sta- tistical information. She asked what the City would be able to discover from that analysis. Mr. Terry said that data could indicate things such as school performance, achievement rates, student pregnancy rates, substance abuse rates, employment, and poverty Ievel. In many communities, school indicators are viewed as a measure of how well the community is functioning. He added that where some of the Board's funding is going towards the well being of younger people then there is probably an implied expectation that they will do well in school. It is important that we all become increasingly explicit about what we want to see happen as a result of funding decisions for the community. Ms. Gauthier raised concerns about the difficulty tracking outcomes long terra in some areas. She mentioned, as an example, indicators for Kindergarten performance. She thought that even that one area might be a huge chore for agencies and the MHB. In order to perform a true evaluation, one would need to track children's performance over time and across various factors. in response to a question from Ms. Gauthier, Mr. Terry said that the first year of this undertaking would have to be seen as a baseline or a starting point. Ms. Canter said that she thought the memo presented to the Board was very good. She said that she thought every agency that the Board deals with has improved their tracking of measurable outcome objectives over (lie past few years. She added that all of the agencies should gravitate toward more concrete outcome objectives. Several of the agencies are still using somewhat nebulous measures, but many of them did not have or report outcome measures five years ago. She thought it was important to acknowledge that progress has been made. Nis. Canter suggested that one approach might be for the Board to develop some "community highlight objectives" under each of the service categories that are funded. There would need to be some agreement about what those categories are. Each of the agen- cies funded under each of the categories would then have to track and monitor their performance for those objectives, as well. December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 3 Minutes approved Ms. Canter continued that it would be difficult to create base line objectives that would be required for every agency seeking funding and to also difficult to get longitudinal data. It is difficult to follow cli- ents once they graduate, move on or complete treatment. She said that from her own experience she has only been aware of one study like that done in the field of education; it was a wonderful study, but it was costly and extremely rare. Mr. Terry acknowledged the Board's concerns about the complications in establishing baseline data. He said that Youth Engagement Team has already been focusing specifically on youth measures. They began to focus on youth employment, but that data has been very elusive. He described difficulty even trying to get consistent information about ETHS graduates who have gone on to college. He said that he found a number of figures that seemed to be contradictory over a period of time. Now the high school subscribes to a national clearinghouse, one to which most 4-year universities report. Their data indicates that 67% of Evanston grads attend college. However, that data is not entirely accurate either, some colleges and universities do not report to the clearinghouse, and there arc also community col- lcges that do not report. Mr. Terry said he expected that there would increasingly be an expectation that resources would need to be targeted for kids who are not going on to post -secondary education in order that they might have economic opportunities, employment opportunities, or special training. However, in order to plan the course of those initiatives, we will need to have a sense of our current status. Ms. Canter said that she thought that was a goal that was achievable. Mr. Terry said that he is aware that the MHB already has to face funding decisions where they have to decrease some programs in order to allocate additional or new funds to another program. Ms. Canter said she was concerned that there might be a push to fund a certain category of non-profit agencies. She said she was worried about what the impact might have on long-standing funded agencies that have been doing a good job at supporting and having a positive impact upon Evanston residents. Ms Grover said that she was concerned that agency resources would have to be diverted from direct program services and invested in collecting data. Mr. LaMell said that if you establish specific priori- ties, you might have to eliminate funding a number of the agencies. But that is that nature of the fund- ing economy. It will be extremely hard to have an impact with diminishing resources. This year the MHB is primarily recommending maintenance funding to agencies. It is only going to bet more diffi- cult to have an impact if the Board has to cut funding. Ms. Sitticr asked what the motivation is for this new direction locally. Mr. Terry said that the City Manager and the City Council want this to happen. He said that the overlay for this is that the City Manager's proposed 07/08 Budget will include the elimination of over 30 staff positions, 15 of which will come from within the Health Department. This is the result of priority setting with a limited budget and a hope that local care providers will step up and rill the gaps. This is an environment where the citizens are unwilling to accept further tax increases, and demanding the highest level police, fire and other basic services. The City is at a point where we have to define priorities. In response to a question Mr. Terry replied that he thinks that the City Manager and City Council are referring to the Strategic Plan to guide a number of these decisions. Ms. Gauthier said that if a number of the human services are reduced, the City will need an increas- ingly growing police force. Mr. Terry said he %vas sensitive to that point. But he said that he wanted to sensitize the Board to a new fiscal reality for all of us that everything must be weighed and viewed as a product being purchased with tax dollars. Funding for agency budgets is no longer just about charity. December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 4 Minutes approved Ms. Canter asked what the next steps would be in this developing, new focus. Mr. Terry encouraged the Board to commit to talking about these issues and community impact in their deliberations. There was a consensus of the Board that this was an important direction towards which to move. Ms. Grover and Ms. Canter commented that the Board started on this road at least four years ago when they placed significantly greater emphasis upon outcome measurements. But there is obviously a need to continue to pursue this focus. Mr. LaMell said that in order to have the impact that will be needed the Board may have to take funding from some agencies and redirect it to reach the goal. Mr. Terry said that he would be delighted if the MHB could initially commit to the issue of data collec- tion for the community as a first step. He said that there will probably be room for more discussion in the coming months. V. "REPORT ON YOUTH ENGAGEMENT iNITITIATIVE." SHEILA MCCORKLE, YOUTH ENGAGEMENT TEAM Sheila McCorkle, a Public Interest Fellow from Northwestem University that is working in the City Manager's Office, joined the Board. She said that she has been staffing the City's Youth Engagement Initiative. She highlighted her presentation that as made to the Human Services Committee on Novem- ber 20. Ms. McCorkle said that the Youth Engagement Team (Team) comprises staff from the City Manager's Office, Parks and Recreation, Police, Human Relations, and Health and Human Services. They have been meeting every other week for some time now. The work of the Team is based upon objectives in the City's Strategic Plan for Goal 3: "Generating marketable skills for Evanston residents;" and, Goal 12: "Provide opportunities for and engage Evanston youth and young adults to become active and pro- ductive citizens of the Evanston community." The Vision the Team developed is "Provide opportunities for all Evanston Youth and young adults to become active and productive citizens of the community through strengthening existing youth services, establishing a network of service partnerships, increasing participation within the available opportuni- ties, creating marketable job training and placement and increasing opportunities for social and recrea- tional outlets for disengaged youth." Ms. McCorkle said that the recommendations in the report are based upon both formal and informal conversations with youth and young adults in the community. She spoke to all major social service providers for youth ages 14 to 21. The information was shared with a national expert on youth issues who was brought in as a consultant to assist in identifying the City's strengths and areas for develop- ment in working towards the Team's vision. He also offered recommendations and best practices in youth development that are incorporated into the report. A part of the report relics upon asset mapping. They looked at who the major stakeholders were in the area of youth -related services in the community. This enabled them to identify where the strengths were, and where there might be gaps or weaknesses in services. These might provide opportunities for the development of partnerships to build upon the community's capacity. The report lists local agen- cies that are currently working with the target demographic, a number of which are currently funded by the Mental Health Board. The initiative focuses on the concept of youth as a valuable asset in the community, and not a burden on the community that needs to be fixed. Search institute, a non-profit organization based in Minne- December 14. 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 5 Minutes approved sota that focuses on positive youth development, has developed a list of youth assets that provide a di- rection for programming with young people. They address both external and internal assets that con- tribute to youth growing up to be positive, adult citizens in the community. Ms. McCorkle said that the target population for the report was primarily youth and young adults that are in an at -risk environment and may not be in a position to access resources or services that are al- ready available. She said that date was colicctcd from the target population both formal and informal ways. She convened a number of focus groups. Additionally, she went into the community to talk di- rectly with young people, asking them for their perceptions of life in the community. This was clone at ETHS and in the parks. She also rode EPD's street youth outreach team during the summer and aficr school. Overwhelmingly, the youth expressed that they felt disconnected from and did not feel a part of the community. They indicated that they feel that they are constantly being stereotyped and dissuaded from participation as a group. There is a strong perception of racial divide in the community, but there is also segregation by geography or location among members of the same race. The following were some major findings: they do not think they have a voice; there is a lack of programs for their demographic; there are few activities available; there is no place to hang-out; the few activities avail- able are too expensive; and there is a lack of meaningful jobs available. Ms. McCorkle reported that the report's recommendations were developed with the several Eve year objectives: reduction in criminal behavior; increased participation in youth programs; increased youth engagement in services; increased participation in the future workforce; agency collaboration; and, a sustainable and significant youth voice in Evanston. The recommendations include the following: establishment of a youth division in the Police Depart- ment; re-establishment of a youth commission; creation of a youth council; creation of additional op- portunities and strengthening of existing assets; making connections with hard -to -reach populations; establish measurement and impact goals for the community; a youth summit; and, agency collabora- tion. Finally, it was recommended that State funding for local youth initiatives be added to the City's agenda when they meet with the local State legislators. The State has supported a number of pilot pro- grams in delinquency prevention, job training, vocational education and other services. The City hopes to access State funding for similar programs in order to make them sustainable in the long run. (Note that the details of the Youth Engagement initiative Overview & Recommendations are available on the City of Evanston web page at lit tp:Uwww.cityofevanston.orglglobalfyouth-initiative.shtm1.) Ms. Canter asked whether there was a database in place for a baseline to evaluate the impact of the five-year plan. Ms. McCorkle responded that there was not currently a database. It will need to be cre- ated. She said that, similar to the previous agenda item, it would be helpful if the Board would agree to be involved with data collection. Ms. Grover inquired spoke about the youth Ms. �'OcCorkle interviewed vvho expressed feeling discon- nected. She asked whether they identified who or what they perceived as responsible for there margin- alization, and whether they identified a possible solution for their experience. Ms McCorkle said that the feelings were across the Board among everyone that she spoke with, and in different sectors. Gen- erally they were concerned that no one would listen to them. They tended to describe it as generational issues in the community at large. December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 6 Nnutes approved Mr. Krulce said that it sounds like there needed to be linkages between the youth and the older people in the community. Places like Hull House used to perform these types of functions in their communi- ties, but those services are no longer available. ,Mr. Terry said that New Trier Township is doing its own assessment of youth for the first time in 20 years. Evanston can learn from the experience in other communities. In response to a Question he said that the threat of violence is a very common theme in Evanston when talking about youth issues. He discussed activities that used to be provided in different locations for youth. He added that if the community decides to host dances and other social functions, there will have to be a tacit understand- ing that there may be occasional incidents. These incidents were the cause of earlier events having been cancelled. ,Mr. Terry commended Ms. McCorkle on her work and her presentation. He said that she gave a kick start to staff in the community in discussing these issues. The report is the start of getting a new out- look on youth issues in Evanston. Ms. Canter complimented Ms. McCorkle on an excellent report. She asked what the Board could do to be of assistance. Ms. McCorkle thanked the Board for their time. She said that helping to collect data and develop a baseline would be the best contribution that the MHB could make. VI. COMMITTEE UPDATE ON BOARD DEVELOPMENT Ms. Gauthier reviewed material in the Board packet about Board Development topics. She said that there had been some difficulty, initially, finding a presenter for cutting edge techniques for family therapy. However, she is still trying to get The Family Institute to provide a resource person. Ms. Gauthier asked the Board to nominate topics for Board Development for the coming year. Ms. Sit - tier said that she would be interested in hearing about the Evanston Community Foundation. Ms Canter said she would also be interested in that presentation. Mr. Teary suggested bringing the four local funders together to talk about the overall community fund- ing arena, i.e., Mental Health Board, CDBG, Evanston Community Foundation, and the Evanston United Way Chapter of the North Shore. He said that that is also one of the objectives in the Youth Engagement Initiative. . Mr. Saver said that is also one of the objectives under Goal 13 of the Strategic Plan that he is working on. The focus would be to discuss how each of the funders might be able to achieve outcomes in spe- cific health and human smices areas, and to develop some common ways to incorporate reporting about desired outcomes. He said that he has already begun to speak with some of the staff of the fund- ing bodies about meeting to begin the discussion. In response to Mr. Krulce, Mr. Terry provided a brief overview of the Evanston funding landscape, and some background on each of the funding bodies. Ms. Canter asked staff to provide a comprehensive overview for the Board about the funders, what they fund, and how all of these pieces tit together in the community. Mr. Terry said that he and Mr. Saver would prepare something for either the January or February meeting. Mr. Saver said that he would send an e-mail to Board Members seeking additional suggestions for Board Development topics for the Committee. He asked that the responses be returned by January 5. December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Pago 7 MlnuW opprov*d VII. AGENCY ACCOUNTABILITY New Agency Liaison Assignments for 2007. Ms. Canter distributed the new Agency Liaison assignments to the Board. Due to the Board vacancy there were two agencies without Liaison assign- ments --Teen Baby Nursery and SHORE. Temporarily, Mr. Krulee offered to take the Liaison role for SHORE; Ms. Gauthier volunteered to assume that role with Infant Welfare Society. Vill. REPORT FROM THE CHAIR Ms. Canter reported the following: She and Ms. Grover were unable to meet with the City Manager, due to the passing of Ms. Carroll's mother. They rescheduled their meeting for Thursday, January 4. The Board will be presenting their annual report and the funding allocation recommendations to the Human Service Committee on Monday, January 29, 2007. IX. STAFF REPORT Mr. Terry reported that the City Council budget process will begin the first Saturday in January. Budget workshops will probably occur most Saturdays in January and February, with the exception of January 13, due to Martin Luther King's Birthday. Mr. Saver discussed the Naomi Ruth Cohen Foundation Mental Health Conference that will be held on June 4 this year. This year, the workshops and presenters will focus upon issues for people who have family members or loved ones who have a mental illness. He said that every year there has been a concern about the lack of demographic diversity among the conference participants. The attendance has generally been about 275-300 people. Last year there was an additional conference that was pro- vided about depression and mental health issues in the African -American community that drew about 80 people. It dealt with the social, cultural and religious barriers and stigma that got in the way of peo- ple seeking assistance for mental health concerns. This will probably be repeated this year. Mr. Saver said that Larry Cohen, the President of the Foundation, asked him to help them organize and coordi- nate a conference about mental health issues in the Hispanic community. He said he held the first meeting and 14 people, all bilingual and many bicultural, committed to assist with the planning of the event. The conference will tentatively be late September or early October next fall. Mr. Saver reported that he attended the recent community meeting at ETHS that was held for parents to talk about underage drinking. There were several articles in the packet for tonight's meeting. The high school indicated that this was prompted by information that were found online in Face Book by an ETHS parent, with pictures of kids drinking and an invitation with graphic information about a drinking party; some recent Police calls to parties .vhere underage students from ETHS were drinking; and, a number of ETHS athletes that were recently charged with violating the school's extracurricular events policy by drinking. ETHS staff, the EPD, and PEER Services provided information and re- sources for the parents, and discussed the possible outcomes of under -aged drinking parties for both the students and the families who own the homes where parties are hosted. December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Paco a tiBnutss approved Linda Selway, former Counselor for ETHS's Students under the Influence program, talked about the school's policies regarding this issue. Kate Mahoney from PEER Services, provided information for the parents about resources available to them in dealing with their teenagers about substance abuse is- sues. Together they were also going to present several Parent Enrichment Training programs to enable parents to come together to discuss their concerns. There were a number of parents and several students that addressed the panel about their own con- cerns. Mr. Saver said that it is not yet clear what the follow-up was going to be by ETHS on this issue. He said that there seemed to be an opportunity for something positive to come out of the event. The ESAPC has already begun to discuss what other communities have been doing to address under -age drinking. In Wilmette there is Youth Commission with a Youth Council that has taken on a project that is being done nationally. In conjunction with the Police, information is being provided to the community in a project called "Parents Who host Lose the Most" in order to educate parents about the legal ramifications and financial responsibilities of "hosting" underage drinking parties in their home, even if they are not there. Ms. Canter said that she thought there were parents that permitted their children to drink at home, thinking that it was safer than them doing it elsewhere. Mr. La Mell said that mobile phones are also enabling teens to quickly spread news about any parties. Mr. Saver said that the Internet is apparently also a rapid way to share the information about parties very broadly. In regards the recent situation at ETHS, the presentation indicated that one of the parents saw the party invitation among his son's post- ings on Face Book. The invitation included a graphic description of the preferred dress and indicated that there was going to be alcohol and no parents. Mr. Terry thought that it was ironic that these tcen- agers seemed to have the expectation that invitation posted on a public domain was not going to be available and would be private. Mr. Saver wished all the Board members a happy and healthy new year. Ms. Walker wished Mr. Saver and Ms. Sittler a happy birthday. The meeting was adjourned at 9:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Casey Solomon Secretary December 14, 2006 Mental Health Board Meeting Minutes Page 9