Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Claire Cunningham, Director, Human Services Agency
Subject: Cal-OAR System Improvement Plan
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution authorizing a System Improvement Plan for the period of December 2023 to June 2026, a component of the CalWORKs Outcomes and Accountability Review mandated under Senate Bill 89.
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BACKGROUND:
California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) is a public assistance program that provides cash aid and services to eligible families that have a child(ren) in the home. The program serves all 58 counties in the state and is operated locally by county welfare departments.
The purpose of CalWORKs Outcomes and Accountability Review (Cal-OAR) is to establish a local, data-driven program management system that facilitates continuous improvement of county CalWORKs programs by collecting, analyzing, and disseminating outcomes and best practices. Cal-OAR is designed to promote critical reflection of the CalWORKs program in order to better engage CalWORKs clients.
Cal-OAR consists of three main components: performance measures, a CalWORKs
county self-assessment process, and a county CalWORKs system improvement plan (Cal-SIP), including a peer review component. The process of engaging these components is called Continuous Quality Improvement (Cal-CQI).
As an administrator of the CalWORKs program, the Human Services Agency (HSA)'s, Employment Services (ES) branch recently engaged in Cal-CQI, resulting in a Cal-SIP report.
As part of the Cal-SIP plan, ES reviewed available data to identify trends as they relate to the Cal-OAR performance measures to further examine the current CalWORKs Welfare to Work (WTW) program, its services and supports, and strategies to enhance employment services to the community. In addition, ES contracted with Public Consulting Group (PCG) to facilitate focus group intervie...
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