LOOK FOR YOUR
NEXT CICH NEWSLETTER IN SEPTEMBER
This edition of the Colorado
Interagency Council on Homelessness newsletter will provide you with information
on some of the activities of the committees. Even though summer is a
traditionally slow time for committee work, there is still lots of work going
on. The Housing Development Committee and the Homeless Families with Children &
Unaccompanied Youth Committee are especially active.
We continue to solicit your
feedback on committee activities or on ways to make the newsletter more useful
for you. We have received feedback that we are planning to publish the
newsletter too often. We have heard from some committee chairs and others that
there may not be enough substantive information to make it worth your while to
read the newsletter. As a result, we are going to publish the newsletter every
other month.
New Committee
Members- We are always looking for dedicated interested people for our
committees. Contact the committee chairs if you are interested in attending
learning more about a committee or want to attend a committee meeting.
The Colorado
Interagency Council on Homelessness
The
Colorado Interagency Council on Homelessness was created on October 28, 2003
through Executive Order of Governor Bill Owens to serve as an advisory body to
the Governor on housing needs and homeless issues. The council is co-chaired by
Marva Livingston Hammons, Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Human
Services, and Mike Beasley, Executive Director of the Colorado Department of
Local Affairs. Members of the council include: government and elected
officials, foundations, non-profit housing and homeless providers, business
representatives, and representatives from Colorado State Departments that serve
homeless populations. The council has developed a five point strategic plan
that includes the following five priorities:
Priority #1: Expand and
Maximize Service Resources
Click on the headings above
to go to the Colorado Interagency website to learn more about committee
activities. You can also click on the Department of Local Affairs and
Department of Human Services icons below to go to those websites.
COMMITTEE
UPDATES
Mental Health, Substance Abuse, Health & Integrated Treatment
Committee (MSHI)
The MSHI committee is continuing to explore the feasibility of conducting a
statewide analysis to determine the gaps between detox and treatment for
homeless persons, and identify ways to fill these gaps. ADAD is taking the lead
to capture data it has in relation to this issue. The committee will also try
to obtain similar data from the health and mental health fields, and attempt to
gain a more complete picture of this issue to present to the full ICH.
In addition, MSHI continues to explore possibilities for increasing non-tax
resources to provide additional treatment services for homeless persons.
Strategies include looking into funding collaboratives, best practices in other
states, and "beneficiary companies" (e.g. pharmaceutical companies) as potential
resources for developing services.
Date/Time: 3rd Thursday of the month from 2-4 p.m.
Location: Supportive Housing and Homeless Programs
Housing Development Committee
The Housing Committee is moving forward on the first statewide homeless point in
time survey in over 17 years. The committee hosted a statewide planning meeting
on July 1, 2005 that was attended by homeless service providers from all over
the state. The next meeting on the point in time survey will be held on August
5, 2005. Contact Lynn Shine at 303-866-2046 or by email for more information.
Date/Time: 1st Friday of the month, 8:30-10:00 a.m.
Location: Supportive Housing and Homeless Programs
Benefits Acquisition Committee
In these newsletters, we plan to highlight one
of our initiatives each month. One of the
centerpiece projects we are working on is the establishment of a
coalition of homeless providers and
federal, state and local partners to improve the delivery of services through
improved case management. Our objectives are to improve cross program knowledge
among case managers and to improve the referral process through personal
handoffs between case managers. We have identified nearly 20 partners for this
effort and have signed most on to participate. We expect to finalize the
coalition partners within the next weeks and host a kickoff meeting to discuss
strategies and logistics by mid-August.
Benefits Acquisition Team leads on this project are Dan Reardon (CCH), Tracy
D'Alanno (SHHP) and Don Ketcham (Social Security).
Date/Time: TBA
Location: TBA
Homeless Families with Children & Unaccompanied Youth Committee
In July, the Homeless Families With Children and Unaccompanied Youth Committee
will wrap up their efforts to plan for the federal policy academy on homeless
families happening this Fall. The next meeting is scheduled for July 26, 10:00
- 11:30 at Mile High United Way. No speakers are planned; a discussion of
policy priorities and available data on family homelessness are planned.
Date/Time: July, 10:00 - 11:30
Location: Mile High United Way, Heritage Room
Discharge Planning Committee
Although the agenda for the meeting is not set, follow-up is occurring on a
variety of topics such as: following up with Health Care Policy and Financing
about Social Security direction on prisoners having their Medicaid on hold while
incarcerated, learning more about the status of memorandums of understanding
between the Department of Corrections and the Department of Human Services, and
looking into the potential of presentations to community corrections boards
about mental illness. It is likely these topics will be on our next agenda. In
addition, SHHP is securing a PBS video on the mentally ill in prison and will
likely offer it for viewing before the next meeting.
Date/Time: July 29th, 2005, 2-4 p.m.
Location: South Metro Community Parole Office, 3642 S. Galapago Street,
Englewood, CO
Education Committee
The Education Committee met
on July 8, 2005. At that meeting the committee decided to work with the Housing
Committee to assist them in implementing the statewide point in time survey.
The first Colorado Interagency Council E-newsletter was delivered in June to
over 400 people and organizations with an interest in homelessness. The next
edition will go out in July. After that the newsletter will be published every
other month. We are interested in recruiting additional members. Please
contact Lynn Shine (
lynn.shine@state.co.us)
or Chris Roe (
christopher.roe@state.co.us)
if you are interested in joining the committee.
Date/Time: TBA. Will schedule a meeting after the Housing Committee meeting
Location: Division of Housing
