Supportive Services for Veteran Families SSVF Webinar Series

Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) Webinar Series SSVF Webinar Series: Employment Services with SSVF, Expenditure Plans, and Policy Updates April 24, 2014 1

Webinar Format • Webinar will last approximately 1. 5 hours • Participants’ phone connections are “muted” due to the high number of callers – Questions can be submitted during the webinar using the chat function • Questions can also be submitted anytime to SSVF@va. gov 2

How to Submit Questions during the Webinar Your Participation Open and hide your control panel Submit questions and comments via the Chat Feature Note: Today’s presentation is being recorded and will be posted onto SSVF University. 3

SSVF Hot Topics 4

Objectives • Learn about methods used to provide effective employment services with SSVF • Discuss expenditure planning • SSVF Program Office Updates: – Prevention Waiver – Program Changes 5

Employment Services

Employment Services: Connecting to Local Partners to Support SSVF Objectives April 24, 2014 Presented by Baylee Crone, Vice President, Programs and Operations National Coalition for Homeless Veterans 7

Importance of Employment • “Lack of adequate income is the most frequent cause of housing crises, and efforts to increase income should begin immediately” • “Giving workers the opportunity to acquire the skills that they need to pursue in-demand jobs and careers is critical to growing our economy, ensuring that everyone who works hard is rewarded, and building a strong middle class” • “Despite recent employment growth, far too many hard-working individuals still have not been able to find a job or increase their earnings. ”

What You Are Already Offering • Stability to pursue employment goals • Direct employment assessment and training services • Direct employment placement services • Connection to employment service agencies in your local area

Partners in Your Local Service Area • Homeless Veteran Reintegration Program Grantees • American Job Center Resources • Job-Driven Training Initiatives

Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program (HVRP) 11

HVRP Background • Authorization and Administration − Section 2021 of Title 38 of the United States Code (U. S. C. ) requires the Secretary of Labor “to conduct, directly or through grant or contract, such programs as the Secretary determines appropriate to provide job training, counseling, and placement services (including job readiness, literacy training, and skills training) to expedite the reintegration of homeless Veterans into the labor force. ” − Public Law 113 -37, the “Department of Veterans Affairs Expiring Authorities Act of 2013’, reauthorizes HVRP through 2014 − Administered through the Department of Labor- Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS), HVRP is the only federal program that focuses exclusively on the employment of veterans who are homeless. 12

HVRP Core Services • Main program objectives − To provide services to assist in reintegrating homeless veterans into meaningful employment within the labor force and; − To stimulate the development of effective service delivery systems that will address the complex problems facing homeless veterans. National/Universal Regional/State Local/ Tribal 13

HVRP Core Services • Program Models − No one program model is required; client-centered case management − Showcase effective collaboration with federal, state, local, and tribal organizations − Showcase engagement with industry, employers and employer associations to identify the skills needed for in-demand jobs and careers − Services informed by labor market information • Operational “Rules of Three” − HVRP grantees must Design, Develop, and Execute goals and strategies that create positive Training, Employment and Retention outcomes − HVRP grantees must have strong organizational experience, staff experience, and quality linkages − Complete, comprehensive, and coherent program strategies 14

HVRP Core Services • • • Scope of Program Design: − Outreach − Assessment and Intake − Job-driven Employment and Training − Follow-up Target populations for service − Female veterans − Chronically homeless veterans Services − Job placement and retention services − Counseling − Mentoring − Supportive services − Housing − Physical and mental health − Other necessary assistance 15

HVRP Core Services (cont. ) • Major HVRP community partners − experienced public agencies − private non-profit organizations − private businesses − community-based organizations − colleges and universities − Specialized medical, rehabilitation, and mental health providers • • Examples include: − Health Care for Homeless Veterans Outreach Coordinators − Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) programs − local ICH − Social Security Administration and Ticket to Work Providers − Integration into local 5 and 10 Year Plans HVRP and its partners will have: − Knowledge of local labor market trends − Unique needs of homeless veterans − Linkages with Federal agencies; American Job Centers; local Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH) 16

HVRP Grantees in Your Community HVRP Grantees are within these eligibility categories: − State and local Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs) − Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) − Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments) − Local public agencies − For-profit/commercial entities − Non-profit organizations, including community -based organizations and faith-based organizations 17

HVRP Service Population • Participant Eligibility: − A participant eligible for HVRP must be homeless and a veteran • Veteran is defined as: − a person who served in the active military, and − who was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable − Veterans with dishonorable discharge are NOT eligible for HVRP 18

HVRP Service Population (cont. ) • Homeless is defined as: − 1. persons who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence − 2. persons living in supervised public or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living arrangements − 3. an individual who resided in a shelter or place not meant for human habitation and who is exiting an institution where he or she temporarily resided − 4. persons with a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings − * an individual or family who will imminently lose their housing, can identify no subsequent residence, and which lacks the resources or support networks needed to obtain other permanent housing. − * unaccompanied youth and homeless families with children and youth defined as homeless under other Federal statutes 19

Overlapping Objectives: Employment and Housing • HVRP grantees are required to facilitate housing stability − They must connect to emergency, temporary, transitional, permanent housing resources • Provide/ connect to appropriate housing for at least the number of planned enrollees • Appropriate referrals based on veteran need − Rapid response strategy − NO HVRP funds are used for housing 20

Connecting During Outreach • Access points during outreach − Demonstrate active engagement with industry − Focus on avoiding service duplications − Services include: project orientation workshops; provider meetings; Stand Down events 21

Connecting During Service Delivery HVRP services are broken into four main dimensions: • Outreach • Assessment and Intake • Job-Driven Employment and Training • Follow-up Services 22

Job-Driven Training and Employment • HVRPs employ Job Driven Employment and Training Services. This means: − IEPs must be “job-driven” in training and employment services − Programs document progression to job readiness and referral to AJC − 80% of participants are in training − Training services are specific and targeted • Examples include: Work-based learning opportunities: registered apprenticeships, paid internships, on-the-job training, cooperative learning, work experience, and customized training 23

Current Funding Notification • Solicitation for Grant Applications (SGA) • Funding Opportunity Number: SGA #14 -02 / PY 2014 • Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 17. 805 • Changes/Amendments to the SGA − Check back regularly to www. grants. gov and the DOL-VETS website 24

Current Funding Notification • Funding Levels and Categories − Funding Levels: • $6 million total • Distributed between Urban and Non-Urban − Urban: $100, 000 – $300, 000 − Non-Urban: $100, 000 - $200, 000 • Native American tribal lands are non-urban − Funding Category: • Urban or Non-Urban: Appendix F • metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) • 75 largest cities from 2010 US Census • Receiving application materials − SGA and attachments through DOL-VETS website − Materials through grants. gov • Due dates • 30 days after publication of the SGA • 4: 00 p. m. Eastern 25

2. Jobs for Veterans State Grant (JVSG) Programs 26

American Job Centers and Veteran Staff • DVOPS: • LVERS:

Resources from your AJC • My Next Move for Veterans • Interest and Other Assessments • Detailed labor market reports

3. Job Driven Training and Other Major Programs 29

Job-Driven Training • http: //www. whitehouse. gov/the-press-office/2014/01/30/presidentialmemorandum-job-driven-training-workers 30

Registered Apprenticeship • http: //www. whitehouse. gov/the-press-office/2014/04/16/fact-sheetamerican-job-training-investments-skills-and-jobs-build-stron 31

Engaging with Community Colleges

Additional Resources q Federal Program Sites: q USICH Website: http: //www. usich. gov/ q CHALENG Information: http: //www. va. gov/homeless/chaleng. asp q Bureau of Labor and Statistics: http: //www. bls. gov/ q O*NET: http: //www. onetonline. org/ q My next move: http: //www. mynextmove. org/vets/ q American Job Center information: http: //servicelocator. org/ q Congressional Districts: https: //www. federalreporting. gov/federalreporting/congressional. Districts. do q Helpful information resources: q Community organizations: http: //www. nchv. org/network. cfm q White House Memo on Job-Driven Training: http: //www. whitehouse. gov/the-pressoffice/2014/01/30/presidential-memorandum-job-driven-training-workers q ICH information: http: //www. usich. gov/usich_resources/maps/overall_homelessness_rates q Continuum of Care information: http: //www. hudhre. info/index. cfm? do=view. Coc. Maps q Healthcare for Homeless Veterans Program Guide: http: //www. va. gov/HOMELESS/docs/HCHV_Sites_By. State. pdf q Employment Resources: http: //www. nchv. org/page. cfm? id=241 q State Unemployment Insurance: http: //workforcesecurity. doleta. gov/unemploy/uifactsheet. asp 33

Contact Information q For HVRP Technical Assistance and questions about this presentation: Baylee Crone, NCHV, at (202) 546 -1969 or by e-mail at bcrone@nchv. org 34

Expenditure Planning

Common Practices for Expenditure Planning • Review recently submitted SSVF Quarterly Report and internal financial documents • Assess expenditure progress • If needed, modify initial expenditure plan to ensure that SSVF funds are spent fully and appropriately during your contract period, resulting in meeting overall SSVF program goals • Note that SSVF Program Office has only ONE remaining cycle for processing significant program changes in FY 2014 36

Options for Meeting SSVF Targets • Landlord Recruitment • Rapid Re-housing “Push” • Outreach • Program Development • Temporary Financial Assistance 37

Landlord Recruitment • Brochures describing program, landlord supports, etc. Note: advertising is not allowable, brochures must be specific to SSVF program and targeted population • “Landlord Breakfast” (food must be purchased with non-SSVF funds) • Hire or increase staff hours to do landlord contacts • Develop a landlord database 38

Rapid Re-Housing “Push” • Identify a day, week or month for moving homeless Veterans into housing • Hire additional staff (temporary) • Ensure staff have necessary materials to screen and enroll during street outreach • Take a risk: don’t screen out anyone who is eligible and willing 39

Outreach Services • Hire temporary outreach staff to identify Veterans eligible for SSVF Services NOTE: adding NEW staffing positions to a grant program is considered a significant program change. Increasing the number of existing staffing positions (temporary or permanent) is not considered a significant program change unless budget is increased/decreased by >10%. 40

Invest in Program Development • Contract for deeper evaluation or focus groups • Contract for development or purchase of tenant training materials • Stock up on most needed resources for households (ex: budgeting workbooks from National Foundation for Consumer Credit • Contract/hire someone to plan methods of creating and protecting client reserve accounts NOTE: Any such services must directly and clearly connect to improving SSVF service delivery 41

Temporary Financial Assistance • Increase the amount of budgeted TFA (not to exceed 50%) • Intakes and expenditures should still clearly follow the “but for” rule and be targeted based on the needs of each family 42

Prevention Waiver Application

60% RRH / 40% Prevention Waiver • Waivers can reduce the 60 percent minimum of TFA funding requirement to a 40 percent minimum, with the balance available for participants at imminent risk of homelessness as defined in § 62. 11(a)(1). • Waivers to the 60 percent requirement may be requested when grantees can demonstrate significant local progress towards eliminating homelessness in the target service area. • Waiver requests must include data from authoritative sources such as HUD’s Annual Homeless Assessment Report, annual Point-In-Time Counts and evidence of decreased demand for emergency shelter and transitional housing. • Waivers for the 60 percent requirement may also be requested for services provided to rural Indian tribal areas and other rural areas where shelter capacity is insufficient to meet local need. 44

Waiver Application • Waivers Applications are considered a Significant Program Change • Grantees must submit the waiver application to the SSVF Program Office using the Program Change Request Form • Data tables and narrative component may be included as a separate attachment (using the application template) NOTE: Waiver application was released to grantees via email update and is also available on SSVF University 45

Waiver Application Section 1: Grantee Information • Name, Award Amount, Budgeted Amount of TFA Section 2: Continuum of Care (Co. C) Information Co. C Name Ex: Washington, DC (DC-100) Name: Primary Co. C Contact Information: Email: Affiliation: Phone: • For grantees serving more than one Co. C, the waiver applies only to a specific Co. C, and is not inclusive of entire geographic service area. • Therefore, grantees must submit a waiver application for each applicable Co. C. 46

Waiver Application Section 3: Continuum of Care Housing Resources and Utilization Data 2012 2013 2014 PIT count HIC ES (HCHV, DCHV) # and % filled HIC TH (GPD, CWT/TR) # and % filled HIC PSH (HUD-VASH) # and % filled HIC SH (HCHV Safe Haven) # and % filled • For each year, using Co. C data collected and submitted to HUD, enter the Co. C’s point-in-time (PIT) count of homeless Veterans and the number of beds and number of persons served in each of the VA program types from the Co. C’s Housing Inventory Count (HIC). 47

Waiver Application Section 4: Demand for SSVF Rapid Re-Housing and SSVF Capacity Annual (Oct 2012 -Sept 2013) PIT (Jan 2014) • • SSVF Household Capacity Homeless Veterans SSVF Coverage (%) Data must be obtained from the Co. C or otherwise certified by the Co. C. SSVF Household Capacity is the estimated annual and point-in-time (PIT) number of Veteran households your program is able to serve (in total) in the Co. C. SSVF Coverage is the calculated percentage of homeless Veterans who can be served by your SSVF program, both annually and at a PIT. This table assumes that all Veterans who experience literal homelessness in the Co. C may need some amount of SSVF RRH assistance to exit homelessness, including those needing the minimal amount of assistance and those needing SSVF assistance as a bridge to longer-term supports. 48

Waiver Application Section 5: Narrative • Why do existing local needs warrant a shift in SSVF resources from rapid re-housing services to homelessness prevention services? • Limited to 500 words • Response must be relative to the data outlined in sections 3 and 4. • May include community specific considerations, SSVF shared geography, and data collected from the grantee’s SSVF experience. 49

Waiver Application Certification • Grantee certifies that their SSVF program participates in the design, implementation and/or ongoing activities of our local Co. C(s) coordinated or centralized assessment process • Grantee has made all homeless assistance programs in our geographic service area aware of their SSVF program, who refer Veteran families to SSVF quickly when no other permanent housing option is available and when desired by the Veteran programs • Grantee will continue to prioritize for SSVF assistance those Veteran families who become literally homeless to ensure that such instances of literal homelessness are met with an appropriate, rapid intervention • Should local trends change and increased rapid re-housing resources be required, SSVF grantee will contact the VA Regional Coordinator in an effort to respond appropriately. • Signed by SSVF grantee agency 50

SSVF Program Change Requests

Program Change Requests • All Program Change Request materials are compiled by Grantees. • Grantees submit requests directly to the Program Office via SSVF_Change. Requests@va. gov • Please CC Regional Coordinator on submission • Grantees can submit up to 30 days prior to the end of each quarter • Program Office reviews and provides response to Grantees within 30 days prior to the end of quarter. • VA does not anticipate significant program change requests in Quarter 4 that require a budget modification 52

Program Change Requests • All program changes/notifications follow this submission/review process: – Significant – Non-Significant – Prevention Waiver Applications • Follows significant program change procedure – Budget Modifications • Significant if changes greater than 10% of budget amount – HHS Subaccount Transfer Requests 53

Program Change Requests • Each change request goes through multiple levels of review: Initial Submission Packet Review Regional Coordinator Supervisor SSVF Deputy Program Director SSVF Program Director (if applicable) NCHAV Director (if applicable) Compliance Officer (if applicable) • Response is provided by Program Office once all reviewers have signed off on the request. 54

Program Change Form – MS Excel Form required for all changes or notifications – Based on changes selected, the “Grantee Submission Checklist” automatically indicates necessary supportive materials. – Used by Program Office to track and prioritize requests 55

Program Change Form • Example: 56

Budget Modification Template • Located on Tab 5 of the Financial Quarterly Report. • Limited to 3 Budget Modifications per grant year. 57

Budget Modification Template • Adding Line Items: – Enter amount and explanation in blank yellow row. – If adding a position: include # FTE, % FTE and Base Salary (also include copy of position description) 58

Budget Modification Template • Increases and decreases must be equivalent – Grand Total (row 136) will display OK if increases and decreases are equal – Grand Total (row 136) will display ERROR if increases and decreases are not equal – Make sure amounts increased/decreased will not result in a negative number for that line item and/or an unallowable distribution of funds • Ex: >10% admin • Ex: Moving a line item to admin without increasing admin amount. 59

Budget Modification Template • Complete Items 1 through 3 using Yes/No dropdown menu: • Item 4 indicates if a HHS Subaccount Transfer Request Form is needed. 60

Budget Modifications • Not all budget modifications need to be submitted as program changes. • A budget modification requires SSVF Program Office review if it meets any of the following criteria: 1) The modification is greater than 10% of the total budget (significant) 2) Involves adding or deleting a line item 3) Affects the distribution of funds between HHS Payment Management System subaccounts 61

Subcontractor Changes • Terminating a subcontractor – Explain how this change will not affect continuation of services for SSVF clients. – Change in subcontractors must not disrupt services designated in your grant agreement. – Provide signed MOU for replacement subcontractor – If not replacing a subcontractor, include a budget modification designating where the costs will be absorbed within the budget. 62

Common Submission Issues • Not submitting to SSVF_Change. Requests@va. gov • Missing or incomplete explanations for all budget increases and decreases • Not answering items 1 -3 on Budget Modification Template • Forgetting position descriptions and %FTE / Base Salary Information • Missing signed versions of letters • Missing signed MOUs 63

Program Change Requests • The SSVF Program Office processes a high volume of program change requests each quarter. – Ex: 93 requests were processed in Q 2 • It is the responsibility of the grantee to ensure their change request packet is accurate and complete prior to submission. • Include Regional Coordinator on all submissions. 64

Program Change Requests Key Dates: May 9 th and June 1 st for Q 3 September 1 st for Q 4 • SSVF Program Office must receive the Quarter 3, FY 2014 significant program change requests from grantees by June 1 st. • However, SSVF will begin processing on May 9 th for any grantees who had Q 3 submission issues or are modifying their initial expenditure plan. NOTE: VA does not anticipate significant program change requests in Quarter 4 that require a budget modification 65

Additional Questions? SSVF Program Office Phone: 1 -877 -737 -0111 Email: ssvf@va. gov Website: www. va. gov/HOMELESS/ssvf. asp 66