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C. 46
To: Board of Supervisors
From: David Twa, County Administrator
Date: November  5, 2019
The Seal of Contra Costa County, CA
Contra
Costa
County
Subject: The California Better Careers Design Group

APPROVE OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On:   11/05/2019
APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER
Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:
John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Candace Andersen, District II Supervisor
Diane Burgis, District III Supervisor
Karen Mitchoff, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor
Contact: L. DeLaney, 925-335-1097
I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED:     November  5, 2019
David Twa,
 
BY: , Deputy

 

RECOMMENDATION(S):

APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the County Administrator, or designee, to apply for and accept grant funding in an amount not to exceed $25,000 from Third Sector Capital Partners, Inc., for the Office of Reentry and Justice to participate in the California Better Careers Design Group.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The California Better Careers Design Group is supported by a grant that Third Sector Capital Partners, Inc., receives from the James Irvine Foundation. It provides each organization in the Design Group a $25,000 participation grant, and reimbursement for workshop travel and lodging expenses.

BACKGROUND:

The County Administrator's Office was recently offered the opportunity to participate in the "California Better Careers Design Group" by Third Sector Partners, Inc. (Third Sector). Third Sector is a nonprofit advisory firm that "leads governments, high-performing nonprofits, and private funders in building evidence-based initiatives that address society’s most persistent challenges." Their mission is to accelerate the transition to a performance-driven social sector guided by values of respect, rigor, resourcefulness, results, and reflection.  
  
Opportunity Overview  
  
The Better Careers Design Group (BCDG) is a cross-sector group organized by Third Sector that will collaborate to apply new skills and design solutions for systemic workforce challenges. It aims to advance the equity of economic outcomes in California in an 18-month long curriculum that will involve more than 15 participant organizations and 6 interactive workshops. From January 2020 through June 2021, the Design Group members will partner with people and communities they serve to investigate problems that may exist within their local workforce systems. Members will learn and utilize human-centered, and outcomes-oriented design while building relationships across sectors and gaining guidance from state-level agencies.   
  
Design Group members will create collective, localized outcomes-driven plans that promote equity and further at least one of the goals of the Better Careers initiative:

  • Help under-resourced jobseekers secure jobs that pay a family-sustaining wage
  • Improve training opportunities that lead to quality jobs and advancement
  • Identify successful models of matching employers with middle-skilled workers
  • Build and grow a diversified pool of talented workers
The Design Group is supported by a grant from the James Irvine Foundation that allows members to participate at no cost. The program is supported by a $25,000 participation grant, and reimbursement for all workshop travel and lodging expenses. Each Design Group organization will select two staff members to join the Design Group. The application is open to Irvine Better Careers Initiative grantees as well as any governmental agency in California focused on at least one goal of the Better Careers initiative. Preference will be given to organizations with pre-existing relationships that apply as a complete Design Group Team. Each organization will need to submit an individual application for their organization. The ORJ is applying as a member of the Design Group Team with the Contra Costa County Workforce Development Board, the Employment and Human Services Department, and Rubicon Programs, Inc.  
  
The Office of Reentry & Justice (ORJ), a project of the County Administrator's Office in the County of Contra Costa, is responsible for the procurement process and contract administration for AB 109 Public Safety Realignment-funded "Community Programs." These AB 109 Community Programs include $2.283 million annually for "Employment Support and Placement Services," which are currently provided on a countywide basis to the County's returning residents by Rubicon Programs, Inc. The barriers faced by those returning to the community from jail and/or prison are manifold and complex; they may include (but are not limited to) substance use disorder, lack of training or education, unstable work history, transportation challenges, and lack of housing/housing instability. The ORJ is also responsible for data collection and analysis activities related to the County's implementation of Public Safety Realignment, including the administration of a Salesforce-based reentry services database for service providers' utilization.  
  

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

Inaction or negative action would prevent the Office of Reentry and Justice from participating in the California Better Design Group process for the period of January 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021.

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