1. ORGANIZING THE FRONT DOOR: COORDINATED ASSESSMENT Emily Carmody & Corey Root NCCEH Rebecca Pfeiffer City of Charlotte

2. CoC 101

3. 12 Continua of Care (CoC) in North Carolina

4. NC Balance of State CoC Regional Committees

5. Continuums of Care are backbone of homeless service system  Continuum of Care (CoC)  Regional planning body that coordinates Housing and services Funding for homeless programs  Wide range of agencies and organizations  Promotes community-wide commitment to ending homelessness  Required to apply for HUD homeless funding

6. HEARTH 101

7. The homeless service system has evolved over the past 20 years  1990’s  Continuum of Care created Based on Housing Ready model  2000’s  New Permanent Supportive Housing emphasis  Move from managing homelessness to ending homelessness  Congress mandates HMIS  Local Ten-Year Plans to End Homelessness  2010’s  Use of evidence-based practices  New RRH & Prevention emphasis in addition to PSH  Federal Strategic Plan & HEARTH

8. HEARTH changed the game for homeless services and funding President Obama signed the HEARTH Act on May 20, 2009. It was the first significant reauthorization of HUD’s McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Programs in nearly 20 years. It required the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness to create a federal plan to end homelessness.

9. USICH created the Federal Strategic Plan to End Homelessness in 2010 FOUR GOALS 1. End chronic homelessness by 2017 2. End veteran homelessness by 2015 3. End family & youth homelessness by 2020 4. End all homelessness www.usich.gov

10. Programs Activities Transitioning Systems Outcomes Housing First HUD is shifting priorities and funding in response to data and best practices RareBriefNon-recurring

11. Coordinated Assessment 101

12. Low Need Less Intense More Intense High Need Need a flexible system able to triage high need households

13. CoCs can do a number of different things to create system change  Conversions  Transitional housing  Shelter beds to rapid re- housing  Expand capacity  Rapid Re-housing  Shelter diversion  Targeted prevention  Permanent Supportive Housing  Innovations  Exits from Permanent Supportive Housing  Coordinated Assessment (Intake/Entry) System  Common Barrier Assessment and Targeting Tool  Performance Improvement Process  Progressive Engagement  Mainstream Employment Partnerships

14. Coordinated Assessment: Access  Defined entry into homeless services  Covers entire geographic area of CoC  Easily accessible  Phone process  Outreach  Safety concerns  Well-advertised North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness

15. Coordinated Assessment: Access Models  Single location  2-1-1 hotline  No wrong door

16. Coordinated Assessment: Assessment  Only necessary info  Eligibility  Assessment Service need Housing barriers Retention barriers  Assessment happens step-by-step  Prevention/Diversion screening  Shelter eligibility  Housing program eligibility  Mainstream benefits eligibility

17. Coordinated Assessment: Assessment Models  VI-SPDAT  Community-created assessments  Progressive engagement

18. Coordinated Assessment: Referrals  Effectively match households to services  Accurately address eligibility  Real-time coordination  Between referral and availability  Seamless “warm” transfers

19. Coordinated Assessment: Referrals Models  Program placement  Referral Committees  Community referral protocols: What happens when a program does not accept a referral?

20. Coordinated Assessment means big changes for communities  Shift from program-centric decisions  Should we accept this household?  Agency-specific assessments  Ad hoc referrals  Shift to system-level/client-centric decisions  How can our system best serve this household?  Standard forms & assessments  Coordinated referral system

21. Coordinated Assessment part of stronger system  Better serve those in crisis  Minimize time and frustration in accessing help  Close the cracks in the system  Informs CoC  Who accessing homeless programs? What are their needs?  What are current system gaps?  What programs under-utilized?  Informs how to invest and prioritize system resources

22. How Coordinated Assessment works in Balance of State

23. Steering Committee is governing body for BoS; CAC is technical referent for Coordinated Assessment BoS Steering Committee Regional Committee Coordinated Assessment Council

24. Different groups have different roles and responsibilities for CA in BoS  Governance  Systems designed and administered by Regional Committees  Standards and governance by NC BoS Steering Committee  Coordinated Assessment Council (CAC) review and approve plans CoC reps State-level experts and partners

25. Coordinated Assessment: NC BoS  Standardized elements  Governance, structure  3-part assessment tool  Reporting and CoC-wide oversight  Customized elements  Triage and referrals  Wait Lists  Local grievance process  Local oversight Same What Works and What’s Available Locally Local priorities Customize

26. How Coordinated Assessment works in Charlotte - Mecklenburg County

27. Housing Advisory Board Continuum of Care Committee Coordinated Assessment Oversight Working Group Community Engagement & Advocacy Committee Research & Evaluation Committee Organization of Governing Board

28. Role of Oversight Working Group  Members selected by community  Activities  General oversight and management  Information and feedback to community  Investigate and resolve complaints or concerns  Evaluate efficiency and effectiveness of process  Review Performance Data  Recommend changes or improvements

29. Coordinated Assessment: Charlotte-Mecklenburg  Standardized assessment tool at every location, including  Prevention/Diversion screen  Focused evaluation for a high volume community  Housing Barrier Assessment  System standards around prioritization  Dynamic waitlist

30. Before Coordinated Assessment

31. Charlotte–Mecklenburg Now Coordinated Assessment (3 Locations + Outreach) Emergency Shelters Permanent Supportive Housing Programs Rapid Re-Housing Programs Transitional Housing Programs

32. Discussion & questions

33. Mecklenburg: What have we learned so far  Impacts client seeking housing assistance  Provides opportunities to pay more attention to details  Engaging in diversion activities can positively impact system  Creates coordination and dialogue within system  Allows for transparency with funders  This is hard work!

34. BoS: What have we learned so far  Mapping exercise shifted perspective from agency to system performance  Working on coordinated assessment strengthens and empowers Regional Committees  There’s no done  Embrace the freak-out

35. Discussion Topics  How coordinated assessment has impacted work in the community  What the vision is for going forward

36. Want to help?  For more information, look up your CoC/Regional Lead contact  Come to meetings  Get involved with the work  Educate others about the current state of homeless service system  Community-level responsibility  Coordinated assessment  Advocate for affordable housing

37. Contact Info  Emily Carmody & Corey Root  bos@ncceh.org bos@ncceh.org  ncceh.org  Rebecca Pfeiffer  rpfeiffer@ci.charlotte.nc.us rpfeiffer@ci.charlotte.nc.us