Seattle, WA – Today, the City of Seattle Human Services Department announced the availability of up to $1.67M in funding to create a Seattle navigation center intended to serve at least 75 people at a time.  The funds will be awarded through an open and competitive request for qualification (RFQ) process.  Nonprofit agencies and federally-recognized Indian tribes in the State of Washington are eligible to apply.

This RFQ is a direct result of the Executive Order issued on June 9^th by Mayor Edward Murray, which directed the creation of a new low-barrier, one-stop service center for individuals without shelter to receive customized support needed to move into permanent housing.

“Operationalizing the navigation center is a critical step in creating a person-centered homelessness response system.” said Catherine L. Lester, Seattle Human Services Department Director. “By providing 24-hour, low-barrier shelter alternatives to our most vulnerable neighbors, we will be better able provide individually tailored services to help move more people into stable housing.”

The navigation center is modeled on the San Francisco Navigation Center which is a dormitory-style living facility that provides people living outside with shower, bathroom, laundry and dining facilities, and a place to store their belongings. Additionally, the navigation center will provide round-the-clock case management, mental and behavioral health services, and connections to benefit programs and housing all in one location.

Initially, clients referred from the I-5 East Duwamish Greenbelt and the transitional encampment located at Royal Brougham Way and Airport Way will have first priority for the navigation center.   Other focus populations for this funding include homeless individuals who are African American/Black, Multi-racial or American Indian/Alaska Native.  This focus is based on population data and local homeless counts that show racial disproportionality of those who are affected by homelessness.

This funding intends that staff on site will offer support for basic needs like shelter, hygiene, meals, secure and accessible storage, case management, and supportive services including meaningful referrals substance abuse and mental health treatment. These services are intended to be designed for quickly routing clients into housing or other long-term placement.

While service center clients will not be required to be drug-free and sober, the location will not operate as a safe injection site. The navigation center is a 24/7 harm reduction model that welcomes pets, couples and individuals currently struggling with addiction.

The $1,675,000 currently available through this RFQ is derived from the following sources:  City of Seattle Homelessness State of Emergency ($475,000), Washington State Department of Commerce ($600,000) and private funding ($600,000).  Individuals, businesses, and philanthropic organizations can make donations to the navigation center on the United Way of King County website.

Those interested in learning more about the RFQ application process are welcomed to attend an information session on Wednesday, September 7, 2016.

Information Session
1 – 2 p.m.
El Centro de la Raza, RM 307
2524 16^th Ave. S.
Seattle, WA 98144

Applications will be due by 12 p.m. on Tuesday, September 27, 2016 online or hand delivered to the Seattle Human Services Department at 700 5th Avenue, Suite 5800.

Please visit the HSD website to view and download application materials.

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The Seattle Human Services Department is one of the largest contributors to Seattle’s safety net. HSD provides $89 million in funding through 450 contracts to nearly 200 agencies supporting Seattle’s most vulnerable residents each year.  The department works closely with its community partners, including other public and nonprofit funders and service providers, to understand current and emerging human service needs, and to create and invest in a comprehensive and integrated regional human services system.

SEATTLE –Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Education Excellence for African Americans, David J. Johns will address several hundred Seattle Youth Employment Program participants annual event to celebrate the end of the summer session.  Johns will speak to the interns about President Obama’s desire to restore the country to its role as a global leader in education and to improve educational outcomes for African Americans of all ages. Johns will talk about how the City’s investments in youth—which span, education, employment, violence prevention and health—prepare young adults for college, productive careers, and satisfying lives.

The City of Seattle Youth Employment Program (SYEP) supports participants with comprehensive internship opportunities aimed at meeting the employment needs of underserved youth and young adults in our community. The program promotes work readiness and ultimately strengthens career development. In 2015, the City launched the Mayor’s Youth Employment Initiative (MYEI) which generated 2,000 job opportunities for underserved youth and young adults in Seattle in 2015, doubling the previous year’s efforts by leveraging partnerships with private-sector employers.

Mayor Ed Murray remains steadfast in our commitment to ensuring youth and young adults in Seattle are achieving academic success, have opportunities for meaningful employment, are safe and free from justice system involvement, and are healthy, physically, socially, and emotionally.  The Human Services Department invests more than $13M annually in youth services, including the Seattle Youth Employment Program.

This event is open press.

WHO:              David J. Johns, Executive Director White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans

WHAT:            Keynote address to summer youth employment participants

WHEN:            Friday, August 19, 2016, 10:00 AM

WHERE:           Seattle Center Exhibition Hall:  301 Mercer Street Seattle, WA 98109

Today the Human Services Department announced the Human Services Symposium on September 15.  The symposium will offer a special opportunity to engage in a conversation with national and local leaders about the intersection between results, racial equity and capacity in human services.

The City of Seattle Human Services Department is committed to achieving a results oriented culture and racial equity. Strengthening the capacity of the human services sector will help us achieve this.

What: A conversation with national and local leaders about the intersection of results, racial equity and capacity in human services

Who: Seattle human services sector including Nonprofit Leaders, Philanthropy, Public Sector, and Academia (by special invitation)

When: Thursday, September 15 from 1:00 to 4:00 pm

Where: Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center (104 17^th Avenue S., Seattle 98144)

Special Guest: Dr. Michael McAfee, Vice President for Programs at PolicyLink

Planning Team: City of Seattle (Human Services Department & Department of Neighborhoods), Casey Family Programs, Seattle Human Services Coalition, and the University of Washington School of Social Work

 

Please join us for this important conversation.

 

RSVP no later than August 31, 2016 to RSVP-HSD@seattle.gov. 

 

SEATTLE (July 13, 2016) – Mayor Ed Murray today recognized the top supporters of his Mayor’s Youth Employment Initiative, which connects Seattle youth ages 14-24 with paid internships and employment opportunities.

The mayor thanked the Port of Seattle, Alaska Airlines, Goodwill, Swedish Medical Center, JPMorgan Chase, AT&T and Starbucks for their support of the initiative, which ranges from hosting interns to donating funds to support wages for youth placed at other organizations. These businesses and organizations represent the various ways employers can support Seattle’s youth, through financial contributions to support jobs and through internship programs.

“In a city with so much economic growth and opportunity, we can’t leave Seattle’s young people behind,” said Murray. “By providing opportunities to Seattle’s youth, employers are changing lives. I want to thank those who have stepped forward and challenge more companies and organizations to get involved. The need is still great.”

At 12%, youth unemployment is almost four times the city’s overall rate, according to the latest data from the 2014 American Community Survey. For low‐income youth, young people of color, and youth who aren’t in school the unemployment rate is as high as 28%.

To address Seattle’s high youth unemployment rate, Mayor Murray launched the Mayor’s Youth Employment Initiative in 2015 to build career pathways for Seattle’s youth.  Backed by financial support from JPMorgan Chase and building on decades of success of the Seattle Youth Employment Program (SYEP), the 2015 initiative connected more than 2,000 youth with life-changing internship opportunities. This year, the City has enlisted Educurious to help connect more youth with meaningful employment throughout the year.

“JPMorgan Chase is proud to work with Mayor Murray, the City of Seattle and Educurious to help prepare our youth for the future,” said PNW Chairman for JPMorgan Chase & Co. Phyllis Campbell. “One of the most urgent challenges we face is the need for more inclusive economic opportunity—we know that helping young people gain early work experience and build job skills is a powerful strategy for promoting economic mobility. That’s why we’ve been at the forefront of expanding high-quality youth employment initiatives— investing $6 million in 15 cities across the country including $600,000 in Seattle.”

Out of the 150 participating employers (not including the City of Seattle), the Port of Seattle is employing the largest number of youth, with nearly 100 interns this summer alone. As part of its commitment to the Mayor’s Youth Employment Initiative, the Port increased its number of high school interns nearly tenfold, worked with manufacturing partners and Seattle Public Schools to support career exploration, and is investing in interns’ long-term success through résumé workshops and other career development opportunities.

“The Port of Seattle Commission approved $400,000 this week to strengthen training curriculums in local schools to better prepare students for technical and industrial jobs,” said Commissioner Stephanie Bowman.  “It’s a top Commission priority to increase awareness about the opportunities in the maritime and aviation industries, to strengthen the middle class here in Seattle.”

“Swedish is very honored and proud to partner with Mayor Murray and other participating organizations to provide students in our community with opportunities that we hope will make a significant and positive difference in their futures,” said Swedish’s Chief Human Resources Officer Naren Balasubramaniam. “Our goal is to invest in these students through time and mentorship so that they build work and life experience and learn firsthand about healthcare and hospital operations. The SYEP program is an important way for us as an organization to live our commitment to caring for our communities and improving the health of our region beyond normal patient care.”

“At Alaska Airlines we are committed to youth in the state of Washington and believe that programs like the Mayor’s Youth Employment Initiative, open up possibilities and allows our future work force to gain valuable work experience. It helps to remove barriers for young people to imagine their future and all the opportunities that come with meaningful employment,” said Tammy Young, vice president of human resources.  “We’re thrilled to work closely with the 10 high school students we have on-site with us this summer – they bring so much energy and we’re learning from each other!”

“As an organization whose mission is to prepare people for employment, it makes perfect sense for Seattle Goodwill to host summer youth interns and expose them to a variety of work experiences in a non-profit setting.  By making their internships meaningful and rewarding Goodwill will help these young people establish a positive foundation for many career opportunities that they will have in their lifetime,” Daryl Campbell, President and CEO, Seattle Goodwill said.

AT&T committed this week to a $10,000 contribution to support jobs for young people in Seattle.

“Through our own internship program at AT&T, we have seen how training programs and opportunities to work on real-world projects can launch a young person’s career.  We are honored to be a part of Mayor Murray’s Youth Employment Initiative which will unlock the potential of so many young Seattleites,”  Bob Bass, President, External and Legislative Affairs, AT&T Washington.

Together with local employers, the City and has connected 2,000 youth with employment opportunities so far this year through the Mayor’s Youth Employment Initiative. The program has also helped fill a need for employers who need to fill the employee pipeline.

Even with the apparent success of the initiative, however, the demand for youth employment in Seattle is not being met. For example, less than half of the 1,600 youth who were eligible for a position have been able to be placed in positions.

If the City secures an additional $1.1 million in a combination of paid internships and donations, 400 more young people will be able to access employment opportunities that will have a lasting impact on their self-esteem, job readiness, and economic mobility.

“Seattle’s young people are eager to work. If more companies don’t step up to support youth employment this year, we’ll be forced to turn away hundreds of qualified youth,” added Murray.

To learn more and register your organization to participate in the initiative, visit murray.seattle.gov/youthjobs.

(Seattle, WA) Today, Mayor Ed Murray announced that a new mobile medical clinic begins operations this month to help address the Homeless State of Emergency, offering better access to medical, mental health and chemical dependency services at various sites around Seattle.  The Mayor was joined by Patty Hayes, Director of Public Health-Seattle & King County at today’s service location at St. John United Lutheran Church in the Seattle’s Phinney neighborhood.

The new van – which resembles a giant RV with a splash of sunshine painted on the outside – complements an existing mobile medical van that operates in South and East King County.  It makes daily scheduled visits to food banks, tent cities, social service agencies and other locations, where clients can receive walk-in medical care.

“As we continue to address the city’s homelessness crisis, we know there is not one answer, but many as we try to help those who are most vulnerable,” said Mayor Ed Murray. “This mobile medical van will enable us to deliver critical health care to those in need and serve as an entry point to long-term support services and permanent housing.”

“This mobile medical unit will connect more people to treatment for an illness or injury – an important first step toward helping them transition to safe, stable housing,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “By providing immediate assistance where people are today, we’re able to deliver the best results.”

“The most effective way to treat people is to meet them where they are, which is why I’m so excited to see the Mobile Medical Clinic deployed to help those in our unsheltered population,” said Seattle City Councilmember Sally Bagshaw.  “While someone is getting treated for a broken bone, toothache, or even diabetes, staff in the Mobile Medical Clinic can help connect patients with long term care options, shelter, and case management.  This is truly a one-stop-shop.”

Inside the mobile clinic, clients can get assistance from a physician, nurse, chemical dependency professional, and mental health case manager. In addition to providing services onsite, staff will arrange for additional treatment at a community provider, and when needed, escort the client on an initial visit.

The van makes scheduled visits to various meal programs and community sites around Seattle.  At each location, a partner agency helps inform and refer people about the care they can receive on the mobile medical clinic.

For many people living homeless, day-to-day life is organized around basic survival issues such as food, shelter, and personal safety that often take priority over managing their health. The overall goal of the mobile medical program is to address these competing priorities by traveling to locations where people experiencing homelessness can immediately access patient-centered care and case management services.

The annual operating cost for the van will be approximately $700,000.  This includes personnel, pharmaceuticals and supplies, operating and maintenance and administrative expenses. The City of Seattle has contributed $500,000 in State of Emergency funds towards the van’s annual operating costs with the remaining funding coming from patient generated revenue, (billing for covered services), and ongoing Federal funds.

The Seattle Human Services Department is one of the largest contributors to Seattle’s safety net. HSD provides $89 million in funding through 400 contracts to nearly 200 agencies supporting Seattle’s most vulnerable residents each year.  The department works closely with its community partners, including other public and nonprofit funders and service providers, to understand current and emerging human service needs, and to create and invest in a comprehensive and integrated regional human services system.

Providing effective and innovative health and disease prevention services for more than two million residents and visitors of King County, Public Health — Seattle & King County works for safer and healthier communities for everyone, every day. More at www.kingcounty.gov/health 

 

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Thousands of Seattle children ages 1 through 18 will enjoy free breakfasts and lunches this summer through the Seattle Human Services Department’s Summer Food Service Program. The U.S. Department of Agriculture-funded program, formerly known as “Summer Sack Lunch,” is open to children at qualifying sites. From June 29 through August 26, 2016 the meals will be served at approximately 100 sites across the city—including designated community centers, Seattle park playgrounds, Boys and Girls Clubs, YMCAs and YWCAs, and other community sites throughout Seattle and parts of King County.

Meals open to public: The majority of sites will offer meals to the public and all children 18 years old and younger can come to have a meal.

Meals for children enrolled in programs: Some of the meal sites (about 30) offer the food program to children enrolled in specific activity programs, where free meals will be served to all children enrolled in the program.

To enroll families who qualify at or below the levels in the following table are encouraged to apply on the Summer Food Service website.

Household Size	Yearly Income	Monthly Income	Twice Per Month	Every Two Weeks	Weekly Income
1	$21,775	$1,850	$908	$838	$419
2	29,471	2,456	1,228	1,134	567
3	37,167	3,098	1,549	1,430	715
4	44,863	3,739	1,870	1,726	863
5	52,559	4,380	2,190	2,022	1,011
6	60,225	5,022	2,511	2,318	1,159
7	67,951	5,663	2,832	2,614	1,307
8	75,647	6,304	3,152	2,910	1,455
For each additional family member:	+7,696	+642	+321	+296	+148

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.

To file a program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, (AD-3027) found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html, and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by: mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; fax: (202) 690-7442; or email: program.intake@usda.gov.

For a complete list of sites and hours for the Summer Food Service Program, you can call 206-386-1140 or visit www.seattle.gov/summerfood.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

 

The Seattle Human Services Department is one of the largest contributors to Seattle’s safety net as it provides $99 million in funding through 522 contracts to nearly 200 agencies that support Seattle’s most vulnerable residents each year.  The department works closely with its community partners, including other public and nonprofit funders and service providers, to understand current and emerging human service needs, and to create and invest in a comprehensive and integrated regional human services system.

Executive Order pursues replicating a new low-barrier comprehensive service center based on proven San Francisco model

SEATTLE (June 9, 2016) – Mayor Edward Murray took action through Executive Order today directing the creation of a low-barrier, one-stop service center for individuals without shelter to receive the customized support they need to move from the streets back into permanent homes.

“Our strategy for helping people without shelter has to be broader than designating another site in the city to pitch a tent,” said Murray.

The service center will be modeled on the San Francisco Navigation Center, the first of its kind, dormitory-style living facility that provides people living outside with shower, bathroom, laundry and dining facilities, a place to store their belongings, as well as round-the-clock case management, mental and behavioral health services, and connections to benefit programs and housing, all in one location. This facility will prioritize placement for individuals who are currently unsheltered and offer them a secure place to stay and access additional supports in a 24/7 program.

The San Francisco Navigation Center prioritizes serving people from geographic areas with extraordinary public health and public safety challenges, places like Seattle’s I-5 East Duwamish Greenbelt. One of the reasons it is effective is because the model enables organic groups or communities that have formed in specific geographic areas to stay together and transition to the Navigation Center.

Murray visited with people living under I-5 yesterday. Pictures can be found here.

The center will be particularly suited to people with partners, pets or possessions who choose to stay in encampments rather than shelters, where partners, pets or possessions are not typically allowed. It will serve up to 75 people at a time.

The center will be funded in part by $600,000 secured by the City in the state capital budget in the 2016 legislative session. The City is matching this state appropriation with a private donation of $600,000 earmarked for homelessness services, and will establish a designated fund to collect additional private donations to support the center.

In March of this year, Murray visited the San Francisco Navigation Center with City Councilmember Tim Burgess and staff from the City of Seattle, King County, and All Home King County to learn about this emerging practice and how the model might be replicated in Seattle. This visit was followed by a second delegation that included Councilmember Sally Bagshaw.

“Every single person living in an encampment has their own story, their own dignity and their own set of reasons for how they got where they are,” said Murray. “These reasons are often incredibly complicated and incredibly difficult, and we have to address these reasons at a very personal level in order to make a meaningful difference. This kind of comprehensive, person-centered approach has been used successfully in San Francisco to help people move from the streets back into permanent homes. We want to duplicate that success here.”

Murray’s Executive Order establishes a public-private partnership workgroup convened by Department of Human Services Director Catherine Lester to develop a proposal for and help implement a replication of the San Francisco model in Seattle. This workgroup will include representatives from All Home, philanthropy and nonprofit partners with expertise in delivering effective housing and services to individuals who are homeless.

This workgroup will also coordinate closely with King County and other regional partners to provide technical assistance or coordination should other jurisdictions be interested in replicating San Francisco’s model in their respective jurisdictions to address the regional problem of homelessness. The workgroup will deliver its proposal to the Mayor within 60 days and the Human Services Department will then issue a request for proposal 30 days later, with a goal of successfully launching the service center by December 31, 2016.

Murray said the people-centered model of supporting those living outside should be reflected in our citywide conversation, as well.

“We talk a lot about the homeless in aggregate,” said Murray. “What we too often do not discuss are individuals, the thousands of our fellow human beings living among us a without a roof over their head or many of their most basic needs being met. Their situations are unlikely to improve if – rather than seeing them as they are, as individuals – all we see is an abstract concept called homelessness. We can only make progress one person at a time.”

By the numbers:

• On any given night in Seattle, 2,942 individuals are living unsheltered in our community as of the 2016 One Night Count.
• The Human Services Department is spending nearly $50 million this year to assist single adults, youth, young adults, and families, survivors of domestic violence, older adults and veterans who are currently or at risk of becoming homeless.
• This includes $7.3 million in one-time funds dedicated through the State of Emergency declared by Mayor Murray in November 2015, which funds 242 additional shelter beds; addresses encampments with outreach, cleanups, storage, referrals to chemical dependency and mental health beds; and sets aside shelter beds.

 

SEATTLE (June 8, 2016) – The City of Seattle today announced three awards totaling $2 million to promote capital improvements in Seattle’s network of community health care facilities. Following a competitive funding process, NeighborCare Health, Country Doctor Community Health Centers and International Community Health Services were selected as recipients.

“I applaud the work of our community health providers to improve the well-being of our most vulnerable residents and families,” said Mayor Ed Murray. “Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, thousands more of Seattle residents have health care coverage, and now it’s our turn as a City to help expand local access to these critical health services.”

Following the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, more than 84,000 newly insured Seattle and King County residents enrolled in health care coverage—many of whom are now covered by Medicaid. The unprecedented demand for health care services required significant investment from the Seattle Human Services Department (HSD) to help our community health care facilities expand and meet this new need.

“Despite the gains made by the Affordable Care Act, we know that many of our neighbors lack the medical care to meet basic everyday health needs,” said Catherine Lester, Seattle Human Services Department Director. “Access to quality, affordable and reliable community healthcare is fundamental preventing catastrophic health events that often send vulnerable individuals and families into poverty.”

HSD will fund more than $1.2 million to Country Doctor Community Health Centers to renovate their Capitol Hill site to provide low-barrier dental care to Medicaid recipients and lower-income individuals.

NeighborCare Health was awarded more than $400,000 to create a health care center inside the Dutch Shisler Service Center, providing wraparound services for people who are homeless and vulnerable.

International Community Health Services will receive $350,000 in funding to build an optometry clinic in the International District, which will serve lower-income populations with culturally and linguistically appropriate eye care services. Over 80 percent of Asian-Americans suffer from myopia, yet there are only eight optometrists in Seattle that accept Medicaid patients.

All funding recipients are Federally Qualified Health Centers.

Today the Human Services Department updated the department policy regarding indirect costs. Indirect costs refers to the indirect rate for subcontractors. This policy places a fifteen percent (15%) cap on reimbursement for agency indirect costs. The 15% indirect total is calculated by first dividing the contract total dollars by 1.15, which results in the direct total.  Second, multiply 15% indirect rate on the direct total which yields the indirect total for a contract.

Total Contracts Budget / 1.15 = Direct Total

15% indirect rate X Direct Total = Indirect Total

To establish this policy the department conducted research on indirect contracting practices regionally–including the indirect cost policy at the State Auditor’s Office, City departments and other jurisdictions.

See the full policy here.