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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-04-10-HSC-min.pdf Human Services Committee April 10, 19% Meeting Minutes Present: Ros Gittleman, Eva Glick, Donna Hooper, Rick Safford, Jolley Anne Weinstock Absent: Steve Baran, Julie Fenn, Jeanne Luongo Audience: Arnie Berger, RePlace Minutes of January and February were set aside for approval at the May meeting. Minutes of the March 20, 1996 meeting were unanimously approved as amended: last sentence on the bottom of page one shall read: "Response by coaches to the sports teams to the drug awareness program offered by RePlace as part of its contract with the Town of Lexington has been slow." 1. Coordinator/Chairperson Report: Donna distributed Steve's minutes of the Youth Coordination Task Force. Arnie Berger explained previous discussions at the task force, including youth groupings, drop-in models & need/usage. Phil Lanoue, LHS principal had found it quite characteristic that one group's prominence at a drop-in prevents others from attending. The issues found in the Needs Assessment and LHS Risky Behavior Survey continue to be raised. The committee & Arnie Berger discussed possible approaches to be taken for providing information to the 1997 Town Meeting in support of Human Services - Line Item 6000. Possible joint Human Services/RePlace handout was mentioned, with a Committee presentation and RePlace support. Jolley Anne expressed the importance of demonstrating the cooperative effort and dose working relationship of the Town/Committee and RePlace. Donna explained that Steve Baran was checking on the approach thought best to be taken by the Town. Donna and Steve will be meeting with Joan Abrahams and Arnie Berger at RePlace on Thursday, April 18th. Discussion of Town Meeting information and presentation will happen at that time - service variation between funding at $69,834 and $90,380. It is difficult to anticipate issues which may be raised by Town Meeting members. 2. Review of Meeting with RePlace/CAPP & Preview of 4/18/96 Meeting with RePlace: Donna explained that Julie Fenn had recently met with Joan Abrahams at RePlace regarding the CAPP program. Issues discussed included: CAPP parent meeting in late January at the Estabrook School Maria Tramontozzi's preparedness & CAPP knowledge Research of other Assault Models Evaluation process to allow for parental feedback after presentations CBHC services to RePlace CBHC resources & leadership/skills accessible to RePlace CBHC evaluation tool for RePlace usage Human Services Working with LPS/teachers for some sense of ownership of CAPP; Committee community sense/philosophy - enhancement of CAPP to reach ~/10/96 larger population of kids- incorporation to school curriculum? Page 2 Items to include in discussion with Joan and Arnie at the April 18, 1996 meeting at RePlace: CAPP Drop In Models & Utilization/Populations Referrals for Counseling Coordination of Services 1997 Priorities - emphasis shift? Deveney Evaluation Current Issues/Concerns/Trends of RePlace Town Meeting Approach/Presentation 2. SubCommittee Reports Ros Gittleman explained that she will soon be re-connecting with the Battered Women's Coalition. Eva Glick stated she will continue to participate in the Youth Coordination Task Force - its next meeting scheduled for April 26th. Rick Safford explained that a Waltham acute care/respite transitional facility for up to 4 persons has been newly established. The Center for Mental Health is the contractor More and more, mental health issues are being moved into the community to be addressed by the clubhouse model. 3. Human Services Committee Charge/Policy- The harge/PolicyThe committee's Charge was approved as amended at last month's meeting. See attached. The Committee recommends adoption by the Board of Selectmen. The Lexington Human Services Policy has been further amended from its earlier amended version, as follows: Paragraph 1 shall read: The Human Services Committee, in recommending a policy to the Town of Lexington, holds that community well-being should be the ultimate end of all human services activities. This means that every group and individual, whether in need or responding to need, should be related to the whole community The philosophy shall emphasize prevention and shall facility involvement of all human resources. Paragraph 5 shall incorporate paragraph 6 from the previous version and shall read: The Human Services Committee is the vehicle for human service planning and an advocate for the integration of social, economic and physical planning. It is a forum which encourages directly through its meetings, and in indirect ways, the expression and assessment of need, seeks to prioritize needs to be addressed, explores issues in relation to the desires of the citizenry, examines possible duplication of services, and evaluates the extent to which needs have been addressed. The Committee will evaluate the performance of contractors, including whether they are responding to evolving needs. Human Services Committee, 4/10/96, page 3 The Committee's Goals and Objectives as per attachment were approved by unanimous vote, see attached explanation. The Committee's work plan to address these goals and objectives shall be developed at the May meeting. Donna Hooper, Recorder ( 1 I b LEXINGTON HUMAN SERVICES POLICY The Human Services Committee, in recommending a policy to the Town of Lexington, holds that community well-being should be the ultimate end of all human service activities. This means that every group and individual, whether in need or responding to need, should be related to the whole community The philosophy shall emphasize preve-ntien and-the-full F tL.1-a involvement of all human resources. Those in special need are conceived to be part of normal community groupings whose members experience similar needs--the elderly, adolescents, single parent families-- with the condition of vulnerability being an imbalance that can be corrected or ameliorated through the provision of human services. Thus, vulnerability is to be accepted as a normal fact of life and is relevant not only for the handicapped but for those with age-related problems. Providers who intervene in response to need should do so in the most preventative manner possible, before, rather than after, problems have emerged, fully recognizing and capitalizing upon the strengths of individuals and groups. The point of intake is considered worthy of considerable emphasis since it is there that resources, formal and informal, are available to offer support. These include the extended family, neighbors, schools, recreation, transportation, clubs, health and social welfare agencies, and the Town of Lexington in its role as facilitator For providers to operate in the context of community means that any need is recognized as multi-causal and any response is seen as involving, to the fullest extent possible, a complex of formal and informal agencies. Through the medium of coordinating mechanisms, through a continuing education effort, through public and private collaboration, a fully participatory planning effort should be maintained. The Human Services Committee is the vehicle for human service planning and an advocate for the integration of social, economic and physical planning. It is a forum which encourages directly through its meetings, and in indirect ways, the expression and assessment of need, seeks to prioritize needs to be addressed, explores issues in relation to the desires of the citizenry, examines possible duplication of services, and evaluates the extent to which needs have been addressed. The Committee will evaluate the performance of contractors, including whether they are responding to evolving needs. The philosophy of the Town s direct involvement in human services, therefore, is to emphasize prevention, with an emphasis on strengths, more than remediation and weaknesses; to enhance programs rather than perform the residual function of meeting deficits; and to facilitate involvement of all human resources rather than coordinate only those that have traditionally been considered human service agencies. Amended 3/96 - Draft 4/10/96 1