Policy and Practice April 2019

PERRY COUNTY continued from page 8

and how we can transition youth seam- lessly between after-school programs, summer employment, and advanced degrees or certifications into career pathways. We have educa- tion, health and human services (H/HS), and transportation all deeply and thoughtfully engaged. We have many success stories to share … but we also have failures. Remember Joe? He relapsed while in the program, landed in jail a few days, and we took almost half of his first paycheck for back child support. But, in the end, Joe was successful, and our programming benefitted from the lessons learned. So, one of the things I would ask today is that local communities be provided opportunities and the freedom to create innovative pilots. Evidence-based programming require- ments hinder the unconventional approach needed to solve issues faced by those wearing multiple hats. Risk of failure should be accepted. And rural communities just don’t have matching dollars to begin a new program and we won’t have the money later to sustain it long term. I would also recommend alignment even with agencies outside H/HS. Aligning policies and regulations can help ease implementation of funding at the local level. Implementing cross-agency collaboration language in legislative directives and incentives empowers resources to be applied to all areas where agencies intersect—for example, the cross-sections of programming for housing, education, employment, and transportation. I would like to ask that those health and human services employees who are embedded in rural areas and local communities be included in early and continuing conversations. People who serve communities at this level are uniquely positioned to identify local initiatives that will produce the needed outcomes. Cheryl Boley is the Director of Perry County (OH) Job and Family Services and Perry CountyTransit.

it does not interfere with work opportu- nities andmedical appointments. The program brings in mental health and addiction counselors, brings in the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) to fund training programs and support services. Our rural transportation department even expanded their hours until 9 p.m. with approval from the Department of Transportation for on- demand public transportation to meet the many needs of participants. We all bring our resources to the table, and they are primarily federal and state, which allows us to maximize and match allocations. We cur- rently have two participants who are employed and receiving a paycheck through a Department of Labor (DOL) grant while still active in Drug Court. To bring this collaboration full circle, the work being completed as a result of the DOL grant is benefiting the com- munity by cleaning up a local stream system, so a village bridge can be repaired that’s been out for a year. As a community we have celebrated many successes and graduations from Drug Court. One of these is Joe. Joe found himself in a tough situation, facing jail time, an addiction, and a family he had left behind. Though difficult, he was accepted as a partici- pant, fought his addiction, received his commercial driver’s license, found employment making $45,000 per year, and is now paying child support and spending time with his child. Another program that has met with great success is the Academy for Leadership Abilities. This program, developed locally by JFS, the Department of Disabilities (DD), and After School Programming meets kids right after school and during school. It works with participants in small groups—with a curriculum that meets after-school TANF, DD, and WIOA youth elements requirements—to provide a leadership forum for teens, focusing on all of the abilities of the kids in our community. This conversation is extending into workforce development in the schools,

would, imagine for a moment the reality of life in my rural community. Imagine no dialysis center, no cancer treatment centers. Colonoscopies, mammograms … all are available only outside our county. A few months ago, however, we opened our very first emergency room where patients can be triaged and treated or transported to a hospital outside the county. Also, outside the county is where we find our entertain- ment as we have no movie theaters, or theaters for performing, no malls, no bike paths, no YMCA. But the biggest surprise to most people is that we have no Walmart. Nonetheless, we fondly refer to Perry County as “Perrydise.” But, for all we lack, we truly do benefit from active community collaboration with partners and stake- holders who “just get” that we are more successful when we work outside our silos. It’s so embedded as a practice, that daily business is con- ducted with a phone call or impromptu meeting. My colleagues are always shocked when I tell them I can pick up my phone and talk to a school superin- tendent on a weekend. My sandbox is the county’s sandbox. I want everyone talking about food insecurity and workforce development and transportation. We work with a collaborative mindset and we own our community problems. And one community problem we own—that is breaking our hearts—is the opioid epidemic. What this stakeholder connectivity looks like in practice is evidenced in the collaborative establishment of our Drug Court program. Our Municipal Court Judge, Dean Wilson, received a $400,000 dollar grant to expand this program. And for Perry County, that’s a lot of zeroes. But the investment just begins to scratch the surface to truly be impactful. He doesn’t approach it in a silo and doesn’t include only personnel involved in justice. He reaches outside to the many community leaders and together they created a program that provides court after hours based on customer request so

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