Norwich Human Services

The Rose City Senior Center

Youth and Family ServicesAdult and Family Services

Total Budget Costs (09-10)

$492,695 Rose City Senior Center $163,375 Youth and Family

Services $586,063 Adult and Family

Services

TOTAL $1,242,133

1% of City Budget (09-10)

Entire City Budget is

$108,606,233

Compared to NHS

$1,242,133

We represent 1% of the budget

DISPROPORTIONATE

Asked to cut our budget by 35%

Half of the job losses or reductions within the City are coming from our department(8 positions reduced or eliminated)

Revenue Brought to City (09-10)

RCSC $127,326

NYFS $642,661

AFS $276,182

For detailed information, please

Refer to spreadsheet regarding Expenditures and Revenue

BANG FOR YOUR BUCK

2009-2010 the cost for ALL programs and services was $2,154,333

The cost to the City was $1,046,169

49%

STAFF = SERVICES

No place to cut but staff8 positions affected

Cutting people means a direct loss of services

WHEN PEOPLE NEED US THE MOST

ROSE CITY SENIOR CENTER

Providing Critical Services to Seniors Preventive Health Clinic Nutrition Programs Transportation Assistance Outreach to Homebound Educational and Recreational Programs

Important Facts

23.5% of Norwich population is aged 55 or older = 8,700 people

The senior population in CT is due to rise to 69% by 2030

Positions Affected by Cuts

35 Hour Driver………………………….Eliminated 35 Hour Program Administrator….Reduced to

21hrs 35 Hour Office Coordinator………..Reduced to

21 hrs 35 Hour Receptionist…………………Reduced

to 21 hrs 21 Hour Outreach Worker………….Eliminated Preventive Health Clinic……………..Eliminated

Elimination of Senior Center Driver

Eliminates about 6,700 transports to Doctor appointments Grocery shopping The Senior Center

Events, educational and recreational

Elimination of Senior Center Driver

Cuts ability to transport disabled seniors to doctors appointments

Cuts ability to transport seniors to local grocery stores for food supplies

Eliminates about 6,700 transports to and from the Center, events, programs, and shopping

In addition, the elimination of our part-time employees account completely eliminates our ability to have a substitute driver when the regular driver is sick or on vacation

Reduction of Program Administrator Hours

Reduces ability to: Run the RCSC safely Manage over 180 volunteers Coordinate fundraising Run programs Supervise trips

Reduction of Program Administrator Hours

Serves as Director in the Director’s absence Manages/oversees 180+ volunteers Coordinates majority of fundraising activities Provides tours, promotes programs and answers a variety of program

and Senior Center questions from prospective members and current members

Combined with the Director, runs an Intergenerational Program with Wequonnoc School

Plans and supervises trips for seniors, averaging 10 trips per year with approximately 45 seniors per trip

Reduction of hours completely affects the ability to safely manage the Center in the Director’s absence

Coordinates programs with local AARP groups, such as the Driver Safety Program, and regular meetings of the 2 groups

Reduction of Office Coordinator Hours

Severely affects the ability to: Coordinate State DOT med ride Complete billing, scheduling and reception duties Compile mandatory reports Coordinate media, including website Attend meetings, prepare minutes, post

Reduction of Office Coordinator Hours

Severely affects the ability to coordinate the MedRide program scheduling which provides medical transportation for seniors and disabled people in Norwich and Montville. This program is through a State of CT-DOT grant

Severely affects the ability to perform the following duties: billing, scheduling, covering for receptionist, providing notary services, and completing the Senior Center newsletter

Oversees Receptionist and assists in Reception area during busy hours

Compiles and completes reports for both the clinic grant and the outreach grant as necessary for the grant holder

Submits content to local newspapers, Senior Citizen Publishing, Just for Seniors Magazine and Center website

Attends Senior Affairs commission meetings, prepares minutes, mailings and posts to website, by state statute

Reduction of Receptionist Hours

Reduction in ability to: Manage phone calls and walk-ins Arrange transportation to doctor’s

appointments Register members Coordinate drivers Handle money from programs, gift shop

Reduction of Receptionist Hours

Arranges transportation appointments for seniors to and from the doctors’ offices

Arranges transportation for seniors to come into the center and/or go shopping

Accepts all phone calls and directs to appropriate staff member

Takes registration for membership and additional programs Takes part in explaining services of the Center to potential

members and families Accepts money for membership, gift shop, cards, plants and

fundraiser program tickets Maintains contact with drivers, especially the escort car, that

take seniors to medical appointments

Elimination of Outreach Worker

Total loss of ability to: Visit homebound seniors to ensure their well-being Assist homebound and other seniors with access to

programs and services including Meals on Wheels and other food security programs Medicare/Medicaid/Social Security Renters Rebate for the homebound ConnPace, CT Homecare Power of Attorney, Living Wills

Secure elderly housing or assisted living for seniors

Elimination of Outreach Worker

Assists seniors with such programs: Social Security: benefits, appeals, low-income subsidy Access to State programs such as Medicaid, Medicare Savings Program,

ConnPace, CT Home Care Program, Nutrition (food stamps), Protective Service referrals

Medicare assistance, billing disputes, appeals and supplemental insurances. In addition to Medicare Part D and assistance with programs and plans

Housing applications, assist with appeals for denials, moving arrangements, Renters Rebate (homebound), Circuit Breaker, VA exemption and obtaining household goods

Deals with assisted living applications, phone services, cable, lifeline and the Are You Ok program

Assists with utility/energy assistance, including NPU, billing issues, medical certs, negotiation of payments. Also deals with TVCCA and assists with obtaining appointments and assisting homebound with compiling and completing info

Assists with Meals on Wheels applications, IRS, Census, Elder Law, insurances, clothing, funeral pre-arrangements, file of life, finances (credit counseling), skilled nursing, homecare, home safety assessments, POA and adult day care referrals

Assists with Veterans Affairs, provides emotional support, introduces Senior Center activities to prospective members, assists with widows fund, Christmas baskets and transportation to community resources, emergency room and medical transportation when necessary

Elimination of Health Clinic Will no longer be able to provide:

Foot care Hearing screenings/ear flushing Osteoporosis screenings TVCCA mini physicals with annual TB testing Blood screenings for glucose, cholesterol and anemia Wound check and dressing changes Consultation for nutrition deficiencies and weight

issues M.D. ordered shots

Elimination of Registered Nurse/Health Clinic

Provides affordable services such as foot care, ear screening and flushing, blood pressure checks, cholesterol screenings and osteoporosis screenings to name a few

Administers B12 shots to a few members and saves them from having to go to doctor’s office and the co-pay that may come along with it

Is a referral source for seniors that may not have a primary care physician

Averages 15-20 patients per week which results in an average of $300 in revenue per week

Will evaluate seniors of concern during a home visit with our Outreach Worker

Is primary responder during her working hours for emergencies at the Senior Center

Statistics From March 1, 2009-March 1, 2010 roughly 43,000 statistics

were recorded from senior programs. These included: The clinic provided 975 appointments, which generated roughly

$15,000 in revenue 3,300 rides were provided to doctors’ appointments. Many other

appointments were denied due to lack of availability The van drivers provided over 12,000 transports 1046 appointments were provided by the Outreach Worker.This

amounts to over 20 appointments per week

During Calendar year 2008-added 324 new members; Calendar year 2009-267 additional new members; in the 1st quarter of this year we have added 66 new members

Almost 2,500 seniors are in our working database

Loss of Revenue

Impact on membership Health Clinic revenue Ability to fundraise Ability to match state and federal

grants

YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES

Norwich Youth and Family Services has been serving Norwich families

and their children for 35 years.

We are the Municipal Agent for youth in Norwich

Critical Partnership

     Under Connecticut General Statue section 10-19m, a Youth Service Bureau (YSB) is an agency operated directly by

one or more municipalities that is designed for planning, evaluation,

coordination, and implementation of a network of resources and opportunities for children, youth, and their families.

Important Facts

Youth and Family Services provide services to ALL Norwich youth and families

Youth make up 24% of all Norwich citizens

There are 9137 young people under the age of 18 who are our future

49% of Norwich youth are eligible for free and reduced lunch

45% of all children under the age of 6 in Norwich live in single parent households

 

FactsYouth Service Bureaus are a collaborative between

state and municipal resources.

There are approximately 100 Municipal Youth Service Bureaus across the State.

Norwich currently receives over $87,000 annually in revenue from the State of CT, which directly offsets the administration of Norwich Youth and Family Services.

This represents 53% of the YFS budget

Benefit To City

Youth and Family Services

Leverages Critical Resources

local, state and federal for the City of Norwich

Non-City Dollars Brought to Norwich By Youth and Family Services

Cost To City To Operate NYFS

Revenue Brought in by NYFS

Increased the City’s investment by…

05-06 142,238 321,138

06-07 153,064 400,383

07-08 163,871 427,940

08-09 174,247 471,374

09-10 75,889 642,661

TOTAL 709,309 2,263,496

219%

Investing in Youth

For every

$1.00 invested in positive youth development

there is a

$9.60 return

Positive Youth and Family Outcomes

MOBILZE COMMUNITY DECISION MAKERS TO PLAN PROGRAMS AND STRATEGIES THAT FOSTER POSITIVE YOUTH AND

FAMILY DEVELOPMENT  EXPRESSIVE ARTS CENTER – 1980s SYSTEM OF CARE – 1990s

CURRENTLY: BULLYBUSTER COALITION 21st CENTURY LEARNING CENTERS COMMUNITY CENTER COALITION DIFFERENTIAL RESPONSE SYSTEM (DCF) 

 

Elimination of YFS Counselor and Reduction of Coordinator

Eliminates the following services Teen Leadership Parent Leadership Middle School Diversion Juvenile Review Board participation Families with Service Needs Board Court advocacy Hire a Teen Program Crisis Intervention Services School Advocacy Assessment Services Counseling services Case management services Family Day and Touch-a-Truck Day

Statistics (08-09)

Positive Youth Development Collaboratives – 908 Community Outreach Collaborative –7500

The following programs include case management services, crisis intervention services, assessment services, school advocacy

and court advocacy, as needed: Counseling cases – 130 Middle School Diversion Program –19 Juvenile Review Board – 17 Family With Service Needs – 8 COOL Directions (in school training and employment – 23 Summer Youth Employment – 69 Leadership Trainings (Youth and Adults) –73 For a total of 13,823 hours of Programming as reported to the

State Department of Education

Juvenile Justice System YSB are the primary institution for diverting

juveniles from the criminal justice system

50% of all Waterford Juvenile Court referrals come from Norwich

Last year, Norwich Youth and Family Services diverted 267 youth

Each court diversion saves the taxpayer $40,000 -$369,00/year in incarceration costs

Future Impacts

This reduction will seriously impact our future ability to leverage critical resources. This will effect, in the future:

State Dept. of Education Grant ($87,486 revenue) Summer Youth Employment (state and federal funding) COOL Directions, (Careers of Our Lives) a youth

employment and training program (federal funding) Young Parents Program (federal funding)

 

ADULT AND FAMILY SERVICES

Over 65 years of providing services to help improve the

quality of life in our community

MYTHS VS TRUTHS

Myth: Norwich is the only municipal social service agency in CT

Truth: There are over 80 municipal social service agencies in CT

MYTHS VS TRUTHS

Myth: Norwich Human Services hands out “welfare”

Truth: We offer a holistic approach to assisting families and individuals based on a comprehensive assessment of needs

MYTHS VS TRUTHS

MYTH: People receive assistance forever

TRUTH: People use services episodically. The majority of the people we assist are Norwich’s working poor and the newly unemployed. Last year we saw over 500 new residents.

Services Provided by AFS

Intense Case Management by experienced social workers Administer federal, state and private grants which provide:

Employment and Training Services Basic Needs Assistance, e.g. rent, fuel assistance Relocation Assistance to people displaced by

condemnation Renters’ Rebate Program Kinship and Respite Programs VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program) Emergency Pharmacy Fund Food resources Homeless Shelter Childcare Assistance Program

Value

Programs generate revenue for the community $406,000+ in VITA $425,396 in Renters’ Rebate

Money comes back into the community and becomes part of the economic engine of Norwich

Money used for rent, utilities, food, fuel, and other goods and services

Reduction of Social Worker

Loss of ability to case manage 120 families throughout the year

This service keeps people housed, employed, and healthy

Loss of ability to complete applications for vital programs

Also equals loss of revenue to the community

Loss of case management and housing placement for homeless individuals at Hospitality Center

Significantly impacts the health and well being of these vulnerable Norwich residents

Negatively impacts the downtown economic development

Emergency Services

Lead agency in City’s social service issues and in

emergencies Available 24 hours/day when needed…e.g.

Peachtree Fire, recent floods Ability to mobilize other community agencies to

offer support/resources Designated agency to handle issues,

homelessness, immigrants, Haitian crisis

Community Development

NHS has now been assigned the responsibility for the administration of

the Community Development Department

Suggested Cost Saving Measures

More equal distribution of budget cuts Union concessions Reduce work week by 2

hours/person/week

Restoration

Seeking a level of funding that does not HARM our seniors, families and children

Norwich Human Services is seeking budget cuts comparable to other City departments (5%, 10%, 15%)