May 2019
In this month's edition:

  • Grant funding expands services for older adults
  • Website offers resources, support to staff and community
  • Office of Children, Youth and Families receives funding to create safer conditions for families
  • Kudos: Joleen Chiaverini and Shannon Evans
  • Kudos: Debbie Conway
  • Kudos: Cynthia Shields, Monica Lee and CATTS
  • Kudos: KEYS
  • May awareness activities
  • Research and reports

News articles are uploaded to the DHS website as soon as they become available. For the most up-to-date news, visit  DHS News online . 
Grant funding expands services for older adults

Allegheny County’s Area Agency on Aging (AAA) recently received a grant designed to reduce recidivism for older adults who have been involved with older adult protective services. This funding is provided through the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) .
Website offers resources, support to staff and community

The Trauma Think Tank has unveiled a new website designed to educate staff, providers
Office of Children, Youth and Families receives funding to create safer conditions for families

DHS's Office of Children, Youth and Families (CYF) is one of three national sites selected as a research and capacity building site by Quality Improvement Center on Domestic Violence in Child Welfare, (QIC-DVCW), a cooperative agreement between Futures Without Violence and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau .
Kudos: Joleen Chiaverini and Shannon Evans

On May 4, Joleen Chiaverini, outreach and disaster response coordinator, and Shannon Evans, emergency/risk coordinator, accepted the Outstanding Partner in Preparedness Award on behalf of the DCORT (Disaster Crisis Outreach and Referral Team) .
Kudos: Debbie Conway

Because of the fantastic job she does onboarding new members, Debbie Conway, KEYS operation officer, was selected to share her skills and knowledge with another AmeriCorps program from Philadelphia as part of a peer mentoring program . 
Kudos: Cynthia Shields, Monica Lee and CATTS

As part of DHS's response to a multimedia requirement for a Heartland Alliance RFP, Cynthia Shields (Office of Community Services) and the Integrated Program Services (IPS) Common Assessment Training & Technical Support (CATTS) team, led by Monica Lee, developed a short video. Heartland Alliance liked the video so much they have asked to include it in their promotional materials for the grant award announcements . 
Kudos: KEYS

AmeriCorps KEYS (Knowledge to Empower Youth to Success) received an email from a service site commending them on this session’s “phenomenal candidates .” 
May awareness activities

During the month of May, DHS staff participated in a number of awareness activities.

In honor of Children's Mental Health Awareness Day, staff distributed information and green ribbons at the Human Services Building. DHS also hosted a conference at Rodef Shalom on May 9 that explored the most critical topics related to infant and early childhood mental health.

DHS recognized Older Americans Month by participating in Allegheny County's Senior Resource Fair on May 15 at Boyce Park.
Research and reports

The following have been posted to the DHS Research and Reports website, www.alleghenycountyanalytics.us .

  • Progress Towards Building an Affirming and Supportive Child Welfare System: Findings from an Institutional Analysis. In July 2013, the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) and the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS) launched a partnership to better support child welfare-involved youth achieve healthy sexual and identity development. This institutional analysis prepared by CSSP used data analysis, case reviews, and interviews to understand current experiences of LGBTQ+ children and families who interact with child welfare as well as cultural and practice changes that have occurred since the initiative began.

  • Developing Predictive Risk Models to Support Child Maltreatment Hotline Screening Decisions. The Allegheny Family Screening Tool (AFST) is a predictive risk model designed to improve decision-making in Allegheny County’s child welfare system. The tool utilizes hundreds of data elements to predict the likelihood that a child referred for abuse or neglect will later experience a foster care placement. The AFST provides additional information – in conjunction with clinical judgement – to assist child welfare workers making a call screening decision. View a comprehensive packet on the AFST that provides all of the County’s published research and partner evaluations to date.
We welcome your story ideas, employee news and comments. If you’ve got news you’d like to see in DHS News, please contact Mark Bertolet at mark.bertolet@alleghenycounty.us or 412-350-3439.