Be on the look out for a memo from Matt Fitzgerald regarding the 2020-2021 Community Action Plan. The memo will contain information about changes to the plan along with the due date and the webinar dates. Important information will be included in the memo so please read when it is received!

The first comment period for the 2020-2022 CSBG State Plan ended on February 7th. Our office did not receive any feedback regarding the changes to the Monitoring Documents. We will now continue to move forward with the second comment period. We expect the second comment period to open on April 1st and end May 1st. The second comment period will contain the full CSBG State Plan that is submitted to OCS by September 1st.

The CSBG State Plan is a critical document for both state and federal oversight of CSBG. The CSBG State Plan integrates and aligns requirements from the CSBG Act with elements of the overall CSBG Performance Management and Accountability Framework. There are several elements of the CSBG State Plan which include: State Training and Technical Assistance, State Linkages and Coordination, Tri-Partite Board Compliance and Monitoring practices.

As a Community Action Agency, you are integral in ensuring all community members are counted. The Community Action Partnership is part of the  Census Counts  campaign, which involves more than 15 national organizations and dozens of community partners working together to make sure that the 2020 Census is fair and accurate. The Partnership is the lead representative for the low-income “hard-to count” population.

Here are some easy ways you can stay up-to-date on Census News:



The most important thing about staying up-to-date is sharing the information with your staff, volunteers, and community members. Let’s make sure everyone is counted in 2020!

What would happen if your agency needed to close down for an extended period of time? What would happen if your agency's office was suddenly destroyed. Disasters and disruptions to daily business can happen at anytime and it is important to be prepared! As a best practice, all Community Action Agencies should have a Disaster Recovery Plan or Business Continuity Plan in place. It is also important to ensure all staff are aware of the plan and if possible agencies should test the plan!

Many of us conduct regular fire drills, it is time to also test out your Disaster and Business Continuity Plans.

For more information on Business Continuity planning please visit ready.gov.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond recently issued a publication on Food Hubs. Food hubs are organizations that commit to benefiting local economies by helping small farms and businesses thrive. They also provide community-strengthening services to their neighbors, all while connecting people to locally sourced food. To learn more about the Food Hubs operating in Virginia please read the latest Issue of Community Scope.

Annette Lewis, CEO of TAP recently attended a press conference to announce Smart2Start, the  United Way of Roanoke Valley 's new early education enrollment system! She is pictured on the Right with United Way Director of Early Learning Strategies Vivien McMahan and TAP Head Start ERSEA Coordinator Nicole Dudding.



Smart2Start will make it easier for parents to find the right fit for their children's early education needs and streamline the application process. To learn more, check out this article from  The Roanoke Times.