August 4, 2021 | Issue 63
Data Analysis Training now available in LearnWorlds, Virginia's new Learning Management System
Last month, VACAP and the Virginia CSBG office launched LearnWorlds, the new learning management system for Virginia. The Virginia CSBG office will be adding new courses as they become available to the system.

We have one new course available now! A Dive into Data. In this course you can find out how to become a data-centric organization. Identify the data you need accurately and timely, then organize it and turn it into information for decision making! Lastly, learn tips for sharing and communicating your information.

If you have not created your LearnWorlds account to access courses and resources we encourage you to do so today! We have put together a user guide which contains information on how to create an account and access the courses and information. Also, a short pre-recorded webinar is available to learn more about LearnWorlds.

You can access LearnWorlds at: vacsbg.learnworlds.com.

If you have any questions or trouble accessing the site, please reach out to Abby Hanks at Abigail.Hanks@dss.virginia.gov.
Important CSBG Fiscal Announcements
  • 4th Quarter Report Financial Section (FY2020-2021): CARES funds - please report CSBG Supplemental (CARES) funds under the CSBG Resources tab under the dropdown "Federal Resources Allocated (Other than CSBG)". In this section, the CARES funds can be reported under "Other HHS Resource''.
  • Budget Revisions for CSBG Supplemental Funds - if you need to make a budget revision, you must contact Violet Peyton, violet.peyton@dss.virginia.gov to unlock your budget. The reason for this is we must watch CARES funds more closely ensuring the funds are always used for COVID related activities.
  • The 2021-2022 Executed CSBG/TANF contracts will be entered into eVA soon. Once contracts are in eVA the registered eVA contact at each agency will be notified. We know there has been turnover in some agencies and the contact may have changed. For this year we will also be emailing executed contracts to agencies. We will also let you know your agencies eVA contact so changes can be made if needed. If you have any questions on the executed contracts please email your program consultant.
Community Action Updates
Upcoming Events
  • August 15 - 4th Quarter Reports Due
  • September 16 - 2pm - Organizational Standards Webinar
Reminder: CSBG 4th Quarter Report due August 15th
This is a reminder the 2020-2021 CSBG 4th Quarter Report is Due August 15th. The 4th quarter report has not changed from last year, we do not plan to conduct a training this year since there are no changes. We conducted a training in 2019, you can reference that training if needed please note that webinar was conducted with dates for 2019.. In the CSBG Reporter User Guide, starting on page 27 is the Reporting information. If you need any assistance in completing the report please email your program consultant and we can schedule a one on one call to review the report. Also, we have created a 4th quarter reporting checklist, which can be used to ensure you have completed the required sections.

As a reminder these are the components to the 4th quarter report (all are in CSBG Reporter): 
  1. Progress Report
  2. ROMA Implementer Actual Activities
  3. Family NPI 
  4. Community NPI (If Applicable) 
  5. Demographics (both individual and family) 
  6. Capacity Building Form
  7. Expenditures
  8. CSBG Resources 

The National Association of State Community Services Programs (NASCSP) has several very helpful documents that you may want to reference while preparing your agencies 4th quarter reports.

Module 2 Instruction Manual (CSBG Expenditures, CSBG Resources and Capacity Building)
Module 4 Instruction Manual (CSBG Outcomes, CSBG Services, Demographics)
Lexicon (Data Dictionary)
Organizational Standards Review and Upcoming Webinar
Your CSBG Program Consultant will be conducting the annual Organizational Standards review in September 2021. Your agency will receive a list of all standards that need attention by September 30, 2021. The agency will have October and November to upload any outstanding information prior to a final review and update letter going to the Board President and Executive Director in January 2022.

The purpose of our annual review ensures that agencies are continuing to meet the standards and are updating required documentation as outlined by the due dates.

We will be hosting a webinar on Thursday, September 16th at 1pm. During this webinar we will discuss the history of the Organizational Standards, resources for documentation, and the Virginia CSBG office review process. Please save the date for the webinar, the log in details will be sent prior to the webinar.
Community Action Resources
CAPLAW Training: Uniform Guiding Light, Introducing New Leaders to the Uniform Administrative Requirements and Cost Principles for Federal Awards
Part 1: Uniform Guidance Administrative Requirements
Tuesday, August 10, 2021
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm ET

Learn about the regulations governing the administration of federal awards, and what is required of grant recipients during the grant period, as well as pre- and post-award. Topics to be discussed include financial management systems, property standards, and procurement.


Part 2: Uniform Guidance
Cost Principles
Thursday, August 12, 2021
3:00 pm - 4:30 pm ET

Learn about the regulations governing what costs federal grant recipients may charge to their federal awards and the options for doing so. Topics to be discussed include basic considerations for cost recovery, the different ways to recover costs (e.g., cost allocation plans, indirect cost rates) and general provisions governing selected items of cost.
CSBG DCL Release: Rental Assistance Call to Action
On August 3rd, OCS sent out a DCL regarding Rental Assistance. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is partnering with the U.S. Department of Treasury to encourage tenants and landlords to take advantage of the Emergency Rental Assistance program (ERA) available through the American Rescue Plan Act. The rental assistance under ERA will help cover rent, utilities, and other housing costs to keep residents in their homes. The documents below were also released to assist in the outreach.

CSBG DCL Draft Release: Coordination of CSBG Resources with Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP)
On July 29th, OCS sent out a DCL Draft Release to CSBG grantees regarding an opportunity to coordinate CSBG and LIHWAP services. The DCL encourages CSBG grantees to review and consider opportunities to support small household plumbing repairs and to coordinate a range of other services and supports for households receiving assistance through the LIHWAP grants administered by the OCS. The communication is currently going through ACF’s internal review process. OCS will issue the official DCL once approved for release.

Read the full DCL here.
CSBG DCL-2021-20 COVID-19 Guidance for Operating Early Care and Education Programs/Childcare Programs
On July 9th, OCS released CSBG DCL-2021-20 COVID-19 Guidance for Operating Early Care and Education Programs/Childcare Programs, which provided updated guidance from the CDC focused on assisting administrators of Early Childcare and Education programs (ECEs) with safely supporting in-person learning and care.
 
Vaccination is currently the best public health prevention strategy to control the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as young children are not yet eligible for COVID-19 vaccination, the updated guidance emphasizes the prevention strategies most important for ECE programs.
 
CDC continues to recommend that children over age 2 and ECE staff who are not fully vaccinated wear masks indoors.
 
You can read the full DCL here.

Virginia Community Services Block Grant Office