September 2022, Issue 9

SEACAA keynote speaker announced; register now

Kenneth Ward has been named keynote speaker of the 2022 SEACAA conference. A Head Start graduate and seasoned D.C. educator and administrator, Mr. Ward is executive director of College Bound, Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization that offers students in grades 8-12 academic enrichment and resources to prepare for and succeed in college.

The conference will also include weatherization sessions led by our national partners, CAF updates from David Bradley, and concurrent workshops on board training, post-pandemic HR practices, leadership, and management. Click HERE to download the at-a-glance agenda.

The conference will be held Oct. 18-21 at the Beau Rivage Hotel in Biloxi, MS. For conference registration and to reserve your room, click HERE.

Meet this Agency Leader

Five Questions with Dr. Landon B. Mason

Executive Director, Economic Improvement Council

Dr. Landon B. Mason, executive director of the Economic Improvement Council, openly admits that he is a hard-working man. But, he says, “It would surprise people to know that I really enjoy having a good time in all areas of life. When it is time to work, I give it 110 percent and when it is time to exhale, I give it 110 percent.” Learn more about Dr. Mason in this Five Questions with a Community Action Leader feature. READ MORE

Success Stories

Rebuilding a home with the community: Donella’s story

When the west fork of the Pigeon River rose into her family home, Donella Pressley escaped into the darkness with her two young daughters and the clothes on their backs. It had already been a rough summer: her marriage ended suddenly, her mother went into an assisted living facility, and her long career as a caregiver was impacted by the pandemic. So as her home filled with water, she fled towards Asheville and wanted to keep going. I couldn’t get far enough away from Canton that day,” she said. “But now I can’t see how I’d ever leave. It’s been a very humbling experience.” READ MORE

SCAP Partnership allows Pender Co. Communities In Schools staff to provide backpacks to campers

Kathleen Jacobs, CSBG Director of Southeastern Community Action Partnership leveraged CSBG funds to help to Pender County Communities in Schools 250 students with school supplies. "SCAP is so overwhelmed that we were able to work with Communities in Schools of Pender County to make this happen." LEARN MORE

Agency News

Second Harvest Food Bank opens food pantry

Second Harvest Food Bank and NCCAA gathered with others to cut the ribbon on the second Dark Horse Food Pantry. Located inside Sampson Middle School, the pantry will open to all students from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. every Friday. Its goal is to help combat food insecurity within Clinton City Schools systems. READ MORE

Mountain Projects receives healthcare award grant

Mountain Projects has been awarded a grant from the Haywood Healthcare Foundation to provide media outreach for its Certified Application Counselor Program. The program provides free in-person assistance to Haywood County residents looking to enroll in the Affordable Care Act. READ MORE

Melissa Soto celebrates 30 years at WAMY

WAMY Community Action’s executive director Melissa Soto was celebrated for her 30 years of service at a surprise party held in her honor. Staff, family, former clients, and other supporters toasted Soto and spoke of her contributions to WAMY and the community. READ MORE

BROC receives affording housing funds

Blue Ridge Opportunity Commission and WAMY have been awarded funds through High Country United Way to support housing affordability and financial stability. The funds were made available by Wells Fargo to help low-income families to break the cycle of poverty. READ MORE

Other News

Updated Guidance on ARPA affordable housing funding could help some nonprofits

The U.S. Treasury Department has released guidance updates and a “How-To” Guide for increasing investments in affordable housing using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. The guidance makes clear states and local governments may use ARPA money to finance long-term affordable housing loans and to fund the development, repair, or operation of any affordable rental housing unit that provides long-term affordability of 20 years or more to households at or below 65% of the local area median income. READ MORE

NCDHHS launches new Early Childhood Data dashboards

NCDHHS launched new interactive dashboards that show how North Carolina’s children, from birth to age 5, receive services like child care, food benefits, and protective services. The dashboards use data from the North Carolina Early Childhood Integrated Data System and reflect NCDHHS’ commitment to comprehensive child and family well-being. Making the data easily accessible and relevant for use by policymakers, researchers, communities and families will support investments and decisions that foster equity. READ MORE

N.C. weatherization funds set to nearly double, posing challenge and opportunity

Last year’s federal infrastructure law and a surprise state funding boost from the state legislature means North Carolina weatherization programs will nearly double the budget to help residents reduce their energy burden. The state budget allocates $90 million from last year’s bipartisan infrastructure law for adding insulation, tightening seals, and other energy-saving home improvements for the state’s poorest residents. READ MORE

Early childhood education employees may be eligible for student loan

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program provides relief for those working in public service settings, which includes nonprofit organizations as well as federal, state, local or tribal government agencies, including schools. The Office of Early Childhood Development, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) hosted a webinar highlighting the ways in which the early care and education (ECE) workforce can take advantage of this time-limited opportunity. Watch the webinar

Office of Head Start outlines competitive bonus strategy for Head Start workforce

The Office of Head Start (OHS) has set forth a short-term strategy to address the issue. “OHS recognizes that the dedication of Head Start staff is especially commendable given persistently low wages and lack of comprehensive benefits, particularly for education and family services staff,” the memo states. In its memo, OHS writes that it “strongly encourages all Head Start programs to use American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds, base grant operations funds, and other COVID-19 relief funds to offer competitive financial incentives to staff, such as retention and hiring bonuses, to help stabilize and support their workforce in the near term.” READ MORE

Blog Posts

Families and loved ones of incarcerated people feel the collateral damage of incarceration in COVID

Prisoners are not the only ones impacted by their incarceration. A prison or jail sentence affects that person’s family, from parents and siblings to partners and children. It means being separated from the outside world, missing birthdays and weddings, missing funerals. Not being there when they’re needed most. READ MORE

As overdose deaths rise, structural barriers to better treatment remain

About a month before 18-year-old Madison Workman died of a fentanyl overdose, she told her mom, Amber DelVechio, she wanted to get into a substance use treatment program that used suboxone. This sort of program, called medication-assisted treatment (MAT), was new to the family. Workman had been in a recovery program before, but it was abstinence-only and it hadn’t helped the teenager stop using drugs for very long. Her mom was skeptical. READ MORE

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