Board

FY 2024 CoC Program Consolidated Application Draft Posted for Public Comment

Overview

The LA BOSCOC is seeking public comment on its Consolidated Application for the Funding Year 2024 (FY 2024) Continuum of Care (CoC) Program Competition.

The CoC Consolidated Application contains two parts:

  • The CoC Application, which includes narratives and other information about the CoC;

  • The CoC Priority Listing, which includes ranking and funding information about projects being submitted to the Competition.

Accessing the documents

The draft of the CoC Consolidated Application can be accessed through the links below.

How to provide public comment

Please submit public comments by email to Carrie Patterson, Continuum of Care Manager at cpatterson@lhc.la.gov

CoC staff will be making minor corrections and updates over the next two days. Public comments will be accepted through 10AM CST Friday 10/25/24

The LA BOSCOC Board will be voting to approve the Final Consolidated Application on Friday 10/25/24. See the agenda here

FY2022 CoC Program Local Competition - Notification Of Projects Funded

Overview

 

The LA BOSCOC has selected and ranked all new and renewal projects to be included in its consolidated application to HUD’s FY2022 CoC Program Competition. The LA BOSCOC's FY2022 CoC Program final Project Ranking can be found here: https://laboscoc.org/fy22-coc-program-competition
The Scoring Committee met on Tuesday, September 6th, to score, rank, and select projects. This process was conducted according to the Project Rating, Ranking, and Selection process as approved by the Board. 

The Board voted on Thursday, September 15th, to unanimously approve the Scoring Committee’s project ranking and selection as written.

New Project Funding.

Five projects were submitted for consideration. Three were selected. They were (in alphabetical order):
 

START Corporation’s “BOS PSH 1 expansion” project, which will expand an existing project to provide long-term rental assistance and supportive services via the Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) project type to additional households in the Baton Rouge Region.

START Corporation’s “Starting Over expansion” project, which will expand an existing project to provide long-term rental assistance and supportive services via the Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) project type to additional households in the Houma Region.

Youth Oasis' “TH-RRH expansion” project, which will expand an existing project to provide Transitional Housing and short to medium-term rental assistance and supportive services via the Transitional Housing - Rapid Rehousing (TH-RRH) joint component project type to youth households in several underserved parishes of the Baton Rouge and Houma Regions.
 

On behalf of the Scoring Committee, CoC staff would like to extend our deep appreciation to ALL project applicants. The CoC Program project application process can be challenging, and we are profoundly grateful to have so many organizations in our CoC with the interest, investment, and dedication to ending homelessness required to engage that process.

Renewal Project Funding

All projects that requested renewal funding were selected to receive full funding for those requests.

Project Feedback

As in previous years and once time allows, CoC staff will be available to provide interested applicants with a comprehensive breakdown and assessment of each of their new and renewal projects’ scores.

 

CoC staff hope that applicants whose new projects were not selected for inclusion will use these assessments to refine their project applications for resubmission in future years.

LA BOSCOC Board Meeting: Monday, August 30, from 11 AM to Noon

UPDATE: the NOFO documents under discussion are linked below:

***

The Louisiana Balance of State Continuum of Care (LA BOSCOC) Board, which is the LA BOSCOC’s primary governing body, will meet Monday, August 30, from 11 AM to noon.

This meeting will focus on two topics:

Coordinated Entry in the Houma Region. Insofar as there are few people experiencing literal homelessness living in the Houma Region or interested in moving to the Houma Region, and insofar as that situation is likely to continue, the Board will consider offering flexibilities to that Region’s permanent housing providers in filling project slots, including suspending the Intervention element of Coordinated Entry and creating a limited path to housing people who are at risk of homelessness.

FY 2021 CoC Program NOFO. On August 18, HUD released its Funding Year (FY) 2021 Continuum of Care (CoC) Program Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), which will fund approximately $23 million in housing and supportive services for people experiencing homelessness in the LA BOSCOC, approximately $2 million of which will be funding for new projects. The Board will consider several key documents and mechanisms related to the LA BOSCOC’s local competition for funding.

Click here to access the agenda.

Board Outcomes - August 4, 2020

Overview

The Board met by conference call on August 4, 2020, for its scheduled bimonthly meeting.

Attendance

Voting Attendance

Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC Seat) [Chair]

Laura Hasenstein, Louisiana Department of Health (LDH Seat)

Mariah Wineski, Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (LCADV Seat)

Weston Schild, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead Seat)

Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Seat)

Gail Gowland, Family Violence Program of St. Bernard (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Seat)

Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Seat)

Non-Voting Attendance

Victoria Johnson, Louisiana Housing Corporation [Secretary]

Randy Nichols, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless [Ethics Officer]

Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation [CoC Manager]

Aundrea Braniff, Louisiana Housing Corporation [Coordinated Entry Specialist]

Carrie Patterson, Louisiana Housing Corporation [CoC Coordinator]

Josh Dean, Louisiana Housing Corporation [CoC Coordinator]

Keneisha Keener, Volunteers of America - Greater Baton Rouge

Kat McGraw, Empower 225

Gloria Winchester, AmeriHealth

Chris Nichols, Options Foundation

Outcomes

Waiving the Good Standing Requirement

The Board considered a proposal to suspend the Good Standing requirement in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The proposal’s details are as follows:

  • The Good Standing requirement will be waived for all organizations through December 31, 2020;

  • Organizations will not be required to meet the Good Standing requirements through December 31, 2020;

  • As of January 1, 2021, all organizations will be considered to be in Good Standing (i.e. past attendance records, etc., will be wiped clean for compliance purposes); organizations will be required to maintain Good Standing going forward rather than regain Good Standing going forward.

The Board voted to approve the proposal (4 in favor, 3 opposed, 0 abstaining).

Suspending Board Elections

The Board considered a proposal to suspend Board seat elections in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The proposal’s details are as follows:

  • Any Board seats that are due for an election in 2020 will have their elections suspended through December 31, 2020;

  • Elections will resume their schedule according to the LA BOSCOC Governance Charter in 2021 unless further delayed by action of the Board.

The Board voted unanimously to approve the proposal.

Minutes

For more information, including discussion topics which did not receive a vote, please refer to the meeting minutes.

Board Meetings - Bimonthly Schedule, February 28

Overview

Going forward, the LA BOSCOC will adopt the following practices for its Board meetings:

  • All regularly scheduled Board meetings will be announced via the LA BOSCOC website at the beginning of each calendar year at https://laboscoc.org/meetings

  • All intermittently scheduled Board meetings will be announced at least one business day in advance (at least 5 business days in advance when practicable) via the LA BOSCOC email distribution list

  • The agendas for all Board meetings will be released via the LA BOSCOC email distribution list at least 1 business day in advance (at least 5 business days in advance when practicable)

  • The minutes of all Board meetings will be posted on the LA BOSCOC website as soon as is practicable after each meeting here: https://laboscoc.org/meetings

  • Agendas and minutes will be maintained online for one calendar year, then removed from the LA BOSCOC website but retained thereafter by CoC staff for public review upon request

All LA BOSCOC Board meetings will continue to be open to the public except for those times when the Board enters executive session pursuant to LA Rev Stat § 42:16.

LA BOSCOC Board Meeting - February 28, 2 PM to 3 PM

The Board will meet by phone on February 28 from 2 PM to 3 PM. Its proposed agenda includes the following items:

  • REVIEW: LA BOSCOC Board meeting structure pursuant to Louisiana’s “Open Meeting Law”

  • REVIEW AND VOTE: monitoring extension request from Empower 225

  • REVIEW AND VOTE: PIT Count participation from Options for Independence

Upcoming Board Elections

Overview

Several LA BOSCOC Board seats will be up for re-election in 2020.

Elections will be held during the following local meetings per their currently posted schedules. (If the meeting times change, the elections will move with them.)

For more information about the Board election process and the duties of the Board, please refer to the most recent version of the LA BOSCOC Governance Charter.

Election Schedule

Lake Charles

  • Date: March 10, 2020

  • Time: 10:30 AM to noon

  • Location: Allen P. August Multi-Purpose Annex @ 2000 Moeling Street Lake Charles, LA 70601

Plaquemines/St. Bernard

  • Date: May 4, 2020

  • Time: 10 AM

  • Location: 9069 W. Judge Perez Drive, Chalmette, LA

Houma

  • Date: July 16, 2020

  • Time: noon to 2 PM

  • Location: First United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall @ 6109 Highway 311 Houma, LA 70360

Baton Rouge

  • Date: November 12, 2020

  • Time: 10 AM to noon

  • Location: 2415 Quail Drive Baton Rouge, LA 70808

Board Outcomes - February 4, 2020

Overview

The Board met in by conference call on February 4, 2020, for its scheduled bimonthly meeting.

Attendance

Voting Attendance

Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Seat)

Gail Gowland, Family Violence Program of St. Bernard (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Seat)

Mariah Wineski, Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (LCADV Seat)

Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Seat)

Weston Schild, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead Seat)

Non-Voting Attendance

Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHA Seat) (Chair)

Eboness Black, Volunteers of America - Greater Baton Rouge (General Attendance)

Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (CoC Manager)

Outcomes

Board Meeting Accessibility

The Board considered a proposal to make Board meetings more accessible to non-Board members by posting meeting information (including call-in numbers) on the LA BOSCOC website in advance of each regularly scheduled meeting.

The Board voted by acclamation to table this motion while LHC staff attorneys investigate which Louisiana state laws impose which open meeting requirements, if any, on the CoC.

Board Elections

The LA BOSCOC Governance Charter contains conflicting requirements regarding elected Board seats:

  1. Elected Board members shall serve a term of 2 years, and elections for each seat shall be held after 2 years at the next available meeting of that seat’s stakeholders;

  2. Elections shall be staggered when possible.

Four elected Board seats are up for election as of February 2020.

The Board voted unanimously (4-0-0) to interpret the Governance Charter as allowing the CoC to stagger elections quarter by quarter as needed and to empower LHC to determine the order in which they are staggered.

Board Outcomes - January 24, 2020

Overview

The Board met in executive session by conference call on January 24, 2020, to discuss the LA BOSCOC Monitoring Tool (2020) and multiple organizations’ request to push back their monitoring dates.

Attendance

The attendance record of this meeting, being in executive session, is redacted.

Enough Board members were present that full votes were conducted (rather than quorum votes).

Outcomes

LA BOSCOC Monitoring Tool

The Board voted by acclamation to approve the LA BOSCOC Monitoring Tool as written.

Monitoring Date Changes

Two organizations, O’Brien House and Volunteers of America - Greater Baton Rouge, requested that the CoC push back their monitoring dates.

The Board voted to approve a change to O’Brien House’s monitoring date.

The Board voted to approve a change to Volunteers of America - Greater Baton Rouge’s monitoring date.

Monitoring Policy

The Board instructed CoC staff to develop a Monitoring Policy that governs when and how CoC Program recipients can request changes to their monitoring schedule.

The Membership and Rules Committee will have authority over this policy.

Board Outcomes - November 7, 2019

Overview

The Board met in executive session by conference call on November 7, 2019, to discuss multiple organizations’ request for waivers of the Good Standing requirements.

Attendance

Voting attendance

  • Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Louisiana Housing Corporation) (Chair)

  • Weston Schild, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead)

  • Mariah Stidham Wineski, Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (DV Seat)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

Non-voting attendance

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

  • Aundrea Braniff, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Acting Board Secretary)

Outcomes

Waivers of Good Standing

Two organizations, Gulf Coast Social Social Services and IRIS Domestic Violence Center, requested waivers of the Good Standing Requirement.

The Board voted unanimously to approve the waiver for Gulf Coast Social Services. (6 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 abstaining)

The Board voted unanimously to deny the waiver for IRIS Domestic Violence Center. (5 in favor, 0 opposed, 2 abstaining)

New Board Members

Overview

The LA BOSCOC is pleased to announced that Dylan Waguespack, Weston Schild, and Mariah Stidham Wineski have joined its Board.

Dylan, Weston, and Mariah will be filling designated seats; for more information about their roles, please refer to the LA BOSCOC’s Board list.

About the board members

Dylan Waguespack

Dylan Waguespack is the Public Policy and External Affairs Director at True Colors United, where he develops, directs, and implements their federal, state, and local administrative and legislative public policy agenda. Before joining True Colors United, Waguespack was a political communications and advocacy consultant working in Baton Rouge, La and Washington, D.C. His past clients include the National Center for Transgender Equality, American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Secure and Modern Elections, Louisiana Budget Project, and more.

Before opening his consulting firm, Waguespack served as Executive Director of Louisiana Progress, the progressive movement-building partnership where he started his career as an intern in 2011. While there, he drafted and successfully lobbied for a number of bills to expand opportunity for children, youth, and families impacted by homelessness, including protection from eviction for survivors of domestic abuse, expanded eligibility for child care assistance for families experiencing homelessness, and in-state tuition and campus housing for current and former homeless and foster youth in postsecondary education.

Waguespack is the Board President of Louisiana Trans Advocates, where he has served as a board member since 2011. He was appointed by Governor John Bel Edwards to serve on the Governor's Council on Homelessness from 2016-18, and he served on Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome's Transition Subcommittee on Human Services in 2016-17. Waguespack was appointed by the Louisiana Legislature to serve on the Legislative Task Force on Youth Aging Out of Foster Care in 2015, and was a key voice in advancing early conversations to extend the age of foster care to 21. He also currently serves as a member of the Advocacy Advisory Council for the Modern Military Association of America.

Weston Schild

Weston Schild is Executive Director of Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless and the Balance of State System Administrator for the Homeless Management System.  His expertise in data collection, management, and reporting makes him a frequently sought voice in understanding homelessness in South Louisiana.  As HMIS System Administrator he supervises a staff of four professionals and works to advance the provision of quality services for homeless and at-risk persons, improve data collection, educate the public, and promote responsive policies to prevent and end homelessness in South Louisiana.   

In addition, he coordinates service providers and supervises the One Stop Homeless Services Center in Baton Rouge. The One Stop houses 15 programs provided by ten non-profit agencies that address a range of barriers to securing permanent housing.  The One Stop provides respite and services for 75-100 homeless persons daily and serves 1800 clients annually.  Under Weston’s leadership the One Stop received the Louisiana Housing Corporation’s 2019 Community Connections Champion award for the state of Louisiana. 

Weston holds a Master of Divinity from Vanderbilt University and a Bachelors of Arts in Religious Studies from Centenary College of Louisiana.

Mariah Stidham Wineski

Mariah Stidham Wineski is the executive director of the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence, the statewide network of domestic violence advocacy organizations. Ms. Wineski has 15 years of experience working throughout the United States and internationally on social change campaigns and violence prevention.  She is the current chair of the Louisiana Domestic Violence Prevention Commission and previously served on the board of directors for Boulder Sister Cities. She also serves on the Victim Services Advisory Board of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement, the Membership Committee of the National Network to End Domestic Violence, and the advisory board of the Louisiana Violent Death Reporting System. Ms. Wineski has extensive experience leading legislative policy, public affairs, and media relations for domestic violence, sexual assault, and reproductive health organizations at the statewide and national levels. She has provided international consultation on educational policy and curriculum development, and has managed several regional gang violence prevention initiatives. She has a B.A. in Sociology and Women’s and Gender Studies from Louisiana State University and an M.S. in Sociology from Southeastern Louisiana University.

Recording secretary

In addition, Terry Hale has stepping down as the Board’s Recording Secretary, a non-voting position traditionally held by the executive assistant to the Director of Housing and Homeless Services at the Louisiana Housing Corporation. Terry has taken another position within the Corporation, and we wish her well in her exciting new role! The Corporation hopes to identify a new Recording Secretary by the end of 2019.

Board Outcomes - August 6, 2019

Overview

The Board met by conference call on August 6, 2019. It discussed several ongoing issues and produced one conclusion related to serving people fleeing human trafficking.

Attendance

Voting attendance [listed as Name, Organization (Role, if Any)]

  • Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Louisiana Housing Corporation) (Chair)

  • Laura Hasenstein, Louisiana Department of Health (Louisiana Department of Health)

  • Eric Gammons, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead)

  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education (Louisiana Department of Education)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Mitzi Harris, Project Celebration (Natchitoches/Sabine Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

Non-voting attendance

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

  • Terry Hale, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Board Secretary)

Outcomes

People fleeing human trafficking

The Board voted unanimously to approve a revision to the Coordinated Entry (CES) Policies and Procedures stating that people fleeing human trafficking would not need to receive the Intervention Component of CES or wait 30 days before receiving the Assessment Component of CES (i.e. the VI-SPDAT) and being added to the Prioritization List.

Next meeting

The Board’s next meeting will be held by conference call on October 1, 2019.

Public Comment: Coordinated Entry Brochure

Overview

Purpose

The LA BOSCOC is developed a Coordinated Entry Brochure for distribution to (1) organizations that serve people experiencing homelessness and (2) people experiencing homelessness who engage the Coordinated Entry System.

The LA BOSCOC is seeking public feedback on the brochure’s current draft before finalizing it for Coordinated Entry Committee and Board review.

Content

The Coordinated Entry Brochure is intended to fulfill all of the following purposes:

  1. Helping people experiencing homelessness access housing and services through Coordinated Entry;

  2. Informing people who engage the Coordinated Entry System about the process — what it CAN do, what it CAN’T do, and the timing of each part of the process;

  3. Empowering organizations that work in any way with people experiencing homelessness

Accessing the brochure

Click here to download the brochure draft.

How to provide public comment

Please submit public comments by email to Aundrea Braniff, Coordinated Entry Specialist.

The LA BOSCOC is particularly interested in the perspectives of case managers and other stakeholders who work closely on a daily basis with people experiencing homelessness who can offer language and formatting suggestions to make the brochure as accessible as possible to a broad audience.

Public comments will be accepted through 4 PM on August 16, 2019.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes - July 31, 2019

Overview

The Board met by email to discuss Options Foundation’s Good Standing status and its interaction with the Louisiana Housing Corporation’s Options Villa CoC Program project.

Attendance

VOTING ATTENDANCE [LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION, (SEAT), (ROLE IF ANY)]

  • All Board members

NON-VOTING ATTENDANCE [LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION, (ROLE IF ANY)]

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

Topics

Options Foundation and Options Villa CoC Program Funding

After CoC staff determined that Options Foundation was not in Good Standing and would therefore not be eligible to receive funding under the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA, Options Foundation submitted an appeal to the Board. The Board reviewed Options Foundation’s appeal on June 11 and voted to uphold the original decision.

On July 31, on advice from CoC staff, the Board reviewed language in the Governance Charter related to Good Standing. Per the Governance Charter, only the “applicant” (i.e. direct recipient) must meet the Good Standing requirement to apply for CoC Program funding.

Insofar as the Louisiana Housing Corporation is the direct recipient for the Options Villa project and Options Foundation is the subrecipient, the Louisiana Housing Corporation remains eligible to apply for the Options Villa project under the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA, and Options Villa’s Good Standing status does not interact with that eligibility.

Note: this will impact the amount of funding available in the FY 2010 CoC Program Local Competition’s General Funding Pool.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes - July 16, 2019

Overview

The Board met by conference call to review and approve the FY 2019 CoC Program Local Competition documents.

Attendance

Voting attendance [listed as Name, Organization, (Seat), (Role if any)]

  • Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Louisiana Housing Corporation) (Chair)

  • Laura Hasenstein, Louisiana Department of Health (Louisiana Department of Health)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

Non-voting attendance [listed as Name, Organization, (Role if any)]

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

  • Aundrea Braniff, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Coordinated Entry Specialist)

Topics

FY 2019 CoC Program Local Competition documents

The Board voted unanimously to approve the following documents:

Timeline and Critical Dates

  • Approved as written.

Rating, Ranking, and Selection Policy

  • Approved as written.

Request for Proposals

  • Approved as written.

New Project Scoring Tool

  • Approved with the following changes:

    • Bonus points for Reallocation increased from 6 to 10 to create a greater incentive for older projects to reallocate;

    • Bonus points under Staff Sustainability for “paying staff a living wage” increased from 2 to 3 to signify the importance of retaining high quality staff;

    • Metric under Staff Sustainability for “paying staff a living wage” changed from $15.00/hour to the living wage for a given project’s primary parish or metropolitan service area as determined by the MIT Living Wage Calculator.

Renewal Project Scoring Tool

  • Approved with the following changes:

    • Bonus points under Staff Sustainability for “paying staff a living wage” increased from 2 to 3 to signify the importance of retaining high quality staff;

    • Metric under Staff Sustainability for “paying staff a living wage” changed from $15.00/hour to the living wage for a given project’s primary parish or metropolitan service area as determined by the MIT Living Wage Calculator.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes - June 11, 2019

Overview

The Board met by conference call for its regular bimonthly (every other month) meeting.

Attendance

VOTING ATTENDANCE [LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION (SEAT) (ROLE, IF ANY)]

  • Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Louisiana Housing Corporation) (Chair)

  • Laura Hasenstein, Louisiana Department of Health (Louisiana Department of Health)

  • Eric Gammons, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead)

  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education (Louisiana Department of Education)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

NON-VOTING ATTENDANCE (LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION, (ROLE, IF ANY)]

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

  • Terry Hale, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Board Secretary)

CoC Manager Report

The CoC Manager provided an overview that included the following items:

  • The Point in Time (PIT) Count;

  • The CoC’s System Performance Measures (an overview of project outcomes at the CoC level);

  • The CoC does not expect to merge with any other CoCs during calendar year 2019;

  • LHC intends to hire an additional CoC Coordinator in the near future; LHC intends for that person to be based in Lake Charles to provide localized support to the Lake Charles and Natchitoches/Sabine Regions.

CoC Program Local Competition

The CoC Manager briefed the Board on LHC’s plans for the Funding Year 2019 (FY 2019) CoC Program Local Competition. Highlights included:

  • Several projects have reallocated; as a result, there will be additional new project funding available;

  • LHC anticipates that new project funding will be as follows (subject to the actual funding made available by HUD):

    • ~$450,000 available to all Regions for projects that exclusively serve people fleeing domestic violence;

    • ~$400,000 prioritized to Baton Rouge for new rapid re-housing (RRH), permanent supportive housing (PSH), and joint component transitional housing/rapid re-housing (TH-RRH) projects;

    • ~200,000 prioritized to Lake Charles for new RRH, PSH, and TH-RRH projects;

    • LHC will apply for ~$700,000 in new project funding to create Coordinated Entry Access Points in the Houma, Natchitoches/Sabine, and Plaquemines/St. Bernard Regions; to fund the Access Point at the One Stop Homeless Services Center in Baton Rouge; and to fund 1.0 FTEs of a Coordinated Entry Navigator through St. Vincent de Paul of Baton Rouge;

  • NOTE: prioritized funding is restricted to Baton Rouge and Lake Charles only insofar as projects that propose to serve those Regions score at least 70 points on their application; if no such projects exist, or if any money remains after such projects are funded, those prioritized funds become available to all projects in all Regions;

  • The Scoring Tools and Detailed Instructions will have similar content and substance to last year, but their texts have been drastically simplified (shortened by ~50%).

Vice Chair

The Board was scheduled to elect a new Vice Chair; however, given that many of the Regional seats were not present during that point of the meeting, this election was tabled and scheduled to be held via email.

Board Seat for the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence

The Board voted unanimously to add a designated seat to the Board for the Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence. This seat will remain in place until the next LA BOSCOC General Meeting, at which time the general membership will need to ratify the seat as part of the LA BOSCOC Governance Charter.

Early Outcomes from Coordinated Entry

The Board discussed early outcomes data for the Coordinated Entry Policies and Procedures v2.0 (CES P&P). Early data indicates that the new mechanisms (30 day wait, Diversion and Intervention required) are working: a comprehensive survey of every person who visited a Coordinated Entry Access Point during April 2019 indicated that nearly half returned to housing with friends, family, or on their own.

The CoC Manager cautioned not to overextend this data, as it requires additional details (breakdowns by subpopulation, especially chronically homeless, youth, and DV) and more data points to be truly predictive.

The Board voted unanimously to recommend to the Coordinated Entry Committee that the Committee consider revising the CES P&P to empower the Board to grant exemptions to portions of the CES P&P for CoC Program projects funded before 2015. The Board voted unanimously to recommend to the Coordinated Entry Committee that the Committee consider not revising the CES P&P to create other ‘loopholes’ for target populations until LHC has aggregated more data.

Options Foundation Waiver of Good Standing

The Board voted to deny Options Foundation’s request for a waiver of the Good Standing requirement for the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA. The vote roll recorded 1 vote to approve, 3 votes to deny, and 1 abstaining.

Next Board Meeting

The next Board meeting will be held in Baton Rouge and via conference call on Tuesday, August 6, from 1 PM to 3 PM. More information can be found on the LA BOSCOC Events page.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes - Week of June 10, 2019

Overview

The Board voted by email throughout the week of June 10, 2019 on several issues.

Attendance

VOTING ATTENDANCE [LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION (SEAT) (ROLE, IF ANY)]

  • Laura Hasenstein, Louisiana Department of Health (Louisiana Department of Health)

  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education (Louisiana Department of Education)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Mitzi Harris, Project Celebration (Natchitoches/Sabine Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

LA BOSCOC Committee and Attendance List

The Board voted unanimously (7-0) to maintain a public-facing list of the attendance records for all general meetings, committee meetings, and Board meetings retroactive to 2018 and moving forward. This list will also contain information about each organization’s Good Standing status. This list will be maintained by LHC. For more information about Good Standing, please refer to: https://laboscoc.org/good-standing

Coordinated Entry Request for Proposals - One Stop

The Board voted unanimously (6-0) to approve LHC releasing a Request for Proposals (RFP) to fund up to $150,000 in Coordinated Entry activities at the One Stop Homeless Services Center in Baton Rouge, LA through the upcoming Funding Year 2019 Continuum of Care (FY 2019 CoC Program) Competition. This amount will be deducted from the competitive amount prioritized to the Baton Rouge Region. The LA BOSCOC anticipates that there will still be a significant amount of competitive funding available to the Baton Rouge Region.

HUD Technical Assistance: Governance

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has invited the LA BOSCOC to join a Community of Practice (CoP) related to CoC governance. These CoPs are remote group learning opportunities where multiple CoCs collaborate on sharing best practices and learning from HUD TA providers on a given topic.

This CoP will last roughly 6 months; Addie Duval will attend for the Board and Aundrea Braniff will attend for LHC.

Vice Chair

No members of the Board were nominated for the Vice Chair position. As such, that position will remain open until such time as someone is nominated to fill it.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes - April 1, 2019

Overview

The Board met in person to discuss a variety of issues on April 1, 2019.

Attendance

VOTING ATTENDANCE [LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION (SEAT) (ROLE, IF ANY)]

  • Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Louisiana Housing Corporation) (Chair)

  • Eric Gammons, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead)

  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education (Louisiana Department of Education)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

NON-VOTING ATTENDANCE (LISTED AS NAME, ORGANIZATION, (ROLE, IF ANY)]

  • Aundrea Braniff, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Acting Secretary)

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

  • More than a dozen members of the CoC sat in on the meeting; roll was not taken

PIT Count

The CoC Manager provided an overview of the Point in Time (PIT) Count, both the January 2019 count and the LA BOSCOC’s PIT Count in general.

Strengths highlighted included:

  • Baton Rouge’s count is improving its methodology every year;

  • Lake Charles implemented an innovative single night shelter option to collected sheltered data;

  • Starting next year, each Region will have a CoC Program-funded Coordinated Entry Access Point to help develop the PIT Count capacity.

Vulnerabilities highlighted included:

  • Natchitoches/Sabine continues to conduct no count;

  • Plaquemines/St. Bernard continues to conduct no unsheltered count;

  • Lake Charles needs to conduct a more comprehensive unsheltered count;

  • No Region is conducting an effective rural count;

  • Planning needs to start earlier (September/October rather than December/January) to build capacity;

  • Baton Rouge count needs to identify a new PIT Captain for January 2020, as the previous PIT Captain (Joe Keegan) is retiring).

Coordinated Entry

The CoC Manager provided an overview of the Coordinated Entry System (CES) after its first 12 months of operation.

The key finding is that while the CES is ensuring the CoC is serving people in order of their level of need, the CoC’s ratio of referrals to successful intakes is very low (approximately 10%). This is primarily due to poor or incomplete contact information collected by Coordinated Entry Access Points and outreach workers, particularly regarding people experiencing chronic homelessness.

As a remedy, the Board unanimously authorized funding from the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA for a Coordinated Entry Navigator, whose job will be to (1) establish and record the required documentation for people experiencing homelessness who are high on the LA BOSCOC’s Prioritization List and (2) ensuring contact information is correct and current. The authorized funding is up to $80,000 and will be drawn from the Baton Rouge Region’s annual allocation.

Scoring Committee

Historically, the LA BOSCOC’s project applications to the CoC Program NOFA have been scored by members of the Governor’s Council on Homelessness using exclusively information present in those project applications.

The Board voted unanimously to include a mechanism in the LA BOSCOC’s project application scoring process by which Scoring Committee members could ask clarifying questions of the project application’s organization and adjust the project’s score as appropriate.

Board Meeting Frequency

The Board voted unanimously to meet on a bimonthly basis. (Previously, the Board was convened approximately quarterly on an ad hoc basis and in response to specific needs.)

Next Board Meeting

The next Board meeting will be held in person in Baton Rouge with a dial-in option. Some portion of the Board meeting will be open to the public. The Board has not yet set a date for this meeting; however, it will be scheduled for early June.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes - 12/19/18

Overview

The Board met by phone to discuss several issues related to the LA BOSCOC governance structure and to funding in 2019.

Attendance

Voting Attendance [listed as Name, Organization (Seat) (Role, if any)]

  • Winona Connor, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Louisiana Housing Corporation) (Chair)

  • Michell Brown, Louisiana Department of Health (Louisiana Department of Health) (Vice Chair)

  • Eric Gammons, Capital Area Alliance for the Homeless (HMIS Lead)

  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education (Louisiana Department of Education)

  • Addie Duval, Start Corporation (Baton Rouge Region)

  • Brooke Guidry, Start Corporation (Houma Region)

  • Tarek Polite, Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (Lake Charles Region)

  • Gail Gowland, St. Bernard Battered Women’s Program (Plaquemines/St. Bernard Region)

Non-Voting Attendance (listed as Name, Organization, (Role, if any)]

  • Gay Owens, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Recording Secretary)

  • Gordon Levine, Louisiana Housing Corporation (Continuum of Care Manager)

HMIS NOFA

HUD recently released a Homeless Management System (HMIS) Capacity Building Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA): https://www.hudexchange.info/news/hmis-capacity-building-project-nofa/

This NOFA will provide one-time funding to CoCs to improve their HMIS capacity and/or to consolidate their HMIS operations with other CoCs. This funding is specifically targeted to CoCs that HUD identified as having HMIS systems in need of improvement (and at CoCs they intend to consolidate with).

The Louisiana Housing Corporation, as the Collaborative Applicant for the LA BOSCOC, intends to apply for funding under this NOFA to consolidate its HMIS operations with the Monroe and Alexandria CoCs, both of which HUD identified as target CoCs for this funding.

If funding is received, the Louisiana Housing Corporation will become the HMIS Lead for the Monroe and Alexandria CoCs as well as the LA BOSCOC, and the Monroe and Alexandria CoCs will begin HMIS operations under the LA BOSCOC’s existing structure. The Louisiana Housing Corporation also intends to use some funding provided under this grant to improve its existing structure, including via technical assistance and system work in ServicePoint.

As part of the submission process for this NOFA, the CoC General Membership will need to approve the consolidation. Look for that vote to be held via email in early January 2019.

Possible CoC Mergers

The LA BOSCOC continues to pursue mergers with other interested CoCs in Louisiana. While the LA BOSCOC has nothing to announce at this time, it is optimistic that it will merge with another CoC in 2019, much as it did with the Houma CoC in 2018, the Baton Rouge CoC in 2016, and the Southwest CoC (Lake Charles) in 2015.

If another CoC decides it would like to merge with the LA BOSCOC, the CoC General Membership will need to approve the merger. The LA BOSCOC expects that if a merger will occur in 2019, the vote will be held via email in the first quarter of 2019.

Coordinated Entry Funding Through the 2019 CoC Program NOFA

Under the Funding Year 2019 Continuum of Care Program Notice of Funding Availability (FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA), which the LA BOSCOC expects HUD to release in mid-2019, the LA BOSCOC anticipates receiving approximately $1.05 million in new funding.

As in 2018, the LA BOSCOC expects to prioritize this funding by Region based on their level of need (i.e. Point in Time Count data), with each Region receiving priority for, at minimum, $150,000. Priority funding will be available to each Region’s high-scoring new projects first. Any funding not claimed by high-scoring new projects will then be awarded to projects irrespective of their Region.

For the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA, for those Regions that do not currently have a CoC Program-funded Coordinated Entry project, the LA BOSCOC will instead guarantee $150,000 to those Regions exclusively to fund a new Coordinated Entry Access Point in each Region. (This amount will replace the $150,000 that is competitively available.)

This applies to the following Regions: Houma, Natchitoches/Sabine, and Plaquemines/St. Bernard.

In early 2019, the Louisiana Housing Corporation will issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) to identify one organization in each Region that will receive these funds and operate the new Coordinated Entry Access Point. Selected organizations will be eligible to receive Coordinated Entry funds as sub-recipients of a new Coordinated Entry project that the Louisiana Housing Corporation will submit under the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA.

The Board voted unanimously to proceed with this plan.

Additional Coordinated Entry Funding Discussions

Several members of the Board have created a working group to explore dedicating additional funding from the FY 2019 CoC Program NOFA to expanding Coordinated Entry operations across the LA BOSCOC, including a dedicated call-in number for Coordinated Entry.

CoC Board Officer Structure

Currently, the Board Chair is always the executive director of the Louisiana Housing Authority, and the Board Vice Chair is chosen by the Chair.

The Board discussed changing the above structure to a structure whereby the Board would elect its Chair and Vice Chair.

In a straw poll, the Board voted unanimously in favor of switching to an election-based structure.

As the Board officer structure is written into the LA BOSCOC Governance Charter, the CoC Manager will propose amending the Governance Charter to change the Board officer structure at the next meeting of the CoC General Membership.

Upcoming CoC General Membership Meeting

The LA BOSCOC will likely host its next CoC General Membership meeting on April 1, 2019, in Baton Rouge. Mark your calendars! More details as the date approaches.

LA BOSCOC Board Outcomes: 10/17/18

Overview

The Board voted by email on 10/17/18 to propose several new meeting structure options to the CoC full membership. The Board also recommended releasing data from the LA BOSCOC Monthly Report privately to each individual organization for preparatory purposes before releasing the LA BOSCOC Monthly Report and its data publicly at a future time to be determined.

Voting Attendance

  • Michell Brown, Louisiana Department of Health (Vice Chair)

  • Addie Duval, Baton Rouge

  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education

  • Brooke Guidry, Houma

  • Eric Gammons, HMIS Lead

  • Mitzi Harris, Natchitoches/Sabine

  • Tarek Polite, Lake Charles

Propose New Meeting Structure

The LA BOSCOC voted 7-0 to propose that the CoC full membership consider revising the LA BOSCOC Governance Charter to alter its schedule of CoC full membership meetings.

The Collaborative Applicant will call a vote of the CoC full membership via email to consider the schedules detailed below. The vote will use the Alternative Voting system described here (sometimes described as “Instant Run-Off” or “Ranked Choice” voting): https://www.electoral-reform.org.uk/voting-systems/types-of-voting-system/alternative-vote/

Option #1: Keep the current structure

  • Meetings of the CoC full membership will be held quarterly;

  • Some meetings will be held in person, rotating equitably between CoC Regions; others will be held by webinar;

  • Meetings will have no specific Regional component;

  • Good Standing: members must attend 3 of the most recent 4 meetings of the CoC full membership.

Option #2: Current Practice + Regional Breakout Sessions

  • Meetings of the CoC full membership will be held quarterly;

  • Some meetings will be held in person, rotating equitably between CoC Regions; others will be held by webinar;

  • In-person meetings will included Regional Breakout Sessions wherein each Region’s constituency can separate out and discuss local issues;

  • Good Standing: members must attend 3 of the most recent 4 meetings of the CoC full membership.

Option #3: Fewer CoC Full Membership Meetings + New Quarterly Regional Meetings

  • Meetings of the CoC full membership will be held twice annually;

    • One will be scheduled, if possible, before/during/after an event that CoC members are already likely to be attending (e.g. the statewide homelessness conference);

    • One will be scheduled, if possible, by webinar;

  • The CoC will create subcommittees for each CoC Region, and each subcommittee will be required to meet quarterly;

    • Each subcommittee will have specific responsibilities related to coordinating, at minimum, street outreach and the PIT Count;

    • Each subcommittee will be chaired by the Board representative from each Region;

  • Good Standing:

    • Must attend at least one meeting of the CoC full membership;

    • Must attend at least two meetings of a Regional subcommittee.

LA BOSCOC Monthly Report

The Collaborative Applicant has developed the LA BOSCOC Monthly Report: a mechanism for reporting on vital statistics for all CoC Program and ESG projects in HMIS, including participant intake/exit and bed utilization rates, for each month and for the year as a whole.

The Collaborative Applicant intends to compile and release this data publicly on a monthly basis.

However, at the Board’s suggestion, the Collaborative Applicant will begin releasing data privately to each organization in question to acclimate each organization to its data. The Collaborative Applicant will continue releasing data privately until it is satisfied that organizations have reached an acceptable level of comfort and familiarity with their data, at which point the Collaborative Applicant will, at its discretion, begin releasing the LA BOSCOC Monthly Report publicly.

LA BOSCOC Board Votes - Week of 8/30/18

Overview

The Board voted by email during the week of August 30, 2018 on the following issues related to the FY18 State ESG NOFA:

  • Good Standing waivers for all organizations that provided sufficient justification (approved 8-0);
  • Good Standing waivers for all organizations that did not provide sufficient justification, including those that provided no justification or did not apply in the specified form and/or timeframe (denied 0-5);
  • Using Good Standing waivers from the FY18 State ESG NOFA to fulfill the same criteria for the FY18 CoC Program RFP (approved 5-0).

Voting Corpus

  • Nicole Sweazy, Louisiana Housing Authority (chair)
  • Antiqua Hunter, Louisiana Department of Education
  • Eric Gammons, HMIS Lead
  • Addie Duval, Baton Rouge
  • Brooke Guidry, Houma
  • Tarek Polite, Lake Charles
  • Mitzi Harris, Natchitoches/Sabine
  • Gail Gowland, Plaquemines/St. Bernard