SIERRA COUNTY CHILDREN AND FAMILIES COMMISSION
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING THURSDAY, APRIL 11, 2019
The Sierra County Children and Families Commission met on Thursday, April 11, 2019, at 9:30 A.M. in the First 5 Sierra Office, 701 Main Street, Loyalton, California. The meeting was led by Mary Wright, Chairperson.
CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 9:45AM by Mary Wright.
FLAG SALUTE Mary Wright led the Flag Salute.
ROLL CALL Present: Shanna Anseth, Jim Beard, Anne Reugebrink, Andrea Ceresola White, Mary Wright Absent: Laurie Marsh
Staff Members Present: Allison Smith, Executive Director
Staff Members Absent: Kelly Champion, Business Manager
Public Present: None
APPROVAL OF AGENDA Ms. Reugebrink moved to approve the agenda, Ms. Anseth seconded the motion, and the agenda was unanimously approved.
PUBLIC COMMENT Public comment opened at 9:52AM. There was no public in attendance. Public comment closed at 9:52AM.
REPORTS
Director’s Report - Ms. Smith reviewed the Director’s Report submitted which included First 5 Sierra’s new website, updates on the Child Abuse Prevention Summit, Back to Preschool Night and the First 5 Association’s Small County Summit.
Business Manager Report
Revenue & Expenditure Report – January 16, 2019 to March 15, 2019: The Commission reviewed the report. There were no questions.
Bank Reconciliations – January & February 2019: The Commission reviewed the bank reconciliations for the two months and had no questions. Ms. Smith discussed that she and Ms. Champion would be including copies of all reconciliations in packets instead of handing out documents at the meeting in order to maximize transparency.
Cash in County Reconciliation – March 13, 2019: Ms. Smith reviewed the reconciliation. There were no questions.
Budget vs. Actual Report – July 1, 2018 to March 15, 2019: The Commission reviewed the report and had no questions. Ms. Smith noted that we will likely be underspent in the area of Contracted Services due to our lack of independent small programs running this year.
Administrative Ratio – July 1, 2018 to March 15, 2019: Ms. Smith noted that the Administrative Ratio is currently 30%, the target Administrative Ratio for the year is 21%. She noted that the ratio will continue to decline as program dollars are expended, tuition subsidy payments are significantly higher in the spring. There were no questions.
General Journal Review – March 15, 2019: Ms. Smith noted that three general journal entries were made to reclassify funds spent into our specific program areas of School Readiness, Provider Network and General. There were no questions.
Commissioner Report Ms. Reugebrink gave a presentation on the Healthy Stores for a Healthy Community Campaign.
Ms. Anseth reported on the Parents as Teachers training she recently attended for the launch of the County’s Home Visiting Initiative. She appreciated that the PAT Program is grounded in a strengths-based perspective, focusing on parent- child interactions and family well-being. Ms. Anseth also reported that the Dental Health Fair was a great success with 98 children receiving screenings, an increase of approximately 20 children over last year.
Mr. Beard announced that the Child Abuse Council was holding a luncheon on Wednesday, April 25th to honor a community member who has a strong record of service working with children. Mr. Beard also noted that he had seen a series of First 5 California ads on TV that he felt were unclear and hence ineffective in their messaging. Ms. Smith noted that she will look into this and provide feedback to First 5 California.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES Approval of Regular Meeting Minutes of January 25, 2019
Ms. Anseth moved to approve the minutes of January 25, 2019. Mr. Beard seconded the motion and the minutes were approved.
NEW BUSINESS Budget Revisions – Authorize Budget Revisions to Balance 2018-2019 Budget
Ms. Anseth moved to approve the Budget Revisions. Mr. Beard seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
Public Hearing: CCFC 2016-2017 Annual Report to the State of California Ms. Wright opened the Public Hearing at 11:10AM. As there was no public in attendance, the Public Hearing was closed at 11:12AM.
Adopt the CCFC 2017-2018 Annual Report to the State of California Ms. Reugebrink moved to adopt the CCFC 2017-2018 Annual Report to the State of California. Mr. Beard seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.
Approve Expenditure not to exceed $1500 for Painting of First 5 Sierra Office. Ms. Smith requested approval of an update to the office space, including removal of the wall covering and painting of the room. She noted that the landlord will be installing new carpet and that any improvements should be made prior to this. Ms. Smith stated that the First 5 Sierra Office had received three local bids from local contractors in an informal bid process, ranging from $850 to $3070. Mr. Beard noted that $1000 would be a fair minimal estimate from his experience of painting costs. Ms. Anseth moved to authorize an expenditure not to exceed $1500 for the painting of the First 5 Sierra Office. Mr. Beard seconded the motion and the expenditure was unanimously approved.
Discussion of Preliminary Budget 2018-2019 Ms. Smith presented the Preliminary Budget for 2019-2020. Ms. Smith stated that the current budget is similar to the previous year, but changes will be made to reflect further discussion around Strategic Planning for the next three years and those changes will be discussed at the May Commission meeting.
Strategic Planning Ms. Smith presented the highlights of the previous Strategic Planning session in which Commissioners had voted on priorities identified in the needs assessment process. Further discussion of the top priorities – communication, behavioral support and social connection, was held, including possible strategies for achieving goals in these areas. Ms. Smith discussed that the Commission should consider plans for spending down the reserve in one of two ways. The reserve could be spent down slowly through greater investment in programming over the course of several years or the Commission could consider a capital project. Ms. Smith noted that there was an opportunity to apply for grant funding through Prop 68 for community recreation developments and she would look into the process and constraints to determine compatibility with First 5 Sierra goals and feasibility.
ADVANCED PLANNING The next regular meeting of the SCCFC is scheduled to be held on Friday, May 17, at 9:30 A.M. in the Courthouse, Downieville, California.
ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 11:52 A.M.
Submitted by: Allison Smith, Executive Director