ICA News -April 2024 - Iowa
Greetings
Monthly Data Updates
Annual Outreach Gatherings
April Q&A
New help for New Students
Coordinated Entry News
Peer to Peer
HUD News
Jobs
Dates
Contact Info
Monthly Data Update
ICA is publishing a monthly data update describing the key indicators and changes in the population experiencing housing instability in the Balance of State and Polk County. We will be sharing this information monthly going forward, and hope this presentation is easy to understand for members of your community who don’t necessarily live in the data the way HMIS professionals and service providers do but are interested and motivated to learn.
This Month’s Data Update
Annual Outreach Gatherings
The Institute for Community Alliances (ICA) Iowa HMIS Team is committed to strengthening connections with providers utilizing HMIS and DVIMS. We are delighted to share that this calendar year, ICA will embark on in-person visits to various areas of the state! All individuals working within HMIS/DVIMS are welcome and encouraged to attend!
During these meetings, we will facilitate open discussions, seek feedback, provide insights into the functions of the ICA HMIS team, and most importantly, gain valuable insights into your agencies.
When: May 30th, 11:00 am to 12:30 pm
Where: Storm Lake Public Library Meeting room, 609 Cayuga St, Storm Lake, IA 50588
Who: We encourage providers from the following counties to attend:
Lyon, Osceola, Dickinson, Emmett, Sioux, O'Brien, Clay, Palo Alto, Plymouth, Cherokee, Buena Vista, Pocahontas, Humbolt, Wright, Ida, Sac, Calhoun, Webster, Hamilton, Monona, Crawford, and Carroll.Register here: MAY Gathering
When: June 24th, from 11:00 am to 12:30 pm.
Where: Mason City Chamber of Commerce, 9 N Federal Ave, Mason City, IA 50401
Who: We encourage providers from the following counties to attend Kossuth, Winnebago, Hancock, Worth, Cerro Gordo, Franklin, Mitchell, Floyd, Butler, Howard, Chickasaw, Bremer, Winneshiek, Fayette, Buchanan, Allamakee, and Clayton.
Register here: June Gathering
We will be sharing more details about visits to additional areas of the state soon! We eagerly anticipate meeting all of you face-to-face in the upcoming months!
April Q&A
Every month we have a live Q&A training webinar where users have the opportunity to ask questions directly with HMIS System Administrators. Anything covered in last month's Q& A is available on ICA's LMS (Learning Management System), icatraining.org but also in each monthly newsletter. This month we covered:
Important Dates – (KarLee)
Business Objects—Report Updates in System News (Kasper) 1:43
PIT – currently fixing errors with submissions to ensure data is accurate (KarLee) 4:48
System performance measures (KarLee) 5:34
EVA (KarLee) 6:20
Thank you—SPMs (Susie)
Mass Communication (EVA) Isn’t SPAM (KarLee) Move-in Dates (Moving from one RRH to another) (Kasper) 8:46
Move-In date vs. Project start date 8:46
HUD Verification Section – end dating to make sure monthly income lining up (Shawn) 22:09
Help for New Students
Weekly Office Hour
In an effort to provide a better learning experience, we are incorporating a weekly "office hour" for anyone currently working on the new user ServicePoint (Community Services) test. This open Teams link will have a human on the other end every Thursday at 10:00AM . So, if you are a student struggling with their test or the system join us on Thursday mornings and be able to ask someone directly for help.
Test Help Office Hour - Thursday at 10:00am - Click here to join
Coordinated Entry Q&A Webinars
Coordinated Entry Q&A Webinars
Every month Coordinated Entry Specialists will be hosting a virtual Coordinated Entry Q&A for CE providers and community partners to discuss CE basics, policies, procedures, and much more.
Have specific questions? Not understanding how something works within CE? Let us know! We would be happy to talk more about it during one of our sessions
When? Monthly on the 1st Tuesday of every month, our next Q&A will be on:
May 7th, 2024 2:00 - 3:00 pm
Who should attend?
Any Coordinated Entry providers or community partners involved in CE across the state of Iowa and CE Regions who would like to learn more about Coordinated Entry or refresh their CE skills.
Where?
The Department of Housing and Urban Development is hosting it’s annual Peer-to-Peer Homelessness Symposium in Omaha, Nebraska. Please consider sharing this information with anyone interested in attending this year’s symposium. In the meantime, expect a registration email with more information in April.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact NEwebmanager@hud.gov
HUD News
Register Today: Using YHDP with Foster Youth to Independence and Family Unification Program Vouchers – April 18, 2024 – 2:00 PM EDT
This webinar highlights how Continuums of Care (CoCs) and Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) projects can utilize Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) and Family Unification Program (FUP) vouchers as a pathway to housing. This webinar also features a panel discussion with HUD, Public and Indian Housing (PIH), CoCs, and Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) representatives doing this work in Hennepin County, MN. Register today!
YHDP is designed to decrease youth homelessness with a focus on building strong partnerships between the many systems youth may engage with. One of those partnerships is between CoCs, Public Child Welfare Agencies (PCWAs), and PHAs to utilize Housing Choice Vouchers (HCVs), specifically FYI and FUP youth vouchers. The FYI and FUP youth vouchers are youth-dedicated vouchers that support young adults and young adult families who have exited the child welfare system, in securing stable housing.
This webinar builds off the YHDP Partnerships: Utilizing FYI and FUP Vouchers resource that was released in January 2024.
Objective
Learn how YHDP projects can leverage partnerships with PCWAs and PHAs to utilize HCVs dedicated to youth.
Audience
This webinar is intended for CoC and PHA representatives, as well as YHDP funding recipients.
Schedule and Registration
Webinar Date and Time Registration
Using YHDP with FYI and FUP Vouchers April 18, 2024 2:00 - 3:30 PM EDT Register Now
You must have a HUD Exchange account to register. Follow these instructions for registering.
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2024 VAWA and Survivor Housing Community Conversations: Building a Better Emergency Transfer Plan – April 18, 2024 – 1:00 PM EDT
The next session in the series, Building a Better Emergency Transfer Plan, is taking place on April 18, 2024, at 1:00 PM EDT. Learn more!
Last year, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) 2022 Foundations for Continuum of Care (CoC) and Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) Webinar Series provided detailed, foundational knowledge about implementing VAWA and survivor-centered housing practices.
VAWA and Survivor Housing Community Conversations will continue in 2024 through a series of discussions about successfully implementing VAWA and survivor-centered housing at the system, project, and human levels. Each conversation will feature a diverse panel of system leaders, project staff, and people with lived experiences from both the homelessness response and victim services worlds.
Objectives
Learn about VAWA housing provisions that apply to CoC and ESG program recipients as outlined in the VAWA letter to CoC/ESG program recipients
Engage practitioners and experts about best practices in survivor-focused housing
Explore diverse range of VAWA and survivor housing implementations from communities across the country
Discover new ways to reach compliance with VAWA requirements and improve survivor-focused housing practices
Audience
This series is intended for CoC and ESG recipients and staff, including but not limited to CoC and ESG leadership, program managers, direct staff, and people with lived experience of homelessness. This series is also intended for victim services leadership, Victim Service Providers (VSPs), and survivors.
Schedule and Joining Instructions
Participants do not need to register in advance. It is strongly recommended that participants join the webinar 15 minutes prior to the start time (12:45 PM EDT).
April 18, 2024 1:00 - 2:30 PM EDT
Building a Better Emergency Transfer Plan
May 16, 2024 1:00 - 2:30 PM EDT
HMIS and Data-Sharing for Victim Services Providers and Survivors
June 27, 2024 1:00 - 2:30 PM EDT
Coordinated Entry and Housing Problem-Solving for Survivors
Contact
VAWA and Survivor Housing Community Conversations Registrar trainings@hudexchange.info
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Uploading Data from HMIS: Common Data Quality Issues Resource Now Available
This new resource condenses and contextualizes guidance found primarily in the current HMIS Data Standards Manual. Its purpose is to assist Continuums of Care (CoCs) in understanding, preventing, and addressing common data quality issues when uploading Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) data.
CoCs can utilize this resource to improve data quality throughout the year, especially during defined upload periods for federal reports such as the Longitudinal Systems Analysis (LSA), System Performance Measures (SPM), Annual Performance Report (APR), and Housing Inventory Count/Point-in-Time (HIC/PIT). These reports rely on HMIS data collected throughout the year to convey the CoC’s successful efforts in ending homelessness.
Additional Resources
For additional resources to assist HMIS Leads, HMIS vendors, and CoCs in designing, implementing, and maintaining an HMIS, visit the HMIS Guides and Tools page.
Questions?
If you have questions, please submit them to the Ask A Question (AAQ) portal. In Step 2 of the question submission process, select “Homeless Management Information System (HMIS)” from the “My question is related to” drop down list.
Reminder: Register Today: Using YHDP with Foster Youth to Independence and Family Unification Program Vouchers – April 18, 2024 – 2:00 PM EDT
This webinar highlights how Continuums of Care (CoCs) and Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP) projects can utilize Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) and Family Unification Program (FUP) vouchers as a pathway to housing. This webinar also features a panel discussion with HUD, Public and Indian Housing (PIH), CoCs, and Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) representatives doing this work in Hennepin County, MN. Register today!
YHDP is designed to decrease youth homelessness with a focus on building strong partnerships between the many systems youth may engage with. One of those partnerships is between CoCs, Public Child Welfare Agencies (PCWAs), and PHAs to utilize Housing Choice Vouchers (HCVs), specifically FYI and FUP vouchers. The FYI and FUP vouchers can be used to support young adults and young adult families who have exited the child welfare system, in securing stable housing.
This webinar builds off the YHDP Partnerships: Utilizing FYI and FUP Vouchers resource that was released in January 2024
Objective
Learn how YHDP projects can leverage partnerships with PCWAs and PHAs to utilize HCVs dedicated to youth
Audience
This webinar is intended for CoC and PHA representatives, as well as YHDP funding recipients.
Schedule and Registration
April 18, 2024 2:00 - 3:30 PM EDT - Using YHDP with FYI and FUP Vouchers - Register Now
Job Postings
from our partner agencies
ACCESS
The Bridge Home
Friends of the Family
Humility Homes and Services
Salvation Army- Waterloo
Willis Dady
YSS
Dates
May 7th- HMIS/DVIMS Q&A Webinar 10:00am - 10:45am Registration (gotowebinar.com)
May 7th - Coordinated Entry Q&A Webinar 2:00pm - 3:00pm -Click her to join
Thursdays at 10:00am- Test Help Office Hour - Click here to join
June 27th & 28th- Peer-to-Peer Homelessness Symposium in Omaha, Nebraska