ICAA Summer 2022 Newsletter is Here!

Thank you for being engaged with what's happening in Community Action!

Hello Community Actioners and Happy Summer!

There's so much to be grateful for and so much to be excited about in the upcoming months, which we'll highlight in this Tell Me What's Happening issue. First - I want to give a big shout-out to the ICAA Team - Corinne Armbrust, Tiffany Keimig, and Mary Ready have been working SO hard to get ready for the much anticipated ICAA Conference coming up in July. This is in addition to their other normal duties like providing training and technical assistance, processing payments for programs, doing research, and making connections on behalf of the network, not to mention a bunch of other things that make this enterprise run smoothly, like ordering lunches and making Zooms happen and designing logos, etc. etc. etc. You won't find a more energetic, engaged, and responsive team. So if you see them at the conference or interact with them in some other way, give them a high five!

I'm so EXCITED about the conference, I do a little happy dance every day. I can't wait to see you in person, I can't wait to hear from our Keynote Speakers, I can't wait to learn from all of our presenters, and I can't wait for someone to challenge me on the shuffleboard court at our Networking event at Smash Park...I CAN'T WAIT!

I am especially excited about the launch of this idea called the Lyceum Lounge that we'll be rolling out at the Conference. This little gem of an idea came out of an engaging conversation during an Iowa ROMA Professionals meeting, and I hope will get some legs with your help. The concept of a Lyceum has been around for a long time and it's really pretty simple: it's a gathering of friends, neighbors, and colleagues to talk about ideas that will improve our communities and thus our society. I can't think of a better group of folks to help improve our society than Community Actioners. So please, come find us at the Conference! We'll be hanging out, kicking around some ideas. Then come find us after the conference by checking out the Member Portal (see the newsletter for log-in information in case you forgot) for new topics every month and an opportunity to gather virtually and discuss.

I hope to see you in July at the West Des Moines Marriott! I'll be the one doing the happy dance!

With gratitude, appreciation, and joy,

Katherine

Community Action Happenings

40th Anniversary

In May, ICAA kicked off our 40th Anniversary and also a month chock full of Community Action celebrations! We hosted a drawing 4 times during the month and congratulate the winners who got a copy of Dr. Mark Rank's book, Poorly Understood: What America Gets Wrong About Poverty, and our Grand Prize Winner - who also took home a free registration to the ICAA Conference. Congrats to

Paula Morgan (Community Action of Southeast Iowa)
Mary Ness (HACAP)
Wendy Norton (Northeast Iowa Community Action Corporation)
Julie Chopard (MICA) - Grand Prize Winner!

We are continuing the celebration of ICAA's 40th Anniversary throughout year, so please come find the big 4-0 posted on a wall at the Conference and share a story that celebrates how Community Action has impacted a family, agency, or community for the better! Your stories are our stories and we can't wait to spread the good news of all you have accomplished!

Strategic Planning

ICAA is working with the board and staff on our next 3-year Strategic Plan (2023-2025), and we'd like to hear from you, our members. Please send us your thoughts, ideas, and feedback on what ICAA should START, STOP and KEEP doing as we formulate our vision and strategies for the next 3 years. Send your thoughts to Katherine Harrington at kharrington@iowacaa.org by July 7.

Community Action of Eastern Iowa

Community Action of Eastern Iowa's Board of Directors will be working with a professional search firm to conduct a nationwide search. "We thank Roger for his years of leadership and commitment. We will miss him and wish him all the best in his next adventure!" says Jenny Kreiter, interim Executive Director at CAEI. ICAA and the Network are happy and excited that Roger is remaining in the Community Action family with his new role as Executive Director at the Western Illinois Regional Council and Community Action Agency.

ICAA Book Club

Ditch that trashy beach read for a book that will expand your mind this summer! The ICAA Book Club would highly recommend any of the following that we've read and discussed over the last several months: If you're interested in joining, sign up here: https://bookclubs.com/clubs/39989/join/e2e3ad/

Broke in America by Joanne Samuel Goldblum and Colleen Shaddox
The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee
Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
Poorly Understood by Dr. Mark Rank

Program Happenings

Disaster Services

Since December, our State has been impacted by six severe storm systems, leading to 59 Counties across 14 Community Action Agencies to be activated for Disaster services, some more than once.

During this time, Community Action staff have processed over 240 financial assistance applications and administered about $100,000 to date.

Thank you to all who continue to respond to these events!

Federal Affordable Connectivity Program

Some Iowa companies are even creating plan options to equal the voucher, creating free internet access for their qualified customers. Please encourage the families you serve to see if they qualify for the Affordable Connectivity Program!

Legislative Happenings

This was a doozy of a Legislative Session. The Iowa General Assembly adjourned its regular session shortly after midnight on May 25th. After surpassing target adjournment by one month over disagreement on school vouchers, the House and Senate moved quickly to pass the final policy and budget bills. The final budget represented a 1% increase over FY 2021 and appropriated approximately 91% of the $9 billion in available revenues.

HF 2127 and HF 2198 have both been signed into law. HF 2127 relates to the ability of childcare providers to negotiate increased rates charged to families participating in the state childcare assistance program. HF 2198 relates to childcare ratios and childcare working age requirements

We did not successfully influence the House or Senate to increase funding for FaDSS by 3%. The common refrain we heard was, "we gave you a $1M increase last year".

We were also not successful in getting legislation introduced that would waive the job search requirement for Early Education staff during their temporary lay-off period; However, Iowa Workforce Development did make some concessions around the temporary layoff and training. Please visit with agency leadership on what this means for those staff that are laid off in the summer.

The Governor's office released a grant called the Non-Profit Innovation Fund - which is the vehicle that ICAA will be pursuing in the near future for infrastructure dollars for agencies.

On the National Front, the CSBG Reauthorization Act (HR 5129) was passed by the House on a bipartisan vote of 246-169. This legislation now moves to the Senate for consideration and possible vote before the end of the year. Please send a note of thanks to Rep. Cindy Axne and Rep. Miller-Meeks for their support of this legislation. You can visit the NCAF Action Center here.

ICAA Conference Happenings

2022 ICAA Conference - Less than a month away!

We are counting down to the ICAA Conference and thrilled to have so many incredible speakers lined up to bring rich content and inspire meaningful dialogue across our network. This year's conference theme is Forging Forward, with a focus on connection, engagement, and growth. We will be celebrating bringing our statewide network together again after three years and recognizing some remarkable partners that the Iowa Community Action Network has worked with this past year, including:

Robert F. Tyson Memorial Award Recipient: Dick Sievers, Executive Director at Mid-Sioux Opportunity, Inc.;

Friend of Community Action Award Recipients: Senator Amanda Ragan, Representative Jacob Bossman, and Representative Tom Jeneary; and

State Partnership Award Recipient: The Des Moines Register.

You won't want to miss out on this opportunity to come together with your colleagues from across the state to learn and have some fun! Join us July 20th & 21st at the West Des Moines Marriott or virtually. Register today!

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Training Happenings

August Online Introduction to ROMA Training

What does it mean to be results-oriented? The Community Action network is invited to join Nationally Certified ROMA Trainers from Iowa to learn about the basic concepts related to Results Oriented Management and Accountability (ROMA), including the history of Community Action and our mission, the role of Community Needs Assessments and strategies for measuring lives changed.

Register for the online Introduction to ROMA training by noon July 22nd. Training will be limited to the first 20 people that sign up. If more are interested ICAA will offer the training again. Registrants will be contacted to confirm their virtual seat.

Registrants need to attend all three, 3-hr sessions:

Day 1 - Tuesday, August 16th 9AM-12PM CST

Day 2 - Thursday, August 18th 9AM-12PM CST

Day 3 -Tuesday, August 23rd 9AM-12PM CST

September CLIFF: Career Ladder Identifier and Financial Forecaster Training

Join ICAA to learn more about CLIFF; the Career Ladder Identifier and Financial Forecaster, a resource developed by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. CLIFF is a practical tool for counseling individuals on career choices that can move them to self-sufficiency. The tool looks at the impact of public benefits like SNAP and childcare subsidies on career mobility, and how benefit cliffs may be addressed through program design. CLIFF can be adapted to local and regional economies using state and local data, so it may be tailored to individual workers and job seekers of Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. All at no charge.

Join us to view the behind-the-scenes CLIFF dashboard and how it can support your work. You will also learn how other states are using the CLIFF Dashboard to improve workforce practice and policy. Register here.

The National Community Action Partnership's 2022 Annual Convention is Happening

On August 31st - September 2nd NCAP is offering both in-person and virtual participation options for their exceptional convention. You won't want to miss hearing keynote, Rashad Robinson, President of Color Of Change. Color Of Change is a leading racial justice organization driven by more than 7 million members who are building power for Black communities. Color Of Change uses innovative strategies to bring about system change in the industries that affect Black people’s lives. Under Rashad’s leadership, Color Of Change designs and implements winning strategies for racial justice. Rashad is widely consulted on strategies for corporate accountability, transforming the criminal justice system, media and tech reform, culture change and narrative infrastructure, and building Black political power. Learn more and register here.

Upcoming IHSA Events

Don't forget to register for the upcoming events hosted by IHSA. Links to register for the Leading Others Training and the “Heart Work” Networking session are below with additional details attached.

Leading Others - Reflective Inquiry Practices for Coaching and Supervision

July 13 | 9:00 am – 12:00 pm | Virtual

IHSA “Heart Work” Networking

July 19 |Agenda attached | Virtual

Website Happenings

ICAA's New Website

Check out ICAA's new and improved website! We also have a bunch of fun items in the member portal such as development resources, subgroup information, prior newsletters, and more!