Policy & Practice | Summer 2023

PRESIDENT’S MEMO continued from page 3

facilitate broader insights about needs and opportunities across programs and encourage cross-program enrollment. Along similar lines, community voice should be embedded into systems alignment efforts, ensuring that the perspectives and needs of the com munity are actively considered at all points along the way. the people who access services and experience the multitude of human-serving systems. To expedite progress, attention must be given to building cross-sector lead ership capacity that genuinely centers the community and redistributes structural power. Many jurisdictions are supporting co-location models in community settings that foster relationships and job-sharing oppor tunities across partners, allowing individuals to gain insights from dif ferent perspectives. But these models are in many still in their infancy— there is much more to be done to understand how to distribute struc tural power in ways that authentically We must approach the situation with a shared vision that is centered around the hopes and needs of What “Big Plays” Could Accelerate Our Path Forward?

center families and communities as the drivers of change. Support for larger policy changes is crucial as well, including aligning eligibility requirements and utilizing eligibility passports to streamline access to resources. Joint funding streams and flexible use of funds by families, such as exploring basic income approaches, can also con tribute to system-level change. Investing in the infrastructure that supports both public human services agencies and CBOs, which are integral parts of the service delivery system, is crucial to modernize systems for equi table decision making. To foster longer term system-level change, collective efforts should also focus on co-advocating for neces sary policy and finance changes. This involves building bridges across various human-serving systems such as health, housing, education, and social services to generate the political will needed for flexible investments. Leveraging public–private partner ships, both with community-based and for-profit organizations, is also essential. Establishing an operating framework for advancing system change through co-creation and incor porating prevention into daily practice can further drive progress. Systems alignment remains a primary goal of APHSA as we work together with our members and partners to advance our vision. If you haven’t done so, check out our updated Strategic Playbook and Action Plan to learn more (visit https://bit.ly/41mlBFT ). Stay tuned—in the next and final piece in this series, we will take a closer look at the third theme distilled from leaders across the country: the human services workforce. Enabling the Conditions for Longer-Term Change

What Do Leaders Need to Do Differently? We must approach the situation with a shared vision that is centered around the hopes and needs of the people who access services and experience the multitude of human serving systems. This involves establishing collaborations with partner agencies in health, labor, edu cation, and other relevant sectors to identify common goals and outcomes for the populations we jointly serve. As one state leader noted: “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Start by working with one other system leader to be the example.” In those spaces, we must express our expectations and needs while also actively listening to the input of others—encouraging joint solutions through cross-system collaboratives and always seeking community input on what is needed and how we are doing. Leveraging shared values is critical to navigating and resolving conflicts that may arise. How Do We Operationalize These Concepts? To put these concepts into action, many jurisdictions are actively mapping populations that are being jointly served, and disaggregating data to understand who is benefitting from services and who is not. University partners are helping to connect admin istrative data across human-serving agencies and identifying service gaps based on various factors such as popu lation groups, geographic location, and communities that have been histori cally under-resourced. Priorities should be agreed upon with and through the impacted com munities, and joint efforts should be undertaken to advance and achieve these objectives. Strategic opportunities should be identified to align resources for greater effect, including aligning cross program eligibility and enrollment practices and investing in community based organizations (CBOs) to provide support and navigation across systems. Technology investments should

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