Date: November 10, 2006
To: Jeri Shumate, OR211 Board Chair
From: Kay Sohl, TACS Executive Director
Re: Notes from planning meeting on November 1, 2006
I. Core Principles to Guide OR211:
Participants identified core principles to guide the 211 effort:
OR211 is needed to play role in emergencies both human service and community emergencies.
OR211 will ensure availability of 211 services in every part of the state.
OR211 system will involve multiple providers
OR211 is committed to reliability, consistency, quality
II. Oregon Statutory Requirements:
The 211 Statute requires that the State OEM work with a statewide nonprofit which will:
III. Goals for OR211:
Short Term Priorities for OR211
Longer term goals:
IV. Staffing:
Participants agreed that professional level staffing will be needed to move forward towards short term goals. Participants envision an Executive Director type role – although the position may initially be handled through a contract. Key roles for the professional staff position would include:
Participants agreed that salary range would need to be from $55,000 to $70,000 (plus benefits) to attract a person with the needed skills.
Participants also envisioned providing some clerical support to assist the professional position.
Rough estimate: OR211 will need to obtain $100,000 - $125,000 per year for 2 to 3 years
Funding proposals should focus on start up and capacity building strategies. The proposal should demonstrate that investment in the proposed capacity building activities will result in the development of sustainable regional centers.
Participants envision placing the staff in an existing nonprofit organization which would provide accounting, space, phones, receptions, and possibly clerical support.
Participants determined that staff should be located in Salem or Portland and expressed an initial preference for a Salem location. Howard Klink and Priscilla Gould were asked to explore the possibility of United Way of the Columbia Willamette serving as fiscal sponsor and employer for the OR211 staff, while United Way in Salem would be ask to provide office space and support in Salem.
Participants identified OCF as their first back-up strategy in the event that the United Way plan described above proves unworkable. Howard and Priscilla will report to the board at its December meeting.
V. Strategies to Build State Support and Buy-in:
Participants identified issues and strategies that need to be addressed to build state support:
VI. Board Structure:
Participants reviewed the current Board structure requirements in the OR211 bylaws:
Participants brainstormed ideas for the board OR211 will need in the next few years:
Participants identified 4 possible options for the composition of the Board, including:
Option A
1/3 211 service providers
2/3 statewide types
Option B
Make those with interest—211 providers and partners become Advisory Committee
Board would be leaders for developing OR211
15 members—Business, political, philanthropic, OEM liaison
Option C
1/3 Service providers
1/3 Business/civic/political/ Telco
1/3 consumers and advocates
Option D
Regional representation required
½ business—Telco, private sector call centers, civic, legislators, strategic partners
½ service providers and consumers [with barriers]—be sure to have state perspective
With Advisory Committee—typical task force
Conclusion: Board Composition Goal
Evolve from current mix to engaging advisors for specific projects
To eventually become:
VII. Tasks:
VIII. Next Meeting:
9am-noon in Salem December 12th
IX. Loose ends
Participants identified loose ends which they will need to deal with at future meetings:
X. Timeline for Creation of Oregon 211
Participants reviewed the history of the effort to create Oregon 211:
OR 211 Board of Directors
Wednesday, August 15, 2006
9:00 AM - Noon
Oregon Department of Emergency Management
Attendance: Jeri Shumate, Jonathan Brock, Stephen Guntli, Len Hockley, Kathleen McHarg, Jimi Smith, Roy Spurgeon, Wendy VanElverdinghe, June Sedarbaum
Welcome and Introductions - we did introductions including names, organization, and involvement with 2-1-1 and / or I & R.
Meeting Minutes Approval
Wendy apologized for not getting them out prior to the meeting, and asked to bump this to the next meeting.
Regional Updates
211info - Outreach to three additional counties in southwestern Washington State - Cowlitz, Skamania and Whatcom. The phone number that Verizon directed their calls to was problematic. Jeri reported the problem, and it was fixed in two hours. X-O also has a problem. Jeri has been on vacation so was unable to follow-up. Both Jeri and Jimi said they would follow-up. Because 211info receives no funding from Multnomah County, and 211info needed to adjust hours of service, it was decided to only cut back hours for Multnomah County lines. With the reduced hours, rumors started flying. It is hoped that the County will take notice and become a better player / partner in the future.
Lane 211 - The six month update of all phone numbers in the data base (The Lane) has been completed. The initiation for updating the full database is now underway. The group interested in 2-1-1 continues to meet. Currently the funds raised are going to keeping the database current and available on line. The Business Plan has been completed. When it was presented to the local utility they were so impressed that they doubled their financial commitment.
Southern Oregon 211 - Work continues on the database and resource notebook. Without dedicated staff it is a slow process. We are pulling together the next meeting to discuss "Where we are" and next steps. Service Point is up and running. Several suggestions were made to secure volunteers to do data entry, including the local United Way as well as clients from Voc Rehab.
National Update
Jeri has been invited to serve on the National 2-1-1 "think tank". There is a continued effort to promote 2-1-1 to congress and seek federal funding.
Board
June has asked to serve on the Board of OR 211. She has regularly attended our meetings and has knowledge and understanding of 2-1-1 and could provide a link to United Way, which was lost when Lou Enge resigned her position at United Way of Lane County. Concerns about brining on new board members as we are considering restructuring the Board and also revising the member's duties were raised.
Len Hockley moved and Jonathan Brock seconded to suspend the formal application process to bring June Sedarbaum onto the 2-1-1 Board. Motion passed with 6 yeas and 1 abstention.
Strategic Discussion - Preparing for the Board Retreat
Jeri lead the discussion, stating the purpose of the retreat is to discuss the future of OR 211 and how to have a statewide network.
At the last meeting we discussed bringing in partners and former interested parties for the retreat, including: Priscilla Gould, President of United Way of Oregon, David Foster with Oregon Housing and Community Services and former co-chair of the 211 steering committee, Lowell Greathouse, formerly with United Way of the Columbia-Willamette, currently a Methodist Pastor and former co-chair of the 211 steering committee, Liesl Wendt former consult for 211, and Ellen Lowe, lobbyist for United Way of the Columbia-Willamette who was instrumental in getting 211 legislation passed last session.
Currently OR 211 has a proposal in to United Way for $3000 to fund work to develop a strategy for the next legislative session. We will amend that proposal to seek funding for the retreat planning and than the retreat itself.
Steve suggested we look at the Business Plan, specifically pages 25-27 on the Roles and Responsibilities of OR 211, and pages 44-45 on challenges. The current Business Plan is visionary, but not realistic. Using the plan as a place to start, and develop steps to achieve the roles and responsibilities while meeting the challenges.
The retreat should include:
Additional suggestions / discussion
Possible retreat facilitator: Start with Kay Sohl. Have a two hour discussion with Kay to define the work and the details for the retreat. If Kay is not available to facilitate the retreat, ask her who she thinks can lead us through this difficult discussion. Other suggestions include Cindy Becker and Ken Allen.
Jonathan offered to contribute his own funds to make the retreat a success. He offered $100. Others chimed in to his challenge. Jeri will send a letter to the Board to solicit personal contributions, with information on where the checks should be made out to for tax purposes.
Possible retreat dates to float with Kay: November 6, 7, 8, 16 or 1st.
Financial Report
Len had a report, but since it was not on the agenda, and there has been no change since last month, it was tabled until next meeting.
Next Meeting: Tentatively set for Sept. 26, from 9-noon. Jeri will confirm.
Meeting adjourned.
OR 211 Board of Directors
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
9:00 AM - Noon
Oregon Department of Emergency Management
Attendance: Jeri Shumate, Jonathan Brock, Stephen Guntli, Len Hockley, Kathleen McHarg, Jimi Smith, Wendy VanElverdinghe, June Harris
Welcome and Introductions
Meeting Minutes Approved
In the May minutes, on page 3, change HTML to XML.
Kathleen McHarg moved and June Harris seconded approval of the May minutes as amended. Motion approved unanimously.
Financial Report
Jeri Shumate will check out the end of the State fiscal year situation. If it is a problem she will use money to pay telephone companies for Southern Oregon set-up.
Kathleen McHarg moved and Len Hockley seconded acceptance of financial report. Motion approved unanimously.
Regional Updates
Lane 211
We successfully raised the budget of $5000. The funds arrived yesterday. A full update is coming this fall. Currently we are checking all numbers in the database, and will complete the review this week. Next year's budget is $40,000 - just for The Lane (database). We are asking members to double their contributions from this year. The Lane will be moved to the United Way of Lane County website for more visibility and more traffic.
Reports
AIRS Conference
Jeri said this is her seventh AIRS conference, and she continues to go because she gains new information every time. 2-1-1 is maturing, from "How to do it" to "How to improve it", "How to cross states", "How to back-up other states in crisis" (hurricanes, etc), and how to fund this work. Jeri attended the State Directors meeting for the first time. They hold monthly conference calls with about 25 states participating.
Jimi stated that the emergency uses (hurricanes) workshop was very helpful. Kathleen attended the Aging and Disability Services track. The article by women involved in Katrina, found in the AIRS Journal is very good.
Mention was made of the Monroe report on Katrina.
Database update: Iris / Tapestry / Sun Coast
Referred Iris Service Point North Point
Alliance Vision Link Bowman Systems Resource House
XML - specifics - not a final schema
Vendors create an XML export tool (four done)
Vendors create an XML import tool
It has been declared final, but continues to be revised.
All have web presences.
To access the database go to http://www.211info.org/.
OR 211 website Update: see handout.
What is the purpose of the website?
Should it include a user name and password?
Should it have a calendar?
We walked through the 12 proposed pages of the website and gave feedback.
Verizon and cell phones - Verizon, in theory has been done. Jeri was told in May that it could be done by June 30; but calls are not coming in yet. Jeri participated in a workshop at the AIRS conference on how to get cell phones turned on to 211. She hopes to work on this for 211info in the near future.
Pay phones will be more difficult to have switched, and are not going to be included in the near future.
Use of National Logo - co-branding is ok. The application is available on-line. Jeri has it. Logo Guidelines including color palette and are sent once approved. No alterations are allowed, including putting the outline of the state around the national logo.
Review Call Center Application:
Wendy VanElverdinghe moved and Kathleen McHarg seconded approval of the Application to be a 211 Call Center in Oregon. The motion was approved unanimously.
Strategy Discussion
Jeri created handouts to discuss Legislative Mandates and a worksheet for outlining which agency (OR 211 and / or 211info) is able to accomplish the work outlined in the legislation)
Funding is the big question for OR 211, or for any agency taking on the work. We need to review the business plan, and update for the next 2 - 3 years.
Jeri drafted a history of 2-1-1 in Oregon. All board members need to read the history and the business plan.
Next steps:
Others to invite to the retreat: Priscilla, David Foster, Ellen Lowe, Lowell Greathouse and Liesl Wendt.
Meeting adjourned.
OR 211 Board of Directors
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
10:00 AM - Noon
Oregon Department of Emergency Management
Attendance: Jeri Shumate, Jonathan Brock, Stephen Guntli, Kathleen McHarg, Jimi Smith, Roy Spurgeon, Wendy VanElverdinghe, June Harris
Welcome and Introductions
Meeting Minutes Approved
In the March minutes, Wendy's named is misspelled (Windy) on page two, in the bullet
"we form a legislative sub-committee (Roy, Lou, Stephen, Wendy, ask Jeri)."
Wendy VanElverdinghe moved and Jonathan Brock seconded approval of the March minutes as amended. Motion approved unanimously.
Wendy VanElverdinghe moved and Jimi Smith seconded approval of the January minutes. Motion approved unanimously.
Marcia Suttenberg submitted her resignation from the board for medical reasons. The Board accepted her resignation.
Financial Report
Len Hockley was unable to attend the Board meeting. We do not have a financial report. Jeri gave a brief summary. OR 211 received $5500 from DHS in late December, 2005. She will follow-up with DHS for the date by which the funds must be spent, and to report on how the funds expended to date have been spent. Jeri stated there has been no change in the financial statement since the March report.
Jonathan Brock moved and Wendy VanElverdinghe seconded that DHS be asked if $500 can be used for administration of the grant by 211info. Motion approved unanimously.
Regional Updates
Lane 211
Large community support and development of 2-1-1 in Lane County. Currently they have no funding. They are waiting for federal funding for 2-1-1. Follow-up is happening with current partners to fund "The Lane" database - http://www.thelane.info/ and to ask partners to consider adding funding to their next fiscal year budget. Lane 211 is a priority for Priscilla Gould, Executive Director of United Way of Lane County, and she will be fundraising from private foundations. June recently learned that the Lane County Commission for Children and Families has prioritized Information and Referral and she will be following up with them to find out more about their intents.
211info
Jeri is pleased to announce that 211info passed their AIRS accreditation.
SW Washington will be adding three counties to the 211info network - Skamania, Cowlitz and Wahkiakum. It is already a large call center, serving more than 1.9 million people. It is the biggest in the tri-state region. With the addition of the three Washington Counties it will serve over 2 million people.
Washington State Legislature awarded $2.5 million in operating expenses from the State General Fund for the 2-1-1 network serving Washington. Multnomah County again declined to give funds to 211info, yet they have the biggest population base and generate the most calls.
Reports
Website update: The site still says "under construction". We contracted in November to have this work done, and paid the consultant in December. Jeri will follow-up with Shawn Michael who worked with the contractor to find out why it still says under construction, and when it will be completed.
Filing of State and Federal Documents: All state documents have been filed. The federal documents were submitted to the IRS November 28, 2005. Jeri received a letter from the IRS on December 23, 2005 stating the documents had been received. She called in mid-April to find out the status of our submission. It had not yet been assigned to a case manager.
Washington State 211 Developments: UCN Telecom completing state paperwork / RFP. The work was awarded to UCN. Jeri has visited several other states. Jeri asked if she should encourage WIN 211/UCN to keep the door open for Oregon participation. We do not make a commitment at this point.
Verizon and other telecommunication items: 211info has signed an agreement with Verizon, and the service should be turned on at this point. The final agreement was an improvement from the original proposal.
AIRS Conference will take place in two weeks. Jeri is attending and will participate in workshops on "How to turn cell phone on in 60 days" and also one on pay phone service.
Office of Emergency Management Meeting: Jonathan Brock, Ken Keim and Ken Murphy with the Office of Emergency Management met with Jeri Shumate to discuss the timeline for implementation of the legislation from last session (HB 3443). The 9-1-1 managers are meeting on May 31. Jeri will do a presentation on 2-1-1 and how the two systems compliment each other.
Review of Oregon Legislation
ORS 401.260 to .325 (implemented HB 3443).
At the last board meeting we agreed to pursue funding from the State in the 2007 session.
Jeri has asked for permission from the United Way of America for OR 211 to use the national logo with the change of OR instead of UW/AIRS.
Section 5 - database, does the database need to be on-line, or can it be in print? Do the databases need to be able to share information with other call centers in the state? A variety of database software is currently being used - Service Point, Iris, Tapestry. Currently these database do not share information. AIRS is working on HTML for databases to speak t each other. Export and import of information - works one way only at this time.
Section 5 (3) - need to define funding / financial capacity. Then need to decide if OR 211 fit this definition.
Section 6 - explains the need for call center applications.
Section 7 - hotline - need a definition; does "Flu Shot Shortage Hot Line" fit the definition?
Section 8 is the funding section - no funds from State of Oregon or Office of Emergency Management.
Section 9 sets up a separate dedicated fund for 211 so that it is not part of the Oregon General Fund.
Federal S211 legislation requests $150 million for two years.
OR 211 / 211info
It would take a lot of work for OR 211 to meet the requirements of HB 3443. Should we consider having 211info be the non-profit to receive statewide funding? Who enforces the standards since there are no funds to do this in the legislation? Will 211info want to accept this responsibility?
Pro - Why 211info is a good choice
Con - obstacles for 211info to fulfill requirements of HB 3443
Other Questions and Ideas
For OR 211 to assume responsibilities outlined in the legislation:
Pro: They have the desire and passion
Con: Do not have the capacity - no staff
Currently not a fundraising board
Questions and Ideas
Call Center Application
Need an entity to review the applications. Should that be the OR 211 Board, a committee, and if a committee only Board members or interested partners as well?
Jimi shared additional changes with Jeri. Those changes will be incorporated in the document and the revised document will be sent to Board members. All Board members present agreed to review the document and come to the next meeting prepared to approve the Call Center Application.
Next Meeting
Because of the amount of work to be completed, the Board agreed to meet monthly for the next two months and then evaluate if we should continue to meet monthly.
The meetings are scheduled for:
Wednesday, June 28 from 9:00 AM to Noon at Oregon Department of Emergency Management, 3225 State Street in Salem.
Wednesday, July 26 from 9:00 AM to Noon at Oregon Department of Emergency Management, 3225 State Street in Salem.Or 211
Board Minutes
March 06
Present: Wendy VanElverdinghe (Community Action Directors of Oregon), Jim Cooper (White Bird Data Base Coordinator), Len Hockley, Lou Enge, Jimi Smith (Community Action, Hillsboro), Jonathan Brock (state police), Stephen Guntli (Or Child Care R&R), Roy Spurgeon (Family Connections of Douglass County), Vena Williams (Lane Family Connections, Guest).
No past minutes available
Elections: Roy elected Vice Chair, Len made the motion, Jimi seconded. Wendy motioned to elect Stephen Guntli to the board, Roy seconded, unanimous.
Legal Status: Still waiting, Shawn Michael (TACS) submitted two months ago.
Call Center Updates:
Lane 211 - Getting data base connected to XML standard. Stream lining data to Tapestry. Pushing Tapestry to see if they are really XML compatible.
211 Info - Hiring another staff for resource department. Call volume increasing with no advertising. Staff can't quite keep up with call volume. Closing in on Verizon contract. Agreed on a price, working on language and minor issues.
Douglas County-Software up by April, have grants submitted to pay for personnel. Clustering all I&R (including Warmline, 211, R&R Parent referrals, and Medicaid transportation) under the same staff person at Douglas Co. Family Connections. Using Service Point. Partnering with Jackson County on joint grant proposals.
Format for Call Center Applications - Jimi suggested numerous edits and noted suggested edits to share with Jeri. We'll ask Jeri to resend draft out to Board prior to next meeting. We'll look at it again during the next meeting. Jimi suggested making generic dates for application deadlines (3 mos, 6 mos, etc.). On page three she suggested reducing redundant language ("obtained from...submitted to...). On page four why define "human services" rather that I&R and 211 service? The OR 211 standards should be listed under the OR211 wide standards. Everyone liked the "What must be in place..." section. It was noted that this was pirated from Washington State. Are we going to make the questions about I&R data optional? On page 11 should we add veterans, disabled, employment, DHS...? There is a place to add others. Let's add a page which applicants could copy to explain their relationships. Says to mail to CADO - update that address.
Proposal to Request Funding from OR Legislature - Washington State got $1 million from their legislature for capital expenses last year, and has approved $2.5 million for operating expenses this year. The Oregon budget is looking better. We might keep the corporate kicker. There is one time lottery money. This might be a good time to ask for $ if we can make a good argument. Argue that, in a long run, it saves money to put money into 211. We have natural allies such as Douglas County, where 911 lines were jammed up during floods.
It was proposed that we:
Suggested that we invite Kathleen McHarg to join the legislative committee.
The 911 Association also has a lobbyist. We should ask that person if they will embrace our 211 talking points. People running for Governor should receive our 211 talking points this summer. Ellen Lowe will know the time line which we need to follow.
We need to further define our relationship to the Office of Emergency Management. Let's put that on the agenda for the next meeting and review language which is in the existing bill (bill that defined the 211 structure in OR.). This review will help us kick off a discussion. We should discuss clarifying relationships between 911, 211 and office of Emergency Management. Do we need a memo of agreement with OEM?
On May 24th our Legislative subcommittee should meet at 9a.m.
Schedule presentation from UCN Telecommunication to OR211. Jimi to ask Jeri to schedule them for Board meeting.
Next Board Meeting: May 24th, 10a.m.-12noon, preceded by a 9a.m. Legislative Committee meeting.
Both meetings will be at OR Dept of State Policed in Salem,
3225 State Street, Corner of State and Hawthorn (exit 253 off Interstate 5 from either direction) If you get lost their phone number is 378-2911.Present:
Jeri Shumate, 211info (Portland Metro Area)
Len Hockley, White Bird Clinic (Lane County)
Lou Enge, Lane County
June Harris, United Way (Lane County)
Roy Spurgeon, UCAN (Douglas County)
Marcia Suttenberg, Portland Women's Crisis Line
Jimi Smith, CAO (Washington County)
Kathleen McHarg, Multnomah County Aging
Wendy VanElverdinghe, Community Action Directors of Oregon
Discussion Items:
LUNCH BREAK
Adjourned at 2:05pm