Community Action Association News Update
Community Action Association News Update
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CAAP News Update
www.thecaap.org
CAAP Has a New Website
Yes, it’s true! CAAP is excited to announce the launch of our new website. Our domain name, www.thecaap.org, is still the same. But! We have a new look and much better functionality. Here are some of the highlights:
  • Your agency can now register for CAAP’s Annual Conference directly on our website. Paying with a credit card and registering multiple people at once will be much easier.
  • All of our forms will be online now. That includes registration for trainings, events, Self-Sufficiency Award application, etc. No more faxing and emailing.
  • We’ve added success stories which feature your Self-Sufficiency Award winners.
  • We’ve added an interactive location map of all CAAP members.
  • There are many more resources and other gems that you can discover at www.thecaap.org
TIP: Anything colored or highlighted in GREEN on CAAP's new website is "clickable". In other words, if you click on the green highlighted word or phrase, you will be directed to additional content. 
New Conference Webpage
Conference registration and completing your Self-Sufficiency Award (SSA) and Distinguished Service Award (DSA) nomination applications should get much easier. And more good news—those forms are on the new website right now! The deadline to complete your award nomination applications is November 25, 2015. The biggest change with the submission process is that the entire process is now online. You will download all the necessary forms from CAAP's new website, complete the forms, save them to your computer, and upload the forms right to the online application page. No more emailing or faxing individual files. No more mailing your application to CAAP's office. Bonus: that makes us a little more eco-friendly too.

  • CLICK HERE to view and submit your nomination for a Self-Sufficiency Award

  • CLICK HERE to view and submit your nomination for a Distinguished Service Award

  • CLICK HERE to view and submit a Workshop Presenter application
Senator Robert P. Casey Visits Community Action Southwest
Community Action Southwest received a very welcome visitor on August 21st.  CAS has had the opportunity over the past 2 years to spend time with Senator Casey’s Regional Representative on various initiatives.  He was so impressed with the work CAS does in the community that he shared those great things with the Senator.  So, when Senator Casey had a scheduled meeting in Washington County, he made a point to extend his visit to include a tour of CAS Washington County Headquarters and agreed to hear a presentation of the services CAS provides.
Senator Casey toured four Head Start Centers, a WIC clinic, a Computer Learning Center, the case management operations, and the CAS administrative offices.  He spoke at length with teachers, case workers, and a few clients who were in the building at the time.  He was very impressed with the tenure of many CAS employees; two that he met have been with the agency 42 and 30 years respectively. 
The presentation included a comprehensive look at all services and significant client outcomes.  Following the presentation, Senator Casey engaged in lively dialogue with senior staff and our board about the challenges our clients face on a daily basis. 
The Senator was very positive about his visit to CAS and gave the organization an “A+” upon his departure. 
ROMA Training Update
CAAP recognizes the adverse impact that the state budget impasse has had on local agency budgets. Given the need to limit staff travel due to constrained budgets, the fall statewide ROMA training has been cancelled.  The next statewide ROMA training will be held on April 19, 2016, the day before the CAAP Annual Conference. CLICK HERE to visit CAAP’s ROMA webpage where you can find additional training content and updated registration information. 
October is Weatherization Month
Culminating with October 30 as Weatherization Day, October is a time to promote the Weatherization Assistance Program.  Looking for ideas?  Check out NASCSP's blog, 29 Days and Counting to Weatherization Day 2015!, or the WAPTAC website.
 
Make sure to join the conversation with #weatherization or #WXDayOct30
2015 Pennsylvania Food Security Summit
On September 29, the 2015 Pennsylvania Food Security Summit was held at the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg. The summit was sponsored by the Departments of Aging, Agriculture, Education, Community and Economic Development, Health, and Human Services. All six cabinet secretaries participated in a state government panel discussion to address coordinating hunger issues within the public sector. The highlight of the event was when Governor Tom Wolf addressed the serious problem of hunger and inadequate nutrition in the commonwealth by issuing an executive order to coordinate Pennsylvania’s food and nutrition programs. The governor appointed an advisor to lead a newly-formed Governor’s Food Security Partnership.
In addition to the governor’s executive order, the Food Security Summit also engaged non-profits and other industry stakeholders. The event aimed to re-frame the hunger issue during Hunger Action Month in September, launching a five-month effort to update the “Blueprint for a Hunger-Free Pennsylvania”. The blueprint will outline goals, objectives, and specific steps that need to be taken in the upcoming years in moving towards becoming a hunger-free state.
To view Governor Wolf’s full executive order on food security, click here.
Economic Growth Leaves the Poorest Americans Behind
On September 21, the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) released a new report on poverty and economic growth. Using the Census Bureau's poverty and income data for 2014, CHN’s report shows that even under the optimistic assumption that poverty continues to decline at the same rate it did from 2013 to 2014, it would take until 2040 for the poverty rate to be cut in half, down to 7.7 percent.  At a time when many Americans are dissatisfied with the disproportionate economic gains by those with high incomes, the report points to advances by the top 5 percent (with average incomes rising from about $325,000 to $346,000 - in 2014 dollars - since 2010), and losses in the bottom fifth (from about $12,300 down to $11,900 over the same period).  Although poverty declined from 15.8 percent to 15.5 percent from 2013 to 2014, it was still higher than it was in 2010 (15.3 percent in that year).  More than one in five children were poor, with about one in three African American and Latino children in poverty. 
CLICK HERE to read the full report. 
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