January 2020 

As we begin a new year, and indeed a new decade, I am engaged in my usual practice of reflecting on our work over the past 12 months. 2019 was in many ways a great year for Sierra Health Foundation and The Center at Sierra Health Foundation. We made considerable progress in our commitment to work more closely with Native American communities, and launched projects focused on violence interruption, opioid use treatment and recovery, and youth substance use prevention and education. These efforts were designed with public sector and community partners who are committed to improving health and well-being in a manner that is consistent with the values and practices we hold dear — cross-sector and collaborative work, with truth, data, respect and community at the center of all we do.

However, there was another side to 2019, which I also have been reflecting on. As an institution committed to health equity, inclusion and justice, we were alarmed by the neglect and abuse of immigrant children along our southern border, the lack of access to behavioral health care, the rising numbers of individuals and families experiencing homelessness in cities and rural communities, and numerous attempts to limit who would be counted in the upcoming census. Perhaps most concerning is that this list is much, much longer. In a year in which many of the measures we watch at the institutional level were very positive, the number and scale of the challenges facing poor and marginalized communities grew considerably. Like many of you, we are very concerned by what we are seeing, but we also are heartened by the unwavering commitment, adaptability and determination of our partners to respond to any issue that arises. As always, we will join them by working to ensure that all children and families are supported and treated with respect and dignity, regardless of their immigration status, that behavioral health and substance use disorder services are accessible in every community, and that every Californian is counted in the census. In addition, for the first time in our history, affordable housing and economic development will join our list of priorities.

We understand the challenges we are facing are considerable and more than any single institution can solve alone, but we believe that if we continue to work together, we can make 2020 the start of the best decade ever for everyone who calls California home.

Chet P. Hewitt
President and CEO

In 2017, Sacramento’s teens were twice as likely to be killed by homicide than the general population, a Sacramento Bee analysis at the time found. By the end of 2019, not a single juvenile was the victim of murder within the city limits, according to new crime data from the Sacramento Police Department. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said he credits progress on this issue in part to increased programming and opportunities for youth funded through city initiatives with organizations such as the Black Child Legacy Campaign, Sierra Health Foundation and other community leaders. Read the full article in The Sacramento Bee.

Watch this video to learn about Healing the Hood, the Black Child Legacy Campaign’s violence prevention, intervention and interruption initiative.

The Positive Youth Justice Initiative (PYJI) is helping communities across California transform juvenile justice practice and policy into a more just, effective system that is aligned with young people’s developmental needs. In 11 California counties, PYJI supports community-based organizations that are working in partnership with grassroots organizations and youth and family members most impacted by the juvenile justice system. Each coalition has tailored its community organizing and advocacy activities to the policy context in its county. Together, they are accelerating a statewide movement toward a healthy juvenile justice system – focused on youth well-being, improved system practices and reduced justice system involvement.

PYJI’s external evaluation team from the National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD) have found that the coalitions’ “work to transform juvenile corrections is innovative, aligns with best practices and promising approaches, and is often on the leading edge of youth justice reform efforts.” In addition, they identify many successes achieved by the coalitions, including engagement of youth in advocacy and organizing, disruptions to the school-to-prison pipeline, increased use of diversion strategies and others. NCCD presents their findings in four briefs that describe the coalitions’ activities and accomplishments, and demonstrate the power of community- and youth-led advocacy for a healthier youth justice system.

The Center at Sierra Health Foundation was awarded the California Department of Health Care Services Proposition 64 Youth Substance Use Disorder Prevention Program contract. This statewide program will provide $20 million in funding and technical assistance for organizations that are developing or increasing community substance use disorder prevention, outreach and education focused on youth. Grants up to $1 million are available for community-based organizations and Tribal organizations that strive for health equity and that will work on specific culturally and linguistically appropriate prevention, outreach and education projects focused on youth ages 12 to 26.

Applications are due by Feb. 6 at 1 p.m. Learn more on the Youth Substance Use Disorder Prevention Program web page.

Health Leadership Program
Since 2001, our Health Leadership Program has supported 365 health and social service executives in Northern California and the San Joaquin Valley who work to improve community health and well-being and reduce health and racial disparities. The program has continued to evolve to best meet the needs of nonprofit and public agency leaders, while aligning with Sierra Health Foundation’s mission and vision. We will not be accepting applications in 2020 while we continue to receive feedback on the program and plan for the next phase of this work. We will provide any updates in Partnerships and on the Health Leadership Program web page.

Responsive Grants Program
Our Responsive Grants Program is one of our longstanding funding efforts, with $8.3 million awarded to support community-driven efforts to improve health, promote access and reduce health inequity throughout our 26-county funding region since 2008. The program is on hold this year and we will not be accepting funding applications. Please look for any updates in Partnerships and on the Responsive Grants Program web page.

With Census 2020 fast approaching, we and our census outreach partners are increasing efforts to ensure all Californians are counted – particularly hard-to-count individuals and families who are at risk of not being included in the census.

Recent funding from The Center at Sierra Health Foundation will support 63 community-based organizations throughout the San Joaquin Valley’s nine counties and across California’s Census Region 6, which includes Fresno, Inyo, Kern, Kings and Tulare counties. The trusted community organizations are providing hands-on, high-touch, linguistically and culturally appropriate census outreach to hard-to count communities. Read the news release.

In March 2019, the State of California announced The Center as one of its 10 Administrative Community Based Organization (ACBO) partners funded to promote increased participation of hard-to-count populations in Census 2020. Also, through the San Joaquin Valley Health Fund, 13 philanthropic partners pooled funding to support capacity building, grantmaking, advocacy, communications and networking to further support a fair and complete count. In addition to our work in Region 6, The Center is partnering with the Sacramento Region Community Foundation – the ACBO in Region 1 – to support outreach in hard-to-count census tracts in Northern California.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 27 voted 5-4 to grant the Trump administration’s request to lift a lower court’s injunction that had blocked the so-called public charge policy, which denies legal permanent residency to certain immigrants deemed likely to require government assistance in the future. Litigation over the legality of the public charge policy continues. Learn more in this New York Times article.

California State Senator Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, is sponsoring a bill arguing that 18- and 19-year-olds are not mature enough to serve time in prison if they break the law and should be treated as juveniles. Under the proposed bill, 20 would be the new age at which someone would automatically face criminal charges as an adult. Learn more in this Sacramento Bee report.