December 2020 

As the year comes to a close, we wish all of our partners a happy holiday season and offer our partnership as we work to recover and build a better future in the weeks and months ahead. Please read our holiday message to partners. Our offices will be closed Dec. 24 through Jan. 1.

As part of its $7 million commitment to advance racial equity and support student mental wellness in communities most impacted by COVID-19, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative has awarded The Center at Sierra Health Foundation $1.5 million to provide support to improve the mental health and well-being of young men of color in California’s Central Valley. The program will increase social-emotional and other wraparound supports within schools, as well as promote policy and systems change to reallocate public resources from punitive measures to counseling, mental health and identity-affirming resources for young people, their families and the staff who serve them. Other grant recipients are First Nations Development Institute, Forward Promise, Hogg Foundation for Mental Health at the University of Texas at Austin, and The Skillman Foundation. We will share updates in future issues of Partnerships.

The Center at Sierra Health Foundation is pleased to announce in partnership with the California Department of Health Care Services a funding opportunity to support syringe services programs to implement projects offering low-barrier access to treatment of opioid use disorder, as well as related supportive services such as case management and peer support. Access the request for applications for funding information and application instructions. Access Questions and Answers and the overview webinar and presentation slides on the MAT Access Points Project web site.

The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 15 voted to approve the establishment of a county Health Authority Commission to improve Medi-Cal services. This decision follows nearly two years of convening and advocacy among The Center at Sierra Health Foundation and a broad coalition of stakeholders including Senator Dr. Richard Pan, Sacramento County Health Director Dr. Peter Beilenson, and a number of community partners committed to a more equitable system that will better serve patients, providers and our community.

Sierra Health Foundation and The Center have an opening for an evaluation officer. Visit our Employment Opportunities web page to learn about the position and apply online.

Thank you to the 70 organizations from across the San Joaquin Valley that applied for one of two funding opportunities: COVID-19 Recovery and Resiliency Advocacy and IHHEEL (Immigration, Health, Housing, Education, Environmental Justice, and Land Use and Planning) Policy Advocacy. Both funding programs will provide organizations up to $50,000 to support policy and systems change activities that advance the San Joaquin Valley Health Fund’s IHEEL Policy Platform. Applications are being reviewed and successful applicants will be notified by late January.

A donor-advised fund at the Chicago Community Trust recently awarded $500,000 to the San Joaquin Valley Health Fund. The funding will be used to advance policy recommendations that emerged from the COVID-19 Farmworker Study coordinated by California Institute for Rural Studies. The San Joaquin Valley Health Fund intends to award two 18- to 24-month grants of $220,000 each to community organizations at the forefront of advancing policy and systems change solutions that support farmworkers in the San Joaquin Valley and beyond. The open request for applications will be available in late January.

The San Joaquin Valley Health Fund COVID-19 Response Cluster supported the COVID-19 Farmworker Study’s focus in the San Joaquin Valley. The study’s findings and policy recommendations have been disseminated broadly since July through the press, public and policymaker briefings, and on partners’ web sites. Learn more on the COVID-19 Farmworker Study web site.

Prevention Institute webinar: Promoting Connectedness For Trauma and Suicide Prevention: Needs and Opportunities to Address Social Isolation in a Pandemic
As physical distancing recommendations continue to be important to slow the spread of COVID-19, local governments and community-based partners are seeking to better address social isolation and loneliness. Access the Promoting Connectedness webinar and resources on the Prevention Institute web site.

California Budget & Policy Center Data Hit: Many California Children Do Not Have Enough to Eat During COVID-19
Nearly one in four California low-income households with children surveyed from late August through October reported sometimes or often not having enough food to eat, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau looking at how COVID-19 is affecting households. Learn more on the California Budget & Policy Center web site.