REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
July 23, 2024
FROM
JACQUELYN GREENE, Director, Preschool Services Department
SUBJECT
Title
Contract with Mendes Training and Consulting, Inc. for Training and Consulting Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve contract with Mendes Training and Consulting, Inc., to provide training and consulting services, in the amount of $420,000, for the period of August 1, 2024, through July 31, 2026.
(Presenter: Arlene Molina, Assistant Director, 383-2078)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health, and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). This contract is federally funded by a United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families grant. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Preschool Services Department’s (PSD) 2024-25 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Federal Office of Head Start places a strong focus on staff health and wellness, including training and development on self-care, crisis response, and disaster preparedness. Mendes Training and Consulting, Inc. (Mendes) provides training on resiliency during crisis and emotional intelligence in early education settings using self-care approaches and coaching strategies. The recommended contract will allow Mendes to provide training to PSD management and teach staff resiliency and emotional intelligence, to improve problem solving skills and crisis response techniques, and increase job satisfaction.
PSD operates Head Start, Early Head Start, and State Preschool programs that provide comprehensive child development and family services that include education, health, nutrition, parent involvement, and psychological services for children ages 0 to 5 and their families. The overall goal of these programs is to increase the health and school readiness of disadvantaged children and increase the self-sufficiency of low-income families. PSD has contracted with Mendes to provide training for its staff since 2022. The recommended contract with Mendes will allow PSD staff to continue to develop skills promoting health and wellness.
Mendes’ performance will be monitored by the review of monthly reports to ensure compliance with the administrative, program, and fiscal terms and conditions of the contract. Mendes will cooperate with the County in the monitoring and evaluation of this contract and comply with any, and all reporting requirements established by this contract. Mendes’ invoicing must be for services provided under this funded program. The County reserves the right to request additional program and/or fiscal reports to facilitate this monthly review. The contract may be terminated without cause by the County with 30 days written notice.
PROCUREMENT
Mendes is an expert in resiliency training during crisis and emotional intelligence in early education settings. Mendes also has provided coaching to multiple County early education programs and combines leadership training with early education environment coaching strategies. The Purchasing Department supports the non-competitive procurement of the services from Mendes based on specialized expertise.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services Contracts (Patty Steven, Contracts Manager, 388-0241) on June 5, 2024; County Counsel (Adam Ebright, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on June 12, 2024; Purchasing (Ariel Gil, Supervising Buyer, 387-2148) on June 18, 2024; Finance (Paul Garcia, Administrative Analyst, 386-8392) on June 25, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on July 5, 2024.