REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
May 19, 2026
FROM
JEANY GLASGOW, Director, Children and Family Services
SUBJECT
Title
Contracts for Child and Family Team Facilitator Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve contracts with the following agencies to provide Child and Family Team facilitator services for Child and Family Team meetings, in an aggregate total amount not to exceed $8,400,000, for the contract period of July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029:
1. A Coming of Age to Adulthood Inc., dba A Coming of Age Foster Family Agency and Counseling Center
2. Berhe Group Home, Inc.
3. Greater Hope Foundation for Children, Inc., dba A Greater Hope
(Presenter: Jeany Glasgow, Director, 658-1181)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total cost of the contracts in aggregate will not exceed $8,400,000, or $2,800,000 per year, and is funded by 70% ($5,880,000) federal funding and 30% ($2,520,000) state funding. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Human Services Administration Claim 2026-27 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The mission of Children and Family Services (CFS) is to protect endangered children, preserve and strengthen their families, and develop alternative family settings. Services mandated by state law and regulation will be provided in the least intrusive manner with a family-centered focus. This mission is accomplished in collaboration with the family, a wide variety of public and private agencies, and members of the community. CFS serves youth with emotional and behavioral challenges, substance abuse disorders, and a history of sexual abuse and running away. The goal is to ensure that youth are provided with a safe environment free from abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
California Assembly Bill 403 (Chapter 773, Statues of 2015), signed on October 11, 2015, enacted the Continuum of Care Reform (CCR). The intent was to have children and youth, who must live apart from their biological parents, live in a permanent home with a committed adult(s) who can meet their needs. The CCR made sweeping changes to California’s child welfare system including, but not limited to, providing services and supports to children, youth, and their families that reduce reliance on congregate care, thereby increasing placements in home-based settings. One of the key components of Assembly Bill 403 was to establish Child and Family Teams (CFTs).
The County’s current contract for CFT Facilitator services, Contract No. 21-429, with Victor Community Support Services, Inc. expires on June 30, 2026. Contract No. 21-429 was approved by the Board of Supervisors on June 8, 2021 (Item No. 38). The recommended contracts are needed to continue providing CFT Facilitator services.
CFS conducts approximately 7,070 CFT meetings each year. Under Welfare & Institutions Code section 16501, CFT meetings are required every six months. CFT meetings are convened to address the needs of children by bringing together family members and other individuals who are important in the child’s life to help make decisions and develop a CFT individualized service plan (Plan). The CFT members may include the child, parents, caregivers, relatives, anyone whom the family identifies as a family member, and a CFS Social Worker, Probation Officer, or DBH Clinician. To ensure family voice, choice, and ownership of the Plan, every effort is made to ensure that family members and family representatives constitute a minimum of 50% of the CFT. The recommended contracts will allow CFS to conduct approximately 21,210 CFT meetings for the contract period of July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029.
CFT facilitator services include, but are not limited to, coordinating and scheduling the CFT meeting, securing a location convenient for family participation, inviting and informing all participants of the meeting location and time, completing a pre-meeting discussion with the family, preparing all CFT members for participating in the CFT meeting, developing meeting agendas, taking notes, tracking and assigning action items, ensuring absent members are provided with meeting updates, and working collaboratively with all CFT members to meet the needs of the child.
Contractor performance will be monitored by review of monthly reports and an annual monitoring visit by County staff to ensure compliance with the administrative, program, and fiscal terms and conditions of the recommended contracts. The County reserves the right to request additional program and/or fiscal documentation to facilitate monthly reviews. The contracts may be terminated without cause by the County within 30 days advance written notice.
PROCUREMENT
The County Administrative Office approved and authorized the release of Request for Proposals (RFP) No. HSSA25-HSSA-5566 with the Purchasing Department on December 10, 2025, to solicit proposals from interested and qualified agencies to provide CFT facilitator services for a period of three years. The RFP was posted to the County’s Electronic Procurement Network.
Six proposals were received by the established deadline in response to the RFP. Proposals from the six agencies listed below met the minimum requirements and continued through the evaluation process.
|
Proposer Name |
Location |
|
A Coming of Age to Adulthood Inc. dba A Coming of Age Foster Family Agency and Counseling Center (Coming of Age) |
Grand Terrace, CA |
|
Berhe Group Home, Inc. (Berhe) |
San Bernardino, CA |
|
El Sol Neighborhood Education Center |
San Bernardino, CA |
|
Greater Hope Foundation for Children, Inc. dba A Greater Hope (Greater Hope) |
Victorville, CA |
|
Marsell Wellness Center |
Ontario, CA |
|
Sisters of Soul Youth and Family |
Colton, CA |
The evaluation panel, with representation from CFS, reviewed and evaluated the proposals on the criteria listed in the RFP. The criteria included experience providing services, available staffing and resources, qualifications, administrative capability, technical capability, acceptance of the fee-for-service pricing schedule ($150 Referral Acceptance, $250 CFT Meeting, $50 CANS Report), and geographical region/service area served.
Based on the criteria, the evaluation panel determined that Coming of Age, Berhe, and Greater Hope best met the needs of the County. These three vendors were the highest-scoring applicants in the evaluation process, and CFS aims to achieve full geographical coverage of the County by utilizing their services. Award and denial letters were sent to all responsible and responsive proposers on March 9, 2026. No protests were received within the allowable period.
Purchasing supports this competitive procurement based on the formal solicitation described above.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by Human Services (Lisa Rivas-Ordaz, Contracts Manager, 388-0222) on April 21, 2026; County Counsel (Daniella V. Hernandez, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on March 27, 2026; Purchasing (Ariel Gill, Supervising Buyer, 387-2070) on March 30, 2026; and County Finance and Administration (John Hallen, Principal Administrative Analyst, 388-0208) on April 27, 2026.