REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF THE COUNTY OF SAN BERNARDINO
AND RECORD OF ACTION
June 9, 2020
FROM
MICHELLE SCRAY BROWN, Chief Probation Officer, Probation Department
SUBJECT
Title
Agreement for the REACH Program
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Agreement with the University of Redlands, The Beat Within, and San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools for the Read, Empower, Attain, Create, Hope Program to build emotional literacy, critical thinking and writing skills for youth within the Probation Department’s detention and treatment facilities, for the period of July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2025, in an amount not to exceed $40,000.
(Presenter: Julie Francis, Deputy Chief Probation Officer, 387-5786)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of additional Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total not to exceed contract of $40,000 for the five-year contract period will fund the Blank Slate Theater Workshops that develops and produces plays annually. Adequate appropriation will be included in the Probation Department’s 2020-21 recommended budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Probation Department (Department) operates the Central Valley Juvenile Detention and Assessment Center (CVJDAC) in San Bernardino to house youth in a safe and secure environment with a variety of educational and recreational programs. The Department has collaborated with the University of Redlands’ Race and Ethnic Studies Program and Office of Community Service Learning (University); The Beat Within, a national magazine for in-custody youth; and the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) for the past ten years to provide the Read, Empower, Attain, Create, Hope (REACH) Program to detained youth at the CVJDAC, as well as participants housed at the Regional Youth Educational Facility and Gateway Program (Gateway).
The REACH Program is designed to allow University students and faculty, who have been cleared by the Department’s Volunteer Unit, to supplement the Schools’ educational curriculum by working with teachers to build mentoring relationships, conduct tutoring and writing workshops, and lead discussions that build emotional literacy, critical thinking and writing skills to Department youth at CVJDAC and at Gateway. In addition, the University faculty teach “Inside Out” classes that include students from both Gateway and the University in a shared college classroom, for which Gateway students receive free college credits. The REACH program sponsors a Blank Slate Theater Ensemble, which develops and produces play(s) annually. Student writings may be published by the Department or by The Beat Within, with the goal of recognizing their work, thereby contributing to the youth’s self-expression, self-worth and rehabilitation.
Approval of this Agreement will allow the continuation of the REACH Program services to detained youth for the period of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2025. Either party may terminate upon 30 days’ written notice.
PROCUREMENT
Not Applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Jamie Ryan, Deputy County Counsel, 387-3088) on April 6, 2020; Purchasing Department (Michelle Churchill, Lead Buyer, 387-2070) on April 23, 2020; Finance (Carolina Mendoza, Administrative Analyst, 387-0294) on May 18, 2020; and County Finance and Administration (Kelly Welty, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-4376) on May 18, 2020.