What is the Community Investment Fund?

In 2018, the Solano County Board of Supervisors embarked on a year-long planning process to identify the most pressing human service needs in the county and created the Community Investment Fund (CIF) to address those needs. The top six needs identified in the Human Services Needs Assessment (HSNA) planning process, in order of priority were:

1. Mental Health
2. Housing
3. Homelessness
4. Early Education
5. Youth Development
6. Safe and Stable Environments for Children

The assessment resulted in the development of a $2 million Community Investment Fund (CIF) with a 3-pronged funding approach to investing in the community, consisting of legacy programs, deep programming, and one-time grants. The CIF is summarized as follows:

$2,000,000 Community Investment Fund
Legacy Programs $450,000 Annually 3 year commitment Addresses many needs	Deep Programs $1,300,000 Annually 3 year commitment   Addresses top 3 needs	One-Time Programs $250,000 Annually 1 year commitment Addresses top 6 needs

First 5 Solano Children and Families Commission, a division of the County Administrator’s Office, manages CIF funds on behalf of the Solano County Board of Supervisors. For questions regarding the Community Investment Fund, please call First 5 Solano at 707-784-1332 or email [email protected].
To read the full annual report on the Community Investment Fund, click here.

Community Investment Fund
Priority Program Areas

Mental Health

Affordable Housing

Homelessness

 

Mental Health

In the highest ranked priority “Mental Health”, the Board of Supervisors (BOS) identified its overarching Community Goal to “Increase access to Solano County’s Mental Health System of Care.” The Board of Supervisors (BOS) decided upon 2 strategies in service of achieving these goals:

Strategy 1. Increase community understanding of how to access mental health services      Strategy 2. Increase provider understanding of how to respond to residents with mental health needs. The BOS significantly invested in two programs to address these strategies: SolanoConnex – SolanoConnex is a free web application available to all residents of Solano County to connect individuals to appropriate mental health services. The existing mental health system of care was mapped by Touro University and translated into the SolanoConnex app. Residents can utilize the free app accessible over the internet on smartphones, tablets, and computers to connect to mental health resources. Additionally, navigators can be accessed via a warm line for those who prefer to talk with someone.

Mental Health First Aid Training – Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Training, an evidenced-based training in how to respond to people who are exhibiting signs of behavioral health challenges. The training is offered at no cost to residents and providers in Solano County. Visit https://www.abetterwayinc.net/training-program-mhfa to view times/dates that MHFA training is available and sign up for your MHFA training today!

Affordable Housing

In the second highest ranked priority “Affordable Housing”, the Board of Supervisors (BOS) noted that the vast majority of residents (over 96%) live within the bounds of a city, which implies that the cities are the primary stakeholders to tackle the supply of affordable housing. That said, the BOS saw a role for themselves by supporting the work of the cities. The BOS identified its overarching Community Goal to “reduce homelessness.” The Board of Supervisors (BOS) decided upon 1 strategy in service of achieving this goal:

Strategy 1. Work with cities to increase the supply of affordable housing The BOS significantly invested in one program to address this strategy: Habitat for Humanity – The BOS invested in a partnership project with Habitat for Humanity and the City of Fairfield. This project creates 3 low-income single-family homes. The project is expected to be completed after 3 years in 2023.

Homelessness

In the 3rd ranked priority “Homelessness”, the Board of Supervisors (BOS) again identified its overarching Community Goal to “Reduce Homelessness.” The Board of Supervisors (BOS) selected 1 strategy for year 1 to support this goal:

Strategy 1. Strengthen capacity to address homelessness

The BOS significantly invested in two programs to address this strategy:
 
Rapid Rehousing – The BOS invested in a rapid rehousing program through Volunteers of America for recentlyhomeless individuals to gain and maintain permanent housing.

Transition-Age Youth Shelter – The BOS supported renovations to a home in Vacaville to create a transition-age youth shelter by Vacaville Solano Services Corporation.

Annual Grants
The Solano County Board of Supervisors (BOS) designated one-time grants that address any of the top 6 needs in the county:

1. Mental health
2. Housing
3. Homelessness
4. Early education
5. Youth development
6. Safe and stable environments for children.

The BOS selects the top proposals each year through a competitive process. For a list of awarded grants, select from the following list:

FY2020/21 Awarded Grants
FY2021/22 Awarded Grants
FY2022/23 Awarded Grants 


FY2020/21 Awarded Grants

Organization	Priority Area	Amount	Program Description
La Clinica de la Raza	Mental Health	$50,000	Provide mental health care
Dixon Unified School District	Mental Health	$50,000	Improve supports for the social, emotional, behavioral, health, and mental health needs of students
On the Move	Youth Development	$49,500	Help system-involved youth transition into healthy adulthood
Fairfield Police Activities League	Youth Development	$50,000	Provide low income or underserved teens with quality paid internship experience to position youth on college/career path
Community Medical Centers	Mental Health	$50,000	Enhance and increase behavioral health services and screenings for low-income residents
Napa Solano SANE SART/Solano Trauma Recovery Center	Homelessness	$49,765	Provide expanded emergency housing support and temporary shelter services for marginalized crime victim populations
Fairfield Suisun USD Family Resource Center	Safe & Stable Environments for Children	$49,684	Provide intensive case management for at-risk families, including supporting their basic needs

FY2021/22 Awarded Grants

Organization	Priority Area	Amount	Program Description
Agape Counseling Center and Network	Mental Health & Youth Development	$25,236	Provide youth workshops centered around anger management, self-esteem, financial planning, communication, resiliency
Kyle Hyland Foundation for Teen Support	Mental Health & Youth Development	$35,000	Provide Benicia youth drop-in center with educational workshops, mental health services
La Clinica de la Raza	Mental Health	$50,000	Provide mental health care
On the Move	Youth Development	$49,764	Offer developmentally appropriate services to former foster youth, homeless youth
Parents by Choice	Youth Development and Safe and Stable Environments for Children	$50,000	Provide Triple P services to parents of youth 13-18 and parents going through separation or divorce
Rio Vista CARE	Mental Health	$40,000	Provide mental health services to uninsured and underinsured Rio Vista residents

FY2022/23 Awarded Grants

Organization	Priority Area	Amount	Program Description
La Clinica de la Raza	Mental Health	$50,000	Provide mental health care
Parents by Choice	Youth Development and Safe and Stable Environments for Children	$50,000	Provide Triple P services to parents of youth 13-18 and parents going through separation or divorce
On the Move	Youth Development	$50,000	Offer developmentally appropriate services to former foster youth, homeless youth
Rio Vista CARE	Mental Health	$50,000	Provide mental health services to uninsured and underinsured Rio Vista residents
Kyle Hyland Foundation for Teen Support	Mental Health & Youth Development	$50,000	Provide Benicia youth drop-in center with educational workshops, mental health services
Napa Solano SANE SART	Housing and Safe and Stable Environments for Children	$50,000	Provide housing support and case management to families with children who have experienced or witnessed domestic violence in the home
Vacaville Solano Services Corporation	Homelessness	$50,000	Linking recently homeless individuals to supportive services and provide case management