ORANGE COUNTY ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER COMMUNITY ALLIANCE

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[; of the Accountant, and additional in -kind staffing support provided by the Program Manager, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Director of Finance and Administration, Executive Director, and support from our Youth Program Coordinators and county -funded WIA program staff. OCAPICA leverages additional support from Wells Fargo, County of Orange, Health Care Agency, Southern California Edison, and College Access Foundation to continue to support adequate staffing. E. Since 2010, OCAPICA has been operating an OC WIB-funded Youth Employment Program. Staff members (both funded and in -kind) have extensive experience in delivering WIA services to the youth population in Orange County. If funded, OCAPICA is proposing to dedicate two experienced staff members to serve Santa Ana youth, each of whom have served as WIA case managers. Additionally, these staff members are bilingual in either Spanish or Vietnamese. III. PROBLEM STATEMENT A. OCAPICA has found a high concentration of youth and young adults who are trying to move beyond their barriers and challenging histories that sometimes prevent them from finding and obtaining higher wage career opportunities. These young adults have a past history that makes it challenging to enter into a new profession. Their opportunities are limited resulting in a variety of negative outcomes including remaining in non -living wage jobs, returning to gang life, homelessness, dropping out of school, and unemployment. IV. BARRIERS A. OCAPICA will focus this program upon serving low-income young adults aged 16 through 21. Among this population, OCAPICA will focus on: Foster andlor Emancipated Youth: OCAPICA currently works with Rising Tide from the Orangewood Children's Foundation to provide a coordinated service approach. OCAPICA staff maintain regular communication with Rising Tide staff to ensure that services and activities from each agency complement each other. In addition, OCAPICA participates on the Department of Social Services ERDD (Eliminating Racial Disparities and Disproportionality) Advisory Group to address the issue of minority children in the Social Service system and networks with these partners to receive additional referrals. Youth with Disabilities: OCAPICA receives referrals from and works with the workability programs at various schools and colleges, and partners with the Department of Rehabilitation to serve this population. OCAPICA staff coordinate with school and Rehab staff to ensure that the participants are receiving coordinated and complementary services from each agency. Youth on Probation: In the past two years of the Youth Employment Program, OCAPICA has worked very closely with the Orange County Probation Department. In particular, OCAPICA staff members, including the Youth Employment Program Manager, serve on the Department's Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative (JDAI), a proven method of assigning the least restrictive community -based rehabilitative alternatives for low -risk offenders who do not pose a risk to public safety. OCAPICA receives referrals directly from Probation Department programs such as the Center for Opportunity, ReEntry, and Education (CORE) and EXHIBIT A