HUMAN SERVICES PARTNERSHIP
The Charles County Human Services Partnership was established in July 1999 by the Charles County Commissioners. It is the product of a merger of the Local Management Board, which plans, manages, and evaluates services to families and children, and the Core Services Agency, which plans, manages, and evaluates the public mental health system.
The result is an entity greater than the sum of its parts. Not limited to serving only children, youth, and families, or participants in the public mental health system, the Partnership is responsible for developing a comprehensive array of human services for all of Charles County’s citizens as well as monitoring and evaluating contracts for services, outcomes and results provided by the county and private human services.
Except for advocacy and information and referral services, the Partnership does not provide human services directly, but contracts with public and private agencies to provide a variety of services for which the Partnership has received funding. As well, it provides technical assistance to interested human service agencies to help them incorporate best practices in their ongoing work and to evaluate the results achieved.
The Partnership is funded through local, state and federal sources. The two main funding agencies are the Governor’s Office for Children and the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Each year, the Partnership receives approximately $3.3 million to support community-based programs.
The Human Services Partnership’s mission is to improve the quality of life for Charles County citizens by ensuring that human service programs are plentiful, accessible, and excellent. Working with citizens, government, public and private human service agencies, the Partnership strives to make Charles County a place where:
Babies are born healthy
Children are physically and mentally healthy
Children are ready for school
Children succeed in school
Children complete school
Families are stable and economically independent
Citizens are safe in their families and communities
Adults are physically and mentally healthy
Communities support family life
To these ends, as a whole the HSP:
- identifies the community’s needs and strengths;
- promotes the use of documented best practices by local human service providers;
- maximizes existing resources through collaboration and systems reform;
- designs new programs aimed at filling gaps in service;
- acquires funding to implement those programs; and
- monitors and evaluates programs to ensure that they achieve results.
Along the way, the HSP facilitates collaborative problem-solving, engages in community-wide strategic planning, and offers technical assistance to agencies in the areas of clinical services, grant writing, program development and evaluation.
Underlying these activities is a commitment to family-focused services that prioritize prevention and early intervention. We are equally dedicated to continuous quality assessment. Only through rigorous program evaluation can we learn how to tailor our services to meet the unique needs of Charles County citizens.
The Partnership is governed by a Board of Directors that advises the County Commissioners on matters affecting human services. The Board is made up of 16 community members. Of these sixteen, nine shall be public sector members representing each of the following:
- the Department of Social Services,
- the Department of Juvenile Justice,
- the Board of Education,
- the Health Department,
- the Sheriff’s Office,
- the Charles County Government,
- the Charles County Developmental Disabilities Administration
- A Representative of the local court system (circuit or district), and
- Local public mental health advisory or advocacy,
In addition, two citizens/consumers representing children, youth, and families serve on the board, as do two consumers/citizens representing mental health. Two people representing human service agencies serve as well. One seat on the Board is reserved for a citizen at large.
The Office of the Human Services Partnership consisting of a staff of nine carries out the Partnership’s mission on a day-to-day basis. It includes two managers, two administrative assistants, and five staff dedicated to program development and evaluation.
Programs Funded by the
Charles County Human Services Partnership
After School Youth Development
Community Education Training
Community Services Initiative
Consumer Support
Deaf Interpretation
Department of Juvenile Services Mental Health Assessors
Family Intervention Specialist
Healthy Families Charles County
Healthy Start
Jail Case Management
Jail Mental Health
Local Coordinating Council
Peer Support
Program to Assist Transition from Homelessness (PATH)
Shelter Plus Care
Rental Assistance
Therapeutic Foster Care
Transition-Age Youth Independent Living
Transition-Age Youth Independent Living (MISA))
Transportation
Youth Services Bureau
