11. How has the agency partnered with faith-based and community organizations to assist older individuals and their families and meet home and community-based needs?
PCOA supports the Neighbors Care Alliance (NCA), which is a coalition of 15 neighborhood-based mutual aid programs throughout the county, by providing administrative support, assistance with program development, and resources. PCOA contracts and partners with several faith-based organizations including Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest, Catholic Community Services, and Interfaith Community Services. Additionally, PCOA partners with community organizations for a variety of services such as Congregate Meals, Healthy Living, Medicare presentations, and other programming. Some of those organizations include the City and County Senior Center and recreation centers, community food banks, neighborhood associations, and others.
12. Provide additional information as necessary.
PCOA offers a wider variety of services beyond what is required by the Older Americans Act. In addition to these services, common to AAAs across the nation, PCOA provides community-based services focused on end-of life-care, the Senior Companion program, a community-based mutual aid program called Neighbors Care Alliance, Visibility Matters, and other LGBTQ+ training initiatives, Dementia Capable Southern Arizona, Veterans Independence Plus, and other programs funded through the generosity of donors, private or corporate donors, or other governmental grants. In June 2020, PCOA made a commitment to clients, volunteers, staff, and the broader community to become more inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible to people in Pima County, especially those who identify in a marginalized community or a community of color. In August 2020, PCOA began working with Visceral Change, a consulting firm specializing in diversity, equity, and inclusion work in non-profit settings. To understand where to focus efforts, PCOA partnered with Visceral Change to conduct an internal and external evaluation of PCOA’s overall inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility. This evaluation consisted of four components: 1. Fifteen (15) focused interviews of staff from across all levels of the organization 2. An all- staff survey available to every member of PCOA’s staff and Board of Directors 3. An in- depth review of PCOA’s HR materials, policies, and procedures 4. An in- depth review of PCOA’s external communications (i.e., social media, marketing, website) The findings were delivered to PCOA in two reports: the first focusing on PCOA’s administrative capacity and external marketing, and the second on workplace culture as identified by staff. In addition to these reports, Visceral Change led three training courses for PCOA staff. Two training courses, Addressing Bias in the Workplace and Microaggressions, were delivered to all PCOA staff members in spring of 2021. The third training, Diversifying Your Hiring, was delivered to PCOA’s 30 -person management team.
In the fall of 2021, PCOA contracted with Unsiloed Consulting to conduct a cultural assessment and implement next steps. With Unsiloed’s help, PCOA has created and
Region II: PCOA
Area Plan 2024-2027
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