Richard Calica Brings Years of Leadership, Social Work Experience to DCFS

CHICAGO - November 23, 2011. Governor Quinn today announced the appointment of Richard Calica as director of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) beginning Dec. 15. Calica is a lifelong social worker with extensive leadership experience in serving children and families throughout the state. A national authority in child welfare and licensed clinical social worker, Calica offers broad expertise in family preservation and support.

"We are committed to ensuring that the children of Illinois have the support and protection they need to become healthy, productive and responsible adults," Governor Quinn said. "Richard Calica's decades of experience in caring for neglected and abused children bolster our efforts towards building a better future for all Illinois children."

"All children deserve the opportunity to grow up in a healthy environment with strong support systems," Richard Calica said. "It is my highest priority to ensure the safety of our children and I am honored to accept this new mission to help and protect children who are abused and neglected."

Richard Calica currently leads the Chicago-based Juvenile Protective Association as executive director, a position he has held for 33 years. In addition to having maintained a private Clinical Social Work practice, Calica has served on the faculty of the Institute for Clinical Social Work and at the Loyola University of Chicago School of Social Work.

Calica served as chairman of the Governor's Task Force on Family Preservation from 1993-1994 under Governor Jim Edgar and currently serves as chair of the DCFS Risk Assessment Advisory Committee. He previously worked at mental health centers and as an instructor at the University of Chicago School Of Social Administration. Calica currently serves on numerous committees related to social work and child welfare.

Calica holds a master's degree in social work from the University of Chicago and completed a post graduate fellowship in clinical social work at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center Division of Psychiatry. He acquired his bachelor's degree in psychology from Brooklyn College. He is a past president of the Child Care Association of Illinois and has served as a consultant for numerous leading child welfare organizations.

DCFS and its private sector partners have safely reduced the number of children in foster care from more than 52,000 in 1997 to less than 15,500 today. The department focus on strengthening families is central to maintaining the safety of youth in state care and the health of the communities they come from. For more information about DCFS, please visit www.state.il.us/dcfs/index.shtml.

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Joins Volunteers at Greater Chicago Food Depository

CHICAGO - November 22, 2011. Governor Pat Quinn today joined volunteers with the Greater Chicago Food Depository to encourage support of food pantries across Illinois this holiday season. According to Feeding Illinois, the state's eight food banks serve approximately 1.4 million individuals per year with 42 percent being children.

The holiday season is a time to be thankful for what we have and to give back to our less fortunate neighbors," Governor Quinn said. "I encourage people as they shop for their holiday meals to include a few items to donate to the members of our communities who are in need."

The Greater Chicago Food Depository is a nonprofit food distribution center that provides food to more than 142,000 people each week through a network of 650 soup kitchens, food pantries and shelters. For more information about current needs and other ways to assist in the Chicago area, visit www.chicagofoodbank.org.

Citizens throughout the state can help their local food banks by visiting www.FeedingIllinois.org where they can find information about hunger in their communities, including a county by county breakdown of agencies served by regional food banks.

Earlier this year, Governor Quinn appointed 22 people to the Illinois Commission to End Hunger which will explore how Illinois' facilities may better coordinate and gain access to federal funding to meet those needs. It will indentify barriers to access and develop sustainable policies and programs to overcome those barriers. The commission will also promote and facilitate public-private partnerships to augment services.

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There are very few things that make an immediate and positive impact on a child's life. Having a warm winter coat not only keeps the child warm, but helps keep the child healthy, in school, and allows the child to play outside with other students. Warm winter coats support the physical, social and emotional needs of students. Last year, the Dr. David E. Lane Coats for Kids Program gave that gift to more than 3,300 children who would have had no protection from our cold Midwest winters. Along with coats, we provided 2,539 hats, 2,083 pairs of gloves, 144 scarves and 80 pairs of snow pants. The program was utilized by 99 area schools and 20 community agencies.

The Coats for Kids Program and Advisory Board includes volunteers from participating schools, businesses and the Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency (AEA).  Coats are collected, cleaned, sized and then packaged for distribution at individual schools.  The program serves schools in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois.

Donations of winter coats (new or used) may be taken to any Burke Cleaners location in the Quad Cities. All sizes, infant through adult, are accepted. Cash donations may now be made on our website at www.qcacoatsforkids.org or mailed to the Coats for Kids Program, in care of the Mississippi Bend AEA, 729 - 21st Street, Bettendorf, Iowa  52722. Coats for Kids is a 503.1 non-profit organization serving schools in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois. Donations are tax deductible.

For more information about Coats for Kids and how you can help please contact Denise Zimmer, Facilitator of Operations, at  dzimmer@aea9.k12.ia.us or 563-344-6320.

 

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In addition to this capital advance, three-year rental subsidy will help cover rent and operating costs

WASHINGTON - More very low-income senior citizens in Iowa will have access to affordable supportive housing thanks to $2.3 million in housing assistance announced today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). These funds will help non-profit organizations produce accessible housing, offer rental assistance, and facilitate supportive services for the elderly

The grant funding awarded under HUD's Sections 202 Supportive Housing program will kick start construction or major rehabilitation for more than 97 housing developments in 42 different states and Puerto Rico.  In Iowa, 15 additional elderly households will be affordably housed with access to needed services in Burlington where "West Central Illinois Area Agency on Aging" was awarded $2,147,500.

"The Obama Administration is committed to helping our senior citizens find a decent, affordable place to live that is close to needed healthcare services and transportation," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan.  "Recent bipartisan changes to HUD's supportive housing programs will allow us to better serve some of our more vulnerable populations who would otherwise be struggling to find a safe and decent home of their own."

In Burlington, the capital advance funds will be used to construct a single story 15 unit facility and an additional $156,300 three-year HUD rental subsidy will help cover rent and operating costs.  The one-bedroom units will feature adjustable height shelving, lever handles and be designed for wheelchair adaptability.  The project is in close proximity to a grocery store, wellness center, and other desirable neighborhood amenities.  Residents will have access to a daily door-to-door transport service.

Enacted early this year with strong bipartisan support, the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act and the Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Act provided needed enhancements and reforms to HUD's programs.  Nonprofit grant recipients will now receive federal assistance that is better connected to state and local health care investments, allowing greater numbers of vulnerable elderly individuals to access the housing they need even more quickly.

Section 202 Capital Advances will provide $545 million nationwide to 97 projects in 42 States and Puerto.  In addition to funding the construction, acquisition, and rehabilitation of multifamily developments, HUD's Section 202 program will also provide $54 million in rental assistance so that residents only pay 30 percent of their adjusted incomes.  Section 202 provides very low-income elderly persons 62 years of age or older with the opportunity to live independently in an environment that provides support services to frail elderly resident.

HUD provides these funds to non-profit organizations in two forms:

 

• Capital Advances.  This is funding that covers the cost of developing, acquiring, or rehabilitating the development.  Repayment is not required as long as the housing remains available for occupancy by very low-income elderly persons for at least 40 years.

• Project Rental Assistance Contracts.  This is funding that goes to each development to cover the difference between the residents' contributions toward rent and the cost of operating the project.

 

Residents must be "very low income" with household incomes less than 50 percent of their median for that area.  However, most households that receive Section 202 assistance earn less than 30 percent of the median for their area.  Generally, this means that a one-person household will have an annual income of about $13,500.

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