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Lake County approves two grants for human services: translation training and private support for economic-security team
Summary
The commissioners approved a CDPHE grant to train bilingual DHS staff in technical interpretation and a two-year private grant from Gary Community Ventures to support the county's economic security team and offset staff costs.
The Lake County Board of County Commissioners unanimously accepted two grants on March 4 to support Department of Human Services operations.
Why this matters: Both grants support direct client services. One pays for interpretation and translation certification training for bilingual DHS staff who work on technically complex programs (child welfare and child support). The other is a two-year private grant intended to stabilize economic-security staffing and improve application-processing capacity.
The first grant, from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, covers interpretation training for bilingual DHS staff. Lauren Snyder, presenting for DHS, said federal and state mandates are increasingly requiring certified interpretation for technical benefits programs; the state-funded grant, about $7,800, will cover certification and carries no county match.
The second award is a private, no-match grant from Gary Community Ventures (a private foundation). It is $50,000 per year for two years and will be used to offset staffing costs and bring technical assistance to the county's economic security team, Snyder said. DHS staff told the board the arrangement will allow them to preserve federal program funds and improve internal processes for applications.
Action taken: The board approved both grants unanimously. Commissioners said the grants address immediate staff training needs and help the county comply with state interpretation requirements while enhancing local service delivery.
Ending note: DHS said it will use the interpretation grant promptly and work to expend the funds by June, and that the Gary Community Ventures funds will be used to strengthen staffing and process improvements.
