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Board approves $500,000 to Cal State Fullerton's Project Rebound to expand housing for justice‑impacted women
Summary
The board unanimously approved a $500,000 allocation from 4th District discretionary funds for Cal State Fullerton’s Project Rebound to create housing for women impacted by the justice system. Project Rebound speakers described student outcomes and the need for gender‑specific housing.
The Orange County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved supplemental item 37e on Dec. 3, allocating $500,000 from Fourth District discretionary funds to support Cal State Fullerton’s Project Rebound women’s housing initiative.
Vice Chair Doug Chaffee, who brought the item forward, said the program has expanded from primarily serving men to nearly equal numbers of women and that the county currently lacks a gender‑specific transitional housing facility. ‘‘We do have a special facility for men but not for women,’’ Chaffee told the board. ‘‘This is to help for that imbalance.’’
James (JC) Cabot (introduced by the clerk as James JC Cabot), executive director of Project Rebound at Cal State Fullerton, described the program’s outcomes: at Fullerton the program graduated 35 students in one year and the state consortium graduated approximately 500 formerly incarcerated students in the last academic year. Ingrid Garcia, Project Rebound’s juvenile justice outreach coordinator, explained the women’s initiative and described how housing stipends supported her own path to education and stability.
Supervisor Sarmiento and other board members praised Fullerton’s model and asked whether the funding source was federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money or district discretionary funds. Vice Chair Chaffee and Supervisor Foley explained that some offices used ARPA to reimburse general revenue loss and that remaining discretionary allocations are being used consistent with state and federal rules. The board discussed transparency on funding sources and called for clear notation on future items.
Supervisor Sarmiento and Supervisor Foley both emphasized that housing is a critical element of successful reentry and said the funding is expected to improve transitions and reduce recidivism. The item carried unanimously.
What’s next: County staff will finalize agreement terms and the Project Rebound housing initiative is expected to expand in early 2025; supervisors asked staff to clarify the funding source in the item record.
