Local Continuum revisits committee structure to boost partner alignment and attendance

At a monthly meeting of Winston-Salem’s Continuum of Care commission, members discussed revisiting committee structure to reduce meeting fatigue and better align responsibilities across partner groups.

Jay Nelson Weaver, who represents family-services partners, urged a review of which meetings cover which operational and policy topics and encouraged participants to join the Continuum of Care cabinet (a citywide forum that meets every other month) or smaller committees that match their work. “So it’s a good time to revisit our committee structure, look at all the different meetings… and think about what is it we each group is trying to accomplish and who is best to be at what meeting,” Jay said.

Speakers noted past committees such as “Action Camp,” aimed at frontline providers handling HUD grant implementation, and recommended reviving targeted meetings for training and compliance matters. The group also discussed coordinating with new local collaboratives: Jay described a recent launch of a community organization, Forsyth Strong, which is interested in homelessness among other community issues.

Odette Jambos Sanchez said the Continuum will circulate the list of standing committees (including the Wholeness Caucus) and encourage partners to join the committee that best fits their capacity and subject-matter role. She described the Wholeness Caucus as a monthly forum that amplifies people with lived experience of homelessness.

The meeting did not result in formal restructuring; members asked staff to bring options and committee contact details to the July meeting so partners can pick appropriate roles and time commitments.