CEFS Economic Opportunity Corporation

Low income home energy assistance program (liheap):liheap is designed to assist eligible low-income households pay for their utility services. Liheap will provide a one-time benefit to income eligible households to help reduce the burden of their energy costs. Reconnection assistance is also provided to qualifying households that have been disconnected or are in imminent danger of disconnection. Additionally, the program provides emergency furnace repair or replacement for income eligible homeowners that have inoperable furnaces.eligible ameren customers are offered a choice between traditional liheap program benefit and participation in the percentage of income payment plan (pipp). Pipp provides low and fixed-income customers a better way to manage their home energy costs through fixed monthly payments, arrearage reduction credits, client education, and energy conservation. Pipp can help break the cycle of disconnection and reconnection leading to improved health and safety for participants.ameren customers that are between 200% - 300% of poverty or 80% of a county's area median income (ami) may qualify for a matching grant program called warm neighbors/cool friends. Funding for this program is provided through ameren's energy assistance foundation. Energy savings education is also provided to customers through a series of ameren and agency sponsored events that provide participants with energy conservation information and kits.funding for liheap is provided by the u.s. department of health and human services and the state of Illinois. Funds are distributed by the Illinois department of commerce & Economic Opportunity (dceo) office of community assistance (oca). Pipp is funded with state utility assistance funds distributed by dceo.

Workforce innovation and Opportunity act program:the workforce innovation and Opportunity act program provides activities that increase employment, retention, earnings, and skills in the american workforce. The c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Wioa program serves thirteen counties in Illinois workforce area #23. Workforce innovation and Opportunity act programs include youth, adult, dislocated worker, and trade adjustment act. Customers of the program are able to easily receive a preliminary assessment of their skill levels, aptitudes, abilities, and support service needs. Customers can obtain information on a full array of employment related services. The workforce centers also offer job search and placement assistance, career counseling, and up-to-date labor market information which identifies job vacancies, skills necessary for in-demand jobs, and provides information about local, regional, and national employment trends. Individuals who need more intensive help to become employed can receive more comprehensive assessments, development of employment plans, group and individual counseling, case management, and short-term pre-vocational services. In some cases, qualified customers may receive training services such as on the job training, tuition assistance, work experience, and supportive services which are directly linked to job opportunities in their local area.wioa youth services focus on assisting out-of-school youth and in-school youth, with one or more barriers to employment, prepare for employment and postsecondary education opportunities; attain educational and/or skills training credentials; and secure employment with career opportunities. The youth program offers youth training services, paid work experience, on-the-job training, job readiness training, supportive services, leadership skills, resume development, job search assistance, follow-up services and classroom training.development, job search assistance, and classroom training.grant funding is provided by the us department of labor through a block grant administered by the Illinois department of commerce and Economic Opportunity, office of employment and training and lake land college / Illinois local workforce area 23.

Head start 0-5:head start is a federally funded program which has been in existence since 1965. The c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Head start 0-5 program offers center-based (half and full day classroom sessions) services to preschool children and home-based services to pregnant women, infants, and toddlers in c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation's seven county service area.eligibility is largely income-based, although other eligibility criteria such as disabilities and services needed by the family are also used to determine acceptance into the program. Families must earn at or less than 100% of the federal poverty level. Families may also qualify under a categorical eligibility category (receipt of snap or tanf funds, supplemental security funds, or homelessness as per the mckinney-vento act). Up to 10% of the program's enrollment can be from higher income families or families experiencing emergency situations. The program is required to provide services to children with disabilities who must comprise 10% of the total enrollment. The head start 0-5 program provides comprehensive early childhood education, health and developmental screenings, parent involvement opportunities, and family socializations. Head start promotes school preparation by enhancing the social and cognitive development of children through the provision of educational, health, nutritional, social, and other services. The program's services and resources are designed to foster stable family relationships, enhance children's physical and emotional well-being, and establish an environment to develop strong cognitive skills. The head start philosophy is to provide all children with individualized care and guidance in reaching their potential.grant funding for the c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Head start 0-5 program is provided by the us dept. Of health and human services, under the administration for children and families, office of head start. The program also receives funding for meals served to participants under the child and adult care food program administered by the Illinois state board of education and funded by the us dept. Of agriculture.

Central Illinois public transit program:rural transportation - c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Central Illinois public transit and effingham county public transportation programs are federal and state funded public transportation systems operating in clay, christian, effingham, fayette, shelby, moultrie, and montgomery counties. The Illinois department of transportation provides operating assistance for public transportation in non-urbanized areas. Additional financial support for the system comes from fares, contracts, title iii funding through area agencies on aging, (area agency on aging agelinc and midland area agency on aging), Illinois department of human services, and through donations from municipalities. Shelby county serves as the grant recipient and c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation serves as the administrator and service provider for clay, christian, fayette, montgomery, moultrie, and shelby counties under the name central Illinois public transit. Effingham county is the grant recipient and c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Is the administrator and service provider under the name effingham county public transportation. Ridership is open to the public, there are no qualification requirements to utilize the service. The program operates on a demand response basis. Monthly passes and ticket books are available for purchase at discounted rates and seniors 60+ ride on a suggested donation basis for in county transportation needs. Payment is also accepted through medicaid and modivcare for non-emergency medical transportation needs. Meals on wheels:meals on wheels - the meals on wheels of c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Program provides nutritionally balanced meals on a donation basis to people who are 60 years of age and older and their spouses. There are no income guidelines or any restrictions besides the age limit. Educational, informational, and social activities are available in addition to nutrition. Meals are served on a reservation basis. Meals on wheels of c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Operates seventeen sites in the five counties of clay, effingham, fayette, christian, and montgomery. The program is funded through the administration on aging including title iii funding through the area agencies on aging (agelinc and midland area agency on aging), local united way agencies, and participant contributions. There are two components to our meals on wheels of c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. : congregate meals where seniors share a nutritious meal and enjoy activities and fellowship at a nutrition site, and home delivered meals where meals are delivered to homebound seniors. A nutritious meal along with a daily check are benefits of home delivered meals.senior insurance counseling:senior insurance counseling - ship is a health insurance counseling service sponsored by c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation within the counties of clay, effingham, fayette, christian and montgomery. The program is provided by funding from the Illinois department on aging (idoa) and is for medicare eligible beneficiaries and their caregivers. Ship counselors are trained to educate consumers and answer questions about medicare, medicare supplement, long term care insurance, medicare hmos, ppos, private fee-for-service and other health insurance. Ship counselors assist consumers with analyzing medicare part d plans, medicare supplement plans and long-term care policies. Additionally, ship counselors assist with filing medicare and medicare supplement claims. With the assistance provided by ship counselors, medicare beneficiaries and their caregivers will gain information needed to make educated decisions about their health insurance needs. Shap offices provide assistance filling out applications for the following programs: benefits access (ba) (state license plate discount), medicare part d, extra help/low income subsidy (lis) (assistance in paying for medicare part d costs), medicare savings programs (msp) (assistance paying for part a & b premiums, deductibles and co-pays), medicare part b prevention and wellness benefits, medicaid (assistance for the aged (65 or older), the blind or people with disabilities (aabd)), supplemental social security (ssi) (for the aabd). Shap also provides information on programs and services that help senior citizens to remain living independently in their own homes and many other programs that are available to the aged, blind or disabled population.

Weatherization & housing programs:home weatherization programs - the Illinois home weatherization assistance program is offered as a free service to income eligible applicants within the counties of christian, clay, effingham, fayette, montgomery, moultrie, and shelby. The weatherization program provides energy saving measures to the home which could include insulation, air sealing, caulking, weather-stripping, broken glass replacement, and windows/door repair or replacement for eligible applicants. Eligibility determination is based on twelve month income verification, homeownership documentation (homeowner or landlord), and a copy of a fuel bill. Funding is provided through the Illinois department of commerce and Economic Opportunity, department of energy, and the department of health and human services. The weatherization program also offers retrofit, repairs, and/or replacement of the heating unit in the eligible applicant's home. A qualified weatherization assessor will check the unit for safety. If the existing heating unit is hazardous and cannot be repaired, a higher efficiency furnace or heater may be installed. Various studies by the state have shown that these weatherization measures reduce energy costs on an average of 25% to 30%. Recipients are therefore able to devote a larger percentage of their incomes to other essential needs.community service block grant:community services block grant - c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation provides outreach and referral services in our field offices in the seven county service area. Staff members at the local offices are trained in basic information and referral to assist with problems relative to social services. The staff provide intensive case management services to individuals and families. The local c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Outreach office personnel are usually the first contact made with the agency for assistance. Some major programs offered directly by the offices are liheap, weatherization, tax assistance, emergency food and shelter, budgeting, literacy, senior services, and housing counseling. If the outreach staff cannot assist directly, a referral will be made to other programs and providers. The community services block grant program is funded by the Illinois department of commerce and Economic opportunity.literacy programs:adult volunteer literacy - many Illinois adults have limited incomes because of their poor skills in reading, writing, math, or english proficiency. The c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Learning center is committed to providing adult literacy program services that will enable participants to fully participate in their family, work, and community roles. The c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Learning center administers adult literacy, ged preparation, and english as a second language programs that provide basic adult literacy instruction to enhance reading, writing, math, or english proficiency for qualifying program participants. The learning center utilizes certified volunteers to administer one-on-one tutoring sessions which are designed specifically for the needs of the learners. Volunteers receive fifteen hours of training through the c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Literacy coordinator and the secretary of state through a series of trainings and workshops to become certified tutors. There are no guidelines associated with the programs and the services are provided free of charge. The program is funded through the community services block grant program and the secretary of state/illinois state library literacy office.rsvp program:retired senior volunteer program - the purpose of the retired and senior volunteer program is to create meaningful opportunities for persons of retirement age, 55 years of age or older, to participate more fully in the life of their community or nearby communities through volunteer service. Volunteer service can be in non-profit agencies, schools, day care centers, nursing homes, libraries, etc. No matter what their experience, education, income, skills or profession, volunteers are needed. Rsvp members are active in clay, effingham, fayette, shelby, moultrie, christian, and montgomery counties. The retired and senior volunteer program is funded by americorps, the Illinois department on aging and local united way agencies.housing counseling:housing counseling - the purpose of the c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Housing counseling program is to assist residents in meeting their housing needs and solving their housing problems. Low and moderate-income households receive priority assistance. C.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation is a u.s. department of housing and urban development, certified housing counseling agency. Outreach offices have professional staff who are hud certified counselors and have received certifications through neighborworks america. Housing counselors provide in-depth housing counseling in the following areas: pre-purchase, pre-rental, mortgage default, rental delinquency, post occupancy, energy conservation, housing consumer education, displacement and relocation, information, and referrals. Funding is provided by the department of housing and urban development through housing action Illinois.

Homeless assistance programs:rapid re-housing program - the rapid re-housing program is designed to help those living in the street, places not meant for human habitation, or in emergency shelters move into an apartment or other permanent housing. Supportive services in the form of budgeting, benefit enrollment, referrals, and case management will be provided. Participants are required to meet with case managers to continue our rental assistance, but no other restrictions are placed on them. The intent of the program is to reduce the amount of time a person is homeless, assist them in acquiring the skills necessary to remain housed, and minimize the chances of participants returning to homelessness. Services will be available throughout the c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation service area of clay, effingham, fayette, shelby, moultrie, montgomery, and christian counties. Funding is provided by the department of housing and urban development. C.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Participates in the south central Illinois continuum of care to facilitate comprehensive services to the homeless population. The rapid re-housing program is a competitive grant through the south central Illinois continuum of care that receives funding from the department of housing and urban development.rental housing support program - the c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Rental housing support program (rhsp) promotes permanent housing through the funding of rent subsidies for rent burdened extremely and severely low-income households. The program will provide rental assistance to households but will not pay for things such as security deposits, emergency rental assistance, or other costs with housing. The Illinois housing development authority has contracted with the Illinois association of community action agencies to contract with local community action agencies such as c.e.f.sCefs.f.s. To manage and operate the program in our service area. C.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Will work with local landlords to provide units and will accept applications from potential tenants. Eligible tenants who live in the units need to be low-income and cannot be getting assistance from another source. The program is funded by the Illinois housing development authority.permanent supportive housing program - the permanent supportive housing program is funded through the u.s. department of housing and urban development (hud) and provides the funding for five rental units in our seven county service area for those having a disability. Priority is given to the chronically homeless but units will be filled to homeless individuals with at least one family member with a documented disability. Extensive case management will be provided in order to assist the households in securing necessary resources to keep them housed.emergency solutions grant program - the emergency solutions grant (esg) program is designed to identify homeless individuals and provide necessary services to help those persons quickly regain stability in permanent housing. The grant is authorized by the mckinney-vento homeless assistance act and is funded through the u.s. department of housing and urban development. The Illinois department of human services is responsible for administering the esg program at the state level. C.e.f.sCefs.f.s. Utilizes esg funds to locate permanent housing for the homeless individual/household and provide financial assistance for rent, security deposit, and utilities. Participants receive case management including housing counseling, budget counseling, and goal setting to help improve their current housing situation.dhs housing assistance programs - dhs provides funding to outreach for three grants: homeless prevention, emergency solutions grant homeless prevention and emergency and transitional housing. Homeless prevention grants provide rental assistance to those facing eviction to help maintain the current home or obtain new housing. To receive homeless prevention assistance, individuals must show an ability to financial sustain the rent on their own after one-time grant assistance. Emergency and transitional housing provides hotel assistance to homeless individuals and families along with food assistance until permanent housing can be obtained.supportive housing program - our goal is to work with the homeless population in their attempt to stabilize their current situation, provide Opportunity for growth and development, and to obtain and retain long-term stable housing and become self-sufficient. Supportive services needed for the homeless to stabilize may include shelter, food, clothing, literacy training, vocational training, education, work experience opportunities, transportation, mental health counseling, physical health remedies, family counseling, and drug and alcohol rehabilitation. Participant needs are determined through a needs assessment to determine what is needed to gain stability. Supportive housing funds are administered by the Illinois department of human services.digital navigation - the goal of digital navigation is to assist households and individuals gain access to internet and devices as well as develop skills to successfully use the internet and electronic devices including pcs, tablets, and smartphones. This program offers workshops and one-on-one skills classes. Additionally, the program can assist participants in obtaining devices and internet subsidies as necessary. There are no income guidelines for this program. Each person seeking assistance will complete an intake and an assessment to help determine what services will be provided that will lead to the ability to access and operate devices and the internet. The program is funded by the Illinois association of community action agencies.