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 with 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 us 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.

Central Illinois public transit program:c.e.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. 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. Medicaid payment is also accepted through first transit, mtm, and modivcare for non-emergency medical transportation needs.the us and Illinois depts. Of transportation provide operating assistance for public transportation in non-urbanized areas. Additional financial support for the system comes from service contracts, title iiib funding through area agencies on aging, (agelinc and midland area agency on aging), Illinois dept. 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. In addition to demand response service, effingham county public transportation operates a deviated route within the effingham city limits.

Head start 0-5:head start is a federally funded program which has been in existence since 1965. The Cefs 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 Cefs 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 Cefs 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:c.e.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. 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. Medicaid payment is also accepted through first transit, mtm, and modivcare for non-emergency medical transportation needs.meals on wheels:meals on wheels - the mow of Cefs 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 the nutrition program. Meals are served on a reservation basis. Mow of Cefs operates sixteen 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 meals on wheels: (1) congregate meals where seniors share a nutritious meal and enjoy activities and fellowship at a nutrition site and (2) home delivered meals where meals are delivered to homebound seniors.senior insurance counseling:senior counseling - ship is a health insurance counseling service sponsored by Cefs Economic Opportunity Corporation within the counties of clay, effingham, fayette, christian and montgomery. The program is provided with funding from the Illinois dept. 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 part d plans, medicare supplemental insurance, long-term care insurance, medicare hmo's, ppo's, private fee-for-service and other health insurance options. Additionally, ship counselors assist with filing medicare and medicare supplement claims and appeals. Shap counseling provides assistance filling out applications for the following programs: benefits access (baa) license plate discount), 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, blind or people with disabilities (aabd), supplemental social security (ssi). Shap also provides information on other 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 - 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 and safety upgrades to the home which could include insulation, air sealing, caulking, weather-stripping, broken glass replacement, and windows/door repair or replacement, efficient refrigerator upgrades and gas range oven cleaning or upgrade for eligible applicants. Eligibility determination is based on income verification, homeownership documentation (homeowner or landlord), and a copy of a fuel bill. Funding is provided through the Illinois dept. Of commerce and Economic Opportunity, dept. Of energy, and the dept. Of health and human services as well as ameren weatherization funding and the federal home loan program. 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 by an average of 25% to 30%, allowing recipients to devote a larger percentage of their incomes to other essential needs.community service block grant:community services block grant - Cefs 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 related to social services. The staff provide intensive case management services to individuals and families. The local Cefs 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 is made to other programs and providers. Csbg is funded by the Illinois dept. 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 Cefs 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 Cefs 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 Cefs literacy coordinator and the secretary of state through a series of training courses and workshops to become certified tutors. There are no income guidelines associated with the programs and the services are provided free of charge. The program is funded through the csbg program and the Illinois secretary of state library literacy office.rsvp programs:retired senior volunteer program the purpose of rsvp is to create meaningful opportunities for persons 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. 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 dept. On aging and local united way agencies.housing counseling:housing counseling - the purpose of the Cefs 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. Cefs Economic Opportunity Corporation is a us dept. Of housing and urban development certified housing counseling agency. Outreach offices have professional staff who are hud certified counselors and have received certifications through neighbor works 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 dept. Of housing and urban development through housing action Illinois.

Homeless assistance programs:rapid re-housing - 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 receiving 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 Cefs Economic Opportunity Corporation service area of clay, effingham, fayette, shelby, moultrie, montgomery, and christian counties. Funding is provided by the dept. Of housing and urban development. Cefs participates in the south-central Illinois continuum of care to facilitate comprehensive services to the homeless population.rental housing support program - the Cefs 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 Cefs to manage and operate the program in our service area. Cefs 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.permanent supportive housing - the permanent supportive housing program is funded through the us dept. 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 is provided in order to assist the households in securing necessary resources to keep them housed.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 us dept. Of housing and urban development. The Illinois dept. Of human services is responsible for administering the esg program at the state level. Cefs 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 six grants: homeless prevention, emergency solutions grant homeless prevention, shelter diversion, scattered site permanent supportive housing, emergency and transitional housing, and arpa supportive housing. Homeless prevention provides rental assistance to those facing eviction to help maintain their current home or obtain new housing. To receive homeless prevention assistance, individuals must show an ability to financially sustain the rent on their own after one-time grant assistance.